You have goals. Your salespeople have goals. The company certainly has goals.
But do those goals actually determine how you spend your leadership time?
Over the past few weeks, I’ve been talking about my Bell Curve Manifesto and challenging you to look differently at the people who make up your sales team. We’ve talked about the “wild things” that ROAR for your attention, the hidden goldmine sitting in the better-than-the-middle group, and why the same job doesn’t mean you’re leading the same salesperson.
All of that comes down to one of your most valuable leadership resources: your time.
In sales, there are really only two things you control: your attitude and how you spend your time. As an inside sales leader, that second one may be your most valuable currency. Yet it’s incredibly easy to let urgency, habit, and other people’s demands decide how you spend it. That’s why intentional time is such an important part of Mastering Inside Sales Leadership.
I don’t believe the Bell Curve Manifesto says, “Spend all your time with the middle.” That would just be another one-size-fits-all leadership rule, and you already know how I feel about those.
Instead, start with the question: What are we trying to accomplish?
If you need to increase production, look at the individuals on your team who have the capacity to produce more. If prospecting activity needs to improve, spend time with the salespeople whose activity could change with the right coaching. If you need more consistency, identify the people who have already shown they can hit goal but haven’t figured out how to do it regularly.
Then ask whether each person is manageable, coachable, and trainable.
Because potential alone isn’t enough.
You could spend hours with someone who has the ability to improve but Won’t do what’s required. You could also overlook someone who Doesn’t Know How, is hungry to learn, and might make significant progress with a relatively small investment of your coaching time.
Your goal gives you the destination. Understanding the individual helps you decide which leadership activities will actually move you toward it.
That’s very different from looking at your calendar at the end of the week and realizing your struggling salesperson got three hours because they were struggling, your rock star got two because they’re enjoyable to work with, and the rest of the team got whatever time was left.
The bell curve can show you where someone’s performance is today. It can’t tell you where your next hour will have the greatest impact.
That requires leadership.
As September ends and you start looking toward the final quarter of the year, don’t begin by asking, “How can I fit more coaching into my calendar?”
Start with your goals.
What needs to change? Which individual salespeople can help you get there? What do they need from you? Are they manageable, coachable, and trainable?
Then put the time on your calendar.
Your goals are the compass. Make sure your leadership time is pointing in the same direction.