I help organizations create modern learning strategies for their people, partners, and customers | AE @ Docebo | 🎙Host of Stories of Selling Human

Sometimes in your life it feels like you lose everything.  

Like the year I was laid off.  Interviews pushed from COVID 19,  But then the real bomb hit,

My Dad got diagnosed Leukemia.

Just 5 months later, unfortunately my Dad passed away.  Despite losing so much, I'll never lose what my Dad taught me about life.  Things like selflessness, a relentless work ethic, and a thirst for knowledge.

His best lesson was how to create genuine connections with everyone in your life.  I've taken that approach to sales my whole life.  I’m still the 8 yr old kid who loved meeting people so much that he went door to door selling Ham and Cheese out of a catalog.

I got genuine connections out of it and the Sony Boombox I won wasn’t half bad either!

Highlights from 15 years in professional sales:

🔥 I launched a new team where I successfully recruited financial producers for a firm owned by Fran Tarkenton, Hall of Fame QB.

🔥I was named the top sales rep in an office of over 50 media sales people.  Judged not just by sales attainment but also by activity.

🔥At Monster, I sold the biggest partnership contract in the history of our team. $300k ARR, 3 year deal. 

What am I most proud of professionally?

A 15 minute meeting.  I drove 3 hours to Chicago to meet a client I’ve never met in person.  For 15 mins to say hi and drive back.  It wasn’t to close a deal.  It was just a Tuesday. 

Those “Just Tuesday” moments are why I love this gig.

I’ve had success in my career because I genuinely seek to understand people. 

An understanding strategy IS my sales strategy.

My relentlessness isn’t driven by my product or a sales number. I'm motivated by digging deeper to discover the “un-discovered” problem.   Sales is something that happens for and with your buyer not to them.  You're a guide on a discovery together with the intention to help and add value.  ALWAYS.

The best feeling in sales isn’t ringing a bell, (even though that’s always fun). 

The real joy is in being told three simple words.

“I trust you.” 

That’s what really lights me up and what I'm going for.

Finally, my approach in sales is guided by attuning yourself to what someone’s entire world is like, actively listening without any agenda, being genuine, and putting them first.

I call these things, “Selling Human”.  I practice it daily.  I think we can all do it.

I choose to study it.

If you want to learn it with me, listen to my podcast:  Sell By Being Human 
(wherever you get your podcasts)

AND for more,

Follow #sellbybeinghuman

Alex Smith

It’s Wednesday, and instead of putting out a podcast episode, I’m putting out a shout out.

Shout out to my friend Jen Mueller.

I get reached out to by lots of people to be on the Sell By Being Human Podcast  

But I was absolutely giddy when Jen’s team reached out to me to have her on.

Jen is a long time sports reporter in Seattle.

She’s covered the Mariners, Seahawks and many of the famous teams and events in that region for years.

And if that’s not enough, she has an awesome cooking show and is an engaging keynote speaker.

I always say we all can sell things through the lens of human connection.

Jen sells the value of spending time with her to the players on the team.

She’s not just asking questions.

She’s building relationships.

It’s how she sees the players that gets them to want to tell her things most reporters don’t hear.

Take a listen to how she does that effectively in our episode below. 👇 

So it meant so much for me to see this pic this morning of her on the team plane with the Superbowl trophy!

Congrats Jen.  🏆. 

You are the Champion!

#sellbybeinghuman

I help organizations make learning enjoyable across their people, partners, and customers | AE @ Docebo | 🎙Host of Sell By Being Human

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I’m getting on a plane to see my mom this week but I also need your help.

Hoping someone out there has worked with a parent that is searching for assisted living or memory care.

This week we’ll be looking at some places and its a whole journey I’ve bever been a part of before.

So always good to find people that have travelled that same journey.

I also know its big to shout out birthdays on Linkedin recently so shouting out my Mom for turning 79 this past week!

79 has brought a lot of joy and tough realizations.

She’s the same age as my Dad was when he passed away 6 yrs ago.

As your parents age you start counting experiences you’ll have with them in person on your hands.

Trying to squeeze in more time because you know it’s finite.

I always hear people say, 
I’m not ready for my parents to get there.

But its not about being ready.

You’ll never be ready.

Its about being present.

So value the time you have before it’s too late.

Lucky that we have this week and hopefully more weeks in our future to be present.

Presence is the present at 79.  😊

She wasn’t trying for the Gold.

But she got it.

I love a good comeback story and what it can teach us all.

A skater that won world championships as a 16 year old in 2019.

Her whole life was skating.

Pressure.

But she said she didn’t have the time to know herself so she left the sport.

She found joy on a ski trip.

Instead of chasing medals.
She chased joy.

The medal was a residual of joy.

In practice rounds where others were thinking over every jump.

She was taking pictures on the ice.

So it’s no wonder she skated flawlessly.

Alyssa Liu teaches us all.

Find joy first.

Your goals will follow.

#teamusa #olympics

Hey, I know that guy on the TV!  Props to Keenan for an awesome move this weekend.

Jim Keenan aka Keenan . has been a huge mentor to me from afar with his book Gap Selling.

Excited for his coming book Gap Prospecting.

Anyone who wants to know the essence of sales, I always direct them to his book.

Sales is about finding problems worth solving and he outlines it perfectly in this book.

For Christmas this year, he surprised his family with a trip to The Olympics.

To make it even sweeter, one of his daughters is in serious competition to be an athlete there one day in moguls.

Dual moguls is wild, a race to the finish with tricks in between.

I love it bc you can fall but still win with the difficulty of your tricks.

Congrats to all the medalists but especially Elizabeth Lemley who go on the podium with bronze after a tough fall.

And props to the entire Keenan clan cheering them on.

And also, like your sales skills, your sign game is on another level.

#teamusa #olympics

Today, I'm posting the last episode of my podcast.  Well sort of.  The last episode before a new look.

I've always thought that everyone in the world is in sales.
But the only ones that admit it are those with it in their job description.

So I set out to find people in every profession.
That sell things through the lens of human connection

Nurses
Magicians
Parents
Teachers
Entrepeneurs
Speakers
Marketers
HR Leaders
Learning Professionals

I've interviewed them all.

And some themes emerge when I ask people:

What does it mean to you to Sell By Being Human?

To Be Curious
To Align Yourself
To Care About The Person
To Find Value
To Listen
To Solve Problems

My 153'rd episode is with Amos Balongo.

Amos moved from Africa to America when he was a boy.
Learned English and how to make an impact through relationships.

He's now a keynote speaker and executive communications coach.

Unlikely road, maybe.  But not when you meet him.

I love his approach to speaking below.

There's a difference between:

Speaking At People
Speaking To People
And Speaking Into People

Can't wait for you to see a new look.  

More on this coming!

This year, I'm going hard into this.
Maybe it doesn't grow.  Maybe it does.
Or maybe it's a foundation for something else.

Either way, look to see more as I dig into even more professions that you never thought were in sales but are.  

And contrast them with professional sellers.

And help everyone unlock the human side of sales in your own work.

#sales #sellbybeinghuman

Elevating Leadership Institute

Co-Founder, Partner, & Chief Relationship Officer

Joe Jacobi Performance Coaching

What would it mean to fully engage in the second half of life?
What is obstructing you from fully engaging in the second half of life?

Midlife transitions require a new lens and perspective compared to earlier life chapters. 

Imagine a framework and performance mindsets - built for you --> a high performance leader - that create and support:

* Clarity to align meaning and performance to the latter chapters of work 
* Smooth shifts from structure and rigidity to unstructured and optionality
* Dynamic launches and purposeful growth of new ventures
* Rewarding and life-changing adventure and travel 
* Artistic dispositions that bring creative projects to life 
* The capacity to let go
* Identity transformations beyond work 
* Shifting peak experiences to later in life and career 
* Bringing focus to exactly what matters most 
* The essence of memorable experiences with family and friends 

I help high performance executives and owners find their second wind to confront challenging midlife transitions with meaning and adventure.

Our 1-1 coaching collaboration builds a customized 90-day plan that reboots, renews, and relaunches your new chapter of life ... with an aligned sense of freedom, an unexpected approach to confronting obstacles, and a deep accountability for yourself in an uncertain world.

In just 90 days, our collaboration within this framework gives you a new compass that is tuned into your inner voice, not the voice of others; Facilitates you towards simplicity, not overwhelm; Enables a reinvigorated sense of curiosity, learning, and excitement to try new things, not the self-doubt that leaves you defaulting to staying stuck.

Owner

Valor Performance, Inc.

Helping Sales Professionals, Managers, and Executives operate at full capacity under pressure to navigate an ever-changing business environment

Performance Coach

Sunday Morning Joe: Joe's Weekly Email Newsletter

Sunday morning inspiration that your true self craves.
Original writing and actionable advice from Olympic Gold Medalist and Performance Coaching, Joe Jacobi, delivered to your inbox every Sunday morning for free.

Writer

USA Canoe/Kayak

Chief Executive Officer

Board of Directors

WRCB-TV

Host Chattanooga-related Olympic profiles for the evening news broadcast and contribute to the Chattanooga Olympic Zone blog - www.OlympicZone.blogspot.com

Olympic Correspondent, Chattanooga Olympic Zone

NBC Olympics

Served as the Color Analyst for both Whitewater and Flatwater Canoe/Kayak at the Olympic Games in Beijing.  Called over 20 Olympic races over 11 days of canoe/kayak competition with two different production teams.  Also provided commentary and stand-ups for a one-hour broadcast of the Olympic Whitewater Trials on MSNBC.

Color Analyst, Canoe/Kayak

United States Whitewater Team

Promoting "Olympic Values" and the best attributes of canoeing and kayaking through coaching, instruction, and professional presentations to all audiences on and off the river.

Olympic Gold Medalist, Two-time Olympian

I am an Olympic Gold Medalist and Performance Coach who helps high performance executives and owners ignite their second wind to confront challenging midlife transitions with meaning and adventure

Just a few years ago, I was an overweight, unhappy, and unfocused Olympic sport CEO who was heading for a painful and lethargic midlife crisis. My success as an Olympic athlete and standard to which I thought such an athlete should be seen only worsened the situation. 

Instead, I was able to flip a script of excuses and procrastination into a performance framework and mental models that produced the most transformative and meaningful midlife transition that I could have imagined. Today, my pursuits of deep connection, creativity, and health have never been better.

Unlike other coaches, I blend my successful experience as an high performance athlete on one of the world’s biggest stages and the spirit and values surrounding my home life in the Spanish state of Catalunya to build a one-of-a-kind lens that simplifies the unique challenges of midlife to shape your next great chapter of life.

Senior level executives from Fortune 50 companies, medical professionals, sales leaders, and business owners seek my help to improve performance and unleash their hidden talent and attributes. 

* Master the art of course-correction 
* Cultivate the power of small wins through small steps forward every day 
* Prioritize expansion of energy over managing time 
* Rediscover the joy of movement in nature 
* Design intentional experiences designed with uncertainty, friction, and discomfort

Want to learn more about what our collaboration could look like?

First Step: Connect with me here on LinkedIn and/or email me at Joe@JoeJacobi.com

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