Episode 121

full
Published on:

29th May 2024

A Human Way to Approach Problem Solving - Mike Simmons, Founder - Catalyst A.C.T.S

Summary:

Mike Simmons has risen through professional sales roles for the past 25 years as an individual contributor, VP of sales, and CRO. He founded his company Catalyst, A.C.T.S to help SaaS founders and team leaders scale their organizations from $2M - $80M ARR. He coaches sales people, speakes an ed tech conferences, and also runs a podcast.

I this episode, we talk through the concept of selling by being human and how sales is about connecting the dots between problems and solutions. Mike emphasizes the importance of serving others and asking the right questions to help people discover answers on their own.

We explore the misconception of sales and the negative stereotypes associated with it. Mike shares his personal journey in sales and how he learned from observing and working with experienced sales professionals.

Mike shares practical tools like the hexagon framework to problem solving and how to ask subtle but powerful questions to get anyone to reach decisions on their own and address problem solving from a more productive perspective. You'll learn how to sell ideas internally, how to move others with high indecision, and to practice different ways of asking good questions on your own.

Key Moments:

00:00 Introduction and Background

03:01 Selling by Being Human: Connecting Problems and Solutions

10:00 Serving Others: The Key to Successful Sales

24:08 Learning from the Best: Observing and Emulating Experienced Sales Professionals

27:06 The Importance of Alignment and Perspective

32:47 Being Comfortable with Imperfect Decisions

39:19 The Power of Asking Questions

46:21 Documenting the Decision-Making Process

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About the Podcast

Sell By Being Human
On the Sell By Being Human podcast, award-winning sales professional Alex Smith provides the proven way to harness your innate human skills like empathy, curiosity, and kindness to learn how to sell and navigate the sales journey.
This is where human connection and sales meet. You may be someone whose success depends on influence, negotiation, and your ability to create change, but you may reject aggressive sales tactics. Maybe you feel stuck in corporate "autopilot," knowing your best asset is your genuine personality, but you struggle to use it to get what you want. Then this channel is for you.

It will teach you how to close the gap between wanting to be ethical and feeling pressured to sell aggressively. You’ll also learn actionable strategies for translating emotional intelligence into high-trust results. Join Alex and top guests, including NY Times bestsellers, keynote speakers, and global founders, as they prove that being truly human is the ultimate sales advantage.

About your host

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Alex Smith

Alex Smith is a seasoned sales professional and podcast host who champions a human-first approach to selling. With nearly two decades of experience, he explores how empathy, curiosity, and genuine connection drive influence in everyday life. Through his podcast, he highlights stories from people across all professions, showing that anyone can persuade and create impact simply by being human.