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SALES: Mastering the Art of Sales with Mike Esterday: Insights from "Listen to Sell".

·21 min·1 clip

A Texas salesperson doubled his activities in 30 days after his manager reshaped his mindset.

1. Business Owners Radio episode 241 centers on Mike Estraday’s book “Listen to Sell: How Your Mindset, Skill Set, and Human Connections Unlock Sales Performance.” 2. Mike Estraday is the founding partner and CEO of Integrity Solutions, and the hosts name him as a contributing member of the Forbes Business Council. 3. The episode asks why sales still matters when buyers can “click online and buy something today,” and Mike answers with a case for professional, customer-focused selling. 4. Mike says sales success involves three conversations: with the customer, with yourself, and with the manager. 5. He ties those conversations to the book’s three parts: mindset, skill set with the customer, and coaching from a manager viewpoint. 6. Mike argues that many people hold a poor view of selling because of what they have seen on TV. 7. He says a positive view of selling means “identifying needs, filling needs, creating value for people.” 8. Mike cites a global study of sales leaders that divided success into skills and knowledge versus values, achievement drive, passion, and belief. 9. He says 100% of those leaders chose the second bucket as more important for top salespeople. 10. Mike warns that sales leaders often focus on product and activity instead of the beliefs driving performance. 11. He describes the sales congruence model, which looks at a salesperson’s view of selling, confidence in ability, values, commitment to activity, and belief in the product. 12. Mike tells a Texas example of a former school teacher who moved into insurance sales but struggled because he felt out of alignment. 13. After his manager reframed the work around helping families, Mike says the salesperson’s activities doubled in about 30 days. 14. He gives another example of a salesperson at a contact center whose in-laws looked down on the job. 15. That salesperson improved by focusing on proving he could be the best at the work and by clarifying what he wanted to accomplish. 16. Mike says people can tell whether a salesperson is “there for them” or “trying to do something to them,” using a Midwest farm story about animals sensing fear. 17. The conversation stays practical and interview-driven, with Craig Moen and Shai Gilad asking for examples, measurements, and coaching applications. 18. Mike repeatedly returns to simple frameworks, QR-code resources, and “almost 200 questions” placed throughout the book. 19. Business owners, sales managers, and leaders building customer-facing teams would likely benefit from this episode. 20. Listeners looking for deep technical sales theory or a narrative story arc may skip it.

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