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Illuminate knowledge gaps

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What is the most effective thing I can do as a salesperson to advance my career?

I think you have to develop a deep understanding of your buyer, and this starts with the ability to actively listen. When you are calm, composed, and confident, you create the space to truly observe, for example, picking up on tone, body language, and underlying priorities. This level of awareness allows you to understand what genuinely matters to the buyer. Equally important is the ability to ask thoughtful, open-ended questions in a structured way. I refer to these as collaborative questions, as they invite the buyer to share more context, reflect, and engage in the process.

The shift is simple but significant: move the focus away from the salesperson and place it fully on the buyer. When you do this, much of the tension in sales interactions disappears. There is less need to persuade or push. Instead, the buyer becomes part of the process, and people naturally place greater value on outcomes they have helped shape.

The Feynman technique

Mastery begins with the ability to explain a concept clearly. To use the Feynman Technique, take any idea and attempt to articulate it as if teaching it to a child. The point at which the explanation breaks down is the point at which understanding is incomplete, and these are the areas that require further study. Return to the source material with precision, then test the explanation again. I think true understanding is demonstrated when you can explain complex concepts with simplicity, showing that you have fully grasped them.

The 20 hour rule

AI generated image

There is a distinction between competence and mastery. I think achieving world-class performance may require thousands of hours whilst reaching functional competence does not. Approximately 20 hours of focused, deliberate practice is often enough to move from zero to capable. The barrier for most people is not ability, it is the perception that the investment required is too high. Therefore, by reducing the threshold to the first 20 hours makes skill acquisition accessible and actionable. What do you think?

The Golden Rule

The quality of your relationships is often a reflection of the relationship you have with yourself. When you operate from a place of self-respect and internal stability, you naturally attract healthier connections. Without that foundation, there is a risk of seeking fulfilment through others, which can lead to dependency or controlling behaviours. I think strong relationships are built from a position of self-awareness and self-regulation, and when you start from there, you engage with others out of intention, not necessity.

““If you want to remain calm and peaceful as you go through life, you have to have high intention and low attachment. You do everything you can to create your desired outcomes, and then you let it go.””
— Jack Cranfield

St. Patricks Day

Confidence doesn’t come from seeking approval, it doesn’t come from likes, compliments or from someone telling you that you are good enough. Confidence develops from action, it comes from proving yourself through your own effort that you are capable. The more you take action for yourself the less you’ll require external validation from others. Confidence is a skill that you can build like a muscle via practice. It’s a good idea to make small, deliberate choices every day.

What is in it for me?

To understand behaviour, you first need to understand motivation as people do not act without a reason. They are seeking change, improvement, or movement in some aspect of their lives. This could be a result, a benefit, or a meaningful transformation.

Research suggests that a significant portion of buying behaviour is driven by anticipated outcomes rather than past experience. In practical terms, people make decisions based on what they believe will happen as a result of that decision. I think our customers do not buy products or services, they buy improvement. They invest in the change they expect to experience in their lives or work and that decision is ultimately a calculation. The perceived value of the outcome must outweigh the cost, the effort, and the inconvenience required to achieve it. When the improvement feels meaningful enough, people move forward.

They are related

Many economic problems are, in reality, marketing problems in disguise. Not because marketing can solve everything, but because perception, positioning, and understanding human behaviour often determine whether value is recognised in the first place. I think good marketing uncovers hidden economic opportunities and it identifies gaps in the market, explores new possibilities, and adapts to changing consumer behaviour. When organisations understand what people actually value and why they make decisions, they can reposition existing products, develop new solutions, and respond more effectively to changing conditions.

You do not grow in comfort

Growth rarely happens in moments of ease. You are going to be broken, all your possessions are going to be stripped away - your comfort, your pride, your plans - until all what’s left is real. These moments may feel like setbacks, yet they often serve as powerful training grounds for personal development. I think painful moments, disappointments, and setbacks can become catalysts for growth when we choose to learn from them. Over time, these experiences shape us. Piece by piece, they strengthen our character, deepen our understanding, and prepare us to carry greater responsibility and purpose.

Remove the telephone

Most people have a conflicted relationship with their phone, and recognise that they spend too much time on it. Many understand that boundaries are necessary, this advice is well known but still the behaviour rarely changes. The real question is more about discipline than awareness. How mentally resilient are we when distraction, emotion, or anxiety compete for our attention? How often do we allow a device to pull us away from focus, from presence, and from the work or conversation in front of us?

The challenge is simple in principle and difficult in practice: maintain control of attention. I think the telephone is an aamazing tool and it should not dictate our behaviour. I definitely don’t want my phone to have more power over me than I have over myself. What about you?

The system is rigged

There is a long-standing argument that people tend to hire those who look like them or those they easily relate to. This tendency reflects a well-documented human bias. In practice, access to jobs and positions of influence is often shaped by two factors:
a) Who you know, and how closely you resemble those already in the system
b) How capable you are

I think both factors exist in most organisations and the challenge is how to balance between them. A system that claims to value merit must ensure that capability carries greater weight than familiarity or resemblance. And opportunity should be determined primarily by how good someone is at the work, rather than by who they know or what they look like. That is the standard a merit-based system should meet.

Integrating AI

Artificial intelligence will continue to develop regardless of our personal comfort with it. The question for leaders is how to engage with it responsibly and productively. I do not claim technical expertise in AI systems as my interest lies in the human dimension. In many ways, AI resembles prompt engineering: the quality of the answers depends on the quality of the questions. Leaders who learn to ask better questions will extract far greater value from the technology. What do you think?

The AI impact

The leader of the future will not succeed by trying to compete with machines on technical knowledge. I think AI will process information faster and more comprehensively than any individual. Leadership will therefore shift away from proving who is the smartest person in the room. Instead, effective leaders will create environments where learning is continuous, where thoughtful questions are encouraged, and where ideas are translated into consistent execution. What do you think?

EQ will become more important than IQ

Emotional intelligence will become increasingly important at the highest levels of leadership. While machines excel at processing data, they do not understand context, trust, or human motivation in the same way people do. Leaders must therefore cultivate adaptability, the ability to learn quickly, and the capacity to guide behavioural change across organisations. Change remains difficult for individuals and teams, regardless of technological progress.

International Women's Day 2026

For decades organisations have measured cognitive ability because it was easier to quantify. The next phase of leadership development will require equal attention to awareness, judgement, and interpersonal capability. The leaders who succeed will be those who can combine strategic thinking with human understanding, guiding people through uncertainty while ensuring that insight becomes meaningful action.
Contact me via email if you would like an accountability partner along your journey.

The lack of knowledge is not the problem

A common assumption in organisations is that once people understand something, they will naturally act on it. Experience shows that this assumption is flawed. The challenge is rarely a lack of information or theory as the real difficulty lies in execution. I think this is where coaching plays an important role. The coach does not primarily provide answers; the coach supports follow-up, accountability, and disciplined reflection so that insight translates into action.

Choose wisely

These statements can be true. You can deserve to feel good about yourself, and at the same time still be learning how to treat yourself with more kindness. Self-belief is rarely built in one decisive moment, it develops through practice. One thought, one choice, one moment of awareness at a time. Real change begins when you start noticing how you speak to yourself and decide to respond differently.
If you are ready to do that work, contact me via email for a complimentary 30 minute discovery session.

Starting point

Image c/o Chuck Penn

Black people have reached a point of deep fatigue with the distortions, half-truths, and omissions that continue to shape how our history is told. There is a wealth of credible, evidence-based information available that must be passed on to our young people, to our children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. I think by doing so, they can grow up grounded in a clear understanding of who they are and where they come from. In this way, we can begin to address one of the most damaging legacies faced by people of African heritage: the loss of historical memory.

Here is a recommended book list:
“The Miseducation of the Negro” by Carter G. Woodson
“The Autobiography of Malcolm X” by Alex Haley
“The African Origin of Civilization: Myth or Reality” by Cheikh Anta Diop
“Stolen Legacy” by George G.M. James
“The Destruction of Black Civilization” by Chancellor Williams
“Black Men of the Nile and His Family” by Dr. Yosef A.A. ben Jochannan
“Egypt Revisited” by Ivan van Sertima
“Christopher Columbus and the Afrikan Holocaust: Slavery and the Rise of European Capitalism” by Dr. John Henry Clark
“African Civilizations” by John G. Jackson
“Exploding the Myths: Nile Valley Contributions to Civilization” by Anthony T. Browder