Alex de Jong

Burnout is a myth.

But Alex, I thought you helped people who are burned out? 🤔

This is what I saw the other day on a video that came across my feed.

This young guy said that he has men coming to him who are burned out and he tells them:
"You're too soft"
"Hustle and grind"
"They're keeping you down"

The solution in his words... "in the early 1900s, there were men out there leading armies in a war zone, people shooting at them, bombs going off around them, and they had to keep on pushing. They didn't have any option to say - oh I don't want to do this anymore, it's too too much work, I can't do this - they had to keep on going."
Which somehow means that if you're sat behind a laptop and not in a war zone, you can keep going, because you don't have it as bad as they did. 🤨

I call 💩

The men who fought in World Wars, didn't have a choice and the majority of them turned to:

❌ Alcoholism
❌ Drug Abuse
❌ Abusing their families

They weren't just burned out, they were burned so badly by what they had been through that they did whatever they could to take the pain away for a lifetime afterwards.

We can learn a lot from these men who fought and died in wars for our work today:

✔️ Listen to your body and do what's right for you, by you.
✔️ Are you working for a cause you care about? If so - that fulfilling mission could carry you further.
✔️ You have a choice, if you want to work 14+ hour days, six or seven days per week, by all means go for it
✔️ What are the consequences of your actions today? Burn outs don't happen from one day to the next, it's the accumulation of years of pressure.
✔️ You're an intelligent being, so don't give your power away to anybody who doesn't know you and only cares about your money.

Burnout is not a myth...
Anyone who says that is straight up lying or ignorant of the reality.

Don't fight your own war at work, learn from those who actually fought wars that it ain't worth the cost.

P.S. More info in the comments 👇

"Have a mission in life so big that it's the equivalent of trying to empty the sea with a spoon"

How big is your mission? 🤔

Not WHAT, in other words:
❌ Status
❌ Money
❌ Followers

Rather WHO, such as:
✔️ Family
✔️ Your City
✔️ The World

As Will and I discussed this Wednesday, having a big mission gives you focus and clarity on what to do in your day-to-day.

A top tip: It's not about setting a big, lofty mission that gets you discouraged easily, it's about making it bigger than yourself so that you're continually getting up and doing things out of an attitude of gratitude and service.

Focusing on what's not in your control - status, money, followers, fame, attention, glory - is a fast route to burnout on the hamster wheel of ME.

Focusing on being of service to other people - your family, your local community, a cause you care about or the world - gives greater meaning to your day-to-day actions.

Connection is the most important thing in life...

Connecting with others that is.

That's what unexpectedly came up in today's webinar for CROs

I first became apparent the role of connection to wellbeing and business during my bachelors in Sociology at university, later it became more pronounced as I entered the corporate world and it really hit home for me in 2015 when I attended a stand up comedy class by Jay Sodagar, he told the group:

"The connection between the comedian and the audience is the biggest factor as to whether someone laughs or not, more so than the joke itself or the way it's delivered."

What does connection have to with business, sales or wellbeing? 🤔

Everything!

The one guy, a CRO at a company, asked in the webinar a few hours ago
"How can we get AEs and BDRs to connect so they have a better handoff?"

I shared some suggestions from previous sales enablement roles and that offhand question inspired today's walk in the park video.

If you want your own wellbeing or that of your employees to improve, start with the quality of your connections 🧑‍🤝‍🧑

For those who love a source - there's some in the comments 📖

For those who love connecting - hit me up with a meeting in the first comment 👇

Consistent, bite-sized steps towards your goal beats leaps and bounds every day 🚀

It's easy to get caught up in the pursuit of perfection... Perfect pitches, flawless strategies and impeccable ex*****on

As a recovering perfectionist, here's a secret from the frontline:
Progress trumps perfection

In sales:
✔️ Persistence is crucial
✔️ Stamina and action fuel success
✔️ Every step towards your goal counts
✔️ The scale of progress is not as important as consistency

Action is the catalyst for progress.

Just like lacing up your shoes before hitting the gym, in sales, you have to take those small, incremental actions to reach your revenue goals.

Sales isn't a spectator sport. You can't just visualise success; you need to be in action. Each call, each client interaction, whether they say "yes", "no" or "not now" is a step forward.

Whether you're hustling on the ground, navigating team dynamics or a chief steering the ship, remember: progress is born in the daily grind. It's the consistency in your actions that builds the foundation for revenue growth.

In a world that often glorifies the big wins, let's celebrate the small victories. Taking those steps, making those calls, that's where the real progress happens.

Remember, you have to tie up your shoes before stepping out the door. In an ever-evolving digital landscape, the same principle applies - a constant push towards progress, regardless of scale, is key to success.

Sharing more on consistency with sales activities and progress to your goals in tomorrow's webinar at 12:30pm ET / 5:30pm UK, see the link in the comments 👇

Wanna know how Jeff Bezos turned $10k into $169.2bn? 💰

A colossal achievement that seems almost effortless...

The simple answer:

𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆

That's not exciting, right?

Consistency may not be sexy
Consistency certainly doesn't sell
Especially in a world of "hacks" and "shortcuts"

However, it's what turned a seemingly mundane venture, selling books, into a behemoth of an empire.

Even in seemingly mundane tasks - whether it's making sales calls, updating the CRM or presenting the quarterly report - consistency makes a world of difference between whether you make the grade or whether you're forgotten.

As a Sales Leader or CRO, it's vital to consistently optimize your metrics, be it annual recurring revenue or conversion times.

Jeff Bezos didn't build Amazon in a day. It took decades of consistency, dedication, and perseverance.

You're not gonna build an empire in a day either....
Nothing wrong with having big visions
But you can keep it in the now, today
What can you do consistently?
Do it with focus and clarity

The Bezos blueprint is the fuel that drives success in any industry 🚀

Some key lessons:
✔️ Service is key: Effective response to prospects and customers builds trust and loyalty.
✔️ Consistency breeds results: Regular improvements drive customer satisfaction and increase revenue.
✔️ Optimization is an ongoing process: Regularly updating UX and crunching the numbers to see where you can improve will help you level up.

If you're a CRO or a sales leader who wants to hear more on this
And create consistency with a predictable strategy for 2024
We're hosting a webinar this Tuesday at 12:30pm ET
Click the link in the comments to sign up 👇