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Mental Selling: The Sales Performance Podcast is a show for motivated problem solvers in sales, leadership and customer service. Each episode features a conversation with sales leaders and industry experts who understand the importance of the mindset and skill set needed to be exceptional at building trusted customer relationships. In this podcast, we get below the surface, tapping into the emotional and psychological drivers of lasting sales and service success. You’ll hear stories and insights about overcoming the self-limiting beliefs that hold salespeople back, how to unlock the full potential in every salesperson, the complexities of today’s B2B buying cycles, and the rise of today’s virtual selling environment. We help you understand the mental and emotional aspects of sales performance that will empower you to deliver amazing customer experiences and get the results you want.
Welcome to Mental Selling!
[00:00:02] Hayley Parr: This is Mental Selling the Sales podcast for people who are dedicated to making a difference in customers' lives. We are here to help you unlock sales talent, win more relationships, and transform your business with integrity. I'm your host, Haley Parr. Let's get right into it.
[00:00:23] Hayley Parr: Hello everyone. It is December, what a year. It's hay par. This is Mental Selling, the podcast for sales professionals and leaders who believe that performance begins with mindset, connection, and communication. And we've had a full year of just that. As we close out this year, I really just wanted to take this opportunity or this moment to reflect on all of the conversations that I've had the honor to have as the new host of Mental Selling.
[00:00:56] Hayley Parr: Joining this team with Integrity Solutions in January. And stepping into this seat as the host, conversations about leadership, conversations about storytelling, purpose, presence, really what it takes to succeed in today's sales environment and the heart of why we started this podcast in the first place across these episodes.
[00:01:18] Hayley Parr: And what we're really going to highlight in this special recap episode, there were three themes that continued to rise to the surface as we looked through some of the heavy hitters that we wanted to call attention to. some of the highlights we wanted to look at, for 20 25. One communication as a competitive advantage.
[00:01:40] Hayley Parr: Two, purpose as the anchor in a fast moving market and three, training, coaching, and culture are the actual engines of sales success. So without further ado, let's jump into the episodes and revisit those themes together.
[00:02:00] Hayley Parr: This year really reinforced something that we all knew deep down, and that's that the way we communicate. So how we show up, how we connect and how we tell stories is the thing that separates top performers from everyone else. When I look back on the episodes, no one articulated this better than former teacher live TV host, integrity Solutions facilitator and ultimate storyteller, Lauren Deal, who broke down what persuasive communication truly means.
[00:02:37] Lauren Deal: story gives people something to feel and remember.
[00:02:41] Lauren Deal: You wanna make sure that whatever you're doing leaves an impact on who you're speaking with. Think about your product and your service and. Reframe it to think of it as like the hero in your customer's journey.
[00:02:54] Lauren Deal: Where were they before? What problem did they have? What changed? Use some vivid real-world examples Storytelling is not always about the thing, it's the impact and the legacy that thing will make not only on your life, but everyone that ripples from you.
[00:03:09] Hayley Parr: We heard a similar idea from Jacob Hicks, sales success coach and leadership mentor who discussed communication in the context of a follow up and how the stories we tell ourselves shape our behavior.
[00:03:25] Jacob Hicks: people think like, well, I met somebody at this network event. I think we hit it off. I called them once. I left them a message, didn't hear anything, so they must not want what the thing is that I have to offer.
[00:03:35] Jacob Hicks: Right? And I mean the true statistics are four times outta five times. That isn't the case. Meaning as as you're following up consistently from a place of value, then you are going to earn business. if you expect to earn business on that first touch, then you're gonna close business 2% at a time. people just have like this mindset around I must be bothering them. And the truth is that you are bothering them only if you are calling them to say, Hey. I've got the marketing firm still. Do you wanna buy my stuff now?
[00:04:00] Jacob Hicks: Do you wanna buy my stuff now? Do you wanna buy my stuff now? Like that's, annoying.
[00:04:03] Hayley Parr: in my episode with Sports Broadcaster, founder of Talk Sporty to me and communication expert Jen Mueller, I was reminded that clarity is kindness, especially under pressure.
[00:04:19] Jen Mueller: The number one thing an athlete wants to just get it over with. They know exactly what just happened. Just get it over with and be direct. You don't have to be rude, but be direct in asking the question, in any question that I'm asking. I really need those answers to be easy and obvious. You don't wanna see the deer in the headlights look when you are on live tv.
[00:04:43] Hayley Parr: And finally communication came up again and again, particularly around presence. In my conversation and episode with Brad Farris, leadership coach at Anchor Advisors.
[00:04:57] Brad Farris: presence is a sense of calmness, a sense of focus, being a hundred percent in this conversation, not multitasking, checking my email, looking at my notes like I am here for you so that I can be fully.
[00:05:13] Brad Farris: Connected with the challenge that you're bringing to me
[00:05:16] Brad Farris: that builds trust really quickly, and then as we lead that conversation, then they're more likely to follow us into the engagement that we're looking for.
[00:05:27] Hayley Parr: Communication isn't a soft skill, it's how trust is built. It's how relationships are shaped, and ultimately it's the sales professional's competitive advantage.
[00:05:39] Hayley Parr: Another of my favorite episodes centered around how to navigate today's fast moving pressure-filled sales world, and what my colleague David Hammond, senior director of sales at Epicor calls the whirlwind. During our winning in the Whirlwind, a new Playbook for High Performing Sales Teams webinar where we actually recapped these highlights.
[00:06:02] David Hammond: In a special podcast episode, David described exactly what the last few years have felt like for sellers. It has been a bit of a whirlwind, just look at the last five years, right? What are we, 2025. and here we go. 2020 COVID spinning up. that changed a lot of the reality, the operating day-to-day reality for many of us. personally, I was, had been on about 120 flight segments a year before COVID. and it just. Immediately changed how we connected, with our prospects and our clients and our partners in the market.
[00:06:37] David Hammond: we emerged from that. We started reengaging. and now we have this new wave of.
[00:06:42] David Hammond: Of ai, artificial intelligence and, tools that are at our disposal. a great opportunity, but at the same time, a great challenge because there's so much capability, it's so hard to learn it all.
[00:06:55] Hayley Parr: David also talked about the only thing that creates resilience inside that whirlwind, which is purpose.
[00:07:03] David Hammond: You only can do that when you get really clear around your purpose. folks can attach to that in really amazing ways that you can't predict. pressure's always going to be there. But boy, I feel a lot better, able to respond to that pressure when I can wake up and know that hey, pressure's a privilege If we just kind of take purpose and pretend it doesn't exist and make it all about the performance, we're doing ourselves a disservice.
[00:07:26] Hayley Parr: Purpose is one of those things that steadies us. That message also came to us from Integrity Solutions very own. Donna Horrigan, VP of Client Development during our October Women in Sales Panel conversation episode
[00:07:43] Donna Horrigan: It's really those, you know, meaningful connections and understanding needs and how I can serve and a strong partnership.
[00:07:51] Donna Horrigan: that's what gets me outta bed. So I do think if you do the right thing, the results will follow. But focusing on the results isn't inspiring,
[00:07:59] Hayley Parr: And Patty Gattis, vice President of Client Development at Integrity Solutions also added additional value to that point by positioning sales as a commitment.
[00:08:10] Patty Gaddis: sales is a long-term, long commitment of a relationship. you have to, show up, be prepared. Listen intently.
[00:08:18] Patty Gaddis: ask a lot of questions and you're there to help them solve a problem or overcome a challenge or, help them drive their business. sales can be for everyone so much. It's. Pointed out that sales is for extroverts or people. People, and I am finding more and more every day that that is not the case. It's the introverts too.
[00:08:39] Patty Gaddis: that are in intense on listening and understanding and helping and are driven.
[00:08:44] Patty Gaddis: So if you are not naturally an extrovert, that doesn't mean that you should be excluded from sales because you're quite naturally fit right into what sales really is.
[00:08:54] Hayley Parr: Purpose, empathy, clarity. These are the qualities that sustain performance. This theme came through again and again in my episode with my colleague, Em Holldorf, director of Demand Generation at Integrity Solutions, who shared what purpose-based collaboration looks like within the structure of a sales and marketing organization.
[00:09:17] Em Holldorf: I'm just a helper through and through.
[00:09:19] Em Holldorf: So any opportunity that I have to help somebody make an impact, I'm there. Working with the sales team has been amazing collaborating with them. They are such a tenured and insightful
[00:09:32] Em Holldorf: group. they care about the stories that they're hearing out in the field, and they care about relaying that back to marketing
[00:09:39] Em Holldorf: and they care about what marketing's up to. so I think just, just all of that collaboration, The endless opportunities to help as I am a helper, and to hopefully take us to new heights.
[00:09:52] Hayley Parr: And purpose doesn't remove the pressure, rather purpose reframes it. Looking back to Brad Farris's episode, Brad took that further when he talks about emotional presence.
[00:10:05] Hayley Parr: I noticed that there are some leaders who kind of transmit anxiety into their sales team. like really focused on the metrics or the, creating urgency for buyers and when is this gonna happen? and that sort of anxiety about the sales process I see gets transmitted into the sales team where then they are, operating from that same anxious energy.
[00:10:33] Brad Farris: Whereas as a leader who has more of a, an abundance mentality who's focused on, I need deals, but I don't need this deal. Like, we have enough leads coming in, we're just gonna work these deals to the best of our ability and some will close and some don't. that leader can relieve that anxiety in the sales team.
[00:10:53] Hayley Parr: When leaders communicate purpose, clarity, and calm performance becomes sustainable.
[00:10:59] Hayley Parr: Another theme that all of our guests this season seem to align on was that high performing sales teams don't just happen by accident. Rather, they're built through training, coaching, and a culture that reinforces both. Here's David Hammond's take on that from his episode.
[00:11:18] David Hammond: you don't sell in a vacuum. You sell, you get feedback from the market if you don't have that psychological safety. folks. On the front lines are not gonna bring that feedback back to the organization.
[00:11:30] David Hammond: And missing on those actionable opportunities to deliver value can be the death kn for organizations. but when you're thinking about building that. sustainable foundation for growth culture had better be a part of that bedrock.
[00:11:42] Hayley Parr: At Integrity Solutions, we know that training isn't just a one-time event. It's a living, breathing part of your culture, and no one captured that human side better than Brad Ferris when he described. What happens when sellers slow down in truly lead the conversation.
[00:12:01] Brad Farris: when a salesperson is, Inviting the prospect to move quickly, the response of the prospect is to want to slow down. If you walked into your doctor's office and your doctor was like, I'm so excited to heal you today. We're gonna get some surgeries done. I'm doing two surgeries for a dollar today. Like, we'd be like, get me outta here. Right.
[00:12:26] Brad Farris: we know when we walked into the doctor's office, the doctor, their first thing to do is diagnose. I don't know if I can help this person. So if we start with that energy of slowing things down Yeah, I, I understand. But let's, let's just see what's going on here. The more we slow the process down, the more the buyer then wants to accelerate it desperation is like client repellent. Nobody wants to, to be with someone who's really desperate.
[00:12:53] Hayley Parr: Sales enablement isn't a department, it's a mindset. Garin Hess, founder of Consensus and the author of Selling is Hard. Buying is Harder. Captured that beautifully in our episode.
[00:13:07] Garin Hess: put yourself in the buyer's shoes, put the buyer's needs ahead of your own.
[00:13:11] Garin Hess: what you're trying to do is equip the buyer to go and do the selling for you inside the organization. Coach them through that process. one way to think about buyer enablement is to think about where the friction points in the buying process, whether it's with a certain persona, or if it's just in general stages of the buying process.
[00:13:29] Garin Hess: Say, where's that friction? And what is causing that friction? And then how do we equip and coach the buyer through that part of the process to make it easier? what you're doing is you have the mentality of putting yourself in the buyer's shoes, and then you've got to take your experience and try to help them.
[00:13:49] Garin Hess: Prevent running into those roadblocks happen over and over in almost every buying process for your particular solution.
[00:13:56] Hayley Parr: And Gearoid Cox, founder and CEO of SalesPipeline explained why process beats natural talent.
[00:14:04] Gearoid Cox: The salespeople are born and not made. I think this is the polarizing opposite.
[00:14:08] Gearoid Cox: I think born salespeople are damaging for your situation. I think the people who learn the process first outperform in the long run and stay longer. and I think if salespeople spent more time trying to look at things from their leads perspective rather than from what they think, you would make a lot more sales. If you look at things from their perspective and you ask questions from their perspective. and You put yourself in those shoes and you really model out what your ideal client profiles look like and what they care about, and you continue to grow that knowledge from one conversation to the next. You'll ask better and better questions. You'll get more and more information faster, and you can help them solve their problem. because their problem is in their perspective, it's not what you think it is.
[00:14:50] Hayley Parr: Sales is a learned profession, and that learning requires coaching and feedback. We also heard this year from leaders like Derek Roberts, president of Roberts Business Group, Duncan Taylor, COO and SVP of the Washington Bankers Association, and our very own Brett Shively, the CEO at Integrity Solutions.
[00:15:11] Hayley Parr: Just this year, each of whom reinforced that thought, reinforced the power of coaching and consistency.
[00:15:18] Hayley Parr: One of the more critical roles of a coach, is being able to, not only see and address those issues that are happening within the individual. but it's also, I. Helping salespeople prioritize. this is a, this is a pitfall I see with a lot of folks, sometimes, busy is not productive. so a coach has to lean in and help sometimes a sales producer rethink or reprioritize the, the way they're spending their time.
[00:15:47] Duncan Taylor: And so coaching and mentorship are the cornerstone of what millennials and Gen Z are looking for in the workplace, because they want to grow.
[00:15:55] Duncan Taylor: They want to develop, they want to integrate their lives. It helps to create the human connections that make your employees feel less like a number and more like a person. culture is a result of things that you do and practice culture is not words that we put on paper. And so if your culture's not built around mentorship, around coaching, around providing something better for that next generation, they will go find it elsewhere.
[00:16:16] Brett Shively: the best way to help a salesperson is to give them a process that they can work through, to have something that is consistent, that is stable, that is somewhat, uh, predisposed, so that they know week one, day one, do this week one, day two do this, and give them the ability to have stability. and that's where we come back to skillset and mindset. Consistency. There's no substitute.
[00:16:42] Hayley Parr: In our conversations with Danita High Senior, Vice President of Culture and Employee Development at First Community Bank and Brad Jung, managing director and advisor at Russell Investments, we heard how culture shapes performance more than any tool, tactic or technology.
[00:17:00] Danita High: with any company, any size, any business as you grow, you are going to be faced with that challenge of, of maintaining and developing healthy, healthy, healthy culture throughout that growth.
[00:17:12] Hayley Parr: one of the big processes we put in place is creating this learning culture is around our top salespeople. Our top salespeople are our best trainers. everyone that comes into our organization is paired with one of our top salespeople, and they teach them the business because that's the greatest gift Mindset, communication, presence, training. It's all connected, and the best teams invest in all of it.
[00:17:37] Hayley Parr: This year has reminded us that communication builds trust, purpose, fuels performance, and culture sustains growth. I wanna end this with a huge thank you to every single one of our guests in 2025 for your honesty, for your wisdom, and for sharing your stories with me every other week.
[00:17:56] Hayley Parr: It's been truly an honor. And to all of our Mental Selling listeners and community, thank you for investing in your own growth and for joining us on every single episode. We have so much more coming next year. I cannot wait to continue this journey with you. Until then, keep leading with purpose and keep selling with integrity.
[00:18:18] Hayley Parr: I'll see you in 2026.
[00:18:22] Hayley Parr: Thank you for joining us on Mental Selling. If today's conversation resonated with you, be sure to subscribe, leave a review and share it with your network. For more insights on how to go beyond winning deals and build real customer relationships, visit integrity solutions. com. See you next time.