Explore every episode of the podcast Leadership that sells

More revenue doesn’t automatically mean you’ve built a more valuable business. I want to know what you’re keeping, whether it runs without you and whether you’ve done anything more than make yourself a job.

Steve Harmon returned to his family’s business and found hundreds of thousands in liabilities missing from the books, plus cheques they couldn’t afford to send. I get into why he bought the warehouses the business operated, why doubling headcount isn’t scaling, and why an accountant says you can’t run a business by the numbers. We finish with the questions experienced leaders should be asking, and what it means to lead by serving and teaching.

Here’s what I’d put to work:

• Build a repeatable process and a team that can deliver without you.
• Review the rent and other recurring costs leaving the business. Ask where owning the underlying asset could make sense.
• Before calling it a sales problem, check the asset, the location and the service customers actually receive.
• Stop treating headcount as proof of scale. Hire for quality, set a clear goal and clear the crap out of people’s way.
• Prepare the next generation by teaching and asking better questions, rather than staying at the centre of every decision.

[05:52] Have you built a valuable business, or just made yourself a job?

[06:52] I follow the rent: how paying a landlord became paying down an asset.

[10:50] My objection to headcount as proof of scale: “no, mate, you just hired people.”

[13:28] You can’t sell last month’s empty space. Why Steve’s warehouse business works like a hotel.

[18:24] An accountant reminds me that my team doesn’t care how much money I make. They want to know their work matters.

[25:56] My value has shifted from what I can do to the questions I know how to ask.

[28:34] Lead like Jesus: our conversation comes back to putting others first and teaching them to teach.

• spartanlogistics.com : the website Steve shares for contacting him, his team and the wider group of businesses.
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/steve-harmon-04a7864/ 
• on X: @spartanprez 

Thanks for listening. I’d appreciate a rating and a review; follow the show and share this episode with a founder or MD who’s working flat out but wondering what they’re actually building.

One of the biggest mistakes founders make is believing their business will be valued for what it means to them. It won't. Buyers pay for predictable cash flow and reduced risk, not emotional attachment. That's why this conversation with Saul Cohen matters.

We unpacked what really drives business value before an acquisition, why so many founders accidentally damage their exit, and the commercial disciplines that genuinely increase enterprise value. If you're building with an eventual exit in mind, this episode is well worth your time.

If you want to build a business that's worth more tomorrow than it is today, start here.

• Build systems that reduce dependency on you.
• Turn founder-led selling into a repeatable commercial engine.
• Treat culture as a business asset, not a soft skill.
• Understand how buyers think long before you decide to sell.
• Focus on reducing risk as aggressively as increasing revenue.

• 01:36 The most expensive leadership blind spot before an exit is usually the founder's own ego.
• 11:03 Business value is driven by cash generation multiplied by perceived risk.
• 13:20 Saul introduces the SCORE framework for increasing enterprise value.
• 15:50 Founder-led sales eventually become a valuation problem.
• 19:24 Why most founders are unconsciously competent and why that makes scaling harder.
• 24:49 The emotional mistake that destroys value during an exit.
• 30:20 Saul explains his people-first approach to acquisitions and private equity.

• Saul Cohen Linkedin : https://www.linkedin.com/in/cohensaul/ Website : https://theexperteye.co.uk/
• Free business valuation call  https://api.leadconnectorhq.com/widget/booking/2vJaGhCvAJxnEB4OntBb

Thanks for listening to Leadership That Sells. If you found this episode useful, please follow the podcast, leave a review, and share it with another founder, MD or senior commercial leader who is building a business for long-term value. Your support helps more of the right people discover the show.

Everyone talks about scaling. Far fewer people actually do it.

In this conversation with Doug Levy, we unpack what real operational scale looks like. Not adding people because revenue is growing, but building a business where productivity outpaces payroll. We also get into why founders become the bottleneck, why poor hiring quietly destroys EBITDA long before anyone notices, and why disciplined systems create freedom instead of bureaucracy.

Here's what I'd take away from this conversation.

• Stop delegating tasks and start delegating problems.
• Build systems that allow good people to operate without your constant intervention.
• Scale revenue through operational discipline before adding headcount.
• Hire with discipline because poor hiring quietly destroys profit long before it shows up in the numbers.
• Reward the behaviours you actually want repeated across the business.

01:30 The biggest operational lie founders tell themselves.

03:18 Why delegating problems beats delegating tasks.

07:45 What real scaling actually looks like and why hiring more people isn't the answer.

10:48 The leadership challenge of turning generalists into specialists.

15:10 Why poor hiring quietly destroys EBITDA years before leaders notice.

20:20 The hardest leadership lesson is usually found in the mirror.

24:08 The leadership principle every organisation eventually reflects.

• Doug Levy
• Doug Services
• Doug's workshops and webinars 

If you enjoyed this episode, I'd really appreciate it if you followed the show, left a rating and shared it with another founder, MD or senior commercial leader who is trying to build a business that scales without unnecessary complexity. Thanks for listening, and I'll see you in the next episode

Most strategies don't fail because the idea was wrong. They fail because nobody properly translated the idea into execution.

In this conversation with Crispin Thompson, we got into the uncomfortable gap between strategy and results. We talked about why leaders keep looking for technology to solve process problems, why shiny new initiatives kill momentum, and why some of the best turnarounds come from discipline rather than transformation. If you're responsible for growth, change, or commercial performance, there's a lot in here worth paying attention to.

The question I kept coming back to was simple: how do you turn a good idea into a result?

• Define what success actually looks like before you launch anything
• Bring the people closest to the work into the conversation earlier than feels comfortable
• Fix broken processes before you automate them
• Measure progress relentlessly so you can defend investment and maintain focus
• Resist the temptation to abandon good work for the next shiny initiative

• 06:58 Why asking "what can we do consistently?" unlocked a turnaround that others thought was impossible
• 09:09 The uncomfortable truth: the turnaround succeeded through rigour, not technology
• 10:55 Why AI doesn't fix bad processes. It scales them
• 15:07 The simplest strategy question most leadership teams never answer properly: what does good look like?
• 22:19 Every dip in performance gets blamed on change unless you're ahead of the story
• 26:06 The leadership behaviour that quietly destroys execution: turning "we" into "I"
• 30:51 Crispin's billboard message: you almost never get what you don't ask for

• The Human Advantage: Emotional Intelligence in the Age of AI by Crispin Thompson
• Crispin Thompson https://www.linkedin.com/in/crispinthompson/
• Crispin's leadership advisory business http://www.leadership-studio.com/

If you found this conversation useful, follow the show, leave a review, and share it with another founder, MD, or senior commercial leader who is trying to turn strategy into results. It helps more people find the podcast, and it helps us keep having conversations that go beyond the usual leadership clichés.

The more senior you become, the more dangerous certainty gets. That's the idea at the heart of this conversation with Dr Debra Clary. Most leaders are rewarded for having answers. The problem is that eventually the answers become the thing that limits the business.

What struck me most was the distinction between confidence and certainty. Confidence helps leaders make decisions. Certainty shuts down debate, curiosity, innovation, and often performance. We talked about why employee engagement is collapsing, how leaders accidentally train curiosity out of organisations, and why the businesses that keep asking better questions outperform those that think they've already found the answers.

A reminder that your job isn't to have all the answers.

• Bring the people closest to the problem into the conversation before making decisions
• Delegate problems, not tasks
• Create confidence without pretending to have certainty
• Build a culture where new ideas are welcomed instead of defended against
• Ask better questions because answers are increasingly becoming a commodity

• 03:20 Why the best executives listen differently when the pressure is highest
• 05:35 The alarming message disengaged employees are sending leadership teams
• 08:20 How organisations systematically train curiosity out of people
• 11:10 Why AI makes questions more valuable than answers
• 12:40 The leadership trap of looking confident by sounding certain
• 18:55 The founder who discovered he was the reason innovation had stalled
• 23:05 What AI might be doing to our ability to think for ourselves

• • https://www.debraclary.com/
  • https://www.debraclary.com/the-curiosity-curve

Curiosity sounds soft until you realise how many business problems start when people stop asking questions. If you enjoyed this conversation, follow the show, leave a review, and share it with another founder, MD, or senior leader who might benefit from hearing it.

Most of the AI conversation is happening at the wrong level. We're debating tools, prompts and productivity hacks when the real question is much older and much harder: what does it mean to be human?

In this conversation with Dr Tamara Patzer, we explored AI visibility, trust, leadership and why discernment matters more than ever. We talked about the shift from a visibility economy to what Tamara calls a selection economy, where AI increasingly decides what gets surfaced. But the thread that kept coming back was this: leaders who outsource their judgement will struggle, while leaders who strengthen it will thrive.

If you're serious about leading in an AI-powered world:

• Learn the difference between being visible and being selected
• Use AI to challenge your thinking, not validate it
• Build trust through experience, judgement and human presence
• Stop delegating critical conversations to AI proxies
• Develop the discernment needed to separate useful suggestions from noise

• 04:09 Why Tamara believes we're leaving the visibility economy and entering the selection economy
• 08:21 My biggest concern with AI: tools that flatter us make poor thinking feel intelligent
• 12:14 The practical prompt Tamara uses to force AI to expose weaknesses in her ideas
• 14:33 Why the best AI users are often the most deeply grounded in philosophy, rhetoric and critical thinking
• 21:27 The controversial case against sending AI proxies to meetings and webinars
• 27:36 Why nobody is actually being replaced by AI, they're being replaced by people who use it better
• 39:35 The Pandora's Box lesson that leaves us with a reason for optimism

• linkedin.com/in/TamaraPatzer
• https://www.dailysuccessmedia.com

The tools will keep improving. That's inevitable.

The question is whether we improve alongside them.

If you enjoyed this episode, follow the show, leave a review, and share it with another founder, MD or senior commercial leader who's trying to make sense of what leadership looks like in an AI-shaped world.

Most leaders assume transformation fails because the strategy was wrong. I don't buy that. In this conversation with Sridhar Ravilla, we unpacked why good strategies routinely fail after approval and why the real problem is usually much simpler and much harder to fix.

What stood out for me was how often organisations confuse activity with progress. Green dashboards, endless initiatives, mountains of data and busy teams can all create the illusion of momentum while accountability quietly disappears. We explored what experienced leaders do differently when the pressure is real and execution starts drifting away from intent.

A simple truth I've seen repeatedly in growing businesses:

• Assign ownership before you launch the transformation, not after
• Reduce priorities to the few things that genuinely matter
• Make decisions with half the data rather than waiting for perfect certainty
• Measure outcomes, not activity
• Use AI to scale intelligence, but keep judgement and accountability firmly with people

• 08:45 Why transformation usually fails immediately after approval, not months later
• 09:30 The danger of green dashboards and the questions leaders should ask when everything looks fine
• 13:20 The uncomfortable ownership test: who gets fired if this fails?
• 16:15 Why leaders should make decisions with half the data instead of waiting for more information
• 20:40 How organisations optimise for activity and lose sight of outcomes
• 24:50 The sales lesson that changed Sridhar's approach to commercial leadership
• 33:05 Why AI can scale intelligence but cannot replace judgement, accountability, and leadership

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sridharravilla/ 
• Book: Amazon.com: TRANSFORMATION THAT LANDS eBook : RAVILLA, SRIDHAR 

I've said for years that leadership gets tested when the playbooks stop working. This conversation is a good reminder that execution is rarely a process problem first. It's usually an ownership problem. If you found this useful, follow the show, leave a review, and share it with another founder, MD, or commercial leader who is trying to turn strategy into results.

Most founders think they have a productivity problem. I think most of them have a capacity problem.

In this conversation with Lisa Woodruff, we unpacked something that shows up in businesses far more often than people realise. Invisible work. The operational load that quietly consumes time, attention and decision-making capacity. We explored why leaders overload themselves and their teams, why most organisations are trying to run too many projects at once, and why creating order is often the first step to creating growth. Lisa's experience building Organize 365 from personal overwhelm into a multimillion-dollar business gave us a fresh lens on focus, leadership and execution.

A lot of leaders don't need another productivity hack. They need fewer priorities and more capacity.

• Make invisible work visible before adding new initiatives
• Stop assuming your team has more spare capacity than they actually do
• Kill projects that dilute focus, even when you've already invested time and money
• Focus on the one initiative that creates more capacity or revenue for the next
• Build systems that reduce operational drag instead of working longer hours

• 03:59 Lisa explains why she shut everything down and rebuilt from first principles when burnout became impossible to ignore.
• 08:10 The hidden truth about running a household and why most people underestimate the work involved.
• 12:51 The uncomfortable reality that most employees spend the vast majority of their time on invisible operational work.
• 13:52 Why organisations with 27 strategic priorities are setting themselves up to fail.
• 16:21 The CEO question that matters: what's the one project that creates more capacity for the next one?
• 17:05 Lisa's brutal advice: stop most of your projects and finish what matters.
• 20:52 Why this conversation isn't about productivity at all. It's about systems and capacity.

• LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisawoodruff/
• Organize 365
• Podcast : Organize365

The leaders I see making the biggest progress aren't the ones doing more. They're the ones creating enough space to think clearly about what matters next.

If you enjoyed this episode, follow the show, leave a review, and share it with another founder, MD or senior commercial leader who could benefit from it.

Most commercial leaders think they’ve got a pipeline problem when they’ve actually got a systems diagnosis problem. This conversation with Michael Manzi gets into the difference between copying tactics and actually understanding what drives performance. There’s a massive difference.

We talked about why most sales playbooks fail when they’re transplanted into a new business, how leaders accidentally drive top performers out of the door, and the one variable Mike found that doubled a sales team’s win rate in 30 days. If you run a revenue function, there’s a lot in here worth stealing.

A lot of leaders confuse tools with strategy. That’s where things start breaking.

• How to separate a real playbook from recycled tactics
• How to identify the single variable actually driving revenue
• How to stop over-managing your top performers
• How to remove excuses before diagnosing performance issues
• How to create buy-in before asking a team to change

• [03:59] Mike admits he drove a top performer out of the business by overcorrecting into rigid management
• [05:00] The idea every commercial leader should steal: make deposits before making demands
• [09:04] Why most “playbooks” are just random tools duct-taped together from previous jobs
• [13:22] The surprisingly brilliant curling analogy for leadership and performance management
• [17:22] The data exercise that uncovered the one variable driving an 87% win rate
• [20:00] How one strategic change doubled sales effectiveness in 30 days
• [28:03] “On your forehead it says: I can fire you” and why great managers never forget it

• OfficialSalesTips.com
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/MikeManzi7

If you enjoyed this one, follow the show, leave a review, and share it with someone carrying a revenue number on their back right now. These conversations are for people trying to build something real, not just sound clever in a board meeting.

Most people wait for permission to lead. That’s the mistake.

This conversation with David Graddy is a reminder that leadership isn’t a promotion. It’s a pattern of behaviour. And if you’re not already doing it, a new title won’t suddenly fix that. In fact, it’ll expose it.

We get into what actually gets noticed inside large organisations, where people trying to “step up” go wrong, and how to develop leadership capability without overstepping and damaging trust. If you’re responsible for performance, this is the difference between spotting future leaders and missing them entirely.

In this episode If you want to build leaders before they have the title, do this:

• Look for attitude and output first. Potential without delivery is noise
• Give small, contained opportunities to test leadership in the real world
• Watch how people behave in teams, not how they talk about leadership
• Set boundaries clearly. Overstepping kills trust faster than failure
• Develop the fundamentals early: communication, integrity, problem solving

Episode highlights [02:30] Leadership starts before the title. Most people just don’t act like it [05:04] The uncomfortable truth: being promoted exposes poor leadership fast [06:11] Why aspiring leaders fail by overstepping their authority [08:20] Trust is built by operating right at the edge of your permission [12:05] The risk leaders create by over-controlling decision making [15:00] How to actually spot future leaders in a commercial team [16:52] Why good people leave: lack of opportunity, not lack of pay [18:29] “Leadership is easy until you meet people” [21:20] There’s no such thing as business ethics. Just ethics [27:03] The one line that sums it up: lead where you are

Links and resources

• dgraddy2@cox.net
• www.linkedin.com/in/david-graddy
• https://www.johncmaxwellgroup.com/davidgraddy/

If this made you rethink how you spot and build leaders, follow the show and share it with someone responsible for building a team, not just hitting a number. And if you haven’t already, leave a review. It helps more than you think.

Most leaders think growth comes from doing more. Hiring more people. Adding more activity. More meetings, more pipeline, more noise.

Reed Nyffeler has spent two decades proving the opposite. He scaled a security franchise from one location to 400 and $250 million in revenue. The lever wasn’t effort. It was multiplication. This conversation is about the difference between teams that add, teams that divide, and the rare leaders who genuinely multiply the people around them.

We talk about selecting the right leaders, putting them in the right environment, leading them in ways that actually work for them, and then doing it all with ruthless consistency. Simple ideas. Hard to execute. But when they work, the growth curve changes completely.

This conversation is about the mechanics of leadership that multiplies.

• How to identify people who will multiply your effort rather than divide it
• Why “right person, right environment” matters more than raw capability
• How to adapt your leadership style to how someone actually learns
• Why correcting people isn’t enough unless you also direct them
• How consistency is the real engine behind exponential leadership

02:07 The difference between additive leadership and multiplicative leadership.

06:44 The “unlucky salesperson” myth and why cycles expose real performance.

10:49 Reed’s first question to any new direct report: “Who was the best leader you’ve had?”

15:34 The leadership mistake most managers make: correcting people without directing them.

17:30 Why consistency, not brilliance, is the real multiplier in leadership.

23:32 Why purpose must be transcendent. Leadership cannot be about the leader.

28:01 Reed’s billboard message to the world: help one person, then learn how to help a thousand.

• Transform Through Purpose — Reed Nyffeler
• Lead Exponential — Reed Nyffeler
• https://www.linkedin.com/in/reednyffeler/

If you found this conversation useful, follow the show, leave a rating, and share it with someone running a team or a P&L. Conversations like this only work if the right people hear them.

Most marketing isn’t broken because people aren’t trying hard enough. It’s broken because nobody actually understands what marketing is supposed to do.

This conversation with Gee Ranasinha is a proper teardown of the nonsense. Too many businesses confuse marketing with activity. Brochures, websites, campaigns, “leads”. None of that matters if it doesn’t create pipeline. And most of it doesn’t, because the fundamentals are wrong from the start.

We get into why marketing is so often misdefined at board level, why sales and marketing talk past each other, and why trust, not tactics, is what actually moves deals forward. If you’ve ever sat in a meeting wondering why all this effort isn’t turning into revenue, this will hit home.

In this episode If you want marketing that actually works, do this:

• Start with the right prompt. If your positioning and message are wrong, everything downstream fails
• Hold marketing accountable for pipeline, not activity or MQLs
• Get your marketers talking to customers. Constantly. No exceptions
• Use real customer language, not internal jargon, to shape your messaging
• Treat price as perception, not just a number on a spreadsheet

Episode highlights [02:55] Why you cannot be both head of sales and marketing and do either well [05:40] The real problem: businesses don’t understand what marketing actually is [11:49] Pipeline vs leads and why most marketing metrics are useless [13:54] “How we do it is nobody’s business” – but results are [23:05] Why marketers who don’t speak to customers are flying blind [33:47] The uncomfortable truth: people don’t pick up the phone anymore [36:27] What you are actually selling in every deal: trust [40:48] Price isn’t a number. It’s a feeling [42:41] The line every operator should remember: what you tolerate becomes your standard

Links and resources

https://kexino.com/gee-ranasinha/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/ranasinha/?originalSubdomain=fr

If this episode sharpened your thinking, follow the show and share it with someone responsible for revenue, not just activity. And if you haven’t already, leave a review. It makes a bigger difference than you think.

Most deals don’t die because your product is wrong. They die because the person on the other side is scared of losing.

This conversation with Felix Riley is a reminder that we are not operating in a rational world. We are operating in a psychological one. Risk aversion, learned helplessness, confirmation bias. These aren’t abstract ideas. They’re the hidden forces shaping every commercial decision. If you don’t surface them, you’re negotiating in the dark.

We get into what’s really going on in the buyer’s head, why doing nothing feels safer than change, and why the best operators stop selling products and start uncovering what people actually want. Not what they say. What they really want.

In this episode If you want to win better deals, do this:

• Surface every fear in the room. If it’s not said, it’s still there and it will kill your deal
• Reframe risk. Buyers fixate on certain loss versus uncertain gain. Your job is to challenge that framing
• Ask “what do you really want?” until you get past the surface answer
• Lean into uncomfortable truths instead of hiding behind polite conversations
• Be willing to walk away. Trust compounds faster than revenue

Episode highlights [03:08] The three biases quietly wrecking your deals: confirmation bias, learned helplessness, and risk aversion [08:01] The internal finance conversation that kills momentum before it starts [10:11] Why “and what else?” is the most powerful question in discovery [12:10] Kind lies vs painful truths and why one leads to failure [15:58] The real differentiator isn’t product or price. It’s trust [17:20] Why doing nothing feels safer even when it’s clearly wrong [24:58] The shift from “what do you want?” to “what do you really want?” [31:57] The mistake most operators make: not taking enough risk

Links and resources

https://www.felixriley.com/

https://uk.linkedin.com/in/felix-riley-brilliant-thinking

If you got value from this, follow the show and share it with someone who’s responsible for real commercial outcomes. And if you haven’t already, leave a review. It helps more than you think.

If you’ve ever felt like leadership requires you to “put the suit on” and pretend you’ve got it all handled, this one will hit you right between the eyes. In this episode of Leadership That Sells, I’m joined by Will Steel, RAF veteran, high-performance coach, and author of Free to Lead. Will’s worked with close to 100,000 people, and he has a gift for getting underneath the surface fast.

We unpack the masks leaders wear, why so many founders burn out before they ever get a breakthrough, and how the real bottleneck is almost never “the business”. It’s you. Your energy, your health, your beliefs, your need for approval, your fear of being seen. Will’s core message is simple and confronting: stop performing leadership and start being you. Not the polished persona. The real you. That’s where sustainable performance and real impact comes from.

• Notice the “act” you put on at work, and where it stops working (often at home first).
• Get brutally clear on the vision: once you’re clear, the path becomes clear, then it’s action and accountability.
• Stop telling people what to do; make them accountable for outcomes and let them self-generate the “how”.
• Replace drifting with structure: schedule your life, follow your schedule, and treat exercise and sleep like non-negotiables.
• Strip back limiting beliefs by tracing the story to its origin (often a childhood interpretation posing as “truth”).
• Practise real authenticity: acknowledge when you’ve been inauthentic, apologise, and choose a better way forward.

[01:00] - Leadership without slogans: surfacing the patterns that actually create momentum [02:17] - The “strong leader” mask: confidence as performance, and the cost of wearing it [03:37] - Founders build a monster, then feel trapped inside it [06:06] - Clarity creates action: vision first, then accountability [07:20] - It’s never the business problem: start with sleep, exercise, food, and time [10:39] - Stop telling people what to do: hold them accountable for outcomes instead [13:27] - Real leadership is causing others to be leaders, not acting like you’ve got it all figured out [18:51] - Will’s RAF story: “you’re like a ghost” and the moment he chose to be himself [22:01] - Fitra: your true essence, and why leadership is being your true self in any environment [23:58] - The only real authenticity: being authentic about being inauthentic [28:32] - Limiting beliefs: the three-year-old decision that quietly runs your adult life [33:41] - Reading isn’t enough: the book works when you do the exercises and take action [38:09] - The final message: just start. Risk going too far, and find out how far you can go

• willsteel.com
• Free to Lead (book + audiobook)

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Free-Lead-Unleash-Hidden-Leadership/dp/1967587051

https://www.audible.co.uk/pd/Free-to-Lead-Audiobook/B0FY7J6T9Q

If your best rep walked out tomorrow, would you lose just a number... or a method? In this episode of Leadership That Sells, I welcome back Darren Mitchell sales leader, coach, and host of the Exceptional Sales Leader Podcast to dig into a painful truth: most sales organisations are built on individual heroics, not systems. And that’s costing you.

We talk about what really happens when top reps get promoted, why sales teams aren’t teams at all, and how to finally stop "renting" revenue from your best players. Darren and I rip into the leadership traps that stall performance from public pipeline beatings to pointless President’s Clubs and lay out a smarter, more scalable approach: codify what works, coach for contribution, and turn your sales force into a learning organisation. Expect strong opinions, sharper insights, and a few very uncomfortable questions for the old guard.

• Stop building hero culture – If your top rep leaves and takes their method with them, that’s not a people problem, it’s a leadership failure.
• Record everything – Use Zoom, Teams, even your phone to capture real sales conversations. That’s your goldmine.
• Codify what works – Use AI and human analysis to extract patterns from top performers and build a playbook that evolves.
• Reward sharing, not just winning – Add a “coach’s badge” to your President’s Club. You’re only elite if you help others win too.
• Separate the levers – Keep deal inspections, coaching, and team learning as distinct meetings with distinct goals.
• Don’t confuse presence with performance – The loudest person in the room isn’t always the best coach. Create space for real development.

[01:12] – Sales teams aren’t teams. They’re golfers on their own course. [04:39] – “Would you lose their method too?” – the hidden IP risk in sales [06:32] – Why top performers often can’t teach what they do [07:50] – The double failure of promoting your best rep to manager [09:16] – Codifying excellence: how to use AI to extract the playbook [13:34] – The case for rewarding contribution, not just revenue [16:24] – Flip the sales meeting: learn together, don’t punish publicly [19:07] – The 3 types of meetings every sales leader must separate [21:03] – Coaching is the highest ROI activity – and the first to get cancelled [25:01] – Do we even need President’s Club anymore? [26:14] – Should we stop paying commission? (Yes, we went there) [30:39] – We’re renting success from individuals instead of building systems [35:00] – The power of giving: build a team that shares, not hoards

• https://au.linkedin.com/in/sales-leadership-coach
• 🎙 Listen to The Exceptional Sales Leader Podcast

What separates top producers from everyone else? In this episode of Leadership That Sells, I sit down with master sales trainer and performance coach Jim Effner to find out. Jim’s been at the top of the game as a top-producing advisor and now as the coach who helps financial professionals break through their own ceilings.

We go deep on the three essential levers of sales success: mindset, systems and language. Jim explains why most people overlook mindset, how to build unshakeable confidence through competence, and why you’ll never outperform the person you see in the mirror. Expect powerful truths on how to rewire your beliefs, ditch scripts for language mastery, and create the environment that fuels consistent high performance. This one’s packed with quotable, practical gold.

• Start with mindset: Know your ‘why’ and keep it front and centre. Your mind leads, your body follows.
• Environment is everything: What you read, who you hang out with, and what you listen to shapes your mindset.
• Confidence comes from competence: Reps don’t need scripts, they need to know their language so well it flows under pressure.
• Practice, drill, rehearse: The top performers crave feedback and accountability they ask to be tested.
• Transformational growth starts in the mirror: Change the belief about who you are and where you’re going, then commit to the journey.
• Serve first: Sales isn’t about pushing. It’s about understanding someone’s goals, solving their problems, and letting your own success follow.

[01:52] – Start with your ‘why’ real mindset work begins here [03:00] – “Our mind leads and our body follows” the foundation of success [04:35] – The three levers: mindset, systems and language [07:14] – Why environment is your most powerful mindset tool [08:28] – Fast recovery = elite sales performance [10:44] – Belief shift: you become who you see in the mirror [13:10] – “Don’t drift” how to avoid settling into mediocrity [15:06] – Language mastery isn’t about scripts it’s about earned confidence [17:36] – “Salespeople wing it” and it’s killing their results [19:09] – How great managers build confidence through testing and accountability [22:00] – Humble confidence and service-first selling [24:05] – Let go of shame: sales is service at its best [27:00] – Know what fills your tank and walk away from what doesn’t

• https://www.linkedin.com/in/jimeffner
• P2P Group

Most sales leaders are driving themselves into burnout while still trying to lead others. In this episode of Leadership That Sells, I sit down with performance strategist Robin Keller to unpack why that’s backwards and how reclaiming your energy is the ultimate leadership advantage.

Robin works with high-achieving men to help them transform how they show up physically, mentally and energetically. We go deep into why mastering your body is the fastest path to confidence, presence and, for many of his clients, unexpected promotions. No fluff here. Robin shares his science-based, practical framework for taking control of your sleep, stress, nutrition and appearance and how that one shift ripples across every part of your leadership and life.

• Prioritise your body: presence starts with how you look and feel in your own skin.
• Energy, confidence and leadership presence are downstream of sleep, nutrition and recovery.
• You don’t need to live in the gym 2 sessions a week and smarter eating is enough.
• Master your evening routine: your wind-down matters more than your morning routine.
• If you lead others, you must lead yourself first physically and emotionally.
• Don’t rely on motivation rely on systems, tracking and support.
• Start with small, high-impact shifts that fit your lifestyle. Then build from there.

[01:48] – “Mastering your body is the fastest path to mastering your performance” [03:00] – The leadership impact of how you physically show up [04:35] – You always sell yourself first and that starts with presence [07:26] – “Put on your own mask first” why self-leadership is non-negotiable [08:07] – Case study: how one client dropped 11kg and became a sales director [11:57] – “Eat wise” why training doesn’t matter if your nutrition is off [17:45] – The 6-part Fit High Performer system: simple, science-based, sustainable [20:00] – Recovery routines: why better sleep outperforms any hack [22:32] – Why lifestyle integration is the key to lasting change [23:42] – The real reason Robin’s clients land promotions without doing more [27:58] – Another client lost 23kg, ran a half-marathon and made the news [29:12] – “I put myself first” how that mindset shift transformed his marriage [31:09] – Men lead at work, but often abdicate at home how to fix that

• https://www.linkedin.com/in/robinkellerofficial/
• Instagram: @robinkellerofficial
• thefithighperformer.com/strategy

What if I told you that the most powerful sales tool you’re not using is sitting in your Zoom recordings and sales calls? In this episode of Leadership That Sells, I sit down with Danny DelVecchio – sales leader turned content strategist – to unpack how your everyday conversations can become the foundation of a trust-building, pipeline-driving content machine.

We get straight into it: why most salespeople avoid video (and why that’s costing them), how to make content creation stupidly simple, and the unfair advantage you get when prospects say “I feel like I already know you.” Whether you're camera shy, time-poor or just don’t know where to start – Danny breaks down a no-fluff, no-fuss approach to video-led content that actually works. Plus, he shares how video testimonials are the most underrated conversion tool in your kit.

• Record your sales calls, workshops or client consults – that’s your raw material.
• Clip 20–60 second moments that speak directly to customer problems.
• Repurpose those clips into written posts, newsletters, tweets, infographics and more.
• Focus on conversational content – it’s easier, more authentic and faster to produce than “talking head” videos.
• Use tools like Fathom to extract pain points, objections and desires from transcripts – this becomes your content strategy.
• Build trust by showing up as you – not some influencer version of you.
• Use video testimonials from real clients answering: Why you? What was it like working with you? What changed as a result?

[02:20] – The 3 big reasons salespeople avoid video (and why they’re wrong) [05:33] – “I feel like I know you” – the trust shortcut video gives you [07:32] – Why video is the foundation for all content, not just another channel [13:35] – The real reason your content isn’t converting: you’re guessing [16:13] – The 2 types of video content (and which one works faster) [20:00] – Set up a side camera – you’re already saying smart things on calls [22:09] – The AI tool that turns every sales call into a content roadmap [27:12] – Video testimonials: why they boost conversions 30–40% [30:19] – Want a good hook? Spoil the ending and reverse engineer the “how”

• • coachdannyd.com
  • contentoneasymode.com

• My LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/dannydelvecchio/ 

• My YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@coachdannyd?sub_confirmation=1 

• My Instagram https://www.instagram.com/danny.delvecchio/ 

• My TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@coachdannyd?lang=en

If this episode gave you a nudge to finally press record, do us a favour: follow, rate and share Leadership That Sells with someone who needs to hear it. Let’s help more sales leaders lead first and sell more.

My guest this week is Bruce Temkin – founder of the XM Institute, host of Humanity at Scale, and often referred to as the godfather of customer experience. Bruce has spent decades helping global leaders humanise their organisations. In this episode, we bring that wisdom straight into the world of sales leadership.

We break down what it means to be a human-centric leader – someone who doesn’t just drive outcomes, but does it without leaving a trail of emotional destruction behind. If you’re managing a team under pressure, leading remotely, or just trying to build loyalty and performance without burnout, this one’s for you.

We cover trust, empathy, digital charisma, and how to lead without being a robot. Get ready for practical ideas, deep insights, and a much-needed reminder that sales leadership isn’t about controlling people – it’s about creating space for them to succeed.

1. Start with purpose – Purpose gives direction. Without it, people scatter. Define where you’re going and why.

2. Practise empathy – It’s not about being soft. It’s about understanding the human impact of your actions – especially when giving tough feedback.

3. Build trust through ability, benevolence and integrity – Your team will only follow you if they believe you're competent, care about them, and behave consistently.

4. Adapt your leadership for remote teams – You can’t rely on proximity anymore. Build digital charisma. Be explicit with empathy and trust-building signals.

5. Pause and reflect – Use the power of metacognition. Daily and weekly reflection helps you lead with intention, not reaction.

[02:52] – What human-centric leadership really means [06:20] – The three foundations: purpose, empathy, trust [09:13] – Trust explained: the leap of faith your team takes every day [10:59] – The trust triangle: ability, benevolence, integrity [14:09] – Why proximity matters – and what to do when you don’t have it [17:03] – Build digital charisma and make empathy explicit in remote settings [21:19] – “Invite the unspoken” – asking what people aren’t saying [23:32] – Stop watching yourself on video – it’s draining your empathy [30:03] – The leadership superpower: pause and reflect [32:00] – Most people drift. Leaders who reflect, win.

Newsletter: https://humanityatscale.substack.com/, LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brucetemkin/,  Website: https://temkinsight.com/

In this episode of Leadership that Sells, I’m joined by Dr Jaime Goff – a therapist turned executive coach and author of The Secure Leader. Jaime shares how childhood patterns and internal stories quietly shape the way we lead, and more importantly, how to change them.

We get into the deep but practical end of leadership: how trust issues, micromanagement, people pleasing, and self-doubt often stem from long-forgotten formative experiences. Jaime explains how these unseen narratives impact your ability to delegate, coach, and lead under pressure – and what to do about it.

If you’ve ever found yourself reacting in ways you can’t quite explain – over-controlling, avoiding conflict, chasing approval – this episode is for you.

1. Deconstruct your story: Reflect on early emotional experiences that shaped your beliefs about yourself and others. What patterns are helping? What are holding you back?

2. Build emotional regulation: Learn to recognise your triggers and respond rather than react. Regulation is foundational to secure leadership.

3. Deepen authentic connection: Take small risks to build real trust with your team. Secure leaders connect with others from a place of self-worth.

4. Integrate a new identity: Decide who you want to be as a leader. Build new, reinforcing habits around that identity and keep moving towards it.

5. Start from worth and trust: You can’t truly value others if you don’t value yourself. Leadership that works starts with internal security.

[03:07] – How early emotional experiences quietly shape your leadership patterns [05:03] – Why some leaders micromanage: it’s not about control, it’s about survival [07:00] – You can have all the tools, but mindset still blocks execution [08:22] – Awareness is the first step to rewiring your leadership approach [10:08] – The 3-part framework: regulation, connection, integration [13:00] – “Good leadership starts with seeing your own value” [14:47] – Most people rise to the occasion – if you give them the support [15:57] – Sales is a pressure game – here’s how to lead when it counts [16:35] – Don’t confuse worth with performance: reframing the internal narrative

Website - https://drjaimegoff.com/](https://drjaimegoff.com Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/dr_jaimegoff/ LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/drjaimegoff/ YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@drjaimegoff Goodreads - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/235737746-the-secure-leader Amazon - https://www.amazon.com/Secure-Leader-Discover-Leadership-Story/dp/B0FBZ39H8Y/ Bookshop - https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-secure-leader-discover-the-hidden-forces-that-shape-your-leadership-story-and-how-to-change-them/f89704d58aefbc84

If this episode hit home, I’d love it if you rated, followed and reviewed Leadership that Sells. And don’t forget to share it with another sales leader who’s ready to grow.

What if the very thing you're doing to reward success is the one thing that guarantees failure? In this episode, I speak with leadership mentor and author William Davis, who’s seen more than four decades of leadership mistakes up close. Together we get straight to the heart of a painful truth: most managers are made, not chosen—and we’re getting it badly wrong.

We talk about the classic disaster promotion—when your best individual contributor gets “rewarded” by becoming a leader, with zero prep and no support. William’s message is blunt and clear: if they don’t want to be a leader, they’ll never be a good one. So how do you spot the right ones? How do you shift that mindset from individual success to team success? And how do you build genuine, trusting relationships that hold up when things inevitably go wrong?

This one is full of practical gold for any sales leader trying to coach their team without losing their top players or their mind.

• Don’t assume success in the role means readiness to lead. It’s a different job.

• Ask the question early: Do you actually want to be a leader? If the answer’s no, don’t push it.

• Great leadership starts with a mindset shift—from my success to my team’s success.

• Build trust through personal connection—get to know your people outside of the office.

• Use humour and humility to lower the pressure and make people feel safe.

• Understand what actually matters to each person—professionally and personally.

[02:04] – William on why wanting to lead is non-negotiable [03:30] – “You’ve just lost your top performer—and you’ve gained a mediocre manager” [05:25] – The tech world’s talent trap: promoting based on skill, ignoring people skills [06:58] – Why sales teams don’t function like traditional teams (and why that matters) [08:43] – “Your job is to make them successful—even on their worst day” [10:30] – Golf, woods, and breaking the boss-worker wall with humour [12:24] – Using intentional lightness to build psychological safety [13:31] – “You’re not leaving this job because of me”: creating real retention [14:58] – Two-step retention: secure them now, then plan their next steps

• William Davis’ book: Building Genuine Relationships

• Download the Parallel Team Playbook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61573023334183 https://www.instagram.com/williamcharlesdavis64/ https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029Vb1Tks3DJ6H2ue5B5m3A https://www.linkedin.com/in/williamcharlesdavis/

If you enjoyed this episode, don’t forget to rate, follow and share the podcast. And if it hit a nerve (in a good way), leave us a review—we’d love to hear what’s working for you.

In this episode of Leadership That Sells, I talk with Chip Higgins — small business strategist, seasoned exec and author of The Bizix Way — about how to lead with energy, focus, and staying power. Chip brings a totally fresh perspective by linking business performance to real physics principles like momentum, force, friction and inertia.

He shares how mass times velocity is more than just an equation from school science. It's a powerful mental model for sales teams and leaders who want to build real traction and keep it going. We dig into how leaders create energy, how to point it in the right direction, and how to build "mass" inside the business by developing people, sharpening value propositions, and improving the systems that make selling simpler.

Here’s how to create unstoppable sales momentum:

• Momentum = Mass x Velocity. Mass is the density of your value proposition and team. Velocity is speed with direction.

• Don’t confuse activity with productivity. Sales energy must be focused on aligned targets that drive real value.

• Increase mass by building weighty leadership, strong culture, and clear differentiation.

• Velocity comes from direction. Set the vector: what market, what message, what timeframe.

• Friction kills energy. Remove unnecessary complexity, systems drag and pointless admin.

• Reinvest in your people. Developing skills and character builds lasting mass.

• Bond with your customers. Deep connections create resilience and power, like redwood trees sharing root systems.

Timeline summary:

[02:12] – Sales is the most intense energy field in business [03:38] – Top salespeople should earn more than the boss [07:02] – Momentum = mass x velocity, explained for sales teams [08:34] – It takes exponentially more energy to go faster [10:13] – Avoid fake productivity: be clear on targets [14:15] – What makes a small business "massive" [17:07] – Why your leadership weight matters [20:07] – Mass is the value in your people, your proposition, and your culture [24:00] – Bonding builds mass — with team and customers [27:13] – Crash Bandicoot, tornadoes, and angular momentum [30:20] – How to grow mass: reinvest in people, develop their weight [34:05] – Newton's laws, sales acceleration, and systems friction [39:48] – Billboard message: "We're better together"

Links & resources:

• Chip’s site: https://www.chiphiggins.com/

• Book: The Bizix Way (on Amazon, Kindle, Audio, Hardback)

• Physics on Demand AI agent: https://www.bizix.com/physics-on-demand

Enjoyed this episode? If this gave you a new way to think about energy, leadership and sales momentum, do us a favour: rate, review, follow and share the show. It helps more great leaders like you find Leadership That Sells.

In this episode of Leadership That Sells, I sit down with Jeremy Blain — transformation strategist, leadership expert and four-time best-selling author — to dig into the practical realities of leading in a world that won’t stop shifting. Jeremy has coached leaders in over 50 countries, built award-winning training companies, and previously held senior roles at PepsiCo and P&G. We talk about how leadership has to evolve for the digital age, why the human element is more important than ever, and why managers clinging to outdated models are falling behind fast.

We get into why today’s leaders need a full operating system upgrade, not just a patch or a plugin. Jeremy unpacks what that means in practical terms, and how the best leaders are dropping the need to have all the answers and instead creating the right culture for talent to thrive — including those who just want to do a great job and go home. This isn’t theory. It’s what real leadership looks like now.

Here’s how to upgrade your leadership operating system:

• Accept that yesterday's leadership models are broken. You’re not here to command and control. You're here to enable.
• Be a learner again. The best leaders are learning at the same pace as their teams.
• Shift from vertical hierarchy to horizontal collaboration.
• Stop thinking 'Talent' with a capital T. Everyone has value. Empower from the ground up.
• Understand the open talent economy. It’s no longer about roles, it’s about skills.
• Redefine the role of HR. HR needs to grow some teeth and lead transformation, not just administer it.

Timeline summary:

[02:24] – Why 20th century leadership needs a digital-age upgrade [04:04] – Leadership is now a shared journey with your people [06:06] – Set direction, create climate, and coach for capability [08:54] – The pace of change in Asia vs. a sluggish UK [10:08] – Flattening hierarchies and rethinking the org chart [11:00] – Stop reserving leadership for the "chosen few" [14:47] – What really stops managers from empowering their teams [16:05] – The open talent era: 50% of the workforce will be independent [18:43] – Why HR is not ready and needs a serious reset [23:04] – Culture is the glue that binds all transformation [25:05] – The first step? Slow down, look at the data, then decide [27:48] – "Get comfortable in knowing what to do when you don't know what to do"

Links & resources:

• Connect with Jeremy on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeremyblain/
• Jeremy’s podcast: Rethink Leadership
• Jeremy’s book: The Inner CEO in Action : https://www.amazon.co.uk/Inner-CEO-Unleashing-leaders-levels/dp/1784529338

Enjoyed this episode? If this conversation gave you some practical ideas or a new perspective, share it with a colleague and give us a rating or review. It helps more people find the show — and helps us keep bringing you the good stuff.

Some things in sales leadership are easy to say but hard to do. Like being brave enough to push back on customers. Or helping your team give up short-term comfort to build long-term pipeline. In this episode, I’m joined by Zsike Peter, a powerhouse revenue leader at Cognism, to talk about how to lead through those challenges.

Zsike shares how she supports her team to stay consistent under pressure, make the right calls even when it’s tough, and keep leaning into the work that drives pipeline and growth. We talk about building a high-performance culture, the importance of clarity and repetition, and how to create space for both accountability and compassion. If you’ve ever felt the tug between being liked and being effective, this one’s for you.

• Repetition builds belief. Keep saying the same message especially when you’re leading change or growth.

• Don’t avoid the uncomfortable. Whether it’s a tough customer call or a difficult coaching moment, lean in.

• Build a culture of care and challenge. Your team should feel supported and stretched.

• Stay in the trenches. You earn trust by staying close to the work not just shouting from the sidelines.

• Remember: consistency beats charisma. Day in, day out leadership is what wins.

[03:02] – Zsike’s take on what separates high-performing teams from the rest [06:44] – “Saying the hard thing is one of the most important skills” [09:58] – Coaching SDRs to push back with customers respectfully [11:36] – Creating a team environment that supports accountability [13:04] – How Zsike builds trust by staying close to the team [15:22] – Leadership isn’t a vibe, it's a series of repeatable, clear behaviours [18:00] – Balancing empathy and high standards in a performance culture

• Learn more about Cognism

• Follow Zsike Peter on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/zsike-peter/ http://thinkbait.co.uk/

If you got value from this episode, don’t forget to rate, follow and review the podcast. It helps more sales leaders lead first and sell more.

What happens when you treat frontline hourly workers like mission-critical professionals? In this episode, I sit down with Amrit Dhaliwal, CEO and founder of Walfinch, one of the UK’s fastest-growing home care franchise networks with 30+ territories nationwide. A former franchisee turned franchisor, he’s the author of Time to Thrive: The Home Care Revolution and host of the Walking With Walfinch podcast. Amrit has been named in the Social Care Top 30 and recognised as Emerging Franchisor of the Year.

Amrit shares the lessons he's learned building businesses from scratch, including a restaurant, a tea room, and multiple home care companies. We talk about the messy middle of leadership: building trust, hiring for mission over money, and solving real human problems like payday loans and car repairs—not with sympathy, but with action. Whether you're running a franchise or managing a sales team, Amrit shows how the best leaders don’t just show up with KPIs, they show up with care.

If you want to hire better, sell with more integrity, and build high-performing teams who stick around, this episode is a must-listen.

• Start with empathy, but don’t stop there. Use it to understand what motivates your team—and then align that with your business goals.

• Solve problems that matter. Helping an employee get out of a payday loan trap might do more for retention than another bonus scheme.

• Hire for values, not just skills. Look for people who would do the job for free (but pay them well).

• Reframe your incentives. Reward long-term results, not just quick wins—especially in recruitment and sales.

• Don’t accept poor margins as an excuse. Amrit shifted Walfinch to focus on private-pay clients to create space for better staff pay and service.

[02:22] – What Amrit learned about leadership running both a deli and a care agency [05:06] – The surprising story that changed how he supported his staff [06:26] – "Empathy isn't just feelings, it's problem solving" [08:49] – Why Walfinch moved away from local authority funding—and how that helped [10:08] – How to hire people who would do the job for free (but still pay them well) [13:12] – Building a sales process around long-term trust, not short-term gain [15:09] – Why care sector recruitment isn’t broken—it’s just not high enough volume [16:08] – The value of having ex-care workers do recruitment

Franchise opportunities: https://walfinchfranchising.com Home care services: https://walfinch.com LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/amrit-dhaliwal-a436445b

If you got something useful from this episode, please take a second to rate, follow, share or review the podcast. Every little click helps us grow—and helps more leaders lead first and sell more.

In this episode of Leadership That Sells, I sit down with Joe Davis, former Head of BCG North America, transformation expert, and author of The Generous Leader. Joe shares a refreshing, clear-eyed perspective on what it means to lead well under pressure especially when you're juggling high-performance targets and a stressed-out sales team.

We talk about how generosity isn’t soft it’s actually a strategic edge. Joe lays out exactly how a leader can be both supportive and tough on performance, why inclusion needs to go far beyond demographics, and how vulnerability builds real trust. It’s practical, honest and powerful. If you’ve ever struggled with how to push your team without breaking them, this is one for you.

How to lead with generosity and still drive accountability

Here’s how Joe Davis defines and applies generous leadership:

• Generous leadership is about giving of yourself freely — without expectation of personal gain — to help others grow, develop and thrive.
• Inspire and develop your team if you want them to truly “hum” for you — not just chase numbers.
• Listen to learn, not to reply. Real listening builds trust and shows respect, which in turn drives performance.
• Inclusion is not tokenism. Pull different voices into decision-making — not because they tick a box, but because they add value.
• Be human, not heroic. Vulnerability, humility and honesty unlock more from your team than pretending to have all the answers.
• Accountability and generosity are not opposites. Hold the line on outcomes — but be shoulder-to-shoulder in helping people get there.

Timeline summary

[02:59] - “Generous leadership is giving of yourself freely… to help others grow and thrive.”

[04:43] - Joe’s wake-up call as a 24-year-old manager: “Why didn’t you tell me this two weeks ago?”

[07:06] - “The fastest trust builder? Listening. Not hearing — really listening.”

[08:51] - Inclusion done right: “When you invite me into that room, I want to give you everything.”

[10:45] - “Leadership is a learned performance. You don’t have to be Churchill to lead well.”

[13:26] - Vulnerability in action: “I don’t know, either.” How that one sentence unlocked a stuck team.

[19:04] - “This isn’t about being nice. It’s about outcomes — and how you get there matters.”

[22:04] - Generous inclusion: “It’s not demographics, it’s contribution. Invite, include, then ask.”

[25:10] - Joe’s billboard message to the world: “Listen with curiosity. Listen to learn. Have grace.”

Links & resources

• The Generous Leader by Joe Davis LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joedavis1313/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joedavistgl/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/joedavistgl
• Practical Leadership Academy: practical-leadership.academy
• Get the free Parallel Team Playbook: practical-leadership.academy/playbook

If you enjoyed this episode, please rate, follow and share Leadership That Sells. Reviews help more people find the show — and they help your fellow sales leaders lead better.

What if the thing holding your team back isn’t skills, tools or technique—but their mindset?

In this episode, I talk with Umar Hameed—hypnotist, executive coach, and founder of No Limits Selling—about the invisible blocks that keep salespeople stuck in B-player territory… and how to help them break through. Umar shares powerful, practical tools for rewiring beliefs, unlocking confidence on demand, and creating a team of authentic, purpose-driven A-players.

We unpack the real reason pipeline reviews feel like the Spanish Inquisition, why traditional team models fail in modern sales environments, and how to tap into the true identity of a salesperson beyond the persona and self-doubt.

If you want to help your reps stop playing small, feel genuinely good about selling, and perform at their best consistently—don’t miss this one.

🔹 Recognise mindset as the missing piece – Tools and training aren’t enough. It’s the internal belief system that determines whether a B-player steps up or stalls.

🔹 Use memory to boost confidence – Recall a moment you felt unstoppable. Relive it with all your senses. Then use a physical anchor (like a fist and saying “Yes”) to lock that feeling in.

🔹 Change limiting beliefs – Identify the belief behind the behaviour (e.g. “I’m too young” or “I don’t deserve success”) and reframe it into something empowering.

🔹 Create identity alignment – Help reps move beyond their persona and inner doubt to connect with who they really are. That’s where high performance lives.

🔹 Lead with love – A mindset of love (for yourself and others) creates calm, presence and connection. Sales isn’t manipulation. It’s service.

[04:54] – The real gold: how many B-players could be A-players if their mindset shifted? [06:10] – The three faces we wear in sales: persona, delusion, and the authentic self [08:20] – Why limiting beliefs about money keep reps stuck in low-performance orbits [13:04] – The contagious power of belief and what great leaders really do [18:00] – The 2-minute confidence exercise that changes everything [22:15] – The hidden shame salespeople carry and how society wires it in [26:00] – Umar’s mission: Mindset Boosters and helping people heal on demand [30:13] – Why love is the ultimate sales superpower (and how it helps you listen better)

• 🎧 Mindset Boosters – Umar’s on-demand mindset toolkit

• 🏫 Free Parallel Team Playbook – For leading modern sales teams

If this episode hit home, share it with your team, give us a follow, and drop a review. Let’s lead first and sell more.

We’re all using ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude… but let’s be honest — most of what’s coming out of these tools is rubbish. Generic, unfunny, over-formal slurry. M-dashes everywhere. Worse still, it’s killing brands and cluttering our inboxes with AI-written drivel that nobody reads.

So what if you could build an agent that works like a team member? One that understands your tone, writes like you, and plugs straight into your content engine? That’s exactly what Reed Hansen helps us uncover in this episode. Reed’s a Chief Growth Officer and strategic marketing brain who’s helped everyone from Oracle to fast-growing startups. He breaks down exactly how to build and train an AI agent that’s not only useful — but actually saves you time, scales your voice, and makes you look smarter.

We talk about how most people are doing this all wrong, the real value of AI agents, and how to avoid turning your brand into a slurry cannon. This episode is crammed with practical advice you can use right now — especially if you're trying to do more with less and keep your content engine running without sounding like a robot.

✅ Define the agent’s role and constraints: Who’s it for? What outcome do you want? Be specific about tone, topics to avoid, and the format of the content.

✅ Train it like a new hire: Don’t just say “write like me” — give it FAQs, onboarding docs, examples, brand voice guidelines, and preferred content structures.

✅ Attach high-trust sources: Feed it with your own high-quality material — case studies, blog posts, sales copy, anything good. Don’t let it guess.

✅ Connect it to your workflow: Use tools like Zapier or Make to push content into Buffer or your CRM. If you're stuck copy-pasting, you're not there yet.

✅ Supplement with your face: AI can't be you. Mix in your voice, your face, your real thoughts. That’s what builds trust and gets remembered.

[01:54] – Why most teams fail: it’s not the reps, it’s the ICP or the manager [02:44] – Agentic AI is “the dog’s proverbial” — why it’s the next step beyond ChatGPT [04:53] – Treat it like an employee: how to shape responses with consistent training [07:44] – The M-dash and the curse of legalese: where bad AI writing comes from [08:44] – What people get wrong: not enough instruction, too much freedom [10:24] – Chat is not enough: agents need to push/pull data to be truly valuable [11:08] – Three-step framework: plan, build the engine, and connect it [14:21] – Structuring your prompts: listicles, tables, tone, formats — get specific [15:31] – Plug into your planner: automate workflows to get daily content out [20:13] – The AI echo chamber: why we’re amplifying internet sewage [24:46] – Use AI for hygiene content, but mix in real human posts too [26:02] – “Put your face on the content” — realness beats slurry every time [28:21] – Final advice: your face + your voice = your brand’s secret weapon

• The Practical Leadership Academy – Free Parallel Team Playbook
• Buffer – Social media scheduling tool
• Zapier – Automation between apps
• Make – Visual automation builder

If you found this episode valuable, please do me a favour — rate, follow and review the podcast. It really helps us get the word out to more sales leaders who need to hear it. And don’t forget to share it with someone who’s still letting AI write like a UN lawyer with a thesaurus.

In this episode I sit down with Milam Miller — author of The Charisma Craft and founder of Be Confident and Kind — to dismantle the myth that charisma is innate and to show how it can actually be a powerful, learnable leadership skill. We unpack what charisma really is (spoiler: not glittery and extroverted, but human connection), why it matters for sales and leadership, and how to build what Milam calls your “Riz factor” — your likability, trustworthiness and presence that turns connection into commercial advantage. Expect a practical, no‑fluff framework, real talk about what works, and a challenge to show up with intent.

If you lead a sales team (or want to), manage reps, or sell yourself as a leader — this conversation is a must-listen.

Here’s how you can start turning charisma into a reliable tool — not a luck-of-the-draw trait.

• Think of charisma as a craft, not a birthright. It isn’t about being loud or larger‑than‑life; it’s about human connection that builds likability, competence and trust.
• Lead with authenticity. Use your own voice, stories and values. Don’t mimic scripts or try to be someone else. Your genuine self resonates.
• Be bold enough to ask. Confidence matters: call the meeting, make the call, take the risk. But boldness without humanity falls flat.
• Stay curious about people. Ask questions, listen, learn what drives your colleagues or clients — and respond to that. That curiosity underpins strong, lasting relationships.
• Combine confidence with kindness. Confidence shows you know your stuff. Kindness shows you’re human. Together they create what Milam calls the “like‑know‑trust” platform.
• Lead with service, not quota. Shift your mindset: selling isn’t about hitting numbers, it’s about helping people solve problems. When you show up for them, results follow.

• [00:02:04] — “That’s a lie.” Milam debunks the myth that charisma is innate — you can learn it.
• [00:03:11] — Charisma framed as “the art of human connection” rooted in empathy, warmth and clarity.
• [00:05:39] — The “L‑K‑T” test: Likable, Knowledgeable, Trustable — the essence of likability in professional relationships.
• [00:09:32] — The two core engines of charisma: intention (why are you showing up) and attention (who are you listening to).
• [00:16:14] — The ABCs of charisma: Authentic, Bold, Curious — a simple, actionable framework.
• [00:18:13] — Distinction between courage and bravery: courage is acting despite fear; bravery is absence of fear. Both matter.
• [00:23:03] — The big takeaway: “Be confident and kind and develop your charisma craft.”

• The Charisma Craft by Milam Miller — the book that underpins the frameworks we discussed.
• Be Confident and Kind (Milam’s organisation) — for more tools, training and sales‑enablement resources.
• If you want to test this on your team: grab the Parallel Team Playbook from Practical Leadership Academy

If you’re ready to stop leaning on charm and start building connection as a repeatable skill, this episode gives you a clear path. Try being intentional, curious and human in your next interaction — the results might surprise you.

If you enjoyed this episode, please rate, follow, share and review the podcast. It helps more sales leaders discover leadership that sells.

Most sales teams aren’t teams at all. They’re collections of high-performing individuals running in parallel—lone wolves, each doing their own thing, occasionally gathering for a dreaded team meeting. In this episode, I’m joined by David Kesby, author of Extra Dependent Teams, and together we unpack what’s really going on in your sales team dynamic—and why trying to lead them like a rugby squad is making things worse.

David’s background in the military and years of organisational coaching have given him a black belt in decoding team dysfunction. We talk about what’s broken in traditional sales leadership, how to spot when your team isn’t really a team, and what to do instead. From ditching unproductive team meetings to building a culture of shared learning and mutual identity, this is a masterclass in rethinking sales leadership for the real world.

• Stop pretending your team is interdependent. Most sales teams are extra dependent—similar roles, similar work, no reliance on each other to get results.
• Ditch the “prove yourself” culture. Separate data interrogation (pipeline reviews) from performance development (1:1 coaching).
• Stop team meetings from being a prison. Use them for collaborative problem-solving, not status updates.
• Shift A-player incentives: competition should be aimed at the market, not each other.
• Build team identity with shared stories, common practices and a collective sense of ownership.

[04:10] – The moment David knows a team isn’t functioning: finger-pointing and blame [06:15] – Sales performance issues? It’s either product-market fit or leadership. Here’s how to tell [10:56] – “My team isn’t a team” – what that really means and why language matters [12:22] – Why top performers won’t share their playbook (and how you created that problem) [19:02] – Why your team meetings are killing collaboration—and how to flip the script [23:30] – How to run team sessions that actually improve performance [26:01] – “Interrogate the data, not the person” – a new approach to coaching [30:05] – How to build team identity with the ‘skills, bills, thrills and spills’ model [35:11] – The first thing you must do if you realise your team isn’t really a team

• David Kesby’s book Extra Dependent Teams: Realising the Power of Similarity – Buy direct from Routledge (use code 25AFLY3 for discount)
• Team Dependency Diagnostic – available on David’s website davidkesby.com
• Free Parallel Team Playbook – from the Practical Leadership Academy practicalleadership.academy

If you enjoyed this episode, rate and review the show, follow us, and share it with your fellow sales leaders. Let’s help more managers lead first—and sell more.

In this episode of Leadership that Sells, I’m joined by Aurelien Mottier, President of MemoryBlue and a man on the frontlines of AI-powered sales. He’s scaled one of the largest outsourced sales orgs on the planet, and he’s not just thinking about how to use AI in sales—he’s doing it. At scale. Every day.

We get into the nitty gritty of how AI is changing the way sales teams operate—from call scoring to pipeline coaching to personalised messaging—and how not to let it turn your reps into lazy robots. If you’ve ever wondered how to keep your sales machine human while automating the grunt work, this episode’s for you.

Aurelien breaks down the tools, the tactics and the mindset required to lead sales teams through AI disruption, while keeping people at the centre of the process. There’s no fluff here. Just insight, experience and some hard truths about what separates good from great in this new era.

• Start with AI that boosts productivity, not complexity. Tools like ChatGPT can save reps 10–20% of their time by helping with research, drafting emails and understanding buyer language.

• Teach the tools—don’t assume your reps know how to use AI well. Without clear policy and training, you risk spam, laziness and brand damage.

• Pair humans and AI where it counts. Use machines for research, data and admin. Double down on soft skills like empathy, listening and building trust.

• Leverage AI to coach and develop talent. Use call transcripts and scoring to personalise feedback, track progress and create career paths.

• Invest in platforms that surface real insights—tools like Cluster and Gong can flag pipeline issues, coach managers, and help CROs focus on what actually closes deals.

• Avoid the ‘build’ trap. Partner with tech providers who are ahead of the curve, and stay agile enough to pivot when the next free tool drops.

• Lead with purpose, not panic. In times of change, be the calm in the chaos. Create safety for your team, but keep moving forward.

[02:22] – Why the hype around AI mirrors the early internet days [05:29] – Why personalisation without relevance is just noise [08:00] – AI isn’t about volume. It’s about relevance, research and respect [13:01] – Pipeline ≠ revenue. Why you need AI tools that go beyond top-of-funnel [17:03] – The “oil and engine” analogy: Data is the fuel, AI is the engine [22:17] – Soft skills are your moat. Invest in what AI can’t replicate [30:06] – What to look for when hiring in an AI world: coachability, curiosity, courage [35:17] – AI for coaching: how to finally do meaningful call reviews at scale [41:08] – Leading in crisis: how to create clarity and calm in an uncertain world [46:13] – Aurelien’s billboard message to the world: “Be human”

• MemoryBlue

• Gong.io – Conversation intelligence

• Mentica – AI-powered sales training

• Good to Great by Jim Collins – book reference

If this episode gave you something to think about, share it with a fellow sales leader. And if you’re loving the podcast, don’t forget to rate, review and follow Leadership that Sells wherever you get your pods.

What if your high performance is actually hiding a crisis? In this episode of Leadership That Sells, I’m joined by transformational coach and multilingual speaker Daniel Castro – a former finance exec turned burnout-buster. Together we explore why high-achievers often find themselves stuck, despite hitting all the targets, and how to begin the journey back to purpose.

We break down Daniel’s CASVI Method – a powerful framework that reconnects success-driven professionals with meaning, energy and clarity. If you’ve ever felt like you’re “doing well but not feeling well,” this one’s for you. We talk identity, self-leadership, burnout, energy management, and why true leadership often starts with simply stopping.

This is about transforming the way you lead – by transforming the way you live.

1. Pause – Start by stopping. High achievers rarely pause to question their trajectory. Clarity begins with stillness.
2. Clarity – Understand your beliefs, motivations, values and what brought you here. Redefine success on your terms.
3. Awareness – Stop drifting. Start noticing. From posture to thoughts, cultivate conscious awareness.
4. Sense of purpose – Discover your unique strengths and apply them in service to something bigger than yourself.
5. Vitality – Guard your energy. What you eat, consume, think and feel – it all affects your performance.
6. Integration – Knowledge without application is useless. Take action. Make it real. Make it daily.

[02:50] – Why burnout hides behind achievement [05:54] – “Living slowly is an act of rebellion” [07:10] – Redefining success: purpose over promotion [10:12] – “The value isn’t in what I know – it’s in the questions I ask” [13:54] – Unpacking the C in CASVI: Clarity [17:35] – Awareness is the antidote to autopilot [20:07] – Purpose through service: why giving is getting [24:17] – Serve with no strings attached – the key to resilience in sales [28:19] – Energy is fuel: protect your vitality [35:03] – Integration: where transformation actually happens

• Daniel’s website: dannycasvipo.com
• Follow Daniel on Instagram: @dannycasvi

If this episode sparked something for you, please rate, follow and share Leadership That Sells. It helps other managers lead better and live better – starting today.

In this episode, I’m joined by Andrew Oxley — a seasoned executive coach, author of The Four Faces of Frustration, and founder of The Oxley Group. With a career spanning decades and companies like Coca-Cola, CNN and Progressive Insurance, Andrew has spent over 30 years helping leaders cut through complexity and lead with impact.

We dig into the hidden trap many sales leaders fall into — showing up as the hero or the villain — and why the real shift is to become the guide in your team’s story. Andrew shares how a “morning smile” clipping in a newspaper changed his life, how your limiting beliefs are likely driving your performance issues, and why asking the right questions is more powerful than having the answers. He’s got hard-earned wisdom on leading with accountability, performance and clarity, and it’s all delivered with clarity, humour and precision.

• Start by being radically honest about the role you play in your team’s results — change starts with you.
• Remember: your team’s performance story includes you as either a villain, hero or guide — choose wisely.
• Use questions you don’t know the answers to as a compass — keep asking, keep searching.
• Identify the real problem before trying to solve it — most leaders waste time fixing the wrong thing.
• Trade in limiting beliefs like “I don’t have time” for empowering questions like “Who can help me grow?”
• Connect leadership development to business outcomes, not just “HR initiatives”.
• Hold people to high expectations and support them in the growth to get there — that’s how guides lead.

[03:00] – Leading a top sales team at 27: the ‘player coach’ phase and what it taught him [04:40] – The quote that changed everything: “Even if you win the rat race, you’re still a rat” [05:15] – The power of keeping a question front of mind: “How do I change my life?” [06:58] – “The problem wasn’t the job. The problem was me.” [12:00] – The three roles leaders play in their employees’ stories: villain, hero or guide [15:05] – Why the hero boss actually disempowers your team [16:30] – What it really means to lead as a guide: tough, supportive, accountable [17:25] – “You’ll never solve a problem you’re not trying to solve.” [18:44] – Busting the “I don’t have time” myth and how to reframe it [20:55] – If you want to double your income, go buy someone lunch and ask better questions [23:03] – Why most leadership training fails: it doesn’t move the business needle [25:52] – Start with business results, then work backwards to behaviour and leadership [27:26] – How to use AI (like ChatGPT) to help your reps diagnose their own problems [32:02] – Understanding how frustration shows up in different people and what it’s telling you [34:15] – “Thank you. Please tell me more.” The only right answer to feedback [35:00] – The billboard test: how much honesty are you willing to accept about yourself?

• Free leadership training: transformingresults.com
• Andrew’s book The Four Faces of Frustration: Available on Amazon

In this episode of Leadership that Sells, I’m joined by Casey Jacox, elite performance coach, speaker, author of Win the Relationship, Not the Deal, and former #1 sales producer for a decade straight. Casey and I talk about the real difference between average sales managers and exceptional sales leaders and it’s not about who has the best pipeline spreadsheet.

We dig into the mindset shift needed to lead effectively: from being the smartest person in the room to being the most curious. From controlling the conversation to letting reps find their own way. From winning the deal to winning people. This is practical, grounded, and deeply human advice that sales leaders can act on today. No fluff, no theory just the sharp end of leadership that actually works.

Here’s how to lead with humility, vulnerability and curiosity:

• Win people, not just deals: Follow up after losses to show you care, it's about how you make people feel.
• Model humility: Talk less, ask more, and stop needing to be the smartest person in the room.
• Lead with curiosity: Ask second, third, even fourth-level questions. Let reps find the answers, you don’t need to have them all.
• Normalise vulnerability: Say "I don’t know" out loud. Encourage your team to do the same. It builds trust.
• Act like your customer is your mum: That shift in mindset changes how you show up, for the better.
• Stop being selfish on social: Share your wisdom, it’s a service, not self-promotion.

Timeline summary

[02:22] - What it really means to "win the relationship, not the deal" [03:46] - The simple follow-up that shocked clients and set Casey apart [04:35] - "Talk less. Ask more." Why curiosity is your leadership superpower [07:01] - Imagine your mum is the client and everything changes [08:40] - Why sales should be human not robotic decks and demos [10:24] - Why AI won’t replace great salespeople but it will expose bad ones [15:00] - Tactical ways leaders can actually model humility and vulnerability [20:20] - A coaching script for new managers battling imposter syndrome [22:14] - The boomerang mindset: serve with no expectation of return [24:01] - What fatherhood taught Casey about leading with questions [27:09] - The one question that has shaped Casey's life and career

Links & resources

• Casey’s book: Win the Relationship, Not the Deal on Amazon
• Casey on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/caseyjacox/
• Listen to The Quarterback DadCast: https://www.caseyjacox.com/podcast

If you enjoyed this episode, please follow, rate and review Leadership that Sells. Share it with someone who leads a team and wants to do it better.

Let’s help sales managers lead first and sell more.

In this episode, I’m joined by the warm and wildly wise Astrid Korin, leadership coach, consultant, and the creator of the “Inside Out Leadership” programme. We dig deep into what it really takes for sales leaders to stay resilient, especially when the pressure’s on and the targets feel impossible.

Astrid brings both heart and rigour, combining her experience in global leadership roles and business development with a profound understanding of human behaviour. We unpack why the best salespeople already have the raw materials for deep self-awareness and how that curiosity, when turned inward, can help them lead more effectively, coach with intention, and avoid burnout. If you’ve ever felt like you're “brute forcing” your way through tough quarters, or watching your team drift into exhaustion, this one’s a must-listen.

We also take on the myth of the “group hug” sales team and talk bluntly about why some well-meaning leadership habits can do more harm than good.

• Get curious about yourself. Notice when you're triggered, reactive or spiralling. Ask: what am I assuming? What else might be true?
• Pause, then choose. Interrupt automatic behaviours. Take a breath and ask: what are my options right now?
• Practice being the observer. Notice physical responses, emotional surges, and what they signal. Don’t just react, reflect.
• Understand what’s underneath the trigger. Many sales leaders tie their worth to outcomes. Recognise when underperformance starts to chip away at your identity.
• Remember: all relationships are co-created. How you land a message matters, but so does how others receive it. Take shared responsibility for communication.

[03:02] – Astrid on how business development in International Development is sales — and why rejection builds resilience.

[05:13] – Curiosity as a superpower: why assumptions kill leadership and curiosity saves it.

[08:47] – Noticing the clutching: how busy-ness masks vulnerability and fear in sales roles.

[10:35] – Sales leaders must lead from the inside out — or risk pushing their self-protection behaviours onto the team.

[14:25] – The most practical starting point: build your observer muscle and watch how you respond.

[18:03] – “How did that land?”: why good sales leaders ask, clarify and co-create understanding.

[25:59] – Astrid unpacks the achievement trap — where performance becomes self-worth, and why that’s dangerous.

[34:45] – The honest mistake new leaders make: hitting the ground running without understanding the context.

[39:33] – Astrid’s billboard moment: “You are enough.”

• Astrid Korin’s website: www.astridkorin.com/
• Connect with Astrid on LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/astrid-korin-a7612969/
• Learn more about the Inside Out Leadership programme (next cohort launches Feb 2026)

If you got value from this episode, please rate, review and follow the show. It really helps spread the word to other sales leaders trying to lead first and sell more. And if you know someone who needs to hear this conversation, send it their way.

Hiring salespeople is hard. Hiring the right ones is harder. David Russell – pioneering leadership coach, systems builder, author of five books and host of over 300 podcasts – joins me to unpack his proven, repeatable process for building high-performing sales teams without burning time, money or goodwill.

We get into why the hiring process is so often broken, the importance of treating candidates with the same respect you’d give your best client, and how to run interviews that reveal truth rather than rehearsed answers. David shares his “three core workouts” method, how to qualify candidates out before you fall in love with them, and why the real job starts after the offer letter is signed. If you want to stop gambling on hires and start building your dream sales team, this one’s a playbook.

• Start with you: know your strengths, weaknesses and expectations before you hire.

• Respect candidates’ time – your #1 hiring goal is to qualify out quickly.

• Follow the three core workouts:

  1. Screen – fast, online, no fake backgrounds, ask hard questions early.

  2. Skills – test hard/technical abilities and how they apply them.

  3. Mindset – assess behaviour, motivation, maturity, and cultural fit.

• Use a strategic plan instead of a job description – set clear goals, behaviours, and mutual expectations.

• Onboard deliberately – train, test, and mentor until mastery.

[03:30] – Why every sales team problem starts with the leader [03:56] – The TTT model: teach, test, train (mentor until mastery) [09:08] – The golfer vs football team analogy for sales teams [10:42] – Why you should work on your strengths more than your weaknesses [12:11] – The MAP agenda for weekly one-to-ones that keep momentum [16:45] – What sales leaders can learn from pro sports [18:23] – Why job descriptions sabotage your hiring process [20:19] – The three phases: attract, assess, add [22:21] – Screening out fast to save everyone’s time [25:16] – Respecting candidates and thinking beyond salary [28:34] – The three core workouts for a reliable hire [30:47] – The strategic plan for mutual expectations [32:14] – The “contractor for a day” test to see the real person

• David Russell’s website: http://www.manage2win.com

• Hire the Best program: https://www.linkedin.com/company/hire-thebest/

If you enjoyed this episode, please rate, follow, share and review the podcast – it helps more leaders find us and lead first, sell more.

If you’ve ever tried to “manage” a maverick, you’ll know it’s a losing game. Judith Germain – leadership strategist, author of The Maverick Paradox, and founder of the Maverick Paradox consultancy – joins me to unpack what it really takes to lead willfully independent, pathologically curious people. The kind of people who can transform a sales culture… or wreck it.

We dig into why most sales teams aren’t actually teams at all, the dangers of rigid systems, and why curiosity only works when it leads to execution. Judith shares her DRIVEN framework for decisive leadership, the difference between execution and mere implementation, and how to give high-performers the autonomy they crave without losing sight of the target. If you want to stop fighting Mavericks and start leading them, this one’s for you.

• Replace rigid rules with guideline-based structures that fit the purpose.

• Be someone worth following – respect, trust, and genuine care matter.

• Discover each person’s compelling reason and align your leadership to it.

• Focus on execution (achieving the outcome) over implementation (ticking the boxes).

• Use the DRIVEN framework: Determination, Reputation, Influence, Versatility, Execution, Narration.

[02:12] – What a Maverick really is (and why the cattle story matters) [04:30] – How pathological curiosity changes the sales game [07:12] – The difference between curiosity and rabbit-hole procrastination [10:21] – Jazz, adaptability, and leading in context [13:48] – Why you can’t “manage” a Maverick – and what to do instead [14:09] – Judith’s DRIVEN framework for decisive leadership [17:33] – Execution vs implementation: why ticking boxes isn’t enough [20:15] – How to create autonomy without losing accountability [23:01] – The four elements of influence and why they matter in sales [25:04] – How amplifying your influence helps you sell more

• Judith Germain’s website: https://maverickparadox.co.uk

• Influence Scorecard: https://amplifyyourinfluence.scoreapp.com

• The Maverick Paradox by Judith Germain – https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0727WP2SC/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1634&creative=6738&creativeASIN=B0727WP2SC&linkCode=as2&tag=maverickparad-21&linkId=cfd757574de06f194bafdb253e33e052

If you enjoyed this episode, please rate, follow, share and review the podcast – it helps more leaders find us and lead first, sell more.

Most sales leaders dread pipeline meetings – and their teams dread them even more. That’s because too often, they turn into boring history lessons nobody cares about. In this episode, I talk with Andy Bounds – award-winning sales trainer, bestselling author, and global keynote speaker – about how to make them short, sharp, and productive.

Andy shares his “Who Do” method to instantly focus sales conversations on what matters, the power of “Afters” in selling and leadership, and why great leaders under-communicate to empower their people. We dig into hiring, coaching, closing, and the art of making communication stick. If you want more sales, faster – without killing the will to live in your next meeting – this is the episode to steal ideas from.

• Replace “update” meetings with “Who Do” meetings: Who is the client, and what do you want them to do next?

• Focus conversations on next actions and blockers, not history.

• Sell “Afters” – why the client is better off after working with you – not just your product or service.

• Under-communicate with capable teams to encourage ownership and problem-solving.

• Use coaching prompts like “What three things have you thought of?” to build initiative.

[01:33] – The “Who Do” method for instantly sharpening sales conversations [03:40] – Why pipeline meetings fail and how to fix them [07:18] – Selling “Afters” instead of product features [10:53] – Start engaging, end with action: Andy’s 4-word rule for communication [14:45] – Systems over goals for consistent sales behaviours [19:03] – Under-communicating to empower capable people [24:47] – The mindset and traits to hire for in sales leaders [28:18] – The one interview question that reveals everything [31:12] – Andy’s billboard message to every leader and salesperson

• Andy Bounds’ website and Tuesday Tips: https://andybounds.com

• The Jelly Effect by Andy Bounds – https://andybounds.com/resources/

If you enjoyed this episode, please rate, follow, share and review the podcast – it helps more leaders find us and lead first, sell more.

Most leaders think burnout is just “feeling tired” – but that’s like thinking frostbite is just “cold fingers”. In this conversation with Hazel Anderson Turner – business psychologist, mindset coach, and author of Coaching Through Burnout – we break down what burnout actually is, why leaders often miss it in themselves, and how to spot it early before it wipes out your team’s energy, performance, and trust.

Hazel draws on over 15 years of coaching leaders, including front-line NHS managers during the pandemic, to explain how chronic stress changes the way we think, act, and relate to others. We cover the subtle early-warning signs, why our coping mechanisms often accelerate burnout, and the conversations that build trust and resilience long before a crisis hits. If you want practical, human-centred ways to keep yourself and your team in the game – without sacrificing your sanity – this is the episode.

• Learn the three key burnout symptoms: exhaustion, cynicism, and reduced effectiveness.

• Pay attention to disrupted sleep patterns, withdrawal from hobbies, and tech overuse.

• Notice when you start pushing away activities and people that relieve stress.

• Shift from directive management to coaching-style conversations.

• Build trust early by asking “what’s most important to you?” and listening to the answer.

[01:45] – The three signs of burnout every leader should know [04:00] – How trying to “just work harder” makes burnout worse [07:15] – Why leaders often don’t recognise burnout in themselves [12:12] – The early-warning signals that mean it’s time to act [20:55] – The team-level conversations that prevent burnout [27:25] – Building trust before you need it: Hazel’s go-to question [33:18] – Why the best managers listen more than they talk [36:13] – Hazel’s billboard message to the world

• Coaching Through Burnout by Hazel Anderson Turner – https://hazelandersonturner.co.uk/coaching-through-burnout/

• Hazel’s podcast Coaching Unpacked – https://hazelandersonturner.co.uk/coaching-unpact/

If you enjoyed this episode, please rate, follow, share and review the podcast – it helps other leaders find us and lead first, sell more.

Most leaders think their biggest threat is what they don’t know. The truth is, it’s what they don’t know they don’t know. In this conversation with Kevin McCarthy – bestselling author of Blind Spots, creator of the Blind Spot Assessment, and someone who went from leading a 54-person sales team to spending 33 months in federal prison – we unpack the unseen forces that drive our decisions and how to spot them before they wreck our careers.

Kevin shares how his own blind spots landed him in prison for a crime he didn’t knowingly commit, what prison taught him about perception versus reality, and how leaders can build stronger teams by owning their mistakes. We talk confirmation bias, triggers, the “expert fallacy”, and why curiosity is a leader’s best defence. If you want to make smarter decisions, build deeper trust, and lead with real connection, this one’s for you.

• Give trusted confidants permission to challenge your thinking.

• Slow down and question your automatic “system 1” reactions.

• Recognise and manage your own triggers before reacting.

• Use curiosity to understand others’ perspectives, not just your own.

• Model vulnerability so your team feels safe doing the same.

[01:33] – How “kernels of truth” hid the largest stock fraud in Washington state [06:56] – The moment Kevin learned the difference between moral and legal reality [10:42] – Why confirmation bias is every leader’s Achilles heel [13:05] – The “expert fallacy” and how seniority can make blind spots worse [17:15] – The prison lesson that transformed Kevin’s leadership approach [23:45] – Practical tips for spotting your own blind spots [27:47] – How to help your team surface and share theirs [33:36] – The one message Kevin would put on 10,000 billboards

• Blind Spot Assessment: https://www.blindspotassessments.com/

• Blind Spots by Kevin McCarthy: https://www.amazon.co.uk/BlindSpots-Good-People-Make-Choices/dp/0999103407

If you enjoyed this episode, please rate, follow, share and review the podcast – it helps more leaders find us and lead first, sell more.

If you want to keep great salespeople, you need to do more than set targets and push for results. In this episode, I talk to Andy Reid – global sales leader, startup mentor and author of Success is for the Curious – about the leadership traits that work whether you’re running a global bank division or a two-person startup.

Andy shares why the best leaders are comfortable with their vulnerabilities, why you should stop trying to fix weaknesses, and how knowing yourself makes it easier to know (and grow) others. We cover curiosity, courage, and why you’ll get further finding the 1% that makes someone exceptional and doubling down on it.

• Get clear on your own identity as a leader – people follow authenticity.

• Accept and own your weaknesses so you can hire to fill them.

• Focus on amplifying strengths rather than fixing weaknesses.

• Treat each person as an individual – find their “secret sauce” and help them use it.

• Use curiosity to get others talking; use courage to ask the hard questions.

[02:09] – Why knowing your identity as a leader makes it easier for people to follow you [04:11] – The most effective leaders are comfortable with their vulnerabilities [07:39] – Why focusing on strengths beats fixing weaknesses every time [10:29] – How happiness acts as a “success drug” for leaders and teams [12:51] – The power of finding each individual’s 1% and amplifying it [17:26] – Success as a “flow state” and how to recognise it [18:53] – Curiosity and courage: the two traits every sales hire needs [22:17] – The one message Andy would put on 10,000 billboards

• Andy Reid’s website: @andyreidcoaching

• Success is for the Curious – available at major booksellers

If you enjoyed this episode, please rate, follow, share and review the podcast – it really helps others find us.

What if the root cause of your outbound problem isn’t the people but the system? In this episode, I’m joined by Gerry Hill, VP at ConnectAndSell and creator of Pipeline OS, to cut through the noise around sales development and give you a blueprint for scalable, effective pipeline generation.

Gerry’s seen firsthand how most sales orgs are wasting time, money, and talent by focusing on the wrong things tech stacks over structure, "charisma" over rigour, meetings over behaviour. We talk about how to fix that. From restructuring SDR workflows to leveraging gamification and agile frameworks, Gerry walks us through how to turn your outbound chaos into a repeatable engine for revenue.

If you’re a sales leader fed up with underperformance and overcomplication, this one's for you.

How to build pipeline development systems that actually work

Stop romanticising "sales artistry" and focus on the science: disciplined execution, repeatable process, and tight feedback loops.

Use MECE (Mutually Exclusive, Collectively Exhaustive) thinking to segment work, avoid cross-threading, and drive clarity.

Pre-build the outbound week: define lists, scripts, execution windows, and follow-ups—then let reps iterate and learn.

Shift comp plans to reward behaviours, not just outcomes—introduce a points-based gamified system.

Borrow from agile: treat outbound campaigns like sprints, with reps acting as scrum masters.

Create systems where managers manage again—your process should do the heavy lifting on accountability and clarity.

Timeline summary

[01:45] – The biggest problem in sales leadership? Homogeneity and lack of shared mission.

[03:32] – Why curiosity is the #1 trait Gerry hires for—and how it correlates with top performance.

[05:04] – How to measure curiosity in interviews: chaos, not canned questions.

[06:47] – Why complaints are a gift: they signal engagement and highlight blockers.

[10:13] – Reps don’t need coaches—they need missions, systems and heroes’ journeys.

[13:41] – Pipeline is strategy, not grunt work: why most teams are structuring it wrong.

[14:32] – The power of the MECE framework in outbound design.

[17:16] – Making boring-but-important work fun: points-based comp and behaviour-led incentives.

[20:07] – Pipeline development = agile sprint. Here’s how to run it like software engineering.

[22:33] – Don’t have a system? Then your tech stack is a liability, not a lever.

[26:59] – Real servant leadership is not about being nice. It’s about hard-edged, mission-driven service.

Links & resources

• Gerry Hill on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/beaccurate/
• ConnectAndSell: https://connectandsell.com/
• Pipeline OS: https://connectandsell.com/pipeline-hero/

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Most sales leaders treat recruitment like an admin task. Big mistake. In this episode, I’m joined by David Revell, a specialist in finding, attracting and hiring top-tier sales talent in the cleaning and hygiene industry, to unpack why hiring is selling and why your job adverts probably stink.

David shares how most companies only ever reach the weakest 5–10% of the talent pool, why the best salespeople will never touch your generic HR-written advert, and how a simple shift to a marketing mindset can triple your response from the right candidates. He reveals the formula that took his ad conversion rate from 10% to 65% overnight, attracting top performers who weren’t even looking.

Forget tired job descriptions that read like professional ransom notes. This episode shows you exactly how to hook high-calibre salespeople, speak to their emotional triggers, and stand out from 10,000 other postings.

• Stop talking about your company — make the advert all about what the candidate wants.

• Understand the difference between a job advert (front of the cereal box) and a job description (the boring back).

• Hook both the emotional brain (lifestyle, freedom, control) and the logical brain (evidence, proof you can deliver).

• Focus 90% of your copy on benefits the candidate will gain, 10% on your company.

• Use benefits that filter for the right cultural fit (e.g. office buzz vs remote freedom).

[02:19] – The biggest hiring mistake: treating recruitment as an admin task. [05:26] – Why most adverts only reach the weakest part of the talent pool. [08:13] – The tiny window when top passive candidates start looking. [10:44] – How David’s formula boosted ad success from 10% to 65% overnight. [15:04] – No one cares about your company — make it about them. [17:20] – Writing to emotional and logical drivers to hook the right people. [19:42] – Benefits as a bat signal for cultural fit. [28:01] – Case study: rewriting one ad landed a £25m-per-year sales leader on a pay cut.

• David Revell on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-revell-8b0929b6/

• Charta Recruitment: https://www.chartarecruitment.com/

If you enjoyed this episode, please rate, follow, share and review Leadership that Sells — it helps more sales leaders find the tools to lead first and sell more.

In this deeply personal and powerfully practical episode, I sit down with legacy alchemist Markus Neukom to unpick the roots of imposter syndrome and its impact on sales leaders and high performers. What starts as a conversation about doubt quickly becomes a masterclass in authenticity, identity, and learning how to lead from your core.

We explore how imposter syndrome isn’t the real problem – it’s a symptom of something much deeper: an authenticity struggle. Markus shares his own experience of burnout and depression, and how facing it helped him rediscover his mission and reshape how he helps leaders thrive. If you’ve ever questioned your own worth, wondered why success doesn’t feel like success, or felt like you’re “winging it” at the next level — this episode is for you.

How to overcome imposter syndrome by reclaiming your authentic self

 Imposter syndrome is not the issue – It’s a trick. The real challenge is an authenticity struggle – not knowing who you really are.

You are not what others reflect – Most people define themselves based on external feedback, not internal truth. Flip that.

Deconstruct your past wins – Look at moments of true success and unpack what really made them work. That’s where your core value lives.

Know thyself – Until you do, you’re reacting to the world instead of being rooted in it. Self-awareness is the real superpower.

Don’t wait to live your legacy – You don’t need to “leave” a legacy when you can live one every single day.

Timeline summary

[01:12] – “I don’t teach anything I haven’t experienced”: Markus on walking the talk [04:55] – The moment depression hit and what it revealed about imposter syndrome [07:10] – Why your self-confidence is built on a lie (and how to rebuild it for real) [10:13] – Crabs, fleas and elephants: the brutal psychology of human conditioning [14:46] – Identity that can’t be taken from you: how to build confidence that lasts [19:05] – The question every leader must ask: Is this as good as it gets? [23:44] – A practical tool: how to reconstruct your own success stories to reconnect with your value [26:02] – “Imposter syndrome is a compliment” – what it really means when it shows up [27:26] – “If you can dream it, you can do it”: how to crash through the veil and operate in full freedom

Links & resources

🌐 Learn more about Markus Neukom

If this episode hit home for you, share it with someone who needs to hear it. And if you’re living your legacy — or ready to start — rate, follow and review Leadership that Sells. Let’s make it count.

In this episode of Leadership that Sells, I’m joined by Philip Atkinson — team coach, agile expert, and author of Be Wise: 12 Leadership Lessons from a Busy Beehive. Philip brings decades of global commercial leadership experience and distils it into practical, real-world guidance for sales leaders who want to lead smarter, not just harder.

We dig into the surprising (and powerful) leadership lessons we can learn from bees — from how they make decisions, to how they structure teams, to how they know when to let go. If you’ve ever felt like your team is buzzing with activity but going nowhere, this episode is for you. We talk coaching, team dynamics, seasons of performance, and how to create true alignment in chaotic, high-pressure environments.

How to lead like a beehive: collaboration, clarity and cycles

Ask better questions and listen more – Great coaching starts with curiosity, not control.

Shift from competition to collaboration – Sales teams should compete outside, not inside. Internal competition kills culture.

Recognise roles evolve – Like bees, great teams change roles as they grow. Salespeople need progression, not just promotion.

Know the season – Performance has cycles. Growth, rest and renewal all matter. Don’t expect summer results in winter.

Decide like a hive – Gather intel, build consensus, commit. Don’t waste time on the wrong decisions with the wrong people.

Communicate clearly – Bees deliver messages in the dark, in the noise. You have no excuse. Say less, mean more.

Timeline summary

[02:03] – Why Philip brought 12 guest experts into his book (and why leaders shouldn’t go it alone) [03:05] – The “aha” moment that made beekeeping a leadership metaphor [05:25] – The first thing every sales leader should do? Learn to coach by asking better questions [06:13] – Why most sales teams aren’t really teams — and what to do about it [09:30] – What bees teach us about career development and role evolution [14:32] – Understanding energy cycles: why you need to plan for endings, not just beginnings [17:38] – The “murder of the drones” – a dramatic lesson in adapting your skills before you’re obsolete [19:22] – How bees make life-or-death decisions as a team (and how your team can do the same) [24:00] – The biggest benefit of collaboration? Thinking harder before doing more [25:15] – What the hive would say if it could talk: communicate clearly, act consciously

Links & resources 🌐 Learn more about Philip Atkinson

If this episode helped you think differently about leadership, decision making or team coaching, please share it with someone who needs to hear it. And don’t forget to follow, rate and review Leadership that Sells – it really helps us keep bringing these insights to your ears.

In this episode of Leadership that Sells, I’m joined by Joelle Kaufman – bestselling author, CRO whisperer and neuroscience-driven performance coach – and we’re diving deep into one of the biggest leadership superpowers: dealing with curveballs. Whether it’s a surprise customer objection, a missed number, or a life-altering diagnosis, Joelle lays out a powerful, actionable method to turn chaos into clarity.

We unpack her Curveball Method, a science-backed approach that helps leaders stay grounded, activate their strengths, and respond with intention rather than panic. This one’s a masterclass in leading under pressure. If you’ve ever felt the fire alarm go off in your brain mid-crisis (you know the one), Joelle’s got a way to silence it, take a breath, and lead your team through with resilience and purpose. You’ll walk away with tools you can use today.

How to lead through curveballs with clarity, calm and confidence

Name the curveball – The first step is recognising you’re facing something unexpected. Say it: “This is a curveball.”

Turn off the fire alarm – Stress shuts down your thinking brain. Take a deep breath, a sip of water, or close your eyes to calm your system.

Get curious – Don’t panic, pause. Ask questions, gather facts, understand what’s actually happening before you react.

Play to your strengths – What are you or your team good at? Lean in. If needed, tag someone else in. It’s about the win, not the heroics.

Reframe your mindset – Even if it doesn’t go perfectly, there’s something to learn. That’s how you (and your team) grow.

Create “happiness tripwires” – Small, reliable moments of joy (like a sunflower or a kind text) keep you fuelled for the long game.

Practise curveball responses – Build resilience before it’s needed. Run scenarios with your team, reflect on what went wrong, and embed better reflexes.

Timeline summary

[01:14] - Joelle’s Curveball Method explained: “Life throws them. Leaders learn to hit them.” [06:33] - Step one: recognise the curveball, turn off the fire alarm, and breathe [08:44] - “It’s not about being a hero. It’s about winning the game — as a team” [12:34] - Cancer, curveballs and agency: how Joelle applied her method in life and business [17:05] - The power of happiness tripwires: “Little moments of joy that boost your immunity and your mood” [20:10] - Sales leaders, listen up: resilience starts with your battery [24:01] - The one skill we’re not teaching sales managers (but desperately need to) [25:13] - Why you need “batting practice” in your team meetings — not just pipeline reviews

Links & resources 📘 Crushing the Cancer Curveball by Joelle Kaufman 🌐 Learn more about the Curveball Method: gtmflow.com/curveball 📍 Joelle on LinkedIn: Joelle Kaufman 📸 Instagram: @growthandresilience

If you found this episode useful, please follow, rate, review and share Leadership that Sells — it helps us keep bringing you no-fluff, high-impact conversations to help you lead first and sell more.

In this episode of Leadership that Sells, I sit down with serial entrepreneur and business mentor Ral West — a woman who’s scaled multiple businesses (including one sold to Alaskan Airlines), built powerhouse teams, and somehow made it all look effortless. If you’ve ever felt like scaling a business means sacrificing your time, energy, or sanity, you need to hear this.

Ral breaks down her 6 Essential Secrets to Business Success and shows why systems are the single most important thing sales leaders and entrepreneurs can implement — no matter how small your business or how “busy” you are. We talk high-performing teams, reducing stress, and why sharpening the axe (yes, literally) is the smartest move you’ll ever make. Oh, and she’s doing it all from Maui. Dream life? Check.

How to build scalable success with systems (and still live your dream)

Start with systems – If it’s not documented, it’s not repeatable. Systems create clarity, efficiency and consistency.

Get aligned on vision and values – Without a clear direction, your team is just pulling in opposite directions. Cue chaos.

Track performance – What gets measured gets managed. Data beats drama.

Leverage everything – People, automation, education. Leverage multiplies effort and frees up time.

Culture drives results – A strong, values-led culture attracts and retains high-performing people.

Delight your customers – Don’t just meet expectations — exceed them. Delighted customers stay longer, spend more and bring friends.

Timeline summary

[02:21] - The foundation of great leadership: vision, values and a win-win culture [05:06] - Why “systems” are the most valuable thing you can build today [06:15] - Ral’s 6 Essential Secrets to Business Success (and why they all connect) [09:02] - “I don’t have time to build systems” – how to fix that mindset with one story [11:19] - Small tools, big wins: how Ral saves hours a day with simple tech [16:45] - Why she’s building a mastermind and how it helps entrepreneurs actually implement [19:44] - The power of collective intelligence and lifelong learning [20:48] - Where to find Ral and start building your dream life

Links & resources

• Free webinar on creating a smoother-running business: https://www.ralwest.com/get-webinar
• Weekly LinkedIn newsletter with strategies and tools: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ralwest
• Affiliate program for sharing my course with business owners: https://www.ralwest.com/affiliates
• YouTube channel with podcast appearances and interviews: https://www.youtube.com/@RalWest-wv3ou
• More details on my online course: https://www.ralwest.com

If this episode helped you think bigger and lead smarter, share it with someone who needs to hear it. And don’t forget to follow, rate and review Leadership that Sells — it helps us help more leaders like you.

In this episode of Leadership that Sells, I’m joined by Carmen Sederino — performance master, speaking strategist and creator of the Illuminated Story Method — who shows us how to take the stage like a pro and lead from the front with presence, clarity and purpose. If you’ve ever sat through a mind-numbing, forgettable presentation (or worse, delivered one), this one’s for you.

Carmen breaks down how sales leaders and execs can elevate even the most “corporate” moments into compelling experiences. Whether you're running a town hall, delivering strategy updates, or motivating your team through change, you’ll learn how to avoid the biggest presentation pitfalls, and instead connect with impact, intention and theatre-worthy precision. No fluff. Just hard-won insight you can use immediately.

How to deliver unforgettable presentations that lead, not just inform

Stop winging it – Rehearsal isn't the enemy of authenticity. If you think you're better off-the-cuff, you probably just haven't practised enough yet.

Ditch the PowerPoint crutch – You’re the star, not your slides. Cut the clutter and make your deck serve your message, not replace it.

Create a show, not a slide deck – From tone and timing to lights, sound and storytelling, make your message an experience, not an information dump.

Practice like a pro – Amateurs practise until they get it right. Pros practise until it can’t go wrong. Aim for 7 run-throughs, minimum.

Lead with empathy – Put yourself in your audience’s shoes. What do they need to hear, feel and believe?

Timeline summary

[04:28] - How introverts can still own the stage by playing with their authentic range [06:15] - “You must be believable to be trusted — and to be believed, you need confidence and presence” [07:16] - The 3 C’s of speaking: clear, confident, and compelling [11:07] - The #1 mistake leaders make: winging it (and why it’s killing your credibility) [13:18] - Avoid this one word in your speeches that instantly kills momentum: but [15:07] - Why Steve Jobs rehearsed like a theatre actor (and why you should too) [22:00] - “You are so much more interesting than your PowerPoint” — how to own the room without hiding behind slides [25:22] - What Carmen would put on 10,000 billboards: What if it was you? [29:00] - Carmen’s book recommendation: Ride of a Lifetime by Robert Iger

Links & resources https://www.linkedin.com/in/carmen-sederino-0788b513/ https://www.instagram.com/illuminatedstory/ https://www.facebook.com/IlluminatedStory

If you got value from this episode, please take a second to rate, follow and share Leadership that Sells. It really helps more people like you lead better and sell more.

This is a special episode—it's me chatting with my Mum. I've learned a lot about leadership over the years, but it’s humbling to sit down with the person who taught me first and most. My Mum, Andrea Morton, spent decades as a headteacher, leading schools through everything from petrol bombs and staff conflicts to building community pride from scratch.

Throughout our conversation, I was delighted that one idea kept shining through: great leaders like my Mother are simply on their people's side. It's not complicated. It's genuine care and support, small gestures that build trust, and stepping up to clean the school yourself when needed. Her stories aren't flashy, they're real and practical. Leadership, according to Mum, isn’t about ego. She says it’s about service.

Here are three big lessons she shares here about "being on their side":

• Serve first, lead second: Leadership isn’t about authority - it's about helping your team succeed. Mum started with simple things like improving the staffroom, making sure teachers had what they needed. It showed she genuinely cared.

• Deal with trouble early: When there's a problem, waiting won't fix it. Mum tackled tough situations fast, protecting her team's morale. She never let issues linger, knowing it would only make things worse.

• Build something together: People feel connected when they're part of building something meaningful. Mum involved teachers, kids, and even parents in designing uniforms and shaping the school's identity. It gave everyone pride and belonging.

This is probably the most personal episode I've done. It's my Mum’s wisdom, but it's for anyone who wants to lead with heart, humility, and genuine care.

I hope you enjoy this 100th episode - and if you find value in it, please rate, share, and review. It helps more people find conversations like this one.

In this episode, I sit down with Sylvana Rochet – the leadership advisor trusted by execs from Tesla, Slack and Apple – to talk about how to lead through the chaos of high-stakes transitions without leaving your people behind. Whether it’s an IPO, a layoff, or a burnout-fuelled exit, Sylvana helps leaders get clear, stay human, and lead with intention.

We dig into the real blind spot most execs miss: the emotional fallout of change. You can’t just tick off the legal and financial to-do list and expect the team to bounce back by Thursday. We unpack how slowing down, asking better questions, and connecting to your true intentions can transform the way you show up and lead. Whether you're scaling fast or just figuring out what’s next, this one’s gold.

How to lead through big transitions without losing your people

Plan for the people – Most leaders focus on logistics and forget the emotional reality of transition. Your people need space to process. Give it to them.

Slow down to speed up – Honour the human side of change now and you’ll move faster later with a team that’s energised and bought in.

Use the three C’s – Clarity, curiosity and courage. Get clear on your intention, get curious about what you don’t know, and find the guts to do what’s right, even when it’s hard.

Set your intention – Every conversation, every decision, every day. Don't drift. Be intentional with how you show up and what you want to create.

Practise X-ray listening – Go deeper than the first answer. Ask better questions. Listen for what’s said and unsaid. That’s where the truth is.

Timeline summary

[02:55] – The leadership blind spot in transitions: ignoring the human element [06:33] – “Slow down now so you can go faster later” – why pacing matters [07:37] – The Three C’s: clarity, curiosity and courage – your go-to framework [12:01] – “Your real intention? To prove you’re as good as your sibling.” [14:13] – The billboard test: What is your intention? [19:03] – How to practise X-ray listening and actually hear what matters [23:39] – Listening as an act of relationship, not just a transaction [25:00] – Transition coaching: clarity, courage and what's next [27:16] – Build an identity that no one can take from you [27:41] – Book rec: The Courage to Be Disliked and why it’ll blow your mind

Links & resources

📘 Book recommendation: The Courage to Be Disliked by Ichiro Kishimi and Fumitake Koga 🔗 Connect with Sylvana Rochet on LinkedIn 

If this episode sparked something for you, share it with a fellow leader going through change. And don’t forget to rate, follow and review Leadership that Sells – let’s help more managers lead first and sell more.