Being real can be quite scary because you have to be willing to let people see the real you.
Doing so makes you vulnerable to opinions and in some cases . . .
Heavy duty judgment!
Being real can also be scary to the recipient of your message because it might come across harsh, offensive or downright nutty!
I […]

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Paul Castain is the Vice President of Sales Development for Consolidated Graphics where he oversees the training and development of 700 sales Jedis.

Over the last 27 years, Paul has trained and mentored over 3,000 sales professionals, written sales training content for several Fortune 500 companies and is the author of Castain’s Sales Playbook (which just won a Sales Pop award for best sales website).

It was somewhere back in a far away time known as “1986″ that I sat listening to the “Slippery When Wet” album.
I remember sitting with my guitar and imagining my band and I playing Madison Square Garden.
I could see them and hear their applause so vividly.
I practiced somewhere around 6 hours a day, visualized and […]

Go to Sales Playbook
Paul Castain is the Vice President of Sales Development for Consolidated Graphics where he oversees the training and development of 700 sales Jedis.

Over the last 27 years, Paul has trained and mentored over 3,000 sales professionals, written sales training content for several Fortune 500 companies and is the author of Castain’s Sales Playbook (which just won a Sales Pop award for best sales website).

News Flash . . . You don’t have to be like everyone else!
In fact . . . Please don’t!
There are many ways to stand out, in fact you could do a real good job of it by being a Grade A A-Hole but this is about standing out in a good way
Sometimes (emphasis […]

Go to Sales Playbook
Paul Castain is the Vice President of Sales Development for Consolidated Graphics where he oversees the training and development of 700 sales Jedis.

Over the last 27 years, Paul has trained and mentored over 3,000 sales professionals, written sales training content for several Fortune 500 companies and is the author of Castain’s Sales Playbook (which just won a Sales Pop award for best sales website).

I suppose I could give you the old “glass half full” sermon today with regard to life’s challenging moments . . . but I won’t.
Today, I’m going to call it like I see it and tell you what truly sucks about our challenges!
They distract us from all the other things that we are truly blessed […]

Go to Sales Playbook
Paul Castain is the Vice President of Sales Development for Consolidated Graphics where he oversees the training and development of 700 sales Jedis.

Over the last 27 years, Paul has trained and mentored over 3,000 sales professionals, written sales training content for several Fortune 500 companies and is the author of Castain’s Sales Playbook (which just won a Sales Pop award for best sales website).

I see it all the time whether it be in an online discussion or tweet on Twitter.
People even tell it to me several times a week . . .
“Facebook is for friends and family” or “I keep Facebook private”
My question (and title for today’s blog) is . . .
“Why does Facebook have to be that […]

Go to Sales Playbook
Paul Castain is the Vice President of Sales Development for Consolidated Graphics where he oversees the training and development of 700 sales Jedis.

Over the last 27 years, Paul has trained and mentored over 3,000 sales professionals, written sales training content for several Fortune 500 companies and is the author of Castain’s Sales Playbook (which just won a Sales Pop award for best sales website).

I was having a rare moment with the television the other day.
When I say a “rare moment” I mean that in the context that I was actually watching it.
I’m usually hanging out with my friends in Bon Jovi and Aerosmith . . . come on, fess up. Did I get you?
Didn’t think so
Actually […]

Go to Sales Playbook
Paul Castain is the Vice President of Sales Development for Consolidated Graphics where he oversees the training and development of 700 sales Jedis.

Over the last 27 years, Paul has trained and mentored over 3,000 sales professionals, written sales training content for several Fortune 500 companies and is the author of Castain’s Sales Playbook (which just won a Sales Pop award for best sales website).

Many years ago, I made a huge mistake,  with one my teammates who reported to me.
I never saw the value he brought to both the team and our enterprise.
The “didn’t see” part came as a result of not looking . . .  not because of an absence of value.
Truth be told . . . he […]

Go to Sales Playbook
Paul Castain is the Vice President of Sales Development for Consolidated Graphics where he oversees the training and development of 700 sales Jedis.

Over the last 27 years, Paul has trained and mentored over 3,000 sales professionals, written sales training content for several Fortune 500 companies and is the author of Castain’s Sales Playbook (which just won a Sales Pop award for best sales website).

What if you were to take the concept of 1 action per day towards one of your goals and you were to do it . . .
Each day
5 days per week (give yourself the weekends off you deserve it!)
By New Year’s Eve your goal will have had the benefit of already having 45 actions towards […]

Go to Sales Playbook
Paul Castain is the Vice President of Sales Development for Consolidated Graphics where he oversees the training and development of 700 sales Jedis.

Over the last 27 years, Paul has trained and mentored over 3,000 sales professionals, written sales training content for several Fortune 500 companies and is the author of Castain’s Sales Playbook (which just won a Sales Pop award for best sales website).

1) Are you involved or are you on the sidelines?
2) Are you interacting or are you just broadcasting?
3) Are you “collecting” followers . . . or are you taking the time to connect.
Adjust accordingly or simply do nothing . . . both will get you results
Less than one day left to register for […]

Go to Sales Playbook
Paul Castain is the Vice President of Sales Development for Consolidated Graphics where he oversees the training and development of 700 sales Jedis.

Over the last 27 years, Paul has trained and mentored over 3,000 sales professionals, written sales training content for several Fortune 500 companies and is the author of Castain’s Sales Playbook (which just won a Sales Pop award for best sales website).

Sometimes we don’t know why we do things we simply know it as something we’ve always done.
When was the last time you took a good hard look at the way you “hunt” for business?
If you answered “never” or “a few years ago” . . . you’re in the majority!
I wonder if doing the same things […]

Go to Sales Playbook
Paul Castain is the Vice President of Sales Development for Consolidated Graphics where he oversees the training and development of 700 sales Jedis.

Over the last 27 years, Paul has trained and mentored over 3,000 sales professionals, written sales training content for several Fortune 500 companies and is the author of Castain’s Sales Playbook (which just won a Sales Pop award for best sales website).

In this week’s podcast we explore 6 questions that can and will dramatically increase your results . . .
if you’re willing to do two things . . .
1) Actually ask these questions of yourself before “game time” on Monday.
2) You stick around long enough to answer your own questions
I triple dog dare ya to start […]

Go to Sales Playbook
Paul Castain is the Vice President of Sales Development for Consolidated Graphics where he oversees the training and development of 700 sales Jedis.

Over the last 27 years, Paul has trained and mentored over 3,000 sales professionals, written sales training content for several Fortune 500 companies and is the author of Castain’s Sales Playbook (which just won a Sales Pop award for best sales website).

The sad reality of “survival” mode is that we have to focus on earning a living instead of chasing our passion.
If you do that for too long  you become miserable.
Make that “leap of faith” too soon or without a plan and you become what experts call “broke”
That’s why its easier to do what many people […]

Go to Sales Playbook
Paul Castain is the Vice President of Sales Development for Consolidated Graphics where he oversees the training and development of 700 sales Jedis.

Over the last 27 years, Paul has trained and mentored over 3,000 sales professionals, written sales training content for several Fortune 500 companies and is the author of Castain’s Sales Playbook (which just won a Sales Pop award for best sales website).

So there you are scrolling through your contacts and suddenly it hits you . . .
Tom unfriended you!
Imagine that . . . you of all people . . . unfriended!
You know for a fact that you’ve done nothing wrong and you’ve tried your best to be nice to Tom but Tom leaves anyway . . […]

Go to Sales Playbook
Paul Castain is the Vice President of Sales Development for Consolidated Graphics where he oversees the training and development of 700 sales Jedis.

Over the last 27 years, Paul has trained and mentored over 3,000 sales professionals, written sales training content for several Fortune 500 companies and is the author of Castain’s Sales Playbook (which just won a Sales Pop award for best sales website).

Chris Rollins is one of the group managers in our Linkedin subgroup The Sales Playbook Reading Club.
This month they are reading and discussing a book that helped shaped my networking strategy (The Go Giver)
Chris scheduled a one hour call with Bob Burg, the author of the best selling book The Go-Giver THIS Friday, October 21st […]

Go to Sales Playbook
Paul Castain is the Vice President of Sales Development for Consolidated Graphics where he oversees the training and development of 700 sales Jedis.

Over the last 27 years, Paul has trained and mentored over 3,000 sales professionals, written sales training content for several Fortune 500 companies and is the author of Castain’s Sales Playbook (which just won a Sales Pop award for best sales website).

There’s a time in each of our lives when we question the road we have chosen.
Logic and reason arrive as uninvited guests, unsolicited advice pulls us over in a speed trap and that damn inner voice sneaks up on us in the rear view mirror trying to catch us at the next rest stop!
Sooner or […]

Go to Sales Playbook
Paul Castain is the Vice President of Sales Development for Consolidated Graphics where he oversees the training and development of 700 sales Jedis.

Over the last 27 years, Paul has trained and mentored over 3,000 sales professionals, written sales training content for several Fortune 500 companies and is the author of Castain’s Sales Playbook (which just won a Sales Pop award for best sales website).