Guest post from Rasheed Ogunlaru

 “Sooner or later you’ll hear what your heart has always been telling you: stop trying to be who you think you should be – become who you are” – Rasheed Ogunlaru

Throughout your life – and throughout your working life in particular – you will often be told what to do, how to do it and how to be. Much of this is meant with good intention for our own growth and development and for the greater growth of the organisations and businesses that we serve in. But this can also cause all sorts of problems especially when it comes to connecting with, presenting to and trying to influence others …because they will spot – a mile of – that somehow we are being inauthentic.

One of the great things about David Tovey’s book Principled Selling is that actually he invites us on a journey of self-discovery. I would also say that that is often a journey or ‘self recovery’ re discovering, and bringing ones own self and ones own style back to the fore. Read full article

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Guest blog from Robert Terson – author of ‘Selling Fearlessly’

I know a person who is a serial interrupter – and I’m not exaggerating in the slightest; every time I’ve been in his presence it’s been a constant annoying phenomenon. Annoying and blatant to the point that I don’t want to be around him. He’s close to my age, someone I’ve known for many years. I don’t know him that well, but other than that one unpleasant behavior, he seems to be a decent fellow; certainly, from what I’ve observed, a good husband and father.

The man is in sales, has been all his adult life. I’d be willing to bet that his interrupting behavior takes place as much during his working hours as it does socially (a leopard doesn’t change its spots, my mother liked to say). Which makes me wonder: How many “professional” salespeople are out there behaving the same foolish way, socially and professionally? Read full article

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Rasheed Ogunlaru interviews David Tovey

May 7, 2013

Principled Selling video interview. Rasheed Ogunlaru, author of ‘Soul Trader – Putting the Heart Back Into Your Business’  interviews David Tovey about Principled Selling in a sunny and breezy Green Park, London.  

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Putting sales back into business development

April 20, 2013

Proud to be in sales I had a very interesting telephone conversation with a lawyer this week. When I mentioned sales coaching he said “our partners don’t tend to use the selling word David – they prefer to talk about business development”. My response was to say that in that case I probably wasn’t the best [...]

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Why ‘Principled’ Selling?

March 18, 2013

Finding your ‘North’ I’ve always admired the work of Dr Stephen Covey. His books sold by the million’s and his events were always sold out. I last saw him speak in London a year or so before his death in 2012. As he stood there centre stage as usual, softly spoken but with huge charisma [...]

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6 reasons to be great at asking questions

February 19, 2013

Asking insightful questions is a key communication skill for business winners and leaders. Why? 1)    Insightful questions can cause another person to reflect, and think deeply about issues that your questions made them aware of. 2)    Great questioning allows you to lead a conversation with a light touch – keeping it on track with leadership [...]

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Building trust through understanding

February 13, 2013

Getting under the iceberg “Seek first to understand then to be understood” –  Dr Stephen Covey When groups I work with explain the most common reason for them or their colleagues losing a sale, the answer is almost always ‘price’. When they describe how they won their best customers, they never give one-word answers. When [...]

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The qualification gap – getting to ‘yes’ without closing

February 12, 2013

How to avoid a misunderstanding In a previous blog I explored the need to ask for commitment without resorting to tired and outdated ‘closing’ techniques.  To avoid falling back on to what can appear to be pressure tactics, the seller and buyer need to move through the sales process at the same pace – and the [...]

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Principled Selling interview wins readers award

January 30, 2013

  Listen to David Tovey’s RainToday.com podcast

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Asking for commitment – without ‘closing’

January 28, 2013

Get better at asking You won’t win business unless you know how to ask for commitment from your customers or clients. There is sometimes a perception that gaining commitment is about doing things to prospects – persuading, convincing, being gung ho, handing objections, moving things forward and ‘closing’ the deal. It’s a perception based on [...]

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