Get Rid of Your Poor Excuses Once and For All

Part 2 of 4 - C.R.A.P. - How to Overcome Your Business Rationalizing

Man and Woman talking

Have you ever caught yourself making a statement like, “I don’t call on that customer because they only buy from big vendors.” Or maybe you’ve said, “I’m not going to bring that up in the meeting because she’ll just shoot it down again. She never appreciates my ideas.” Or maybe you’ve thought, “That guy needs to […]

3 Steps to Overcoming Catastrophizing

Don't let a false future control today

frustrated salesman

You were expecting a call from your prospect yesterday and it never came. Immediately, the speculation in your mind begins to torment you. “What happened? Why haven’t they called? What did I do wrong?” Every question points you toward a feeling of loss. This is the voice of resistance and it’s your first mental hurdle. […]

4 Mental Hurdles Preventing Your Success

And how to overcome them!

CTC Book Covers

I was introduced to Don Sanders through a mutual friend at lunch one day. Don and his co-author had written a book called Cut the C.R.A.P. and Resolve Your Problems.  Kinda catchy, isn’t it! As psychologists they found that many of their patients could solve their own problems if they could just get beyond 4 […]

How to Answer Questions like a Champ

3-Step model for constructing answers that sound amazing

Workplace meeting

I was sitting in a conference-room meeting with one of our customers just observing. One gentleman did not speak much, but when he did… everyone listened intently. I tried to figure out what he was doing with his responses and I found something! He was using a simple structure for each response. Now, I’m sure there […]

10 books worth reading in 2017

on Leadership, Communication, and Legacy

woman reading book

I was not always a reader. Some of my professors in college spoiled me a bit on reading by assigning 200 pages of textbook to read in 2 days. But, now I have an alternate opinion. When I find the right book, I can consume it in a day or two. Below is a list […]

Effective Slide Design for your PowerPoint Deck

Simple slide techniques to engage your audience

Kevin Karschnik is an amazing teacher and a great friend. I wanted to share his thoughts on visual aid design. We’ve all seen a speaker put every word they’re going to say on a slide and then proceed to read every slide to the audience. This is where the phrase “death by PowerPoint” was born.  Please […]

What is Truth to a Leader?

3 Characteristics of Truth We Can Apply to Leadership

truth and justice

I bet you didn’t think I’d drop that deep question on you so early in the morning! Don’t worry, I’m not going to get all philosophical here on you. Pondering an answer to this question could take a couple lifetimes! So, let me tell you why I bring it up… It’s the foundation for anyone in […]

Why is everyone on their smartphones instead of listening to me?

Are you making these 4 classic speaker mistakes?

business man with smartphone

When I walked into my training room, one student was already there. He looked up and asked, “Are we gonna cover smartphones? You know when you’re up there speaking and the audience is on their smartphone. Isn’t that just rude? I mean… how do I handle that when I’m the speaker?” I’m waiting for him to […]

4 Ways to Visually Engage Your Audience

Part 2 of 3 - Leveraging the "Power of Different"

baseball batter

I’ve heard people say that our keen visual perception dates back to our early ancestors’ need for survival. “What was that movement I saw out of the corner of my eye? Was it a saber-toothed tiger?” Whether it was used for survival eons ago or not, we can all agree, we still use it today. Look […]

Choices with consequences