Cold Calling for Chickens. Bob Etherington

Published by Cyan Books (Marshall Cavendish)

Buy it now from Blackwell Books

Something for the coward in all of us!

Have you ever had to make a business call absolutely cold? It sends shivers down the spines of otherwise fearless salespeople and causes fainting fits among sales trainees.

Well, Bob Etherington has been doing it for years and he knows all about the fear and how to handle it. Notice ‘handle’ not ‘eliminate’. The great strength of this book is that it allows you to remain a chicken and still succeed.

According to Bob, 85% of business goes to the 5% of people who know the secret of successful cold calling. Which makes this a very important book indeed.

Having established that we are to remain ‘chicken’ the author begins the process of showing us how to use our fears to make us ‘one of the best’ in the cold calling field. He does this by first ‘marking out the chicken run’; showing how to figure out what works best for your product or service and how to be convincing on the telephone.

The next section of the book is called ‘The big secret of successful chickens’ and here he reveals how we can get everything we desire in life. Mr E is deadly serious about the ‘everything’ bit and I have to say he makes a very convincing argument for his system.

The final two sections are concerned with persuasion and how to hang on to your customers – and keep them buying.

Part sales training, part personal development, all fascinating and could change your life (in a positive way!). I think you should probably buy it – especially if you are in sales or run your own business.

Drop Dead Brilliant, Lesley Everett

Published by McGraw-Hill

Buy it now from Blackwell Books

So, how’s your brand looking?

“I never really found what I truly wanted to do and what I’m good at until I was 30!” Well, thank goodness that Ms Everett did not stick with the law or software development, two of her earlier careers, because then we would have been deprived of her significant input into the topic of personal branding.

Keynote speaker, media personality and branding coach, Lesley is an international businesswoman who distils the essence of her considerable knowledge into her latest book.

As Lesley says, “You have a brand whether you are aware of it or not.” The job of this book is to help you make the most of that brand.

Nothing is overlooked; from style tips to nasal hair to casual ‘power’ by way of body talk, real talk and self-selling, Lesley leaves no pin ungilded, no shirt unpressed, no shoe unpolished, no stone unturned.

With plenty to think about for both sexes (despite the cover picture this book is for women too), you will learn what to wear and how to wear it for every occasion and how to create, or recreate, your personal ‘package’. You’ll learn about interviews and presentations, including those dreaded TV and videoconference sessions and you’ll pick up some tips on vocal quality as well. There is even advice for dealing with other cultures.

By the end of these 200 pages you will be ready to create a new image, perhaps a new you – you will certainly have all the tools necessary. (Me, forget the business world - I’m really looking forward to not hearing my wife say, “You’re not thinking of going out looking like that, are you?” ever again!)

The Times of London

Tuesday, July 8 2008, page 11.

"The 2:1 degree is losing its shine as the gold standard for getting a job as employers increasingly value leadership and COMMUNICATION SKILLS over academic achievement" (my capitals)

If you doubt your abilities in the communication arena - or if you would 'sooner die than make a presentation' - you should click on the title of this piece.