7 Steps to Making 7 Figures in Enterprise SaaS Sales | Brandon Fluharty - 2016

What separates sales professionals who earn six figures from those who consistently earn seven? In this episode, Donald sits down with Brandon Fluharty, enterprise SaaS sales leader, speaker, and author of The Seven-Figure Millennial. Brandon shares the mindset, systems, and practical strategies that helped him become a seven-figure earner without subscribing to hustle culture. Throughout the conversation, Brandon explains why success in enterprise sales comes from slowing down. Choosing the right opportunities. Building meaningful customer relationships. creating a personal operating system that supports consistent performance. If you're selling into enterprise accounts, leading complex deals, or looking to improve your sales career without burning yourself out, this episode is packed with actionable insights. Episode Breakdown with Timestamps: Brandon's Journey Into Enterprise Sales (00:06:03 – 00:06:56) Brandon shared how he transitioned from DJing while starting his sales career to eventually becoming a seven-figure enterprise SaaS seller. According to Brandon, reaching seven figures happened much faster than expected and taught him that success is about enjoying the process rather than chasing a destination. He explained that falling in love with the daily work mattered more than the financial milestone itself. Why Slowing Down Helps You Sell More (00:06:56 – 00:09:32) Brandon introduced the philosophy that changed his career: slow down in order to speed up. He explained that constantly hustling and chasing every opportunity drains both time and energy. Instead, he focused on becoming intentional about where he invested his effort and chose accounts where he could create the greatest impact. Protecting Your Time and Energy (00:09:32 – 00:12:57) The discussion shifted to why focus is one of the most valuable skills in enterprise sales. Brandon explained his Diamond Standard framework for identifying ideal accounts instead of trying to sell to every large company. He also shared why understanding the customer's experience gave him credibility when speaking with executive buyers. The Three Truths About Seven-Figure SaaS Sales (00:14:18 – 00:17:09) Before explaining his framework, Brandon outlined three realities every seller should understand. According to Brandon, seven-figure earners typically sell to enterprise organizations, develop confidence through experience, and remain patient during long sales cycles. These three foundations make the rest of his seven-step framework possible. Find the Right Sales Environment (00:17:09 – 00:20:00) Brandon explained why choosing the right company matters as much as developing sales skills. Rather than joining the largest organization, he recommends finding a company that's mature enough to support enterprise deals while still allowing individual sellers to make a meaningful impact. He also encouraged sales professionals to focus on industries creating long-term transformation, such as AI, cybersecurity, and cloud technology. Build a Transformation Mindset (00:20:00 – 00:21:32) Brandon believes the best enterprise sellers don't sell products. They sell transformation. Instead of focusing conversations around features and pricing, he encourages sellers to help customers rethink how their businesses operate and prepare for long-term change. Be Strategic About Your Target Accounts (00:21:32 – 00:26:49) Brandon explained how the Japanese concept of Ikigai helped him rethink account selection. Rather than accepting every opportunity, he prioritized companies that aligned with his interests, expertise, motivation, and ability to create meaningful change. According to Brandon, purpose creates the motivation needed to navigate long enterprise sales cycles. Create Your Diamond Standard (00:29:02 – 00:30:34) Brandon shared the five criteria he uses to identify his ideal accounts. His Diamond Standard focuses on opportunities that are personally interesting, industry-leading, aligned with his expertise, capable of moving quickly, and large enough to justify significant investment. He explained that every seller should create a personalized framework rather than copy someone else's. Turn Imposter Syndrome Into a Strength (00:30:53 – 00:33:01) Brandon discussed why imposter syndrome becomes more common as sales professionals advance. He shared how embracing his introverted personality allowed him to become a better listener and deeper strategic thinker. Instead of viewing personality traits as weaknesses, Brandon encourages sellers to turn them into competitive advantages. Win Bigger Deals Through Collaboration (00:33:01 – 00:35:18) According to Brandon, seven-figure deals are never won alone. He explained why successful enterprise sellers build strong partnerships with legal teams, solution consultants, executives, and marketing instead of trying to control every part of the process. Collaboration, not ego, leads to larger opportunities. Step Seven: Build a Personal Operating System (00:35:18 – 00:39:29) Brandon concluded by introducing two personal frameworks: DFC (Discipline, Flexibility, Curiosity) and PREP (Plan, Rest, Effort, Perform). These systems help sales professionals prepare effectively, adapt during conversations, reflect on performance, and avoid the burnout caused by hustle culture. According to Brandon, consistent performance comes from operating intentionally rather than simply working harder. Themes Discussed The seven steps to earning seven figures in SaaS salesWhy slowing down leads to better sales performanceBuilding a transformation mindset in enterprise sellingCreating a strategic target account listOvercoming imposter syndromeCollaborating to win enterprise dealsDeveloping a personal operating system for long-term success Key quote from the Episode: "It's not a destination. It really is falling in love with the process." — Brandon Fluharty Connect with Brandon Fluharty on Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/brandonfluharty https://www.linkedin.com/in/brandonfluharty/?lipi=urn%3Ali%3Apage%3Ad_flagship3_profile_view_base_contact_details%3Blw%2FccQ2dT1eBKLtUXeTZgA%3D%3D Signup for Brandon’s Newsletter: Be Focused Live Great Visit Brandon’s website: brandonfluharty.com http://brandonfluharty.com Connect with Donald C. Kelly: https://www.linkedin.com/in/donaldckelly https://www.linkedin.com/in/donaldckelly/?lipi=urn%3Ali%3Apage%3Ad_flagship3_detail_base%3BPiwdV4KRSIORehTvQDnJNg%3D%3D Sponsors: HubSpot: hubspot.com http://hubspot.com LinkedIn Sales Navigator: Start your 60-day free trial at [linkedin.com/sell http://linkedin.com/sell Blue Mango Studios: Turn your podcast into a lead generation machine at bluemangostudios.com http://bluemangostudios.com Featured Resources: Be Focused Live Great https://brandonfluharty.com: Brandon’s newsletter for insights on professional growth. The Seven Steps to Earning Seven Figures: Brandon’s upcoming book on the "anti-hustle" guide to million-dollar SaaS sales. Mistakes That Made Me podcast Credits: As one of our podcast listeners, we value your opinion and always want to improve the quality of our show. Complete our two-minute survey here: thesalesevangelist.com/survey http://thesalesevangelist.com/survey. We’d love for you to join us for our next episodes by tuning in on Apple Podcast https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-sales-evangelist/id788738885, Google Podcast https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cDovL3RoZXNhbGVzZXZhbmdlbGlzdC5saWJzeW4uY29tL3Jzcw?sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj5kaXI3Pj2AhVKcjABHW5PDVwQ9sEGegQIARAC, Stitcher https://www.stitcher.com/show/the-sales-evangelist-sales-trainingspeakingbusiness-marketingdonald, or Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/1NjzsFjQwVrgboUfDvbzd5?si=LdQOJDc1T-WBPMxr1h3RsA. Audio provided by Free SFX https://freesfx.co.uk/, Soundstripe https://soundstripe.com/, and Bensound http://www.bensound.com/.

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• 1:53Speaker 00

  Is it still possible to make seven figures in software sales? Well, it is. And my guest today, Brandon Fluharty, is going to tell us what you can do to hit that elusive seven-figure number. Check it out.

• 2:13Speaker 00

  Hey, hey, hey, everyone. Welcome to another great episode of the Sales Evangelist Podcast. I'm your host, Donald C. Kelly, the Sales Evangelist, and I'm so excited for another great episode. I'm so excited to be here with you today. On this episode, I have the one and only Brandon Fluharty. Brandon is an amazing guest. He has a wealth of knowledge, and we're pulling this episode out of our archives. It's one of the ones that I really enjoyed because Brandon shared how he earned seven figures in SaaS sales. And this is something that you can earn as well. Listen to the principles that he shared. If this is your first time listening to our podcast, please share it with somebody else. Subscribe to the podcast as well as connect with me on LinkedIn. The concept behind this episode is not going to help you unless you actually apply them. So I want you to try that and apply these principles and see what success you can get from it as well.

• 2:57Speaker 00

  Now, as we dive in, get a chance to learn about Brandon, some of his theories and ideas and practices that's helped him. And as you do so, start applying it. Check it out.

• 3:11Speaker 00

  Brandon, welcome to the show.

• 3:12Speaker 01

  Donald, thanks for having me.

• 3:14Speaker 00

  You know, I'm really looking forward to this. I've been talking about this for a minute now, ever since our pre-interview. We got a chance to discuss some of these points that we're going to chat about. And especially as enterprise sales reps who are out there listening to this, I can tell you, you're going to be in for a treat today. Brandon, I bragged about you a little bit in the teaser in the intro there. Why don't you take a second and tell us a little bit more about you and what you do?

• 3:32Speaker 01

  Yeah, sure. I've been in sales for almost 20 years now of selling, you know, most recently with a company called LivePerson Public Company. We're a leader in the conversational AI space, selling to Fortune 100 level brands. I've personally closed the likes of Delta Airlines, United Healthcare, Chipotle, Citi, a few others, some exciting stuff.

• 3:55Speaker 00

  So you focus a lot on their smaller accounts, I can tell.

• 3:57Speaker 01

  Yeah, the small guys.

• 4:00Speaker 00

  Delta. I mean, they like, I mean, only a supply job for like half the city of Atlanta. Seems like.

• 4:05Speaker 01

  Yeah, exactly.

• 4:07Speaker 00

  And this is why you're uniquely, you know, perfect for this role in this discussion today to talk to me about this whole idea. You have a seven step, excuse me, but it's the seven steps to making seven figures in enterprise sales. A lot of people listen to this have been selling many different products. Maybe they've been selling as a, as enterprise seller, but maybe they quite haven't hit that elusive seven figure mark yet. Six figures, where are they camping out? How can we get there and to make that happen? So I would like for you to kind of give us like a, a framework. You didn't just, didn't happen overnight. I know there's a story behind this, so I'd love to get your story. And then if you don't mind breaking down those seven points and then we'll take time and just go through each, if that's cool.

• 4:46Speaker 01

  Yeah, no, that sounds great.

• 4:47Speaker 00

  Yeah.

• 4:48Speaker 01

  So like many in sales, I happened into sales. It wasn't a deliberate choice. To be honest with you, when I first started out, I was an aspiring professional soccer player in Europe. Actually had the chance to, to go spend time with the professional team as a trainee in Eastern Europe. Tried to win a professional contract over there and ran into some injury issues. That wasn't quite the path for me, but actually took a lot of learnings from being disciplined like an athlete, working with a coach on your nutrition, working on a coach on your rest and recovery, working on, you know, the techniques and improving your tactics, your mindset. That was actually a big one that I was, you know, really working on.

• 5:29Speaker 01

  Cause I lacked the confidence as an American player in a completely foreign country. And so it was a great grounding for sales. And actually, when I got into sales, especially as I climbed the ranks, I was always shocked and dumbfounded. You know, why aren't sales teams set up like professional sports teams where you do have access to these resources? And so, yeah, when, when I ran into some injury issues, went back to school and, you know, eventually settled in the New York area. I don't know if your audience can, we'll, we'll see it, but I have a pair of turntables behind me, taught myself how to DJ.

• 6:10Speaker 01

  When I was young and broke and tried to pay the rent while I was starting my career in sales and I just climbed the ranks. I went from selling into small and medium sized businesses up to mid-market enterprise and then eventually strategic accounts where I hit the seven-figure earners club for the first time back in 2019.

• 6:31Speaker 00

  How did that feel?

• 6:32Speaker 01

  It was amazing. I mean, here's sort of the interesting thing. So when I hit it, it happened so quickly. You know, my goals going into 2019 was I would have been satisfied with earning a half a million dollars, which would have been a big milestone for me. And so what it really solidified in me is that it's not a destination. It really is falling in love with the process. And to be honest with you, the shift, the big thing that really got me there is, you know, working with my manager at the time when everything was super hectic in 2018, trying to go after every single opportunity that was coming my way. We set a theme for

• 7:16Speaker 01

  the year, which was slow down in order to speed up.

• 7:20Speaker 00

  And one more time for the people in the back.

• 7:22Speaker 01

  Yeah, slow down in order to speed up.

• 7:28Speaker 00

  And talk to me about what do you mean by that? And how did you go about doing it?

• 7:31Speaker 01

  Yeah. So there is a pervasive way of operating, whether it's deliberate or unintentional, this idea of you need to constantly hustle and grind. And that's not just sales. It's not just SaaS cultures, but really anything from entrepreneurship to, you know, you name it. And what we wanted to do was go into that year, deconstructing all those things that we thought we normally have to do. It's constantly work around the clock, constantly be available to our prospects and customers. And what I started with is the fact that no, actually,

• 8:15Speaker 01

  there is a better way of operating, which is to be more intentional. To be more thoughtful and start to align the things that are important to me as an individual and align that even to things like my account list that, you know, giving up, and this is true story, giving up the likes of Walmart who sat on my account, the world's largest company, a company like Apple, a company like Best Buy. Those were accounts that after I went through an exercise of finding and I know we'll unpack this a bit,

• 8:52Speaker 01

  but finding more meaning in just my account list, those actually sat outside of truly where I could make an impact. Either I didn't have the expertise to talk to those or they didn't move fast enough for me to want to invest my time. And I wanted to really make use of not just my time, but my energy. And those are two finite resources that we have to think more holistically about. And just constantly burning the wick at both ends and constantly hustling and grinding, you're going to deplete that time and energy, more importantly, very quickly. And I wanted to be very thoughtful and deliberate about that.

• 9:32Speaker 00

  One of my buddies, he's one of my, and also a client of ours. He is in a martech field and he's selling SaaS as well. And it's exciting to see him progress as a coaching client. One of the things that he made a focus on was that that concept, and this is why I want you to speak more about this because I think it affects many of us who are going into enterprise or selling to larger accounts. I mean, it's just more about being focused. And he said, for him, it was more about striving for, we call it internally in our company, strive for excellence in all that you do. He was focusing, saying like, how can I do pretty much the best that I can do and be in the moment? I can't remember the exact phraseology to use, but it's pretty much that idea, strive for excellence.

• 10:14Speaker 00

  If I can do excellence and the way that I prospect, in the way that I account map in the, in that, in those things, I am just looking for ways to make those inches to be better. Because once you can perfect the process, as you said, it's going to naturally lead and it's not And after everybody, I mean, freaking Apple sounds like a pretty good company, a couple of trillion dollars. But it may not be for the product that you're selling or the service that you have to offer.

• 10:39Speaker 01

  Or the timeframe, right, that it takes, or the position that, you know, Fortune 10 level brands tend to have, which is it's our way or the highway. And so, again, I wanted to, to take advantage of those finite resources that we have or protect the finite resource of time and energy. Where can I make the maximum impact with my time and energy through focus, like you said. So being focused, so you can live great. It's actually the name of the company that I've, I've set up as a side project. But you're absolutely right, like, you know, maintaining high standards is sort of a guiding principle of mine personally. And I call it the diamond standard. And, you know, I like to picture, you know, a field of coal, right?

• 11:24Speaker 01

  Whether it's in a kind of competitive scenario, like when I'm thinking about, hey, here is a target account that is my sweet spot. I even call it a diamond. I, I mapped this out on a, a Venn diagram. I have five criteria that are important to me as an account. And in the middle is a diamond. And the closer those accounts are, if they hit the diamond or near the diamond, that's where I want to spend my time on. Why? Because I'll be excited, I will be personally motivated. I will have the expertise. I will have the ability to move them quickly. I, they'll be excited, will be aligned culturally because they want to make a transformation themselves.

• 12:07Speaker 01

  So that's the diamond standard for me. And in addition, because I sell for a B to B to C company, you know, finding it's super easy to understand what the consumer experience is for these companies. Because, you know, we are the customers. Delta Airlines is a perfect example. I was on their planes every single week. So I knew what it was like to be one of their top customers, ironically, a diamond medallion. And so I I wanted to take those insights of what it was like to be their customer, but also balance that with where I could legitimately and authentically help them

• 12:49Speaker 01

  because I was with a technology company that transformed that customer experience and made life easier for customers. I wanted to bring those insights and bring them to bear. So the only way I could do that is to fully understand what it was like to be their customer. That's what gave me legitimacy when I was in front of executives at Delta.

• 13:14Speaker 00

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• 14:18Speaker 00

  Let's talk about those seven steps that you have that you were able to develop over your course of your career. What I would like for you to first, like, you know, minute or so, just our first 30 seconds, just give us, what are those seven? And then we'll just take about a minute or two on each of them afterwards.

• 14:33Speaker 01

  Yeah, sure. I think it is important to sort of preface that when we talk about seven figures a year in SaaS sales, there are a few core truths. One, hopefully it's obvious, you're selling to large enterprises. That's a core truth. I actually know millionaires who have accumulated very high six-figure income selling into small and medium-sized businesses, working for somebody else, maybe not your own business where that could be a seven-figure business, but selling for somebody else, selling for a SaaS company. I have yet to meet someone who has reached the seven-figure earners' club in SMB or even mid-market. So first core truth, you're selling to large companies.

• 15:16Speaker 01

  I think the second thing is you have experience selling into those large enterprises. It takes a certain level of confidence, a certain level of understanding the challenges you'll face talking to C-level executives or really large companies. So having the experience, I think, is also important. And then the third thing is you need the patience to endure long sales cycles. So those are sort of the three truths. If you're saying to yourself, wow, I'm in that environment, here are the seven steps to truly get there. So quickly going through all seven steps. The first one is just get in the right environment to close huge deals.

• 15:59Speaker 01

  The second one, build a transformation mindset. Third, be super strategic about your target account list. Talked a little bit about that. Fourth, create a standard no one else delivers. Again, that diamond standard. And then fifth, break through perceived personal limitations. So we're going to face imposter syndrome. How do you break through that? Six, you've got to rally others inside your organization. You have to excite them. Sometimes the internal sale is just as important as the external sales. So you've got to rally your own organization. Have your CEO come in and close the deal. Your quarterback, you can't run the ball every single play. You need to know who to throw to, who to hand the ball.

• 16:42Speaker 01

  Off to get everybody involved. And then the seventh is you can't hustle your way, especially if you want to not just earn seven figures, but to stay in the seven-figure annual earners club. You need to develop a personal operating system, falling in love with that process, doing deeper, deep work and prioritizing that over shallow work, like constantly living in your inbox or Slack. So those are the seven steps, the high level.

• 17:11Speaker 00

  So let's talk about the environment for the first one, the environment for the bigger deals. Talk to me about that one.

• 17:16Speaker 01

  Yeah, so again, nothing against other industries, you know, or every SaaS company out there who talks about wanting to change the world. Those are great missions, but you know, sometimes you got to find what I call the Goldilocks situation. And for me, that was a company that's not too huge, where I'm just going to come in and be another number across the thousands of other salespeople they have. But also they can't be too small. I was coming from a late-stage startup before joining LivePerson four and a half years ago. So I was selling enterprises. I was making a very comfortable six-figure income, but I didn't have things at my disposal like true legal resources

• 17:59Speaker 01

  or, you know, a division that supported really large organizations. I was one of two enterprise sellers. We were selling the future and we did a good job of it, but we didn't have the infrastructure behind us to legitimately get those big deals done. So I really advocate for finding what's that sweet spot for you? A company that's mature enough, but not so mature that you're just another number. I think the other thing to think about is where's that crack in the universe from a, you know, a solution? Is your solution stale? Has it been around for 20 years and hasn't changed?

• 18:41Speaker 01

  Or are you on the cusp of what's going to drive innovation over the next 10, 20, 30 years? You know, I think what Apple did to personal computers. Back in the eighties, I think of what Google did in the late nineties for the internet and web web two. I think of what, you know, SaaS and cloud computing has done in the in the two thousands. What's next? You know, it's it's going to be artificial intelligence. It's going to be cybersecurity. It's going to be blockchain. Those are the industries you want to be in that make disruptive change over the next ten, twenty years.

• 19:20Speaker 00

  I'm really glad you said that, too, because sometimes we find people who, you know, to ask us like, you know, what what industry, what product you think I should go and sell? And one of the things I look at is like, is it a need to have? Is it going to be something that's going to revolutionize or to make a difference? If you're going to go sell like, you know, where you ever see a competitor is like you kind of going back to. It's going to be like, good luck. You're just going to be fighting for price, no matter how much value you can get. But you're going to be seen as a commodity as much. And I don't want to battle for a commodity. I want to be seen as that that thing that people are going to need or perceive that they need, and I can best educate them on, you know what I mean?

• 19:54Speaker 01

  So, yeah, absolutely right. And that kind of bleeds into number two, which is build a transformation mindset. You have to get out of the box of being a commodity and talking about features and talking about cost. You know, what's a good example today? Supply chain, right? And that would be a great thing, to be honestly, to be selling transformation. You know, you can solve a real problem today. But, you know, the best sellers, the seven-figure earners are going to be talking to really large companies right now who have been forced into this problem. What they're going to be talking about, don't just solve the issue and put a Band-Aid on things for the next six months.

• 20:36Speaker 01

  You need to be transforming yourself so you never run into a supply chain issue again. That takes transformation. That's going to be touching different parts. And it's okay to be in an unsexy space, but bringing some sex appeal to it. Actually, that is the sweet spot. You know, the core operations that companies are going to rely on, you want to be, particularly in SaaS, you want to be the player that's touching multiple parts of their business. And that takes a transformation mindset. You're not selling one-off point solutions. You're selling a way for that business to fundamentally operate in a different way.

• 21:16Speaker 00

  Love that, man. And I'm a circled mindset when you talked about that, especially this idea of the transformation component of it. There's so much in here, guys, and I would highly recommend you go ahead and connect with Brandon for some of those great stuff. We're going to talk about some of, some more of that, how you can get access to some of these things, but we're going to go through the rest of them here real quick. Number three, Brendan.

• 21:37Speaker 01

  Yeah, so again, be super strategic about your target account list. And I talked a little bit about that, but you've got two options, right? Work blindly with the target account list that you're given and work in, again, a way that doesn't align with things that mean something to you. Operating that way, again, you can make your comfortable six figures, but if you want to take it to another level and truly, you know, earn the biggest payout possible, you have to put yourself, and I took this from the Japanese concept of ikigai, which stands for reason for being. And it's a great personal exercise to find your ikigai, which is,

• 22:23Speaker 01

  you know, what is, what do you love? And what does the world need? And what can you get paid to do? And what are you good at? I find that that's a good exercise to go through from a self-reflection standpoint, to just find like, why am I doing? Why am I at the company I am at? Why do I do what I do? And then I took it a step further and said, and asked myself, why do I work with the companies that I do? Why, why do I accept the leads and the opportunities and the accounts that are on my list? I need to quickly identify, well, this Fortune 25 company, is it better than this Fortune 10 company?

• 23:08Speaker 01

  Or is it better than this Fortune 50 company? I needed to have a very descriptive way of looking at my list to say, oh, I am targeting these top 10 accounts and here's the reason why. So that's what this step is all about, is finding more meaning. What's meaningful to you? And aligning that to the accounts that you're going to pursue because that's what's going to get you up out of bed and ready to go every single morning. It's going to keep you motivated during those long sales cycles when you know, things get tough. You don't hear from their procurement team or their legal team for long stretches. And it gets you excited because again, perhaps if you're selling B to B to C, for instance, like I do,

• 23:51Speaker 01

  it's really exciting to be their customer and know what it's like to interact with their brand and know that you can make an impact selfishly for yourself as a customer, but also millions of other customers. The biggest benefit to me is knowing that I didn't just stock away a nice six-figure commission check from, you know, a Delta deal, but now the fact that every time I open up the app and it says message us versus only calling them when you need help or you need to change a flight or you need to purchase a new new ticket, I was a part of making that happen and millions of customers are being impacted because of it.

• 24:33Speaker 01

  That's my, my why. That's my reason for being. That's what keeps me motivated. So step three is about being super strategic with your account list. And you know, we talked a little bit about this earlier, which is, and I actually took this from a Japanese concept called Ikigai, which is their concept for reason for being. And you know, it's a great exercise to go through personally because it allows you to understand what is it that you love and what does the world need and what can you be paid to do? And what are you good at? And what you want to do is bring all those forces together and find your sweet spot in the middle.

• 25:16Speaker 01

  And so I took it a step further, you know, because the difference between earning six-figure and seven-figure is you need to find more meaning in what you do. And that starts with even the accounts that you work with. So I kind of took this Ikigai concept and created a Venn diagram. I have five different. Criteria that are important for me for for an accountant. And that allows me to look at my list and be very deliberate. And it allows me to hone in on the top prospects in my top 10. And it answers the question, why work on those? And when I do that, again, I might be getting some really big companies off of my my list.

• 26:00Speaker 01

  But one of the key criteria for me was be able to move fast. And some of those Fortune 10 brands just don't have that ability to do that. Or it's just almost impossible to break through getting into the key executives, key, key executives to discuss transformation. And that was immensely impactful, just having my list retargeted and reprioritized in a way that it aligns with everything that's important to me. It just allowed me to to get up each morning, be hyper focused, be hyper motivated, and go through the long haul of when you don't hear from procurement for long stretches of the time.

• 26:45Speaker 01

  Or you don't hear back from legal on that MSA review. You're going to need that motivation. You're going to need that sort of higher enlightened approach in order to stick through.

• 26:59Speaker 00

  Think about all the things you wish you had help with in sales. Finding the right buyers, knowing which account to prioritize, reaching out with the right message at the right time. LinkedIn Sales Navigator is built to help with exactly that. It uses AI powered recommendation to surface leads and accounts that match your goals. So you spend less time searching and more time selling. You get real time account insights that help you grow your pipeline, personalize outreach, and stay informed about buyer activities. It can't replace the work of selling, but it gives you the data and visibility to sell with more focus and confidence. That's what we need. All of this is powered by LinkedIn's network of over 1.2 billion professionals.

• 27:44Speaker 00

  The most dynamic buyer network working just for you. Accelerate your sales with LinkedIn Sales Navigator. Try LinkedIn Sales Navigator now with a free 60 day trial at LinkedIn.com/sell. That's LinkedIn.com/sell. Terms and conditions apply. Since 2013, we launched this podcast. The goal of the podcast was to share wealth of information and I feel that we've successfully done so. As a natural byproduct, listeners like you would reach out and ask, could I coach them? Could I train their team? Could I come and speak in an S K O? Could I consult for them? And that is how we gain the majority of our business and still to this day.

• 28:26Speaker 00

  So in 2019, one of our clients saw what we did and asked, could we do that for them? We experimented with it and we started a podcast production agency. Now we create podcasts for some of the biggest brands in the world and it's amazing. I would love to show you and your team how we can create podcasts for you and use it as an entertaining source, but also educational and a lead generation. If you're interested, go to bluemangostudios.com. Again, bluemangostudios.com and our team can show you exactly what we did. It's amazing.

• 29:02Speaker 00

  The next piece though is going down to your, the fourth point there. The creating that diamond standard. You kind of, well, you kind of allude to that, but yeah. The five, what are the five points of the diamond? If you want me asking. Yeah. So, you know, the, the five criteria that, that I identified for myself as an important for like, identifying a diamond account is it needs to be interesting to me.

• 29:30Speaker 00

  Also, I was motivated by an industry first. So, you know, getting the world's, you know, large, you know, one of the world's largest airlines, that was a big first for the company. So what are other industries where I have some expertise? And that was the third domain, the third criteria for me. Where do I have expertise? Because I'm going to need to talk their terminology in, in front of an executive audience. I'm going to need to know what.

• 29:58Speaker 01

  Is important to their industry and so forth. The fourth criteria was, I want opportunities to move fast. Talked a little bit about that. And then BIC, that, you know, we can, in essence, get a seven-figure booking right out of the gates. And, you know, I got that down to a bit of a science, you know, when I was actively working through those accounts. So, interesting to me, an industry first, where I have expertise, what opportunities can move fast? And what are big opportunities that I know, you know, could move at the level that, that I was accustomed to? And then I would plot that out in a Venn diagram. And that's going to be fundamentally different than somebody else listening.

• 30:41Speaker 01

  And actually, I have a whole sheet where you can do this yourself, but it should be personalized. That's the key takeaway here.

• 30:48Speaker 00

  Loving it. Number five, breakthrough limitations. If you mind telling me about, go a little bit for about a 30 seconds on that one.

• 30:55Speaker 01

  Yeah. So, imposter syndrome is real. It's actually a healthy sign. You know, the higher you climb, the more imposter syndrome you're going to encounter. But that doesn't need to hold you back or stop you. So, here's a perfect example. So, I'm a highly introverted person. I probably skew a little more ambivert, but definitely more towards the, the introvert. I get energized when I can be alone and with my own thoughts. Now, starting out my sales career, that felt like a limitation. I thought you had to be this, you know, extremely extroverted person. It was all about relationship.

• 31:33Speaker 01

  It was about getting tickets to the, the box seats or the, you know, you know, front seat, you know, courtside seats over dinner. That's where deal making happened. And true, yeah, a bit of that does need to occur, but more and more, as I climbed the ranks and, and eventually found myself in strategic sales, I really found like I found a home for myself as an introverted person. Why? Because I could go deeper. I could listen more than talk. And that really allowed me to turn what was once a personal weakness into a Superpower. And one of the best exercises you can do is simply write and develop that awareness.

• 32:14Speaker 01

  And write, you know, what are your 10 personality traits that are germane to you? And what do you perceive as holding you back in the sales industry? And then how can you rethink those and repurpose them? They actually, they become your strengths and you double down on those strengths. So that's what, you know, really step five is all about.

• 32:34Speaker 00

  Oh, man, you can't pick any favors, but I mean, that one there is one that's like, probably I feel is it is, it hit homes. Hit home to me a lot because even coming into this space, doing this and working with some of the clients we do. I'm just like, what authority do I have? You need to have like, you know, 200 years of sales experience, but it's amazing. Love it.

• 32:56Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 32:56Speaker 00

  Get the organization to be involved and then also your personal operating system. If you could talk to us about those two real quick.

• 33:03Speaker 01

  Yeah. So nothing great is achieved alone. Like, you know, there is no one, you know, superstar SaaS seller that is closing these deals by themselves. When you're talking seven figure, eight figure deals, you're going to need help and you should be actually very strategic about that. So here's something that I live by, which is be a generalist with your skillset, but be a specialist with your outcomes. Your outcomes, seven figure, eight figure deals out of the gates. No small little proof of concept. No, be confident that we're engaged. And while I have your attention, I need you to understand we can make an impact. Let me show you. And again, that can't be done alone.

• 33:48Speaker 01

  You're going to need to rely on folks every day, you know, from a solutions consultant to your corporate attorney. And you can't dictate, you need to collaborate with those folks. So it's really important that you get along. I've seen so many SaaS sellers who have done well for themselves, but the expectation is because they lead with their ego. Hey, I need you to do this, or they go tell marketing, I need this by tomorrow for the pitch. That's dictating. Collaborating is getting people on your side again, like a good teammate, like a good quarterback would. That's how you win the Super Bowl. So you need to to really put your ego to the side and really work to to

• 34:32Speaker 01

  develop a collaborative partnership with everybody that you work with. And then be okay, you know, again, going back to the generalist, I am not a top negotiator. I am, you know, not great at whiteboarding things out and strategizing, you know. So, you know, when you think of like a good closer, you think of that person who is always great in front of the prospect, always great in front of the the client. No, I need other folks who are better at that. What I specialize on is just rallying those folks and getting them, putting them in the best position to succeed and make their job easier. And then they make my job easier by helping to close the deal. So, you know, that's what it takes in in step six.

• 35:18Speaker 00

  Love it, man. And then finally, the personal operating system.

• 35:21Speaker 01

  Yeah, so that actually happens to be my personal favorite. And I actually talk about this all the time. Again, moving yourself out of this anti, you know, this hustle culture. You know, I'm anti hustling. It's more about working more intelligently. So there's really two parts to this that make the system that actually aren't hard when you really think about it. So the first concept is DFC and it stands for Discipline, Flexibility and Curiosity. And the way I think about that is anything with a start, a middle and an end. That could be your workday. It could be a sales engagement, sales cycle.

• 36:01Speaker 01

  It could be a demo, a meeting, call, you name it. Think about it with DFC. So the start is when you're disciplined and you want to think of yourself like a world-class athlete. Why? Because they know how to prep themselves, their bodies and their mindset to be ready for competition or training, a really intense training session. So we need to think about that going into it. Do your research. Search, do your homework, know the customer experience better than than they do, or be ready for the day, you know, just do planning. And so you can hit the ground running for for the day because you can control those things. Then during the middle, that's when we need to be a bit more flexible.

• 36:45Speaker 01

  And I like to to think of myself as more of a creative artist. A good creative artist to think about is like an improv comedian. You know, improv comedians make improv seem so rehearsed in the sense, but natural rehearsed in the sense of like, how can they be so good at that? Right?

• 37:07Speaker 01

  But they're good at the basics. They're they're good at delivery and confidence and and knowing how to read a crowd. But they have to be quick on their feet. And so that's what we need to do during the middle of the workday or the middle of a meeting or the middle of a discovery call. Because you're not going to be able to control everything. So you can't be so heavily scripted. You need to be fluid and flexible. And then at the end, we need to look back on our workday. We need to look back on that meeting. We need to look back on that sales cycle and review what went well and lead with curiosity. And this is where you want to be more like a scientist because they don't look back on emotion with emotion.

• 37:51Speaker 01

  They look back with curiosity and they want to tinker. What didn't go well? Well, okay, let's try some something new next time. Or what went extremely well? Okay, well, how do we amplify and scale those things that are going well? So you want to look back, track, review and and use data to guide your actions, not your not emotion. And then the second framework, which actually lines up well, is something that I call prep. Plan. So we talked a little bit about about this. The last thing you should do for the day is plan tomorrow. And that will just put you on a good foot. Rest.

• 38:31Speaker 01

  Once you've ended your day, then you should be in a place where you're not thinking about work. Brain dump, get everything out of your head so you can actually be attentive to your family or your partner, your friends or your hobbies. And that will allow you to rest and recover and regenerate. And then that allows you to put in maximum effort the next day when it is time to get to work. And then finally, performance. You know, if you're going to obsess about anything, again, obsess about your performance, not in a, in a bad way, but in a, again, a more analytical way like a curious scientist would. So, plan, rest, effort and perform, balanced with

• 39:14Speaker 01

  DFC, discipline, flexibility and curiosity. It's a great way to just operate versus I will constantly work, hustle and grind around the clock to get what I want because I want it so bad. This just brings a bit more, you know, of a, a humanistic first approach to being the best professional possible.

• 39:36Speaker 00

  After you shared that last piece there, I feel like I'll get a lab coat. I feel that there's a, all of us should get that lab coat and be that scientist when it comes towards our sales effort. This was very thorough. And I can't, I know as we apply the stuff, we're going to see the results. So for folks out there, I encourage you, please, please, please, if you want to really get to that seven figure, go ahead and take the things that Brandon shared here and go ahead and apply them. Brandon, I know you have a giveaway for us today too, something that they can get a hold of you with as well?

• 40:03Speaker 01

  Yeah, absolutely. So you can follow me, I talk, and I'm active on LinkedIn. So Brandon Flew Hardy, go and follow me there. I post daily and share all my insights. But early next year, 2022, I'm going to be releasing The Seven Steps to Earning Seven Figures, The Complete Anti-Hustle Guide to Earning Over a Million Dollars in SaaS Sales. So it's going to be launching. And if you are part of my newsletter group, my newsletter is called Be Focused, Live Great, which you can sign up on at brandonflewhardy.com. All you have to do is drop your email address in there. And when that book comes out, it'll be an ebook, you will get a discounted copy.

• 40:44Speaker 00

  Love it. Brandon, thank you so much for coming on the show today and bringing your wisdom, man. We appreciate you.

• 40:48Speaker 01

  Yeah, absolutely. Thanks for having me, Donald. This is great.

• 40:57Speaker 00

  Hey, that was Brandon. If you haven't done so already, connect with him on LinkedIn. He's pretty active there and he brings a wealth of insights to the community and to the sales world. You can find all of his details in the show notes, but tell him you heard him here on the Sales Evangelist Podcast. Listen, I want you to thrive, I want you to succeed, I want you to focus, and I want you to achieve your goals. And if that's seven figures, by all means. If it's six figures, great. If it's five, awesome. You accomplished what you want. But our goal here is to bring you the content that's going to best help you to do so. As always, I want you to thrive, I want you to succeed, but most importantly, I want you to raise your level of thinking. I want you to go out and do big things. See you on the next one.

• 41:36Speaker 00

  The Sales Evangelist Podcast is created by the Sales Evangelist Sales Training Organization. It is produced by TSE Studios. Our podcast production manager is Nancy Paul. Our audio engineer is Jershun Obayal. Our video engineer is Dusan Kunado. Guest management is done by Jill Vito and Kristy Virtus. Our content writer is Carlisa Galbraith. Our graphic designer is Yurvish Savalia. And I'm your host and executive producer, Donald C. Kelly.

• 42:11Speaker 00

  Sales Podcast Network.