Podcast: The Search for Growth
The Search for Growth is a podcast led by Alfie Marsh (a snappy last name, but no relation) and Chris Gibson, who as they call are “a sales guy and an engineer with two perspectives on life.” Alfie and Chris have spent their careers in the world of high growth startups and run this podcast to interview founders and share frameworks to help others grow.
Alfie reached out to me recently through a common connection and we had a great conversation on multiple topics. You can take a listen to the podcast on Spotify or through Apple Podcasts, or watch the interview on YouTube. While there’s plenty we talked through the 60-minute discussion, here’s a few key topics:
Lessons from a Golf Store: My first job in sales was selling golf equipment in a retail store while in college. On my last day before heading off for my first post-college corporate job, the 20-year manager of the store told me I was the best salesperson he’d ever had. My first reaction was, jeez, Jim must not have been running a very successful store! My second reaction was of real surprise, because I never felt like I was selling anybody anything. I was just helping them figure out the right equipment that was best for them. Turned out that genuine approach to being helpful allowed me to sell a whole lot of golf equipment.
Stop Making it So Complicated: There are multiple times in my career (multiple is a gross understatement) when I failed, or was failing miserably. Every time I broke through the barrier I was facing, I realized that I was overcomplicating things. One time as a struggling salesperson when I was trying too hard to execute the right sales techniques that I learned in training classes and books, as opposed to just relaxing, being an expert in my field, and trusting my instincts to help the customer be successful. Another time I was trying so hard to match with my mistaken perception of the role of a sales manager, as opposed to realizing that my job was simply to help my team get better at their job.
Authentic Self and Created Self: As you consider your career and growth, it’s important to assess what you’re naturally great at, and what you WANT to be great at. When do you feel completely in your element? What activities crate energy versus those that suck the life out of you? The insight of understanding your authentic self and unique gifts can shape the roles you take and how to work with others whose strengths can offset your weak spots. That’s the authentic self, but we can also BUILD who we want ourselves to be - what I call the Created Self. Deciding you’re going to always call people back the same day they call you. Deciding you’re going to work out 5-days a week. Deciding you’re going to start waking up earlier. Deciding you’re going to be a better listener. Observe what you see in people you look up to and build new habits. Create the person you want to be.
Paranoia and Urgency: Salespeople in particular tend to be optimistic people. That’s a nice personality trait, but it can create blind spots and delusions of what’s really going on. When you understand this, you can start embracing and being open minded to the things that you’re worried about, and then have a high sense of urgency to overcome those concerns so you can take more control. I’ll share an example of how I used this approach to win a new customer by increasing the price as opposed to offering a discount.
Thanks to Alfie and Chris for a fun conversation. I hope you enjoy and get something out of it!