September 28, 2024 | Read online
Why Sales Leaders Should Stop Trying to Prove They Can Still Sell
by Kevin 'KD' Dorsey
Alright y'all, let's get real for a minute. How many of you have heard that a great leader should be able to do the job of every person on their team? Now, keep your hand up if you actually believe that load of BS.
Well, I'm here to tell you straight up - it's not just bad advice; it's a surefire way to tank your sales leadership faster than you can say "quota."
When I first started out as a leader, I thought I had to prove I could still close deals like a boss. But here's the hard truth: that whole "lead by example" mentality is straight-up killing sales and sales leadership. Your job isn't to be the top dog salesperson on your team; it's to turn your team into a pack of sales wolves. And let me tell you, those are two completely different ballgames.
I've been around the block a few times when it comes to leading and managing big ol' sales orgs. I've seen firsthand what happens when leaders try to be super reps. I've put together training courses on leadership and management for sales teams, and I'm all about that coaching-focused leadership style instead of that top-down, my-way-or-the-highway approach.
Trust me on this one: the quicker you change your mindset, the better off your team—and your bottom line—will be.
Doing an Employee's Job Takes Time Away from a Leader's Real Priorities
Let's get one thing crystal clear: as a leader, your job is not to be a super rep but to coach, develop, and have your team's back. Spending too much time trying to show off your sales skills takes away from the stuff that really matters, like coaching, managing that pipeline, and helping your team level up. You got promoted to a leadership role for a reason—to lead, not to keep doing the same job you were doing before.
This whole "prove it" mentality is straight-up killing sales and sales leadership. It's like, "I gotta go show them I can do their job." But that ain't your job, folks. Your job is to help them get better at their job. Those are two totally different skill sets. When you focus too much on being just like them, they're gonna see you as one of them, not as their fearless leader. But if you can show them how you're helping them crush it, that's how you lead by example. That's how you make a real difference.
You Can't Effectively Do Your Employees' Jobs Anymore
Here's another reality check for ya: you can't effectively do your employees' jobs anymore. According to Sales Insights Lab, 61% of salespeople think selling is harder than it was five years ago because of more competition and buyers changing things up. The selling game has probably changed a lot since you were last an individual contributor. The game has evolved with new products, processes, and buyer expectations.
Trying to play it like you used to is just gonna show everyone how out of touch you are with the realities of selling today. Imagine trying to sell a product using dusty old techniques while your team is using the latest and greatest tools and strategies. Not only are you gonna struggle to keep up, but you're also gonna lose street cred.
Your reps need a leader who gets the current landscape and can guide them through it, not someone stuck in the stone age.
The Best Tool to Keep Your Reps Buyer-Centric
We hear it all the time. We have to become more buyer-centric as sellers.
But almost no one shares exactly how to do that.
Here’s a list of things buyers typically do internally to purchase software:
- Create an internal use case document
- Find ways to bring this up in the agenda for major GTM meetings
- Show how the previous way is leading to the issue
- Create a business case as to how this will help improve business
- Sync with other departments and get them to prioritize this initiative vs others
- Meet with finance and get budget approval
- Read reviews, meet with customers, look at use cases
Take one of these internal buying tasks or better yet, ask your champion what they need to do and collaborate with them.
Bonus: If you want to make it super-easy for your champion to sell internally, you could also put all your follow-up materials in an Aligned room. I’ve partnered with them so you can signup for the tool FREE.
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The Best Way to Lead is to Make Your Employees Better
Instead of trying to be a carbon copy of your reps, focus on coaching them to be the best version of themselves. Coaching and regular feedback can boost employee performance by a whopping 70% (Zhou, 2023). Executive coaching can give you a mind-blowing 788% ROI through increased productivity and satisfaction (Zhou, 2023).
These aren't just numbers, y'all; they're cold, hard proof that investing in your team's growth pays off big time. Watch them in action, give them feedback, share those juicy best practices, and clear the path for them. If you focus too much on being just like them, they're gonna see you as another one of them, not as the ringleader. But if you can show them how you're helping them level up, that's how you lead by example.
That's how you really leave your mark. When you invest in making them better at what they do, you crank up your own impact as a leader to 11.
Conclusion
Being able to sell got you in the door as a sales leader, but it's not the end goal. Once you're in a leadership role, the key is shifting your mindset from doing the job yourself to empowering your team to do it better.
The best sales leaders don't try to do their team's job for them - they help their team do their job like rock stars. So, please stop trying to prove you still got it as a seller and start proving you got it as a leader. Your team—and your numbers—will thank you.
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Want in? Click here and check it out.
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