Justin Jay Johnson's Linkedin Analytics

If you never laugh with your team, don’t be surprised when the work feels heavy. We hit Bowlero for a night of bowling, bad form, and better memories. No decks. No deadlines. Just time to reset and reconnect. High-performance starts with real connection. Fun isn’t a distraction—it’s a multiplier.

Compassion gets overlooked because it’s quiet. But the strongest people I know lead with it. They listen when it’s easier to talk. They give people grace without letting standards slide. They hold space without losing their edge. That kind of strength doesn’t shout. It shows up. Lead with that this weekend. It goes further than you think.

If you're constantly getting ghosted after a great demo, read this twice. Most reps waste their best energy on people who like the product— But can’t fund it. Can’t approve it. Can’t move it forward. Here’s the fix: the 3-Level Rule. Level 1: Users love the features Level 2: Managers love the outcomes Level 3: Execs love the business case Only one of them can say yes. Only one of them can write the check. If you're not selling to Level 3, you're not really selling— You're just hoping someone else will carry the deal across the finish line. Start higher. Get buy-in early. Walk away when you're stuck too low. That’s how real closers operate. If you found this helpful, repost.

Most reps waste their weekends “getting organized” and call it work. Here’s how top reps actually use weekends to level up: Audit last week—what worked, what didn’t Lock in 3 targets for the week ahead Sharpen 1 skill that’s holding you back Reconnect with your why (not your inbox) Get coached—don’t guess That’s what we just did inside group coaching. Tight session. Real feedback. No fluff. If you’re serious about sales, don’t waste weekends. Use them to get dangerous.

I showed up to a random pickle-ball court. Knew no one. Never played. I figured I’d get a few awkward looks. Instead, total strangers welcomed me in, taught me the rules, and encouraged me through every swing. It hit me: We spend so much time online, chasing algorithms and inbox zero, that we forget what actually moves us forward. Real human connection. When you put yourself in a room—or on a court—with people who want you to grow, everything shifts. It doesn’t matter if it’s sales, fitness, or life. The right community gives you permission to be a beginner, to learn, and to get better. So if you're out there trying to do it all alone, stop. Find your crew. Show up. Swing big. Shout out to the pickleball crew for the reminder.

Want to instantly sound 10x more credible on sales calls? Stop talking. Most reps ruin discovery by thinking about their next question while the prospect is still answering the first. Here’s how to stand out: Pause when they finish. Silence builds trust. Use their exact words in your follow-up. It shows you're actually listening. Simple shift. Massive difference. Great discovery isn’t about what you ask—it’s how you listen.

Most reps burn out because they don’t know how to track progress. No wins = no motivation. But the problem isn’t just the results. It’s how reps define a “win” in the first place. If the only thing that counts is closed revenue, you’re in trouble. Because that means most of your days feel like failure. Here’s what elite performers do differently: They track inputs. They train themselves to see daily wins. Strongman competitors don’t wait for the competition to feel like they’re progressing. They calculate the total pounds moved every workout. Every session becomes a PR. Every day becomes a win. Reps can do the same thing: Calls made Conversations had Demos booked Follow-ups sent If it’s in your control, it counts. Focus there. Stack wins daily. Then one day, you’ll look up—and the scoreboard will have taken care of itself. You don’t need more results. You need a better way to measure your effort.

Many reps lose the deal in the first 10 minutes. Quietly. Repeatedly. Just ran the first Improve Your Discovery Masterclass live on Instagram. This series is for closers who want sharper calls, cleaner pipeline, and fewer surprises at the finish line. Here’s a taste of what we covered (and what’s coming next): Stop pitching. If you’re selling in discovery, you’re doing it backwards. Disqualify fast. No real pain, no urgency, no power? Move on. Ask layered questions. Surface-level answers don’t close deals. Dig. Control the frame. Great discovery sounds more like coaching than interrogating. No vague next steps. “Let’s touch base” means nothing. Get commitment or get out. This isn’t theory. It’s the stuff that actually wins deals. If you missed it, no sweat. I’m doing more soon. Come ready to level up. Or stay stuck in the same loop. Your call.

This weekend, let go of the loop in your head. Worry drains you. Wonder fills you back up. The world doesn’t run out of second chances—most people just stop looking. Slow down. Breathe. Start again.

The biggest lie tech companies tell reps? “This is a family.” No—it’s not. You’re not my cousin. You’re my CRO. This is a business relationship, not a Thanksgiving dinner. They used to bribe you with ping pong tables. Now it’s remote happy hours and equity that won’t vest. Same playbook. New packaging. Here’s the truth: you’re on a team, not in a family. And if you don’t perform? You get cut. Top reps don’t fight that. They lean into it. They treat themselves like pro athletes. What does that mean? You train when no one’s watching You study the game tape You focus on what you can control You don’t confuse love with leverage Play the game like a pro. Don’t get caught singing kumbaya with the benchwarmers. Trust me.

You don’t want the title. You want the outcome. As an SDR, I thought the answer was to climb. AE > Manager > Director > VP > CRO. Then I realized the end goal wasn’t the title. It was freedom. The ability to choose how I work, who I work with, and when I stop. Not more layers of politics. Not more hours in meetings. Not a bigger target on my back. Most people chase status. Smart people chase control. Skip the ladder. Build leverage. It’s a better bet.

I had no big logos on my resume. No referrals. No inside edge. I still got hired at Salesforce. Not because I had the best background—mine was one of the worst in the interview pool. I got in because I treated the interview like a sales cycle. Here’s exactly what I did: Found 10+ reps already in the role I wanted Reached out cold on LinkedIn—personalized 1:1 messages Everyone that accepted my invite I asked them to hop on a call to learn about the role Asked how they got hired, what the team valued, what challenges they were facing Then I asked them if they would be willing to let the hiring manager know that they spoke to me My mindset...If I have 3-4 reps proactively letting the hiring manager know I'm being aggressive with all of their team members they could overlook my poor resume A few of those reps even put in a good word for me I didn’t have the strongest resume. But I showed I could do the job: Prospecting Running discovery Navigating stakeholders Positioning myself as the solution And that’s what sales is. Don’t just apply. Sell. Don’t just hope. Execute. If you’re trying to break into a top company with a non-traditional background—this works. Trust me. I lived it.

The biggest mistake first-time founders make in sales? They think product expertise = sales leadership. Most technical founders can close a few early deals. They know the product better than anyone. They speak the language of the customer. They can brute-force early traction. So they assume they’ve “figured out” sales. That what worked for them will work for a 24-year-old AE who just joined the team. But it doesn’t. They hire reps too early. They skip building a real sales process. They assume product knowledge will carry the sale. And when the team misses quota? They blame the reps. They think “I could close this—why can’t they?” Here’s the truth: Your product knowledge will not scale. Your early wins will not translate. Your ability to close as the founder is not a repeatable model. The real mistake? You didn’t bring in someone who’s actually built, trained, and scaled sales teams. Someone who can show you what good looks like. Someone who can set your team up to win without you in the room. Product expertise gets you to 10 customers. Sales leadership gets you to 1,000. Know the difference. And if you’re serious about scale—get help before you think you need it.

I averaged 476% quota attainment in my first year at Salesforce. But I wasn’t special. Not even close. I didn’t have better talent or charm. I had better systems. I learned to use data to build frameworks that actually worked in the field. And I stuck to them like gospel. It’s how I went from #1 BDR to #1 AE to CRO by 33. One of the first frameworks I created? The 5x8 Prospecting Method. It’s simple, tactical, and still works today. Here’s the data it’s built on: It takes ~8 calls to reach a contact Email replies fall off a cliff after attempt #9 Multi-threaded outreach increases response rates by 160% Here’s how to run it: Pick 5 key contacts in an account Pick 2-3 outreach channels (no more) Touch each contact 8 times over 8 weeks That’s it. No bloated cadence. No overcomplicated tech stack. Just discipline and execution. I built this as a BDR at Salesforce and trained 100+ reps to use it since. If you actually stick to it, it works. Trust me. Most people fail because they flinch before it lands. Don’t be that person. ______________________________________________________________ Want the free 40-page sales guide? https://lnkd.in/ejTG_Piq Want to work together? https://lnkd.in/e7p9U7fp

I’m excited to share that I’ve taken on a new leadership role as a Community Group Leader for the Salesblazer Community. Starting this quarter, I’ll be hosting virtual sessions where reps, managers, and leaders can come together to connect, share what's working, and get sharper as a group. No pitches. No fluff. Just real conversations with people in the trenches. Sales can feel like a solo sport. But the truth is, the best reps don’t go it alone—they stay plugged into people who push them to grow. That’s exactly what we’re building here. A space to level up together. More to come soon. Hope to see you there. Kaela Altman 🦓 Melissa Leu Salesforce Sales Cloud #salesblazer #salescommunity

The account was ice cold. Nothing worked. So I walked into the CEO’s office with a dozen donuts and asked for 10 minutes. It was a must-win account, and I had been spinning my wheels for months. No replies. No traction. Total silence. I tried everything—emails, calls, referrals. Nothing stuck. So I stopped playing it safe. I picked up a dozen donuts, walked into HQ, and asked the receptionist to grab the CEO. I didn't think that was going to work, but I had exhausted all other options She looked at me like I was nuts. Two minutes later, he came out. I had 5 minutes to make it count. So I spoke to what I knew—his business, his goals, and exactly what he said on the last earnings call. He leaned in. Asked for a follow-up. A few weeks later, a VP told me what sealed it: “The CEO said, anyone with the balls to drop in unannounced gets a couple minutes. What they do with it? That’s up to them.” That’s how I broke into one of my largest accounts as an AE. If you’re stuck, do what they won’t expect. And make sure you're prepared for that tiny window when it presents itself

If your team only meets in Slack, you’re not building a team. You’re managing a group chat. We train together because it forces growth—mentally, physically, and professionally. It’s not just bonding. It’s alignment. It’s buy-in. It’s proof we’re built different. Want to elevate? Run this system: Mentally – Compete with your past self. Journaling + cold exposure = clarity under pressure Physically – Train 3x/week. Not for aesthetics. For grit Professionally – Roleplay daily. Track pipeline obsessively. Get obsessed with the craft Same reps. Same mindset. Same mission. We don’t just sell better. We live sharper. That’s what elevate actually means.

I was #1 at Salesforce in 4 different roles because I knew how to break my complex quota down to simple, daily inputs Here's the step by step process for how I would reverse engineer my quota every year 1. Outline your process Example: - Calls Made - Conversations Had - Booked Meetings - Qualified Opps - Closed deals 2. Understand your conversion rates Example: Call to conversation rate - 10% Conversation to meeting booked rate - 25% Meeting booked to meeting held rate - 75% Meeting held to qualified opp - 50% Qualified opp to Won - 50% 3. Reverse engineer what it takes to win one deal Example: Calls made = 1000 Conversations had (10% of calls) = 100 Meetings booked (25% of conversations) = 25 Meetings held (75% of meetings booked) = 18 Qualified opps (50% of meetings held) = 9 Won (50% of Qualified opps) = 4 Divide 4 in this scenario by 1000... 250 calls to close 1 deal 4. Add quota + avg. deal size to build annual plan Annual Quota - $1,000,000 Average deal size - $50,000 Your Annual Plan 👇 Quota - $1,000,000 Won deals - 20 Qualified opps - 40 Meetings held - 80 Meetings booked - 107 Conversations had - 428 Calls needed - 4280 5. Add deal velocity to create daily plan Example: Average sales cycle - 3 months This means I have 9 months to create the pipeline needed, because of sales cycle length 9 months = 36 weeks 36 weeks = 180 days 180 days to build the pipeline 4280 calls needed divided by 180 days = 24 calls a day We're not done, but just right here let me ask you a question What sounds easier... Close a $1,000,000 or make 24 calls a day? It's about simplifying your world so that you can focus on what's 100% in your control 6. Add 25-50% buffer If the goal plan above asks for 24 calls a day you do 30-40, and here's why 1. Shit happens outside of your control 2. Your goal is never to hit quota Your goal is to be the best and crush quota The best outwork everyone else If you're stressed out about how to hit quota, I highly recommend you take a few hours and do this exercise Your future self will thank you I broke all of this down even further in this article: https://lnkd.in/eyBymwib

We recently crossed $1M in revenue. Not from a lucky launch. Not from viral growth. From a simple system that scaled. Here’s what worked: One clear offer that solved a real problem A repeatable sales process we actually stuck to Ruthless implementing of feedback to make our product better A team that didn’t quit when it got boring That last part? You don’t hit $1M alone. You need people who move fast, think long, and own their lane. Proud of the team we have at TheSoftwareSalesCoach.com and can't wait for what's in our future Lesley Klose Ishan Outram Mason Davis Tadija Simic

Being #1 at Salesforce taught me one thing: most reps are playing the wrong game. When I was the top rep at Salesforce, I wasn’t the smartest or most technical. But I was ruthless about a few key things: I qualified hard. If the deal wasn’t real, I bailed fast. Time is the only resource you don’t get back. I stayed out of the weeds. I sold outcomes, not features. Nobody cares about your product—they care about their pain. I ran my calendar like a CEO. If it didn’t move pipeline, it didn’t make the cut. Most reps chase activity. The best reps chase impact. Big difference. If you want to be #1, stop trying to do more. Start doing what actually matters.