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Speech Transcript (very little editing so not exact)

Unknown Speaker  0:00  

Hey this is Deb Brown Maher and if you really want to learn how to level up your life you should be listening to the Time To Shine Today podcast with my good friend Scott Ferguson

Unknown Speaker  0:14  

Time To Shine Today Podcast Varsity Squad this is  Scott Ferguson with episode 246 with my good friend and author of sell like Jesus, Deb Brown-Maher, and we just had a fun, fun conversation. So if anybody out there kind of is turned off about their religious kind of stuff, make sure you just still listen in. Because Deb and I both love God, we both love Jesus, but the conversation is not about that. It’s actually about helping you level up your sales skills and helping you if you’re looking for somebody to kind of take you down the path of increasing your sales skills. If you hate selling, Deb can make it actually very enjoyable for you. So breakout your notebooks. This is a really really fun high energy conversation with my really good friend and author Deb brown Mauer. Let’s level up. Time to shine today podcast, first of swats This is Scott Ferguson and we know that I am a man of faith. And I have an author who wrote sell like Jesus seven characteristics of Christ for ethical sales, my good friend, Deb brown Mar, and we have had to reschedule this podcast because I think she was ill. And I was ill and, and traveling and whatnot, but all in God’s time. And here we are. And I’m so blessed that I have my good friend Deb who has spent half of her career doing sales, and the other half coaching people to sell or natural talent plus depth of experience allows Deb to quickly assess sales strengths and shortcomings. She’s uniquely qualified to help others bridge sales performance gaps, to achieve growth in revenue sales. And don’t do it now. But you have to go read the story on her about me page at her website, which is Deb brown sales.com and just go to the About Me because there’s a really cool little story how she sold when she was younger, and had to face that rejection really level up and keep it ethical through biblical and faith in So Deb, thank you so much for coming on. Please introduce yourself. Please introduce yourself the time to shine today. Podcasts are superb first dove, what’s your favorite color and why?

Unknown Speaker  2:20  

My favorite color is purple. See the paintings in the background? Artist. So purple is made from blue and red is and so I’m also a little bit of a Bible nerd. more interested in the details. It’s a Numbers chapter four. Okay, we’re blue, red and purple cloths it was used in a very specific way to cover everything that was in the Holy of Holies. Yes, it was yes. But I find significant is the table of showbread, which represented Christ in the Holy of Holies was covered with blue, red first, and then blue.

Unknown Speaker  3:09  

Right? Love it

Unknown Speaker  3:11  

becomes purple, which is the color of royalty.

Unknown Speaker  3:15  

Hey, so I was just gonna say it’s very regal to tame. I love it. I love it. So let’s get to the origins of Doubront sales and how you help people really level up their sales while stayin ethical, and but still knowing that there’s, you know, the God wants us to achieve and have as much as we can. Because, you know, I tell my spot that you know that I feel that, you know sin, it’s a sin not to do your best, okay, and the reason why I mean sin comes from the word Sydney and Greek, which means missing the mark. So it’s not a religious thing. You know, it’s more of a, you know, listen, you’re missing the mark, God wants you to always succeed and move forward. So let’s get get to the origins of where you started. And then how you do now to help people level up.

Unknown Speaker  3:59  

So I actually started in customer service, and moved into sales in the 90s. And what happened was that I had a very negative experience with high pressure sales, worked at a place for a week and couldn’t stand it because I couldn’t do what they were asking me to do, which seemed disrespectful. So I started looking for ways to sell that were congruent with my values. And here I am, 25 years later, having written the book sell like Jesus, because here’s what I found. As I experimented with things, there are ways that Jesus interacted with his followers. That gave him a 2000 year impact. Why not leverage what he did how he did it? Do it in the sales conversation. So that was the whole premise for the book.

Unknown Speaker  5:07  

Wow, that’s fantastic. So why how did you make that transition from customer service to sales then back in the 90s?

Unknown Speaker  5:17  

Well, because I had a degree in Latin American Studies and really couldn’t get a job doing anything.

Unknown Speaker  5:24  

Right? Right. Okay. Okay, so tell me about a sales nightmare that you might have came across.

Unknown Speaker  5:31  

So the sales nightmare, the first one that that also propelled me to get better at sales. I walked into the office of an older gray haired insurance sales broker. And he seemed nice enough offering coffee, we sat down and then he looks me square in the eye. And he says, So Young lady, what can you do for me?

Unknown Speaker  6:01  

Okay.

Unknown Speaker  6:03  

And I wasn’t prepared for that. Right? My knee, I was sitting down on my knees started knocking. I was so intimidated, right. I don’t even remember what I said. Because I, I felt like I was in a trap. I didn’t want to defend myself. But I really didn’t know how to answer. So I said about finding how you can answer when when people put that kind of pressure. And they do buyers do the more savvy buyers are going to test salespeople? Right. You have to be ready with the right response, or you ruin the relationship.

Unknown Speaker  6:46  

Right. I love that you said response and not react? Yeah, because a lot of salespeople that I’ve and I went through training, and I’m certified in sales across the line and a lot of my coaching, I coached sales people. And you know, a lot of people will react to something like you could have reacted with something negative or even, you know, so it’s that I love that you said that we respond. I love that. So then what brought us into the DEB brown sales in launching that how long ago did you launch?

Unknown Speaker  7:21  

I launched in 2008.

Unknown Speaker  7:25  

Okay, right, the perfect. It’s like, getting crushed. Like gotcha,

Unknown Speaker  7:31  

yeah. And why did I do that? Well, because I really felt God pressing me to do it. So what happened was, I had been doing sales training in the 90s for about five years. Then I got wooed into industry during the.com Hullabaloo and I stayed in the tech industry as a sales manager, director. And finally, VP of Sales for a startup that made it big, got bought out. And I worked as a product champion for the company that bought us out. But the product became commoditized. And I never was into selling on price. Okay, I always sold high end and high value. So I lost interest in selling through channel markets, it just wasn’t the same. Okay. And I left to work for another startup. And that didn’t work. And then another startup that didn’t work is, you know, pretty common in the startup world. And finally, I was asked by a startup to help them with a sales plan, because they didn’t know what they were different. And when I provided the plan, they said, Can you coach us through this? Wow. And I thought, Yes, I can. Yes, I can. So at that point, I decided to take the plunge. And God really blessed my obedience because it was during a horrible economic time. Yes, it was. So I tripled sales year to over year one and year three, over year two. Okay. So I knew I did the right thing.

Unknown Speaker  9:31  

I love that and so do you work mainly with companies or do you do individual one on ones?

Unknown Speaker  9:38  

I love to work with small companies or solo entrepreneurs, business owners who have to sell but hate to sell. Because I get a stigma.

Unknown Speaker  9:52  

Right? Yeah, cuz some people are systems people and some people are sales people and it’s kind of hard to cross over but if you’re a one man show You better learn to drown either way. Right? So let me ask you some Dublin, what do you think that makes a great sales coach?

Unknown Speaker  10:11  

The same things that make a great salesperson. And those are listening with the intent of understanding and asking great questions. Those two skills help anybody anywhere. No matter what you’re doing, no matter who you’re talking to,

Unknown Speaker  10:33  

do you go from more of a place of a coaching or consulting? You know what I mean by that is like, I’m a coach, I don’t consult because I mean, I have a client right now, that’s legitly, a billionaire that I coach, I couldn’t consult him on his company at all, because I don’t know it. I didn’t want to dig into it. But I’m more of a coach where I go in with the powerful questions. Which one? Are you more of?

Unknown Speaker  10:56  

I do 5050. Okay, Coach,

Unknown Speaker  10:59  

salted them, coach. So, go, Okay, I like it. Okay. Very good. I love it. I love it. So when you’re maybe in a discovery period with a client, you know, she hasn’t he or she has not hired you, and you have not decided to bring him on? Is there any secret sauce during that discovery time, if you don’t mind sharing that helps them maybe find their blind spots?

Unknown Speaker  11:23  

The secret sauce? Is that listening and questioning process? And okay, so here’s the technique, which I run a risk sharing this because if you don’t if you skip the softening statements, which I’ll explain Sure, it will blow up. So the secret sauce is the softening statements. So here’s the process. You asked me a question, or you tell me something about yourself. And I listen to key words, in what you’ve said, pick up on those key words, acknowledge them or comment on them. That’s the softening. And then I asked you about those key words.

Unknown Speaker  12:14  

I love it. So you

Unknown Speaker  12:19  

are, we’re going deeper on the subject that you brought up.

Unknown Speaker  12:24  

Love it. That’s beautiful. That’s beautiful. So

Unknown Speaker  12:27  

people to do that five layers deep. That’s

Unknown Speaker  12:30  

fantastic. You’re really making them? Like, you know, nothing’s closed ended. I’m sure that what you’re asking them. So it’s,

Unknown Speaker  12:39  

yeah, there are closed ended questions. They are necessary for gathering facts. Sure. Right. Because if I were to ask you, have you ever hired a coach in the past? That’s a closed ended question. Sure. But your answer yes or no? is going to determine what direction I go next.

Unknown Speaker  12:59  

Right. Okay. Fair enough. Absolutely. The

Unknown Speaker  13:03  

closed ended help with facts where the open ended, allow people to tell their story.

Unknown Speaker  13:09  

Got it? Got it. I love that. So when you’re, again, let’s stay in the discovery period stuff? And is there any good question that you wish they would ask you but never do?

Unknown Speaker  13:25  

Well, I can’t think of one offhand. Because here’s what it part of my process is, if they don’t ask me something, I will propose it. I’ll put it out there. But again, it’s going to be in the context of the individual, what they’ve shared, how they’ve shared it, what it is we’re talking about. So the the safest thing for me to say is you stay in the discovery process, until you believe the person is ready to shift into commitment. I love it. When I say commitment I’m talking about now. Right? They’re not saying yes, right. Now it’s time to talk about the money and the decision process. Right. The

Unknown Speaker  14:17  

second any prospect for me, says that, you know, what’s expected of me through this process? When they ask me, I know that the commitments coming, I know that it’s there. It’s coming, you know, in my 20 plus years of coaching, it’s like that’s what I’ve learned is that once they ask that it’s kind of like yeah, they’re ready to rock and roll but I agree on full fold with you the ask and then get that understanding with the intent and listen with the intent of understanding I love that so was the whole family backing you as you moved into kind of the sales life or were they like No, stay safe and get stay with a hourly wage or like what what kind of support system do you have?

Unknown Speaker  15:00  

Well, so support system, my husband, I have ever done what I do without my husband. I don’t have children. So having my husband support has been a huge blessing. It’s enabled me to do what I do.

Unknown Speaker  15:18  

That’s fantastic. That’s beautiful. That’s beautiful. So that it switch gears just a little bit. But have you ever seen the movie Back to the Future? Yes. Okay, let’s get that DeLorean with Marty McFly. Okay, let’s go back to say the 22 year old depth. What kind of knowledge nuggets we call here at time to shine today? What kind of knowledge nuggets might you drop on her to maybe help her level up? Shorten your learning curve or blast to maybe just a little bit quicker?

Unknown Speaker  15:45  

It’s not about you.

Unknown Speaker  15:50  

I love it. Love that. So, about that, then that’s a given. That’s a given statement. Okay. What is your take on reciprocity in accepting that?

Unknown Speaker  16:06  

I’m not sure I understand the question.

Unknown Speaker  16:08  

reciprocation. What is your take on getting in that giving?

Unknown Speaker  16:16  

Oh, wow. So I truly believe that it is in giving that we receive. So I’m always giving. And where I will always give first. Sorry, absolutely. I’ll even give a second time. By the third time. If there isn’t appreciation. I’m not talking about having to get back commensurate. Mm hmm. And that way, I never look for reciprocal per se. Right? I look for an appreciation.

Unknown Speaker  16:58  

Love it. No, I love that. It’s funny. You know, it’s funny you say that because, you know, I give, give, give until it hurts so good. But I’m so open to reciprocation, too, as well. You know, and like I lent somebody money, a substantial amount, kind of knowing I wasn’t going to get it back. But literally the next day, my god daughter who never calls me unless you need something called me just to talk and shoot the breeze. To me, that’s a form of the reciprocation. I’m open to all forms of it. And a lot of people that live the Go Giver lifestyle, you know, they’re want to give you a gift, but they’re not open to receiving and I know in sales that you have to be open to that as well, too, right?

Unknown Speaker  17:38  

Oh, absolutely. Yeah, yes. I love I do love receiving. Oh, yeah.

Unknown Speaker  17:45  

Yeah, it’s fun when it’s monetary. But it doesn’t have to always be monitored. Right.

Unknown Speaker  17:49  

But I think the difference is I’m not looking for it. Yeah, I got a while ago, I don’t know if I mentioned when I paint during worship, in front of the church congregation. There are hundreds of people there. And maybe 123 come up to me afterwards and share what the experience was for them. Watching me paint. It’s very quiet. Go don’t do it. To get that response. I do it knowing that I’m touching people in ways that I will never know.

Unknown Speaker  18:28  

Wow, that’s amazing.

Unknown Speaker  18:30  

I do it by faith. Right? Yeah. So those one or two who do come up and share knocks my socks off.

Unknown Speaker  18:40  

Yeah, it does. It makes it not that you have to be validated. But there’s awesome. I have the validation. Right. I love it. So Deb, do you want your dash remember that little line in between your incarnation date your expiration date? You know, on your tombstone? If you do choose to have one that little line that you live how do you want that dashed?

Unknown Speaker  19:00  

She showed the love of Christ.

Unknown Speaker  19:03  

Love it. Love it. And just like Christ, you’re going to go through life bit a little bit beaten and battered, but you’re gonna come through, right? Yeah, that’s beautiful. Okay, yes. So Deb, what do you think people might misunderstand about you?

Unknown Speaker  19:24  

I can be very intense.

Unknown Speaker  19:26  

No way. Don’t let the smile for you. If you’re watching on YouTube, folks.

Unknown Speaker  19:32  

I can be very intense. Yes. Very serious. Like you too serious. Damn, you gotta have more fun.

Unknown Speaker  19:40  

Like I am having fun. Is there anything that keeps you up at night?

Unknown Speaker  19:48  

Whenever there is any kind of discord in relationships,

Unknown Speaker  19:52  

hmm. So you’re human. Nice, beautiful. Thank you for being transparent about that. So dip What is your definition of a life well lived

Unknown Speaker  20:07  

I ran the race or maybe it’s more like I walked the course that was put before me with everything that I had

Unknown Speaker  20:21  

sound like you’ve been listening to Paul a little bit. Yeah. I love it. I love it. I love it. Hey, time to shine today podcast. Firstly, squad, we are back with my awesome sauce friend and author of sell like Jesus, the seven characteristics of price for ethical sales. And we’re gonna take Deb brown Mar through our leveling up lightning round and W and I could talk an hour on each one of these questions, but you have five seconds to answer them with no explanations. All right, ready?

Unknown Speaker  20:52  

Ready. All right, let’s

Unknown Speaker  20:53  

go down what’s the best leveling up advice you’ve ever received?

Unknown Speaker  21:00  

use bullet points. Not

Unknown Speaker  21:05  

sure one of your personal habits that contributes to success.

Unknown Speaker  21:09  

reading scripture every morning. Love it. Love it.

Unknown Speaker  21:14  

Other than Deb brown sales.com. And of course time to shine today.com my shameless plug what other website do you like to go to to level up?

Unknown Speaker  21:24  

John Maxwell team,

Unknown Speaker  21:26  

very good. Very good. Love it. It’s funny. He goes to my church down here. So I see him a lot here. You see me like me and Fergie looks like he’s in his doldrums a little bit outside of the good book the Bible and also sell like Jesus there any other book you might have me to level up?

Unknown Speaker  21:45  

Oh, I sent her have a conversation with you.

Unknown Speaker  21:50  

I thank you for saying that. Thank you. I do want you to look into I’m breaking my own rule. But I want you to look into Andy Andrews. Oh, I love Okay, Andy. Okay, great. Yeah, he’s fantastic. He’s coming on my show. He’s awesome. He saved my life in 2009 with his book, The Travelers gift. And that’s a whole nother it’s on so many podcasts interviews interviewed me. That’s fantastic. I’m happy that you know, is there any favorite charity or organization like to give your time or money to?

Unknown Speaker  22:17  

There is a place locally here called Shalom house. Okay. Sin battered women and children.

Unknown Speaker  22:26  

Oh, that’s beautiful. Thank you. Thank you. And last question, you can elaborate on this one was out of the 60s 70s 80s or 90s, which one had the best decade of music

Unknown Speaker  22:37  

70s 70s.

Unknown Speaker  22:39  

You know, it’s, it’s fun, because like, 70s, I’ll have on the back. I lost my mom a couple of years ago. And I’ll just put it on in the background. You know, and it just feels like she’s here with me. You know, just to hear that some 70s movies, I was born in 72. I’ll be 50 You know, here and in February, but like 80s was kind of my thing. But no, I love that. So that’s how can we find you?

Unknown Speaker  23:02  

Deb brown sales.com.

Unknown Speaker  23:04  

Love it in. Tell us a little bit about your book, please.

Unknown Speaker  23:09  

So the book goes through seven characteristics that Christ demonstrated, and I apply the methods that he used. But as he spoke with his disciples, as he spoke with the crowds, as he spoke with the Pharisees, I look at what he did and I break it down and then help people put it into their sales world. So they can make those connections of relationship because Jesus was all about restoring us to right relationship with

Unknown Speaker  23:45  

Yes, absolutely. They can’t a homeowner you wanted us to push towards homeostasis of relationships, not only with him, but with other people as well. And that’s what sales is all about. And depth. In squat. I’m gonna have a giveaway. My good friend Deb has been so generous as to send me two copies of her books one for me, so I can’t have that one. But I will have a copy that will be signed by my burly good friend Deb here and her book selling Jesus seven characteristics of Christ for ethical sales. If you first want to put in the comments either LinkedIn, Pinterest, even Twitter, everywhere that I’m going to we’re going to be marketing this or sending out this content. This fantastic content from my good friend Debbie. First one that puts in Deb brown sales. They just put it in anywhere in the comments. We’ll get the book mailed out to them. That is courtesy and awesome gratitude to Deb for being so generous with that and that if you can do one last favor, and leave us with one last Knowledge Nugget you want us to take with us internalize and take action.

Unknown Speaker  24:53  

Make every conversation about the person not about you not about about your product and not about price. Love it a person.

Unknown Speaker  25:05  

I love that in squad. It was so nice to have a conversation basically a free masterclass on sales with my good friend Deb, you know that she wants you to always sell in a way that’s congruent to your values, you know, in learn how to leverage and sell like Jesus, I mean, it’s 2000 years. So it’s kind of like these, the points that she really brings out in her book is lasted the test of time. You know, she’s believes that really a great coach listens with intense with intensity, and listens, not only with her ears, but her eyes, she’s looking for body posture, every single sensor that she has, and she listens with an intent to understand you. And she does that a lot with a very powerful question. She asks, she wants to remember it’s not about you, but don’t be afraid to receive as well. So if you’re making every conversation about the other person and not your product or price, things will start coming to you and they will form themselves for you. You know, she’s gonna live a life that she showed the love of Christ and she’s walked the course. She’s walked a good race. She’s leveled up her life through Christ. She’s level up her life all the time. Anyway, she’s humble yet hungry. She’s earned her varsity letter here at time to shine today. varsity squad. Thank you so much for coming on. I love your guts. Thank you again and again and again.

Unknown Speaker  26:29  

Thank you so much, Scott. You bet. Have a great day.

Unknown Speaker  26:31  

You too. Hey, thanks so much for listening to this episode of time to shine today podcast. proudly brought to you by Sutter in New Jersey real estate real estate excellence who can be reached at 561-249-7266 and online at www dot Sutter in nugent.com. If you’re a business owner or professional who would like to be interviewed on time to shine today, please visit time to shine today.com Flash gust. If you liked this episode, please subscribe on Apple podcasts, Google podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, I Heart Radio or wherever you get your podcasts. There’s a link in the show notes to our website. Also there you will see our recommended resources. We hope that you will support our show by supporting that. If you like what you have been listening to, it’d be great if you could just give us a five star rating and tell your friends to subscribe while you’re at it. I’m your host Scott Ferguson. And until next time, let’s level up it’s our time to shine.

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