Sales Gravy: Jeb Blount

By: Jeb Blount
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  • Summary

  • From the author of Fanatical Prospecting and the company that re-invented sales training, the Sales Gravy Podcast helps you win bigger, sell better, elevate your game, and make more money fast.
    2025 Jeb Blount, All Rights Reserved
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Career Success Economics Leadership Marketing
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Episodes
  • First Month Sales Goals Gut Check

    First Month Sales Goals Gut Check
    Feb 2 2025
    On this first Monday of the second month of the year it’s time for a gut check. First we need to check where we are against our new year goals. Next we need to take stock of our first month sales performance and make adjustments. We’re just a little more than thirty days away from our new year intentions, resolutions, and goals. A month ago we set out into the new year with hope and ambition that this year would be our best ever and that we’d make positive lasting changes in our lives. It’s Easy to Slip Off the Track You’ll remember that discipline is sacrificing what you want now for what you want most. But as time goes by and sticking with new habits gets more challenging, it’s easy to forget what motivated us to make the changes in the first place. It’s easy to let down our guard and go back to our comfort zone. The farther away we get our intentions, the more likely it is that we allow our discipline to slip and get off track. It’s just human nature. Small Slips in Discipline Can Add Up Quickly Let’s say you kicked off the new year determined to have your best sales year ever, and you knew that meant filling your pipeline daily by getting Fanatical about Prospecting. But upon reflection, you realize that days have passed since you picked up the phone, knocked on a door, or talked with customers. You’ve been making excuses to avoid the very activities that move you closer to your goals. I’ll admit that it happened to me just this past week. This month has been non-stop travel—12 flights, 10 cities, 8 keynotes, 5 full days delivering training to sales teams. Toward the end of the week I got tired, made excuses and let my exercise and nutrition routine slide. This was something I promised myself I wouldn’t do when the year started. I know that if I don’t stop right now and recommit to my goals, there is a good chance that I’ll continue down this negative path—because it’s easy. Revisit Your Goals and Resolutions This is exactly why NOW is a good time for a gut check and a look in the mirror. Pause and carve out time today, to revisit your goals, resolutions, and intentions. Sit down and think about what you decided to achieve back in early January. Visualize what it was that motivated you. Picture what you want most and where you want to be at the end of this year. Go back and re-listen to the Money Monday episodes on building a personal business plan, reflection vs. regret, and why personal goals are essential for sales discipline. Then recommit to your goals. Remember the feelings you had when you set them, and make an intentional decision to get back on track. Evaluate Your First Month’s Performance Against Your Sales Goals Next, step back and evaluate your first month’s sales performance. As you do, you’ll likely find one of three scenarios: You Crushed It – You had a killer month and blew your goals out of the water. You Were Average – You hit quota or did “okay,” but you know you’re capable of much higher performance. You Bombed – You missed your number and ended the month worse than you hoped. Great Sales Month If You Crushed it, and you’re on the top of the ranking report fantastic, congratulations! But be very careful not to let off the gas. It’s likely you worked very hard last month to achieve these results. There will be the temptation to take a breather. Trust me, if you do, this complacency will come back to bite you. Now is the time to recommit to doing the activity that fueled your success last month so you don’t end up with a lackluster February and a disastrous March. In other words, you’ve set the foundation for a huge year, take advantage of what you have accomplished and keep the pedal to the metal! Average Sales Month If you had an average or just ok month—maybe you hit quota, maybe you came close, but you know you’ve got more in the tank—it’s time for some honest self-reflection. Ask yourself:
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    10 mins
  • How to Embrace Conflict in Sales feat. Brian Parsley

    How to Embrace Conflict in Sales feat. Brian Parsley
    Jan 30 2025
    In this conversation with Jeb Blount — bestselling author of Fanatical Prospecting and Sales EQ, and the founder of Sales Gravy — motivational speaker and co-founder of The Constance Group Brian Parsley shares insights into embracing conflict, staying mindful, battling internal doubt, and communicating effectively. Key Takeaways Conflict Isn’t the Enemy: Whether it’s internal (“me-me”) or between you and others, conflict can be a catalyst for growth if handled with empathy and awareness. Self-Awareness Is Critical: Recognize when you’re slipping into negative self-talk or procrastination. Do one uncomfortable thing on purpose to regain momentum. Mindfulness Works: A short pause before responding can prevent knee-jerk reactions and help you focus on problem-solving instead of point-scoring. Communication Styles Differ: Tailor your approach to the other person’s style, and clarify misunderstandings by asking what they actually heard. Find a Coach or Mentor: Don’t underestimate the value of someone else’s perspective. A coach sees the “swing flaws” in your sales approach that you might never notice on your own. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2049xdXQ5Ac Why Conflict Is Everywhere in Sales Sales is an inherently conflict-laden profession. You’re asking people for time and resources, you’re persuading them to make decisions, and you’re often balancing multiple interests—your client’s, your company’s, and your own. The tension stems from: -- Negotiations with buyers who might have competing priorities. -- Internal pressures from bosses or teammates who expect certain results. -- Personal conflicts within yourself — especially if you’re unsure of your own capabilities. The Three Types of Conflict Conflict can be broken down into three categories: Me vs. You Conflict – Disagreements between individuals (customers, peers, bosses). Me vs. Job Conflict – Situations where your personal values clash with your job role or tasks. Me vs. Me Conflict – Internal struggles, such as procrastination or fear of failure. The“me vs. me” conflict might be the most insidious, because it can sabotage your motivation, self-esteem, and willingness to accept feedback. The “Me-Me” Conflict: Your Biggest Obstacle Many sales professionals fail because they lose the internal battle with themselves in “me-me” conflict. They know they should spend an extra hour prospecting, turn off the TV a little earlier for a fresh start the next morning, or follow up diligently with new leads. Yet, fear of failure or simple inertia holds them back. How “Me-Me” Conflict Snowballs Letting small tasks slip—like hitting the snooze button or blowing off a follow-up call—quickly turns into a domino effect: You skip a small task or ignore a responsibility. Guilt or anxiety sets in, making you more emotionally reactive. This emotional reaction, often anger or irritability, spills over into other areas of your life—leading to more conflict, and sometimes even lower productivity. Overcoming Internal Doubts Through Awareness The ultimate tool to combat negative self-talk and “me-me” conflict is awareness. Here’s a simple yet powerful strategy: do something uncomfortable on purpose, like making a difficult prospecting call. By choosing the harder path in small, manageable increments, you train your brain to seek out the dopamine rush of achieving a win. Each small success can become addictive—in the best way—helping you build the self-confidence to tackle bigger challenges. Practical Tip: When you notice you’re about to avoid something important—like a call block—stop and say, “This is hard, but I’m doing it anyway.” That small statement of intent can be enough to reset your mindset for action. Why Self-Talk Shapes Your Sales Results In sales, negative self-talk is especially damaging because of the constant rejection and fast-paced environment. One bad day can lead to a downward spiral:
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    37 mins
  • How to Motivate Salespeople to Prospect Consistently (Ask Jeb)

    How to Motivate Salespeople to Prospect Consistently (Ask Jeb)
    Jan 28 2025
    If you’ve been banging your head against the wall trying to get your team (or yourself!) to prospect consistently, these tips are for you. In this episode, I answer a question from Paul in Rancho Cucamonga, California, who’s building and leading a remote sales team in the logistics industry and needs to find a way to get his salespeople to prospect consistently . Then I tackle a follow-up question from a sales leader at one of our live events on how to keep his salespeople motivated to prospect every day. Paul’s Challenge: Driving Consistent Prospecting Call Blocks Paul leads a medium-sized logistics company with reps spread out in California, Utah, and El Salvador. He’s already done a great job by running a book club around my book, Fanatical Prospecting, but he needed practical tips for ensuring his team actually implements daily call blocks. Here’s the advice I shared: Make Prospecting a Daily Conversation As a leader, you need to talk about prospecting every single day. Yes, you’ll feel like a broken record, but that repetition is crucial for setting expectations. “Show Up” for the Call Blocks If your team was all in one building, you’d simply gather them on the sales floor and power through. Remotely, you can replicate this by scheduling a set time (e.g., 8:00 a.m. PT) and getting everyone on a video call. You can’t stand next to them physically, but you can still see them, and they can see you. It’s social pressure and moral support rolled into one. Run High-Intensity Sprints (HIPS) Instead of asking for hours of uninterrupted calling, break it into short bursts—10, 15, or 20-minute sprints. Let them pause to catch their breath, then go again. Keep a virtual whiteboard and track dials, contacts, and appointments in real time. Make it fun and competitive. Overcome the Complaints Reps might moan about being “micromanaged,” but if you keep it fun and energetic, they’ll often appreciate the structure. Focus on results, not just the dials. Question: How Do I Motivate My Salespeople to Keep Prospecting? We also addressed a question from a leader who was attending one of our Sales Gravy Live events. Their team struggles to maintain high call numbers consistently. They might hit 100 dials a day for three days, then crash back down. The sales leader asked: “How do we keep our reps pumped for prospecting?” Here’s the Reality Check Nobody Truly “Loves” Prospecting: Prospecting is hard, and most of us won’t naturally get excited about it. But we do get excited about closing deals, landing appointments, and hitting our numbers. You Must Be a Teflon Sales Leader: Stay relentlessly focused on prospecting, day in and day out. The moment you relax your standards, the team will follow suit. If you don’t treat prospecting as a top priority, neither will they. Be like teflon: no excuses stick. Lead by Example Get out on the “floor” (or on the Zoom call) and make calls with them. Don’t hide in your office. When they see you doing the work, they’ll know you mean business. Use the Power of HIPS Those high-intensity sprints work just as well here. Run “power hours” with quick breaks in between and track your team’s progress publicly. Leading Prospecting Activity Is an Infinite Game Let’s face it: prospecting is often the least-liked activity in sales. It’s easy to push aside because it involves repeated rejection, logistical juggling, and tight discipline. Yet it’s the lifeblood of any thriving pipeline—no prospecting, no leads, no deals, no revenue. And if you have a remote team, like Paul does, you’re dealing with additional hurdles: time zones, limited supervision, and diminished peer pressure. It’s all too easy for your reps to skip their “call block” if you’re not right there to keep them accountable. As a sales leader, you can’t just “fix” prospecting once and forget about it. The moment you move on, your team will start slacking. You have to show up, be present,
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    15 mins

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