James "Saywhatsales" Buckley, helps people by providing them with OnDemand sales training resources that help them grow professionally and personally. From prospecting to discovery, negotiation, and closing, JB Sales OnDemand turns sales reps into sales professionals. The tactics, techniques, and insights delivered to JB Sales Members will change their results, their career paths, and help them become well-rounded sales experts.
Tell us about your education and background
Former Addict turned Sales Professional/Trainer Troubled youth - Politely asked to leave several high schools 😉 15-yr Restaurant Veteran Cut my sales teeth in Door to Door B2B and Residential Bachelors in Writing Communications (34 Year Old Grad) Minor in Sociology Now sales trainer and host at JB Sales Training - Best job ever!
What was your first job?
Bagger at Publix Supermarket in Miami Florida. I didn't know it at the time, of course, but I was learning a skill that would later set me up for a sales career. I learned to build rapport with strangers very quickly because I only had about a minute to get someone's guard down and get a laugh in. It always seemed to serve well at tip time. A handshake, a smile, a joke, and some familiarity with often seen faces, knowing their names... this was all very helpful for my average tip.
This transferred in a lovely way over to cold calling and networking, which I love!
Describe your most pivotal career experience.
Graduating from college as a non-traditional student changed my life. I'd become sober, separated from my first wife, and began a new educational journey all at once in 2009. I had no idea it would lead where it did. Putting myself, my life's lessons and my stories out there was the best thing I could have done for my future success even if I still had no idea at the time that it would matter so much.
Joining social media in 2014 was the best thing I did for my career. Prior to that, I didn't exist much on social. Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Twitter all became my platforms. Knowing that I had the knowledge to share was extremely pivotal for my growth and development.
Who is/was your mentor and what was the most important lesson you learned from them?
I don't have just one mentor as you might imagine. I look up to many because there is no silver bullet in the game of success. It looks different for everyone. On a personal note, mentors/people I want to be like come to mind like John Barrows, Chris Merrill, and Morgan J. Ingram, and the rest of the team at JB Sales is seriously an awesome group to be holding walking beside on this journey to success. But here are a few other names worth mentioning that I look up to whether they know it or not.
Ronnell Richards (of course)
Justice Sikakane
Trish Bertuzzi
Richard Harris
Tim Clark
Kristina Finseth
Kasey Jones
Rachel Mae
Scott Leese
On the "They don't know me side", I think of celebrities that inspire me to strive for more.
Gary Vee
Eric Thomas (Motivational Speaker) J
oel and Victoria Osteen
Will and Jada Smith
Dwayne "The Rock"
Johnson Robin Williams
Steve Harvey
I could probably fill this entire article with people I admire that are famous and not so famous. Many of them would be famous people you'd never heard of. Gotta look to someone. All these people are great people to look toward. They inspire me every day.
If you were/are a mentor in your field, what advice would you give to younger colleagues?
Slow down. Nothing you ever really cared about happened overnight. Everything you desired to keep took time. Success requires persistence, planning, consistency, and constant execution. Instant fame is unlikely. Not impossible, but unlikely.
Whatever it is you do, you don't want it to be a job. You want it to be a "career", so think long and hard about where you ARE and where you WANT TO BE. The only person that can get you there is YOU. Here's a fact: It' no one's job to make you successful. That responsibility lies with YOU and YOU ALONE!
What are you most proud of in your career?
I've reached a point in my life where I don't have to focus on money at all. I can focus on the people, the service I'm providing, and the value. The money comes as a result of my focus on those things.
My pride also lies in what we've built for the sales community at JB Sales. A place where they can grow and develop and get the help they need to be the best sellers they can be... because they deserve that!
If you could change anything in your industry, what would it be and why?
Connect and Pitch is a plague. We have to stop this madness! If I change nothing else before my career is over, I'd like to change the flow of connecting and immediately send a Lord of the Rings novel to the person that accepts the connection request. YUCK!
I believe this practice is one of the worst. It's absolutely the biggest letdown for those that are receiving these automated and self-serving messages.
Stop talking about you! What you're after from people isn't about you anyway. It's about them! Learn this. Make changes that reflect that you know it. It makes you look terrible when you connect and pitch!
What lasting contribution do you hope to make to society/the professional world?
I hope that people realize authenticity and kindness can and will make you successful. A genuine desire to help others become more than what they were yesterday is what I'd like to believe my legacy is. Kind was a very hard thing for me to become. If you know me today, you don't know the old me. I was not always such a "great guy" in my youth.
I've hurt a lot of people and will spend my life trying to make up for it. It took a lot of anguish for me to become the person I am today and people should know it's normal. It's all part of the journey.
Not sure that's as direct an answer as B&B readers might be looking for, but that's my initial thought when I read this question.
To stay connected with James, be sure to check out some of his free online resources at JB Sales, and connect with him on LinkedIn.
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