Lift your performance with a coach

Thanks to everyone who took an interest in or commented on my post regarding basic skills. In it I stressed the need not to be distracted by the latest advances in tech or the new wonder-app everyone is talking about. Many of you agreed that it is easy to be distracted but it’s important to come back to the basics and practise those core skills.

When it comes to building those skills we expect much of the individual in terms of commitment and the discipline to practise the skills. But to get the best performance even the most talented will benefit from the insight and expertise of a good coach.

I found that in sales a good coach makes a big difference. While an account manager may develop the relationship with the client, a coach will enhance the overall performance. The enhancement may be made by identifying the need to practise one of the basic skills or perhaps by refining the approach based on some insight into the client’s industry. The right coach is a master of the art and a generous teacher of technique.

Just as our premier athletes use coaching to their advantage, so too can your sales team. To revisit my tennis analogy, the player may be alone on the court but the result owes much to the planning and coaching that refines the performance.