A new trend from BusinessWeek.com – Napping Your Way to the Top. I laughed out loud when I read this article. Full disclosure – I hate naps. I never take them no matter how tired I am. Hence the reference to Longfellow in title of this post.

From the article:

Without sleep you don’t learn. My research shows that people deteriorate during the day. It’s difficult to sustain productivity. Naps can add back to the sleep you’re deprived of at night. And a nap enhances productivity even if you have enough nocturnal sleep.

I still remember the business owner I worked for in my first outside sales position. He was a great guy and a patient man when it came to training me. However, he was a bit eccentric. The first day I went out on a sales call with him, we went out to lunch and then arrived at the prospect’s office 20 minutes early. This business owner pulls into the parking lot, turns the car off and reclines his seat. He then told me that he needed to take his power nap and closed his eyes. I just sat there looking out the window for 20 minutes. He then woke up and into the call we went.

The author of this article mentions a similar approach:

I’ll also nap in the car. If I have a meeting, I’ll get there 15 minutes early and set my cell phone alarm to wake me up.

I never thought I would read that in a BusinessWeek article.

Comments(0)

A friend of mine is an established, successful salesperson who is looking for a new opportunity. He recently received an offer from a large corporation that had a 6 or 7 page commission document. The document looked like a court filing. After sifting through as much as we could tolerate, we came across this gem:

All newly hired participants will receive a quota for incentive purposes on or before the 30th day of their territory assignment and no later than the 90th day of their territory assignment.

So, for sure before the 30th day. Unless it is no later than the 90th day. Obviously, it cannot be “on or before” while simultaneously being “no later than.”

This commission plan is a good example of why it is important to keep them relatively simple. Few things turn off a good salesperson faster than a suspiciously-worded commission document. Keep it simple and always walk a candidate through an example of how the commission plan works. If you leave it up to them to sort it out, you may just lose the strong candidate.

BTW, my friend turned down the offer.

Comments(0)

The justsell.com guys reference an interesting study that came out last month regarding the Millennial generation (born between 1979 and 2001). I know, I doubt they received much input from the 5 year olds. Anyway, the study indicates some distinct trends amongst the generation just out of college.

Moreover, the poll finds that as Millennials begin to enter the workforce, they not only have high expectations for themselves, but also for their employers. Nearly eight out of ten want to work for a company that cares about how it contributes to society, while more than half would refuse to work for an irresponsible corporation.

Certainly the Enron, Global Crossing, WorldCom scandals have had an impact on these young, idealistic people. It appears that only 28% of the respondents are full-time employees today, but obviously that number will grow.

Millennials Have High Expectations of their Employers (of the 28% who describe themselves as full-time employees.)

• 79% want to work for a company that cares about how it impacts and contributes to society.
• 69 % are aware of their employer’s commitment to social/environmental causes.
• 64% say their company’s social/environmental activities make them feel loyal to that company.
• 56% would refuse to work for an irresponsible corporation.

If you are hiring young workers or recent college grads, you should consider these statistics in your messaging.

Comments(0)

From a sales cover email:

I can sell direct to consumers, or to “C-Level” executives.

That pretty much covers everyone. I don’t know about you, but I instantly think jack-of-all-trades, master-of-none.

Comments(0)