Your Comfort Zone is Your Failure Zone

0:04 Thank you for joining us on the Winning and Selling Podcast. I'm Professor Scott Plumb of the Minnesota Sales Institute and with me is Bill Hellkamp of Bridge Development Systems. And together we launched Franchise Sales Pro with the commitment to work with franchise owners and franchisees to drive sales and boost revenue. Most people think of comfort as a good thing and in many situations it is. Comfort can mean safety, familiarity and the absence of immediate threat.

0:30 But when it comes to growth, achievement and personal transformation, comfort is often the silent saboteur. It's the invisible line that separates who you are and who you could become. So put up your feet as Scott and I sink into your comfort zone is your failure zone and other magnificent matters on Episode 697 of the Winning and Selling Podcast. I'm really looking forward to that topic Bill but before we do we're going to be covering Chapters 10, Part 2 from the book Aligning Strategy and Sales by Frank Sespidis.

1:05 And we're about to wrap that up and next week we will but before we start the book club Scott I want to share an announcement. Yes. Hiring a sales rep can be a daunting proposition. Some sales leaders put up with underperforming sales people because they're afraid of the hiring risk. So what are the reasons this process goes so badly? According to a number of studies there are three main reasons that the new sales rep fails.

1:28 First is misaligned expectations. Some people hope that selling will be easy and when they have to prospect or face rejection they cave. Second is failure to fill the funnel. This often happens when a sales person believes they will close at too high a percentage and so will need less prospects. Third and finally you have inconsistent follow up meaning that they give up too easily when the prospect hesitates. Would it be good to know if the person you're hiring has the passion and perseverance to really accomplish the sales process?

1:58 You can if you're using an assessment that measures a candidate's core competencies that have been shown to predict sales performance. The Winning and Selling Podcast is partnered with a group whose sales person assessment will measure just those competencies that are essential for success. To learn more go to mnsales.com slash offers. We'll be building out our offer page. Thanks Bill. So the Chapter 10 is on the Salesforce environment and this chapter touches on a few different topics.

2:27 I'd like to concentrate on the framework of giving effective performance feedback for sales managers and I'm going to break it down into three steps before, during and after. So before the review you need to establish clear expectations. You need to be able to really communicate the performance standards and to do it early. And this also includes some ethical standards which can ensure the expectations of behavior and the culture are understood and they're not assumed.

3:00 The sales people sometimes assume things if they're not communicated clearly and understood. Who knows how they're going to be interpreting things. So sales people I think really need to know what are the rules of the game before review comes up and then to be able to communicate that accurately. Bill, when you've worked with companies do you find that they do a good job of communicating those expectations and to find them clearly and consistently with the sales reps?

3:25 If GoGetemTiger is clear expectations, I don't think they do. I think most people, they can't verbalize what their expectations are. And so it's almost like, well you'll know what it is when it happens. And then I'm going to tell you you did wrong. It's kind of a, I remember I think it was in the one minute manager bowling with the sheet over the bowling pins. Okay. And that somebody in the background yelling you got three of them? Oh yeah.

3:54 Instead of getting clear expectations, we kind of have to guess and feel our way through as if we're blind. Right. It's not a good way to do it. No, no, it's not. The next part is, you know, this is what a sales person does for a living. So their performance review should be focused on what the sales person does and how their behavior creates results and impacts the overall growth of the company and the department. So managers need to consistently observe performance throughout the year, not only at review time, but really ensure that the feedback is grounded in actual behavior, not memory or assumption.

4:29 So you have to be able to keep track of their behavior throughout the year. I'm thinking about Stevie Ray when we had him on, I think it was episode 681. He was talking about the review and how good this person does. And then he says, but, and then they start to criticize him with everything. Forget everything that they said at the beginning. So I was just lying about that to make you feel good, which is an old one minute manager thing too. Right. Right.

4:52 Yeah. The say something nice, then cream them and say something nice again at the end, you know, sandwich thing. But, but why do we wait for a whole year? Should we be riding along with these salespeople on a regular basis and seeing how they perform? I think that's a big mistake that many sales managers make is that they're waiting for the review at the end of the year. Well, heck, we had a year of screw ups. That's like not talking about our quota till the end of the year and going, well, you didn't make it.

5:20 Well, the last month, yeah. Well, I think people do that every month. What's your quota for the month? I'm going to worry about it on week three. Sorry. Yikes. How about a quota for the week? Yeah. The third part of the before the review is to really analyze and distinguish the difference between ability and motivation. I've seen salespeople that have a very high effort, but low ability. You know, this rep works hard, but lacks certain capacities and capabilities.

5:49 And I think the coach, the sales manager, the coach needs to think is coaching and training going to be able to help this person develop their skills. They have high effort, just low ability. So we need to be able to train them. The next is high ability, but low motivation. The rep is talented and disengaged and they're just not consistent. And I think a question that the sales manager needs to ask themselves, can incentives and a recognition program increase their motivation?

6:18 And then unfortunately, I think there are some reps that have a very low ability and low motivation. I still have used to baby. Yeah. So, you need to really ask yourself, is this the right role for this person? And to be able to think about this, you know, before review, but also as they're being on boarded to in the first three months, are they going to be able to cut it or not? And in some cases, you might find somebody that has a high ability and a high motivation. These are the superstars. I mean, they accelerate on all levels.

6:48 And I think the question that sales managers need to ask themselves is, how can the organization reward, retain and replicate their success? Yeah, I think that's really key. You know, when you find that unicorn, don't beat it up. I see so many. And then if they do really good, Scott, we're going to cut their territory. Yeah, exactly. And force them out of our company because they were making too much money. Oh, my goodness. The shortsightedness sometimes of an organization when they find somebody who's a real champion.

7:16 No. So the second part is getting into the review. So during the interview, we've got five steps to go through them pretty quickly is we need to be able to convey a positive intent. You know, the goal of the review is to provide positive feedback that strengthens the sales person capabilities and increases their effectiveness. And a review is only productive when the manager truly believes that improvement is possible. So if it's clear that the motivation and ability and the fundamentals are lacking or they're excelling, you know, discuss that and figure out what needs to be able to change to be able to move forward and grow. So convey that positive intent.

7:55 Well, and did you, did you have a good assessment? You know, we just talked about that on the ad. Do you have a good assessment that's telling you what kind of person you have or are you guessing? You know, one of the things you've told me, Scott, is salespeople are really good at selling themselves. If they were just as good at selling their product, it'd be great. Right. Yeah. Yeah. I think some sales managers, as they're going through review, I know that they're thinking about this. They're probably saying, you know, something's better than nothing.

8:23 And like you've said, I mean, I don't want to let them go because then I got to do their job and they're doing good enough. You find somebody else. Yeah. Their mediocrity is great. Yeah. And other people see that too. And that's unfortunate. So step two is really defined specific observation. So we talked about this. Preparing for the review is think about their behavior, document it, observe it. And this really review, you know, removes any ambiguity and builds credibility.

8:52 And it really demonstrates a fairness and some authenticity in the conversation too. Step three, part three is state the impact of their behavior. So people don't intend to underperform, but sometimes they may be unaware of their actions and their outcomes. So the managers must connect the dots between their behavior and the results. And during that review, share that observation with the salespeople based on their performance, based on specific activities that have been witnessed.

9:21 And I think that's so important to have specific examples because the salesperson, like any person, is going to deny that they're doing anything wrong. And they're going to be there. Well, that's, you know, that doesn't happen that one time. Right. And yeah, but that's every time because it came so quick. Sometimes the sales manager hears stories from other people and they think that it's actually true. It's just an interpretation or perception of something. It's not always completely true.

9:47 But think about here's something that sales managers need to be aware of is the difference between style and behavior. Style is a personality driven tendency. Behavior is observable, changeable actions. So really concentrate on the behavior and focus on the behavior. And that's where we're going to get the results that we want. Step four is really it's the other person's obligation to respond. So make it part of a conversation, not just a lecture. And when you're making it a conversation, you're bringing that salesperson in, you're building some personal ownership and you're making them accountable and engaged.

10:26 And hopefully adding clarity to that too. And when you do that, then you become having a reputation of always having conversations with people about the performance and then people doing it. And then people do not get defensive. I think that's really important. Step five is focus on the options and solutions. So, you know, discuss now what the reviews should be focused on today and tomorrow in the marketplace and not past events or outdated training.

10:52 I mean, sometimes salespeople will refer to outdated training. It's not really relevant. So talk about the questions on the next steps and really create that action plan. And then after the review, we're starting to get the follow up. So we're applying the things that we've talked about. We're measuring it and we're getting into follow up schedules and reinforcements of coaching opportunities on development. And then look at the overall patterns of how that review behavior is being applied and then incorporate that within the culture of the company.

11:25 And you're really building the organization effectiveness and strengthening the individual's performance by doing the review, by doing the coaching, by really talking about ways that these B level players can get to the A level players and have them report, have them report publicly on what they're doing differently. Share these ideas in your sales meeting. Your sales meeting should be a chance for you to come together and start to improve as a group.

11:53 It's not waiting for next year's evaluation. Just can't change year to year. You've got to change week to week. Right. Well, I think breaking it down to quarters is good. Months is great. I love weeks. Just getting it done. We live in weeks. We live in weeks, week after week. Yeah, we do. So that's chapter 10 and next week we'll be covering chapters 11 and 12 and we'll be finishing up the book. I want to mention something real quick that you didn't get into and that's okay. But I was really impressed by when he talked about ranking your customers and who's really profitable to you. Scott and I in our sales training, we talk about ranking your customers or your distributors or whatever that next level is for you.

12:38 And so many companies we want to talk to only rank them by total sales. And that is not the picture. And he did a really good job in this talking about that total picture. And they had a chart, right? Yeah, I saw that. He was down in a low profit, high problem. I serve low profit. Give those to your competition, man. Let them lose money on them every day. Yeah. So not enough companies do that. I thought that was really important.

13:06 Right. Before we get into the topic, I'd like to share an announcement. Okay. Your turn. Yeah. Do you have the right people on the bus and in the right seats? That's always the first step before investing in training because sometimes it's not about more training. It's about finding the right people. If you're looking to build your team in 2026 to bring in folks who can actually hit your activity goals and targets and drive the sales and results that you want, it might be time to talk to a recruiter.

13:31 So just head over to mnsales.com slash offers. Check the box to connect with a professional recruiter. There's no obligation. It's just a conversation. And if you'd like us to introduce you to someone who can help you find the right candidates to fill the team, fill out the form, we'll be in touch. So invest in your people and invest in your future. Thank you, Bill. Thank you, Scott, for that. Our topic today is your comfort zone is your failure zone.

13:56 It doesn't say that staying comfortable makes you a failure, but I do think Scott, it limits your opportunity to rise to your highest potential. And whenever we're too comfortable, we're really not doing new things. We're not trying new things. I know when I went skiing with all my kids, all my three boys and we went skiing a lot. And I'm no great skier, but I do know one rule. And that is if you never fall down, you're never trying hard enough.

14:25 You're never cutting the edge. You're never going on a big enough hill. If you just keep skiing the same way, you're never going to get better. It's the same with with sales with everything that you do. If you don't try to push yourself to the next edge, you just have an illusion of safety. And we think we're doing fine because we're comfortable and it feels safe, but really it's misleading. You're actually surrendering your control to fear. Have you ever felt like you've done that?

14:56 Oh, sometimes when I feel tired, I get into my comfort zone. But I also know that the comfort zone is complacency. And all of the magic happens outside of your comfort zone. And I think it's human nature to be able to find a routine that we want to live in, but there's no growth there. Well, people just stay in careers. They're not enjoying or at companies that aren't treating them well because I hate it here, but I'm afraid to look at that next thing.

15:23 I remember my situation, my wife was a PA at the time and she was sitting down with all of her other PA's at my house and they were talking about how much their job was mean to them and how they didn't like it. And I said, why don't you quit? And they said, what? I said, you can quit. It's a free country. And four of them out of the six of them quit. The two that stayed, they changed everything because everybody quit on them. And the four that left found better jobs.

15:49 But they had to force themselves out of that comfort zone that we like. And we do like that. And really, if we look at the way that we're biologically built, comfort zone is kind of in our DNA, right? We know what fear is. We survive by staying in the cave and not wandering around. And so sometimes it's difficult to break ourselves out of that comfort zone. I know that I've taught presentation skills for years. And the number of people, Scott, that are afraid to get up in front of a group and present, even at the highest levels in the company because I was working with company owners and presidents of companies.

16:33 I had one company that I was going to work with. We're going to work with all their executives. And we set a time and everybody said, I can't make it. Oh, I'm busy. Oh, I got a meeting. I got this and that. And the owner, he said, nobody can make it. I said, Paul, you tell them they have to be there out of the 12 people that said they couldn't make it. 11 made it. Only one person had a real reason. And the president of the company said, I hated every minute of it. It was the best thing I ever did for myself.

17:02 Is that breaking out of your comfort zone? Yeah. Yeah. That's very good. It's very good. So we were hired to not like to not like to get out of that comfort zone. We know it's a danger. It feels unsafe like that president said, but it just causes decline. If we don't change, we're just going to remain the same. What's your saying? No change. No change. There's no wonder. No, no change. So I don't have wonder. I mean, if we don't change, if we don't get curious, if we don't get frustrated with our system, we don't have to be able to do that.

17:36 But if we don't get frustrated with ourselves, we're going to be in decline. Have you ever met somebody still using a flip phone? Yeah, well, my parents, but that's right. Well, that's, you know, that's age. But I've had business people. It took them, you know, 10 years to get to a modern phone. Yeah, because they were afraid of it. I know it took me a year because I didn't really want to learn what I had to learn to work with a full-size phone.

18:02 But I think you just stop learning. You don't develop resilience. You never challenge your own assumptions. You never learn. I know that you say that this whole work we do with the podcast is to get sticky. Yeah. It forces us to think about new things that we haven't thought about before. I know I've met people, Scott, that said, I hated college or high school or what, and I'm never going to read another book again. Right. Yeah. Oh, man. What a learner. What a what on the edge of the world, right? So, so the challenge is sometimes we get comfortable and it's such a nice, warm, fuzzy feeling that we never get out of it.

18:44 Yeah, so true. So, so you've got to get discomfort. You got to get uncomfortable, right? So everything we learn, we had to break out of that comfort zone to do something different. And I want to encourage people to not just learn something new, but to do something new. Why don't you talk about what we found to be most the most important step in our training process about doing instead of just knowing? Well, I think the most important step of change is application. So if we're teaching new information, then they've got to apply it in order to internalize it.

19:19 So if they report to a group within a sales meeting or a reinforcement session, here's what I did. Here's what I learned. Here's the outcome that I got. Or here's the outcome I got that I didn't like. Let's talk about that. And when you're creating that support and coaching in an environment that's supportive, people feel more comfortable with change. Yeah, it's hard to change, right? We could even hear it when we ask them to report that some people didn't do it because it was a little uncomfortable for them.

19:44 But then they hear it from other people and it changes their attitude. So we need to really push ourselves out of that comfort zone and do something a little different. If we don't, if we don't, if we stay in the comfort zone, here's some of the challenges, missed opportunities. We don't promote people who sit down at their desk and just kind of work their way through. We promote people who try something new to take on a challenge.

20:08 Our skills are never, we never get to the talent level we could if we don't break out of this comfort zone. We lose our confidence. This is the one I see for myself when I've broken in and I've gotten comfortable, I lose confidence to try something new. It gets harder and harder to try that new thing. And then also here's a challenge, shrinking dreams, you know, those goals. If we don't stick to those goals and hold on to those and push for those new goals, we give up.

20:35 And then we were frustrated by them. So the goal isn't to eliminate comfort. It's to expand your zone a little at a time. So here's what are some of the things that you would say people should do to kind of expand their zone on a daily basis? Well, I think they need to have a goal. They need to be able to create a vision and to be able to figure out what they need to be able to achieve that goal. But they're going to have to get out of their head and they're going to have to break their routine. But they have to believe that they deserve better results.

21:03 And there's no reason for them to change. They're just perfectly happy with what they're getting. I like the word routine. I heard somebody say that your routine is just a grave with no holes, no end on either end. You just dig in that, right? You're just digging that grave for yourself that Monday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, weekend, drinking. So break out of that routine that you have, especially if it's a failure routine. But even if it's a success routine, what are you adding new? What are you doing different?

21:35 Stop avoiding challenges and start to face challenges. As they say, courage is in the absence of fear. It's acting on despite it. So that's my topic for today. Your comfort zone can be your failure zone if you let it. Yeah. Yeah. So true. And I think there's a lot of talk about potential. And when somebody says to me, you've got potential, I feel a little bit insulted because they're really saying is that I've got a greatness. I've got a gift. I've got strength inside of me. But I don't have the guts encouraged to apply it.

22:10 And if I don't have the guts encouraged to apply it, then I will always have potential. But I'll never get anything different or better out of my life because I'm living in my comfort zone. My son once won one of my sons was playing soccer and he got the most improved player award. And I said, what's that mean, Tommy? He goes, means I really sucked at the beginning. But that's something though, right? I mean, maybe you really sucked, but you improved. And every time you improve a little bit, you get better. So even if you know that the most improved player meant you were really bad to start with, it does mean that you tried.

22:46 Exactly. Exactly. And the teacher filled in the gap between the potential and execution. Bam. I motivated him somehow, right? To get better. Right. Right. So we don't really have any resources for this, but I would recommend you go to mnsales.com slash offers. And you'll find all the different things we're doing with the partners on that page. Part of the page. Our goal to nugget is follow effective action with quiet reflection from the quiet reflection will come.

23:16 Even more effective action by Peter Drucker, the management guru back from the 60s and 70s. Yeah, I would say that this is a challenge for me. I need to turn some of the noise off, whether I'm listening to the podcast or watching something on TV. There's nothing wrong with turning off all the noise and allowing your time chance and allowing your mind that chance to think a little bit. Yeah. Some of you are afraid of their own thoughts. Yeah, I've been doing a little bit better job on Sundays and just kind of unplugging from everything. And Charlie Kirk's got a book coming out here. I think I'm supposed to get it on December 9th and it's about honoring the Sabbath and some techniques of how to do that. So that's that quiet reflection.

24:02 Well, and that's that's what it was built for. It was a chance for you to think and not just be in action all the time. Action is good, but give it give quiet time. It's chance. Not comfort zone. Right. Right. All right. All the information you're going to find is in our show notes. It's at www.winningatselling.com. This is episode 697. Next week, our topic is do I really need a mentor and we're going to be finishing up the book chapters 11 and 12 of aligning strategy and sales by Frank Sespedis.

24:37 Please subscribe and share this podcast with your colleagues and on your social media networks. Grateful if you give us a five star review post a favorable comment. If not, please contact us directly. Go out and get better one skill at a time. Joyful selling.