The calendar says it’s still spring, and we say there’s still time to press that “restart button” and renew your efforts to achieve your goals.

By now you should have perfected your “elevator pitch” so that, when asked, you can say exactly what you do better than anyone else. You should also have done a self-assessment of your habits, behaviors and activities, searching for any weaknesses this troubled economy might have exposed. Hand-in-hand with this is a renewed effort to fix what needs fixing and get your head back in the game. And last week, we challenged you to become an advisor to your clients. Be more than they expect! (For details or to review, access our archived e-newsletters at www.corsini.com.)

Today, we are going to keep it simple and talk about one of the most fundamental activities you can do to create and build successful, profitable relationships—go see the people.

When salespeople come to us saying they are frustrated with their lack of performance, one of the first actions we take is to review their electronic or paper calendars. We’re looking for one important thing: too much white space. You see, we’ve noticed a positive correlation between high activity on a day-to-day basis and overall rainmaker status. The opposite holds true, too. Blank space on the calendar leads to low numbers on a spreadsheet. We’ll usually find, early in our initial evaluation, that the underperforming salesperson simply has no strict plan to get out there and see the people.

Not only does seeing the people lead to better performance, spending face-to-face time with the client is the only way to be an advisor to anyone.

In a booming economy with myriad opportunities, people are more than happy to call on clients. But very few salespeople go see people when there is not an immediately profitable reason to do so. Right now, when things are slow, is a wonderful time to prove your worth to your clients. Show them that you are invested in their success by touching base and taking the time to listen (really listen) to their concerns. And always, always be authentic in your relationships. See the people with the people’s best interests in mind.

You’ll be glad you did. The more people you see, the more “elevator-pitch” practice you get. The more game experience you obtain, the more you’ll understand and manage your own strengths and weaknesses. And the more you actually know about your clients (by listening to their concerns), the better you are at being an advisor to them. Ultimately, this is how opportunities are created.


Right now, during any downtime, is a great time to see the people. It’s an opportunity to develop deep, meaningful relationships. You do that by spending time with people, building their trust and demonstrating exactly how you can help them. I like to compare active selling to a contact sport; you get great at any sport through practice and game experience. Be in the game every day.