Category: Persuasive Professional

Making a good first impression is hard enough in real life. Now that a majority of sales conversations happen over zoom, it’s even more difficult to set the right tone. That’s why it’s one of my favorite tweaks that I made to my process. If you’re going to be a great sales person, then you…

There’s a weird thing that I’ve seen in the magic world, the woodworking world, the martial arts world, and any other skill-adjacent world. It’s this: most people would rather collect techniques than understand principles. In the magic world they practice dozens of card sleights, coin disappearances, and other feats of dexterity. But, they rarely learn…

This weekend I had a college engagement and I brought the whole family along for the adventure. (That’s my daughter holding one of my juggling pins & running around the theater as I was setting up.) This is what success looks like, to me. I love that I get paid to have fun AND I…

These are the franchisees, franchisors, and vendors that I got to meet this week as the keynote speaker for their annual conference. It’s always an honor to be invited into these tight-knit communities & see how they operate together. I even got to meet someone who is a friend of a friend that we both…

This morning I’m in Omaha Nebraska getting to hang out with a room full of business & franchise owners to talk through the power of story & sharing your experience. Later this afternoon I’ll be standing in front of the crowd and rewire their brains to see more opportunities. It’s a ambitious goal, sure, but…

I’m back at the airport. Big surprise! Today I’m heading to Omaha for a keynote speaking engagement tomorrow. There’s a franchise conference going on & I’m going to be talking with all the franchise owners at the annual gathering. My mission is to help the owners leave with a set of tools that they can…

Quick second note: I’m updating the name of this whole project from “Good Persuasion” to “Recognized Genius.” While persuasion is an essential meta-skill that makes all other skills better, I still think there’s a lot more room for us to talk about other stuff that’s even bigger. Basically, I’d like to help you 1) recognize…

If you’re in the world of consulting, you might be familiar with the iron triangle of services: You get to pick 2. 3 is impossible. And I have my own take on this when I think about any opportunity that crosses my desk. I have to have at least 2 of those elements for me…

This is a fascinating frivolous Friday. You could probably write an entire book about the lessons behind the story in this video. Maybe I should write it. Either way, I’ll try to keep this email focused & tight on what stuck out to me & how it can help point you in the right direction.…

Behold! A sculpture of an artist’s palette! (thanks to MidJourney for this abomination) When you look at many of the most accomplished & famous (not always those two in the same person) artists, you’ll find out that this painter dabbled in sculpture, and that sculptor dabbled in music. It’s a hallmark of mastery; the willingness…