RVP, Sales @ Bullhorn - I talk about creating systems for sellers to scale your impact, not your hours

3 years ago, I was drowning...

As an RVP at a fast-growing tech company, my life had become an endless stream of:

• "Urgent" emails
• Back-to-back meetings
• And constant fire-fighting

Waking up early and working late into the night.

My phone was always buzzing with notifications.

To make matters worse, it was taking a toll on my family.

The breaking point:

Missing my son's jujitsu belt test.

Something I'd promised I wouldn't do.

That night, seeing the disappointment in his eyes, I knew something had to change.

I spent the next year obsessively learning, developing & testing different productivity systems that would allow me to:

• Still perform at a high level
• Stop feeling perpetually overwhelmed
• End working nights/weekends just to keep up

I started creating what I called "mini-systems"

Small changes that had a compounding effect.

What began as a quest to regain control of my calendar...

Evolved into an operating system that helped me recover 10+ hours every week.

More importantly, spend more time w/ family. 

I've started documenting my learnings & "mini-systems" and now share them with others through my content and weekly newsletter The Systematic Sales Leader.

My goal is to help as many sales leaders as possible avoid the same burnout I and so many others experience through tested and proven systems.

If you're curious to learn more, check my "featured section" for a few free resources.

Tommy Boy came out in 1995. Linkedin didn't exist, CRMs were basic, and there was no AI. Yet, every sales lesson in that movie still holds up today. Here are 5 of my favorites:

1. Customer needs > Product knowledge

Tommy memorizes coating thickness and brake pad specs...

But can't sell until he understands what actually matters to customers.  

Features tell. Problems sell.

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2. Authenticity beats the polished pitch

Tommy's "professional salesman" act bombs every time.

When he decides to be himself, things change.

Customers don't want perfection. 
They want someone they can trust.

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3. Your reputation is your competitive advantage

The entire movie revolves around one question: 

Will customers trust the Callahan name?

Because once you lose trust through dishonesty or broken promises, no discount will be deep enough to win it back.

Build your brand like it's the only asset you have. 

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4. Persistence separates the top 1% from everyone else

Tommy gets rejected, beaten up, humiliated, and nearly gives up a dozen times.
 
But he keeps showing up.
 
Be the person who's still trying after everyone else has quit.

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5. Desperation is the fastest way to lose a deal

When Tommy and Richard are most desperate for revenue, customers smell it from a mile away.
 
The best salespeople solve problems. 
Desperate salespeople beg for business.
 
Position yourself as a partner, not a vendor in crisis.

What's your favorite sales lesson from an unexpected place?

Keith Weightman

It was 2006, and I had just graduated college with a degree in "Guitar Performance" 🎸...

Naturally, this led me to a career in sales...

Actually, after graduating I was teaching private lessons, and my parents were like "So, uh, yea about those student loans" 

So, I put my resume on Monster and crossed my fingers.

I ended up getting offered a job in sales for a global recruiting firm and the rest is history. 

I've been fortunate to work for some awesome companies with great people & teams that have contributed to my growth as a sales professional.

I now lead an incredible team with the #1 provider of ATS/CRM technology to the Staffing Industry.

As an RVP @ Bullhorn I:

Lead a team of AE/AMs that helps staffing firms evaluate, implement, and adopt sales & recruiting technology.

CRM/ATS (Applicant Tracking Systems, Recruiting Software)

Pay/Bill (Time & Expense/Invoicing) Middle Office Solutions

Process Automation

Analytics

VMS (Vendor Management Systems) Integration

Process Optimization/reengineering

Focused on our core purpose "To Create An Incredible Customer Experience"

Who I am outside of work?

👨‍👩‍👦‍👦 Husband to an amazing wife and father of 2 incredible boys 

💔 Heartbroken Washington Football fan 🏈 (I can't with the Commanders yet. I need more time)

🏋️‍♂️ Enjoys working out or anything physically active 

🏆 Ultra competitive...at literally everything

🧭️ I have the worst sense of direction of anyone you've ever met (no big deal)

If you'd like to catch up and talk sales, technology, staffing, etc. feel free to message me here or email me at keith.weightman@bullhorn.com

You can also follow me on twitter @keithweightman

Merry Christmas, ya filthy animals. See ya in 2026.

Talks about #saas, #sales, #salestips, #prospecting, and #salesdevelopment

Patience: the most underrated skill in sales...

The difference between good and great salespeople? About 5.3 seconds.

I’ve received 1,000’s of cold emails...

Most are painfully bad.

Here are 6 characteristics of ones that actually catch my attention.

I’m using 6 on you right now:

1. 𝗠𝗼𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗲-𝗙𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁

81% of emails are read on mobile devices.

Yet the majority of sellers aren’t considering this.

Don't make them scroll.

Tip - Aim for less than 90 words per email

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2. 𝗘𝗺𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝗽𝗮𝗰𝗲

Bulky paragraphs cause cognitive strain.

The use of whitespace removes it.

Tip - aim for 1-3 sentence paragraphs

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3. 𝗕𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗦𝘂𝗯𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲

“How to supercharge your pipeline in the next 90 days”

My brain triggers - “incoming pitch”

“Pipeline”

My brain triggers - “what about it?”

Causing me to open the email.

Tip - Boring subject lines = curiosity

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4. 𝗗𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗯𝗲 𝗮 𝗦𝗲𝘀𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗽𝗲𝗱𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗮𝗻*

*Someone who overuses big words. 

(I only learned this term after Googling “person who uses big words”.)

Big words don’t make you sound smart.

They make it harder for your reader to understand.

Tip - 54% of adults read below a 6th-grade level. Write to them.

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5. 𝗗𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗿𝘆 𝗜𝗳 𝗜’𝗺 𝗪𝗲𝗹𝗹

Drop the pleasantries.

It’s wasted space.

Tip - get right to the “why” (for your outreach).

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6. 𝗧𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗺 𝗦𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴

Humans are naturally eager to learn & solve problems.

Tip - Teach them something new.

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Hope this was helpful for someone.

Your pipeline is lying to you.
 
And you're probably working 70-hour weeks because of it.

Here's the problem:
 
You're chasing ghosts
Stale opps
Fantasy close dates
Accounts that went dark months ago
 
My team was doing the same thing.
 
Then we implemented a simple routine we complete every 90 days.
 
The result?

107% of the plan in a brutal market.

Was it the main reason for our success?

Nope.

Was it a contributing factor that was 100% in our control?

Yup.

Here's the exact 4-step framework you can complete in under 60 minutes:

𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗣 𝟭: 𝗖𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝗢𝘂𝘁 𝗟𝗮𝘀𝘁 𝗤𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿
 
Kill the dead weight in your CRM.
 
→ Process any ops still hanging around 
→ Move, disqualify, or close them out 
→ Update dates and stages for qualified opps
 
When you stop lying to yourself about what's actually closeable, you stop wasting energy on ghosts.
 
But cleaning up the past is only half the battle...
 
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𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗣 𝟮: 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗻 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗤𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗔𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗱
 
A goal without a plan is just a wish.
 
Review your YTD bookings, quarterly goal, and all open opps.
 
Then define a strategy to close each one: 

→ What problem are we solving? 
→ What's the compelling event?* 
→ What gaps do we need to close?
 
*Real urgency = driven by a date the CUSTOMER cares about
 
But there's a goldmine most reps ignore...

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𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗣 𝟯: 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄 𝗥𝗲𝗻𝗲𝘄𝗮𝗹𝘀 & 𝗢𝘂𝘁𝗯𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗧𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲𝘁𝘀
 
Key Renewals: 

→ List those set to renew this quarter 
→ Any future renewals to bring forward? 
→ Outline steps to close each
 
Prospecting: 

→ Set outbound targets 
→ Which accounts haven't been touched in 60+ days? 
→ Can new features reopen closed-lost opps?
 
The last step prevents the fires before they start...
 
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𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗣 𝟰: 𝗔𝗱𝗱𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗔𝘁-𝗥𝗶𝘀𝗸 𝗔𝗰𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝘀
 
Customer churn happens.
 
But it happens less when you address problems proactively versus letting them fester.
 
For every at-risk account: 

→ Document your save plan 
→ Internal resources needed 
→ Timeline

All steps may not apply to your role, but having a similar routine should be a non-negotiable. 

Who else does a Quarterly Reset routine, and what other steps would you add?

Introverts have 5 natural advantages in sales that extroverts have to learn:

1. Active listening 

They hear the actual problem.

Not just the symptoms the prospect mentions first.

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2. Thoughtful preparation

They research before every meeting/outreach. 

They reference specific business challenges, not generic pain points.

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3. Quality over quantity 

They'd rather focus on 10 "ideal fits" than 100 "ok" ones.

They go narrow to go wide.

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4. Comfort with silence 

They don't rush to fill gaps in conversation. 

This pressure often gets prospects to reveal their real objections.

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5. Written communication

They craft clear, concise follow-ups that move deals forward.

When their champion needs to brief their boss, their narrative does the selling for them.

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What else would you add?

After 10 years of leading sales teams, I've learned something most hiring managers get backwards. 
(and it's costing them their best hires)

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