Jake Burhans argues that when your pipeline stalls, complaining about bad leads won't help. Instead, own the problem and focus on what you control: searching your existing pipeline for qualified prospects. Your brain's reticular activating system will surface opportunities you missed when you reframe what you're looking for.
We all know that mindset is one of the most important things in sales, but more specifically, being solutions-oriented. What does that mean? It means that— it doesn't mean that we don't acknowledge our challenges. We acknowledge them. Maybe the new leads coming in aren't great, they're not qualified, and it's difficult to make offers. What are you going to do about it? We're going to sit there and complain? That doesn't give you any power to change your situation or take effective action. But when you take extreme ownership, acknowledge the challenges, then say, well, what can I do? Well, I can focus on my existing pipeline. There's gotta be some qualified leads in there that I can make offers. And then you dig in there. Okay, where in my existing pipeline? So always having that adaptability, that mindset to not disregard your challenges. I understand things are challenging. Acknowledge that, but then shift your focus. Hey, where can I find opportunity? Where can I find solutions? And your reticular activating system will start to work like magic and show you where there's opportunity. But you have to think in the correct way in order to be successful. It's all mindset.
