My alarm would ring…and I’d reach for my iPhone to check my calendar. Just to see what kind of day was awaiting me at the office. A small jolt before I consumed my first espresso. At Whitetruffle, where I ran sales for over 3 years, I was the only salesperson initially. After some forceful go-to-market legwork, we’d figured out how to feed ourselves leads. So I was loaded with calls.

Reps should spend their time selling. And boy were we doing that in spades. Some days, my schedule had 8 to 10 calls on it. All with different prospects. At varied stages of our pipeline. I was the company’s only revenue producer. Our startup’s fortunes were at least partially resting on my ability to sell effectively. So I needed to be on my game. The at-bats kept coming and I needed to find a way to stay sharp.

Top-level athletes rely on visualization. A kicker in football might close his eyes before a big field goal attempt and visualize his upcoming kick splitting the uprights. Approaching a crucial putt, a golfer’s ritual might have her close her eyes, take two deep breaths, and see her ball sink into the hole before beginning her putting stroke. A starting pitcher, the night before a critical game, might spend an hour conjuring up the specific pitches he’ll use to retire the lineup he’ll face the next day. From my days in competitive tennis, it was routine for me to bounce the ball a few times, look at my opponent, envision my delivery hitting the “T”, before launching into my service motion. 

Sales is no different. 

Sales depends on your ability to perform. Over and over again. If you’re lucky, the opportunities keep on coming. And you need to be on your game for each meeting. One tool I took from sports when at Whiletruffle is the ritual of visualizing an outcome. Before jumping on any call, I’d close my eyes – even if it was for 5 to 10 seconds – and imagine where I wanted to take the prospect by the end of our conversation. For one prospect, I might manifest, ‘I need to get Charles not only fully qualified but also booked for a product demo with all stakeholders from their buyer journey’. With another opportunity, I might envision obtaining a verbal close from Kendra. I might see and hear her saying, “Paul, this all sounds good, you can send us a contract that reflects the terms we just discussed, and we’ll get it executed by Monday.” For another potential customer, I might picture my handling Kelly’s toughest objection smoothly and booking an onboarding call. In my mind’s eye, I might tell her, “Now that we’re on the same page, why don’t we get you guys started by booking a kickoff call? It’ll be the start of our partnership and a way for us to ensure that you’ll be deriving value from our product quickly here.”

Knowing where you’re headed with a prospect is critical. Too many sales folks have flat endings to their calls because they don’t know exactly where they’re going. Without a clear destination, it’s impossible to be a caretaking sherpa to your prospect. How can you expect to carefully guide someone, if you don’t yourself know where you’re meant to be headed? Visualizing your endpoint allows you to lock things in before you enter the chaotic realm of a call. Store that visual in memory and set your intention. 

More often than not, that short conjuring up of your endpoint will help you get there. In my experience, it’s a game-changer. Try it next time you’re about to jump on a sales call. After reading up on the deal’s background in your CRM, ask yourself, “Where do I need to take Peter by the time we’re done with this meeting?” Let the answer come to you. Imprint it in your mind. 

You’re now ready for battle. Press that Zoom link, and launch your meeting. I’m thinking about you nailing it. So go do it!