By Hall of Fame Speaker, Award Winning Author. Connie Podesta, CSP, CPAE In my extensive work with leaders, I’ve noticed that they tend to perceive innovation as something that’s bigger than life: new, outrageous, unthinkable, complicated concepts that are wildly different from anything we’ve ever imagined. Not intimidating at all. With so many daily challenges, it’s easy for leaders to coast along with “business as usual” until the really big idea or the light-bulb-moment happens to come along. The status quo becomes perfectly acceptable in the meantime. The truth is, innovation isn’t Read More
Quit Leading Everyone the Same Way
By Hall of Fame Speaker, Award Winning Author. Connie Podesta, CSP, CPAE As an expert in the psychology of human behavior, I know that personalities are at the absolute deepest root of everything we do or say or think. Our personalities drive how we deal with other people, interact with them, motivate them, communicate with them, and negotiate with them. And yet, leaders often don’t factor in personalities on the journey toward career advancement. For one thing, many leaders subscribe to the “golden rule” that says we should treat others the way we want to be treated. That sounds kind Read More
Unpacking the Psychology Behind Incredible Leadership
By Hall of Fame Speaker, Award Winning Author. Connie Podesta, CSP, CPAE Great leadership is 10% smart business strategies and 90% psychology. Admittedly, some people might not agree with that statistic. But I speak to tens of thousands of leaders every year, and I guarantee you it’s true. When organizations want to elevate the quality of their leaders, the first inclination is to provide them with training on the latest processes or technology. While that tactic quickly reaches the point of diminishing returns, helping these leaders to gain greater psychological insights into themselves Read More
Quit Allowing People to Sabotage You
By Hall of Fame Speaker Connie Podesta Nothing throws a wrench in a meeting like the sneers of passive-aggressive people. Sitting there, arms folded, huffing and puffing. But they never really say what’s bugging them. Ugh! The next move is yours, and it’s pretty clear-cut. If you don’t shut down that sabotaging behavior now, you’re basically giving them a free pass to be rude. They are getting away with it, and you’re letting them. The only solution is to take a stand—and take action. I know what you’re thinking now: “But Connie, I don’t like conflict.” I get it. Most people don’t. Read More
Quit Underestimating the Importance of a Non-Disruptive Work Environment
Leadership: The Irony of Disruption by Business Motivational Speaker Connie Podesta Scan the pages of any business publication, and you’ll come away with the message that successful leaders are supposed to innovate. Disrupt. Push the envelope. Think outside the box. Break the rules. Oh yes, disruption is very trendy right now. Let’s dive into that. Businesses have played a bit of a semantics game with the word “disruption.” For most of our lives, disruption was something to be avoided because it led to discord, turmoil, and problems. Not a healthy environment in which to do work or Read More
Quit Talking So Much
By Communication Keynote Speaker Connie Podesta Raise your hand if you’re a “talker”. I know I’ve been guilty of it. I remember as a kid, a teacher saying to me that I wouldn’t amount to much because I talked too much! Fortunately for me, I grew up to be a keynote speaker, so I learned to leverage that particular skill! As a former therapist and human relationship expert, I’ve also learned a whole lot since those school days about what connects us and what divides us as human beings. As leaders, spouses, partners, parents, friends – all of those roles require communication skills. In Read More
Quit SELLING from a Place of Desperation Rather Than Success
By Sales Keynote Speaker and Human Behavior Expert Connie Podesta Bottom line? People want to buy from salespeople who project confidence, not desperation. In the video below, I share two personal stories of my experience as a new speaker. The first, an occasion where I acted completely out of desperation and literally ended up spending more to get myself to the multi-day event than I made. The other was when I ignored the completely blank you’ve-got-no-bookings calendar in front of me and answered an event manager’s question to whether I was available in July with two very strong Read More
Quit Underestimating Word of Mouth Marketing
By Sales Keynote Speaker and Human Behavior Expert Connie Podesta Word of mouth marketing is EVERYTHING. Why? Because it’s personal. It’s another human being putting their stamp of approval and trustworthiness on what you do – and then sharing why you’re the person to call with someone else! That’s powerful, especially in today’s world. It is true for almost every industry – doctors, lawyers, restaurants, salons, spas, real estate agents – you name it. It’s exceptionally important for salespeople. Many get into the mindset that they are in the business of whatever their product Read More
Quit Pressuring People to Buy
By Connie Podesta The world has changed. The way consumers buy has changed. That old school, “There are ONLY TWO left” tactics are out. The truth is consumers have OPTIONS now. There’s hardly anything that we can’t purchase online. So, the high-pressure, gimmicky, push people to purchase sales delivery will get you exactly the opposite results than what you want. I’m reminded of how many times I’ve gone into a car dealership only to have someone try the, “I’ve got to speak to my sales manager” routine. Now, when I want to purchase a car, I go straight to the manager and tell them I Read More
Quit Asking the WRONG Sales Questions
By Sales Keynote Speaker Connie Podesta Want to close more deals? First – know your audience. Buyers usually fall into two categories: Relators and Bottom Liners. The Relators are the warm and fuzzy people. The ones who want to get to know you. Ask about your family. Launch into relationship building. Connect. The Bottom Liners? Want facts. Figures. Graphs. Price. Delivery time. Data. They also have zero interest in being your friend and small talk sends them right through the roof. Here’s the deal: As salespeople, we fall into those two groups too. More than that, we tend to sell Read More
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