Love This Blog? Sign Up for Our Newsletter for More
SignupNo items found.
Lebron James is one of the most legendary figures to ever grace the NBA—but while his athletic ability is extraordinary, it's not the only reason he has been so successful.
In fact, much of LeBron’s success is due to a skill set and mindset that can help anyone achieve greatness in their field. And sales is no exception.
At PhoneBurner, we believe that great sales reps are always learning. That’s why we provide useful tips and resources for sales teams in addition to our industry-best power dialing software.
Today, we're looking at seven business lessons we can learn from Lebron James.
1. Be Passionate About What You Do
It's obvious from Lebron's lifestyle that he loves the game of basketball. He has built every facet of his life around being the best basketball player on the planet, and possibly even of all time.
Passion pushes boundaries. It's the difference between being good and being great. So find something you love to do, and put your heart and soul into it.
Passion often comes with other positive traits for salespeople, too—like grit, ambition, curiosity, and empathy. Learn more about the personalities and traits of top-selling sales reps.
2. Make the People Around You Better
Many of Lebron's past and current teammates have had career years while playing with him. He demands excellence, but he also puts people in a position to succeed.
Lebron even memorized where his teammates preferred to receive passes. It’s that kind of investment in your team that often leads to success.
Personal achievements are wonderful, but you make a much bigger impact when you can help everyone in your business achieve personal bests. In sales, that also means using tools that help your entire team coordinate.
Do it with PhoneBurner
If you’re a sales manager, PhoneBurner’s reporting features give you a bird’s-eye view of your team so that you can coach and mentor them more effectively. You’ll be able to use features like:
- Real-time leaderboards to visualize agent performance and promote healthy competition
- Automatic call and activity tracking that provide accountability and pinpoint areas for improvement
- Live monitoring and coaching so you can provide real-time assistance when needed
3. Do Whatever Needs to Be Done
Lebron is among the most versatile players in the history of the NBA. He rises to challenges. He finds openings where others do not.
That's what business leaders do. They see opportunity where others see roadblocks. They find solutions where others see problems.
To be truly successful, you need to be prepared to step into situations of all kinds, and step up your game to get things done.
Learn More: 8 Common Causes of Sales Slumps, and How to Avoid Them
4. Stay Positive in the Face of Adversity
One of Lebron’s crowning achievements was leading the Cleveland Cavaliers back from a 3-1 deficit in the NBA Finals against the Golden State Warriors. The same Warriors who had won a record 73 games that year.
Situations don't get much tougher than that. Yet Lebron and his teammates did what was seemingly impossible by staying positive and taking it one game at a time.
Resilience is an absolutely essential skill in life and business. Things will go wrong. Staying positive, professional, and even-headed when they do will help you swing the pendulum back in the other direction.
Learn More: How to Stop Negative Thinking and Make More Sales
5. Don't Hold Grudges
Cavaliers' owner Dan Gilbert wrote a harshly worded letter about Lebron when the star departed in free agency to play for the Miami Heat. When Lebron came back to Cleveland, he met with Gilbert to bury the hatchet and move on.
Rarely—if ever—do grudges benefit anyone. Understand that conflicts and personality clashes will occur in business. Try not to let them get the best of you. The quicker you move past them, the more successful you'll be.
Learn More: How to Deal With Angry Customers on the Phone
6. Show Your Appreciation for Others
Lebron has purchased many expensive gifts for his teammates and fought for them to get fair contracts. He's undoubtedly shown appreciation and respect in countless smaller ways as well.
Showing appreciation to your colleagues and employees has so many benefits. It builds respect, loyalty, morale, productivity... and frankly, it makes you likable.
Do it with PhoneBurner
As a sales manager, you can also use PhoneBurner to incentivize your team by sending them sales scripts and other resources that set them up for success via our built-in CRM.
For example, PhoneBurner’s LeadStream feature, which automatically sends the right leads to the right agents, lets you reward deserving or top-performing agents with additional leads or key opportunities. This:
- Incentivizes your team
- Motivates reps to succeed
- Shows your best reps that you recognize them
- Benefits your organization as a whole when they close more deals
Another option? Leverage our virtual salesfloor integration to engage in live, team call blitzes. These calls provide ample opportunities for praise, virtual high fives, and celebratory GIFs. A little recognition can go a long way.
7. Learn from Other People
Lessons can be learned anywhere, from anyone.
In his career, Lebron has sought the advice of many NBA legends, including Kobe Bryant and Jerry West. And he has learned and gained inspiration from his teammates as well.
No matter how successful you are, never believe that you have all the answers. Keep an open mind and seek out opportunities to learn from everyone around you. Developing active listening skills is critical for picking up the information that you can use to be more successful.
Learn More: Forget Scripts: How to Increase Sales Through Active Listening
Using PhoneBurner to Apply These Sales Lessons
Lebron James may be a once-in-a-lifetime athlete, but his incredible career is also packed with valuable lessons for business success. PhoneBurner gives teams more “at bats” and more opportunities to apply those lessons to outbound calling practices.
Use our power dialer to connect with up to 4x as many leads, engage in more quality conversations and move more deals forward. Start a free trial of PhoneBurner here.
