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Get Colleagues to Tell Your Story the Way You Want to be Known Featuring Dr. Cindy McGovern

Dr. Cindy is best known as the First Lady of Sales™. She is an internationally renowned business and motivational speaker and Wall Street Journal’s best-selling author.

In today’s episode of Smashing the Plateau, you will learn how to get your colleagues to tell your story the way you want to be known.

Cindy and I discuss:

  • Why she decided to write “Sell Yourself” [02:10]
  • How Dr. Cindy describes her own impact [04:57]
  • Where to start creating your framework for your story [07:05]
  • Key strategies for turning your story into new business [10:29]
  • Mistakes consultants make when packaging their brand [12:21]
  • Techniques to help colleagues present the right message about you [14:03]
  • Things you can do to stay top of mind with your referral sources [16:12]
  • Why you need to ask for referrals [19:14]

Dr. Cindy has inspired thousands by getting them to think differently about sales, selling, and success, both in their professional and personal lives. She helps take the ‘ick’ out of sales by helping people to embrace their inner 5-year-old.

Learn more about Cindy at https://drcindy.com/.

Transcript
Dr. Cindy McGovern:

You have to know the steps of a sales process.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

You gotta have a good plan.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

You gotta look for the right opportunity.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

You gotta make sure there's trust with your brand.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Nobody's going to buy anything unless they trust you, that you're

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

going to be a good steward of them.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

You're going to follow through on the referral.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Then you ask for the business, and then you develop the relationships.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Welcome to Smashing the Plateau.

David Shriner-Cahn:

We help consultants, coaches, entrepreneurs, and small business

David Shriner-Cahn:

owners build their businesses after long careers as employees.

David Shriner-Cahn:

We believe you should be able to do what you love and get paid

David Shriner-Cahn:

what you're worth, consistently.

David Shriner-Cahn:

I'm your host, David Shriner-Cahn.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Today on Smashing the Plateau, I'm speaking with the First Lady of Sales, Dr.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Cindy McGovern.

David Shriner-Cahn:

In today's episode, you'll learn how to get your colleagues to tell your

David Shriner-Cahn:

story the way you want to be known.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Stay with us to hear all the details.

David Shriner-Cahn:

How do you feel about where your business is today?

David Shriner-Cahn:

Most of us do our best work in collaborative, supportive environments.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Come explore ours.

David Shriner-Cahn:

The Smashing the Plateau community can help you build your business

David Shriner-Cahn:

through live events, a private communication platform, accountability

David Shriner-Cahn:

partners, and lots more resources.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Speak to me or one of our community members to learn more.

David Shriner-Cahn:

You can schedule a quick conversation at smashingtheplateau.com/15.

David Shriner-Cahn:

That's smashingtheplateau.com/15 or go to our website smashingtheplateau.com.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Now let's welcome Dr.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Cindy McGovern.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Dr.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Cindy is best known as the First Lady of Sales.

David Shriner-Cahn:

She is an internationally renowned business and motivational speaker and

David Shriner-Cahn:

Wall Street Journal bestselling author.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Dr.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Cindy has inspired thousands by getting them to think differently about sales,

David Shriner-Cahn:

selling and success, both in their professional and personal lives.

David Shriner-Cahn:

She helps take the ick out of sales by helping people to

David Shriner-Cahn:

embrace their inner five year old.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Cindy, welcome back to the show.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Speaker:

Thank you so much, David.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Speaker:

It's so great to be back with you in your community.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Thank you.

David Shriner-Cahn:

I'm really glad to have you on.

David Shriner-Cahn:

So the last time you were on Smashing the Plateau, We talked about getting

David Shriner-Cahn:

over the ick of selling, which is a huge issue for our audience of

David Shriner-Cahn:

primarily consultants, coaches, and small business owners selling, you're

David Shriner-Cahn:

in the knowledge, a knowledge based business, that's their own business.

David Shriner-Cahn:

So they're selling, basically selling their ideas.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Now you have a new book out called Sell Yourself: How to Create, Live and

David Shriner-Cahn:

Sell a Powerful Personal Brand, which I think speaks volumes to our audience.

David Shriner-Cahn:

I'm really curious, why did you decide to write, Sell Yourself.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Well, it's funny because it's the one lesson that I wasn't

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

really taught along with sales, right?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

We were taught that you don't brag and you don't do these things, and

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

there is a way to sell yourself without, selling your soul to a degree.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

And I think that it's something that I had to learn the hard way and it

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

was a bit of a wake up call when I did recognize that what I thought I was

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

selling wasn't what I meant to be selling.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

We all have a personal brand, whether we realize it or not.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Is it the one you mean for there to be out in the marketplace, and

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

especially as a consultant or a coach, you're selling your knowledge,

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

but you're actually selling you.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

They're buying you first, and so I want to be able to help people to embrace

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

that, get over the ick of selling like my first book talks about, but really

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

be able to promote their superpowers so that they can bring in more clients.

David Shriner-Cahn:

So fundamentally, what problem do you think it solves for them?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

So we have a hard time talking about what we

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

bring to the table as consultants, as coaches, as human beings, right?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Because we feel like we're bragging about something.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

And so what I want to help people to be able to do is tell their story.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

in a way that's impactful for the person listening.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Nobody does this life alone.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

We all help each other.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

So as you're building your business, or if you've had a successful

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

business for 20 plus years, you're still building that network.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

your network needs to be able to tell your story.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

They need to be able to sell you to someone else to sell the idea.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

You've gotta be able to sell yourself first.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

And if you can't tell your story, I can't send you referrals.

David Shriner-Cahn:

So for example, What's your story?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

So my story is helping companies to grow their business.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

That's what I do.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

My focus is helping people get over that ick factor of selling and

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

turning every single person within an organization into a salesperson.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

But so often what ends up happening is if I'm not careful about

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

controlling the narrative, they say, Oh, that's a training company.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Or, Oh, she's a coach.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Yeah.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

But I don't want 'em to tell them that I'm a coach.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

I want to tell 'em what the impact is that I make.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

And so I think that's the narrative we have to work on when we're selling

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

ourselves is thinking about what's the treat for the person listening?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

What's the impact for them?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

So that then they want to go tell the story to somebody else.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Yeah.

David Shriner-Cahn:

How do you describe your impact?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

I literally get results for our clients

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

by growing their business.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

That's exactly the impact is we leave you with a better sales process than

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

you started with, and it's something that you can execute on your own.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

And when it's knowledge based, like my knowledge is obviously sales business

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

development, so I could easily talk about sales processes and prospecting

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

and target lists and more people to tears, , or I can tell the story around

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

the impact we had on an organization, the consultant that we helped, to

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

double their business in six months.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

That's the impactful piece.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

And that's my brand.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

My brand is what we actually create for others.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

So for all of your listeners, what I would ask them to think about is

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

how are you telling your story today?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Are you telling it as, this is the list of products or services that I offer,

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

or this is the impact that they have?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

That's where you want to start.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Right, so as an example, one of the things that I talk

David Shriner-Cahn:

to, potential podcast guests about, is sharing stories versus sharing principles.

David Shriner-Cahn:

And I say, if for every principal you should have at least one story

David Shriner-Cahn:

that will illustrate the principle.

David Shriner-Cahn:

And if you have a choice between sharing the story and sharing

David Shriner-Cahn:

the principle, share the story.

David Shriner-Cahn:

People remember stories they forget principles.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

It's funny because especially if you're in a

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

knowledge based role or capacity, or you came from corporate and that

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

was the thing we love lists, right?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

, it's a list of everything.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

These are the 10 tenants, these are the five core values, these

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

are the this, but how do they live?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

And that's why, the new book.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

It's Create, Live and Sell.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

The powerful personal brand, you've gotta live it.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

You've gotta bring it to life.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Because we do, We live by storytelling and we live in a peer

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

review society, quite frankly.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

And we don't buy anything without having some aspect of peer review.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

So especially if you're selling yourself and looking to get new clients and

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

looking for referrals, they could tell them the 10 offerings you have

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

or the five principles you teach, or they can tell a story around it.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

And that's a whole lot more fun to share with somebody.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Yeah.

David Shriner-Cahn:

So for somebody who really, is not well versed in storytelling or hasn't

David Shriner-Cahn:

developed a framework for capturing these stories and sharing them.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Where should they start?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Start with yourself.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

So the first thing is, and I talk about this in the new book especially, but I

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

do this work with my clients as well.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

What are the things you want somebody to say about you when you're not in the room?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Have you ever sat back and thought about that?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

And then what's their go to?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

What's the go to, Do they say, Oh, you're a father, you're a

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

parent, You're this, you're that.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

These are the labels that go on sort of business cards and email signatures.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

. I'm not talking about those labels.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

I'm talking about the words you want them to use to describe you.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Helpful, kind, compassionate, ethical, What are those pieces?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

And then start crafting your own narrative about how you

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

want people to tell that story.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Because we, we fall into that trap as well as human beings.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

It's Oh, I do this and it's whatever the line is on your business card

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

versus saying how you do that.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

What it is that you bring to the table.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

So I think it's really starting within and being clear on

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

who you want to be known as.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

And let's face it, if you're running your own company and you're running

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

your own business, you're creating what I call your leader legacy.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

That story is already being written . Are we using the words you want them

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

to be using to create that legacy?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Because you absolutely can control the narrative.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Yeah.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Okay, so first, think about what it is.

David Shriner-Cahn:

You want others to say when you're not in the room, particularly when it

David Shriner-Cahn:

comes to the kind of impact you have on the kinds of people you want to serve.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Absolutely.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

And it makes it easier for them to brag on you because if you, let's

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

just take like attorneys, how many thousands of attorneys are there, right?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

And then you have a specialty.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

You're an attorney that does this kind of law.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Okay.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

But again, that's not differentiating you.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

How are you truly standing out from the rest of the pack?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

That's that narrative that you want others to be able to say, and

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

that's really your personal brand.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

That's the brand that you're selling them on.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

So I would even encourage all of your listeners to be thinking about how are

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

you even introducing yourself to people?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

How are creating your own network and working that network and making sure

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

that they know those words that you want them using when they describe you?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Or are they just saying, Yep, Cindy does this or David does that?

David Shriner-Cahn:

So if you're a real estate attorney and it impact

David Shriner-Cahn:

you're able to have is, I mean there's some real estate attorneys that will

David Shriner-Cahn:

just process transactions and there are others that will, essentially

David Shriner-Cahn:

save a deal from falling apart.

David Shriner-Cahn:

There you go.

David Shriner-Cahn:

They'll know when to push in a negotiation and when to hold back.

David Shriner-Cahn:

. Cause ultimately, if you're representing either the buyer or the seller, both

David Shriner-Cahn:

parties want the deal to go through.

David Shriner-Cahn:

They don't want the deal to be to fall apart, even though as a, as the attorney,

David Shriner-Cahn:

your job is to protect them against risk.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

That's exactly right.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

But it's, you can either say, I'm a real estate attorney and

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

I work with buyers and seller.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Or you can say, My job is to make sure this deal goes through regardless and

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

to make your life easy in the process.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Yeah, totally different story.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

. David Shriner-Cahn: Very,

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Yeah.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Are there other, besides learning what stories you want other people to

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

share about you, are there other sort of key strategies that you recommend?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Yeah, I do, and I talk about some of these in the book, but the,

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

one of the things that I would encourage, especially for consultants, coaches,

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

this audience is recognizing what kinds of clients you're looking for to begin

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

with . And you fish where the fish are and to use sales language, but if you're

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

looking for certain type of clients, looking at the needs that they have, and

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

then being able to hold up the facets of your brand that fill those needs.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

So for example, if you want to get into, you're that real estate attorney and you

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

want to get into the luxury home space, that's a different need than if you're

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

selling, homes and in subdivisions.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

And it's very transactional, very quick, multi, multi deals in a month.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

So recognizing how you truly shift the brand, and it's almost like

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

if you look at product branding.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

They changed their packaging over the years.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

we changed with the times back in the seventies it was browns and yellows

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

and maroons, and then it went to pastels in the eighties and then in the

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

nineties it went to, more crazy neons and then it started to mellow out and

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

now we're back into primary colors.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

How is your brand evolving as.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

and evolving based on the needs of the clients and the potential clients.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

And I think that's one thing, especially for those who maybe

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

came from a corporate background.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

You were branded as part of that corporation.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

You were branded, you were selling that brand, whatever it was.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Now you're selling yourself.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

So have you worked on the packaging?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Have you made it very clear how you want to be seen?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

And if you haven't, That's the other thing you've gotta do is look at how

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

that is being presented to the world.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Yeah.

David Shriner-Cahn:

What kinds of mistakes have you seen consultants make when it

David Shriner-Cahn:

comes to, packaging their brand.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Oh, okay.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

How much time do we have?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

, I've made some of 'em, right?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

So I'm a consultant too.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

So the biggest one that they make is assuming your network knows how

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

to tell your story at hands down.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

That is the biggest mistake because just because you've told everybody,

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Oh, I started a company, or I started a consultancy and this is what I'm doing.

That doesn't mean A:

they're going to go tell people about it.

That doesn't mean A:

It doesn't mean they're going to help you get the word out, and it

That doesn't mean A:

certainly doesn't mean that they're going to refer business to you.

That doesn't mean A:

So that's the first thing, is just assuming that's going to happen.

That doesn't mean A:

Another mistake in terms of packaging the brand is leaning too much on your

That doesn't mean A:

past successes, because those are associated with wherever you were before.

That doesn't mean A:

And that's great, you know that.

That doesn't mean A:

But again, that was that company or that entity that you were part of.

That doesn't mean A:

Now you're you.

That doesn't mean A:

And it's really hard and it's a little bit lonely.

That doesn't mean A:

If anybody that you know is starting their consultancy or they've been in it

That doesn't mean A:

for a period of time, you guys know this.

That doesn't mean A:

All of a sudden you don't have colleagues to, walk past at the coffee pot and

That doesn't mean A:

you're trying to figure out what this is.

That doesn't mean A:

And so the mistake is that brand follows you.

That doesn't mean A:

It doesn't.

That doesn't mean A:

That is your past.

That doesn't mean A:

You're talking about your future.

That doesn't mean A:

And so it's truly crafting it and getting a good plan together.

That doesn't mean A:

And that's why step one is the creation of the brand, because it is

That doesn't mean A:

a creative process to figure out who you want to be known as in this world.

That doesn't mean A:

Now, I could be Cindy, that used to work at Brand X, I

That doesn't mean A:

don't want to be known as that.

That doesn't mean A:

I want to be Cindy that does this now.

That doesn't mean A:

So being careful about that as well, it's a big challenge for a lot of folks

That doesn't mean A:

because we do lean on that past success.

That doesn't mean A:

But you want to focus on the future.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Yeah.

David Shriner-Cahn:

And I actually want to go a little deeper with what you, the first point

David Shriner-Cahn:

you made about getting colleagues to tell your story the right way.

David Shriner-Cahn:

What techniques are there to help colleagues who want to help

David Shriner-Cahn:

you, but to help them present the right message about you.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

So that is a fantastic million dollar question,

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

and it literally is a million dollar question because it can cost you a

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

million bucks if you don't do it right.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

So part of it is people can only repeat stories that mean something

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

to them, otherwise they're going to tell it and it's going to fall flat.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

So what ends up happening is we think our next door neighbor who has

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

never worked in the space that you're working in, who has never, has no,

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

connection to it whatsoever, is going to go tell all of their friends.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

They're not.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

There's gotta be something that they can relate to.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

There's gotta be something that they experience either in the conversation

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

with you or in a story you've shared with them that makes them excited,

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

that makes them feel something and create an emotion in them.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

So then they want to go tell somebody else.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

we all have this in terms of being consumers, right?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

We've had a great experience.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

It was great, but unless it was over the top, wow, we don't have

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

anybody to tell anything about.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

But the minute that you say, Oh, I'm going to go to this restaurant,

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

then I go, David, oh my gosh, we had the best meal there.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

If I just had a meal, I don't have anything to say.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

But the flip side is if I had a bad experience, I'm going

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

to tell you that one too.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

So making sure our network can tell that wow story that they

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

feel a connection to, even if they didn't experience it themselves.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

So my job using the restaurant connection is, even if you haven't eaten there,

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

David, I turn you into a raving fan.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

I give you such a story to tell that the minute that opportunity

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

comes up, you go, Oh my gosh, my friend Cindy ate at this restaurant

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

and I gotta tell you what happened.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

That's how you create that buzz, and it is the million dollar question because

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

if your network isn't working for you, then you are a solo entrepreneur,

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

but you can turn yourself into an entrepreneur by creating raving fans.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Right now, if you're, particularly in today's world, where so

David Shriner-Cahn:

much of our communication is digital and it's asynchronous, are there things that

David Shriner-Cahn:

you can do and people are bombarded with so much information that comes at them

David Shriner-Cahn:

all the time in lots of different ways.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Are there ways that you can prime the pump, and keep the right

David Shriner-Cahn:

information going to people that truly would like to help you if you

David Shriner-Cahn:

were able to enable them to do it.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Are there ways you can do this when for some people it

David Shriner-Cahn:

means sending them an email?

David Shriner-Cahn:

For some people it means sharing a link to a video you may have made.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Or, it could be sharing a link to a podcast episode, or it

David Shriner-Cahn:

could be sending them a text.

David Shriner-Cahn:

For some people it's the old fashioned way of randomly picking

David Shriner-Cahn:

up the phone and calling them.

David Shriner-Cahn:

And then there are the few people that we actually see in person.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Yeah, that happens too.

David Shriner-Cahn:

But a lot of times it's not in person.

David Shriner-Cahn:

So what can you do to kind of keep the embers going on the fire so that they'll

David Shriner-Cahn:

have the fuel to be able to help you when the opportunity presents itself.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Well, it's funny because this is another

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

one of the mistakes that people make is they're not top of mind.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

And the thing that I would encourage everybody to remember is it's

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

not their job to remember you.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

It's your job that they remember you.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

And so exactly what you just asked is what are ways that we can do that?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

And the first thing is, it's not just about throwing information out there.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

I get a lot of clients who are like, Oh, I need to post on social media.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

And my first question is your audience that you're trying to

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

reach on that platform, and what do they need to hear from you?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Don't post just a post.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

It's everybody's highlight real.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

We know that, right?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

So what are you actually doing to impact that audience?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

What do you want them to feel by reading or seeing that post and that and then you

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

think about how that methodology goes.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

But there is a cadence that is needed to make sure that you're

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

staying in front of these folks.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

You know, we've all got kind of this core group, right?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Those are the people we can pick up the phone, we can call it any

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

time they will, come get you if you got a flat tire kind of thing.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

And then we've got that secondary network and it's like a target if you look at it.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

So we've got the center and then the second ring and the third ring, and

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

then the fourth ring, that outer ring, needs to know what's going on, but

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

more importantly, needs to know how they can help you when the opportunity

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

arises, because they're not the people you're going to see on a regular basis.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

They're not the people that you're going to have regular interaction

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

with, but you need to stay relevant.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

And so what I encourage folks to do is, share something that

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

is helpful for that audience.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Don't share just your accolades.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

And that's a big mistake people make in personal branding is they post all

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

this stuff like, Oh, you're a speaker, you're an author, you're this, no.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Share the message of what that does.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

I wrote a book, not to just write a book, I wrote a book to help

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

people, and I want to talk about that and why it helps people.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

So thinking about that, even in your own organization, your own consultancy, what

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

is it that you're impacting on people.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Tell that story.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Don't be a consultant, be a helper, and get that message out there.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Yeah, I like actually would love to react to that,

David Shriner-Cahn:

which is I see way too many people just being overly self promotional, right?

David Shriner-Cahn:

And just pushing, This is what I do, this is how I can help.

David Shriner-Cahn:

And they're trying too hard to sell before they even know if there's a need.

David Shriner-Cahn:

On the flip side, and this is the, by, by far, the vast minority.

David Shriner-Cahn:

But I also see people that are really great at putting value-based

David Shriner-Cahn:

content out that does solve problems for people in their audience.

David Shriner-Cahn:

And the stuff they put out is really helpful.

David Shriner-Cahn:

And I'm like waiting for the sales pitch, and I never see it.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Speaker:

You have to ask for it.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Speaker:

. Yeah.

David Shriner-Cahn:

So can you talk a little bit about that?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

It's funny because we could do like a whole

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

podcast on just the mistakes, right?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

So that's another one of the mistakes, is that they don't ask for the business.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

You don't ask, you don't ask your network to introduce you.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

You don't ask for somebody to say, hey, keep me in mind as you,

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

go to that conference next week if you run into somebody that

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

could benefit from what I do.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

So that's a big piece of it.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

But there's a fear in asking, and we have to admit this as

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

friends here on this podcast,

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

we're afraid of them saying no.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

And, that's a perfectly acceptable response because if the answer's no,

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

either we didn't do a good job of telling our own story to them, so they want to

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

carry the flag or they don't get it, which is also our fault, or it's not a fit for

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

their audience, and we need that feedback.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

We actually want that feedback.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

It's funny, I was recording a video earlier this morning for something

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

and I was talking about getting feedback, and that's important for us.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

No is feedback.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

So learn from that and then it helps you to shift your

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

message a little bit as well.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

But you have to actually ask for the business, yes.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Yeah.

David Shriner-Cahn:

And no could also be not yet.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Yeah, absolutely.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

I firmly believe no is a temporary response, but I want to understand why.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

, is it that I asked at the wrong time?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Did I not uncover enough needs?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Did I not explain what you were going to get in return?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Like I need to know because that feedback is going to make you stronger.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Yeah, absolutely.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Cindy, is there anything else that I haven't asked you that you want

David Shriner-Cahn:

to share that is really tied to what is the core of your new book?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Yeah, I really want people to be able to take this

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

and get over that self-promotion fear.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

And we talked a little bit about this already, but there is this, The terms

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

sell yourself will sell yourself.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

The operative word is sell in that, and we forget that.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

We forget that there is an active component to this and that's

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

why, the subtitle of the book is Create Live and then Sell.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Because so often we think, I'm living the brand.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Obviously they know that.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

There is absolutely a promotional aspect in this, but you have to

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

know the steps of a sales process.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

You gotta have a good plan.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

You gotta look for the right opportunity.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

You gotta make sure there's trust with your brand.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Nobody's going to buy anything unless they trust you, that you're

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

going to be a good steward of them.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

You're going to follow through on the referral.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Then you ask for the business, and then you develop the relationships.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

And that's a very quick, sales process, but it's really important that's the

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

piece that people take away as well, because you can have the best brand ever.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

You could be posting about it online and showing how wonderful you are

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

in all the accolades, but if you're not actively looking for a need to

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

fill within that audience, you're not going to be able to grow that business

David Shriner-Cahn:

Well said.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Cindy, we've covered a lot of territory.

David Shriner-Cahn:

If somebody wants to go deeper with anything that we've discussed today,

David Shriner-Cahn:

get a copy of your book or any of the other resources that you have, where

David Shriner-Cahn:

would be the best place for them to go?

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

drcindy.com.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

D R C I N D Y .com is the best spot, and I'm on all the platforms, of

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

course, of social media, and I love to hear from listeners and I answer my

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

emails and I answer my social media.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

So if people post questions, I'm happy to offer that coaching and advice,

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

because I really want people to be able to take this, grow their business,

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

and have more fun in the process.

David Shriner-Cahn:

And yes, I will attest to the fact that

David Shriner-Cahn:

you do answer your emails.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Cindy, I want to thank you so much for taking the time to join

David Shriner-Cahn:

us again on Smashing the Plateau.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Congratulations on your new book, and I encourage people to get in

David Shriner-Cahn:

touch with you and learn more.

David Shriner-Cahn:

My guest today has been the First lady of Sales, Dr.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Cindy McGovern.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Thank you, Cindy, for joining us.

Dr. Cindy McGovern:

Thank you so much for having me.

David Shriner-Cahn:

When you visit this Smashing the Plateau website at

David Shriner-Cahn:

smashingtheplateau.com, you'll find a summary of each episode along with

David Shriner-Cahn:

the links we mentioned on the show.

David Shriner-Cahn:

On today's episode with Dr.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Cindy McGovern, we learned how to get your colleagues to tell your

David Shriner-Cahn:

story the way you want to be known.

David Shriner-Cahn:

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David Shriner-Cahn:

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Get a free 14 day trial of Circle at smashingtheplateau.com/circle.

David Shriner-Cahn:

That's smashingtheplateau.com/circle.

David Shriner-Cahn:

I'm David Shriner-Cahn.

David Shriner-Cahn:

Thank you for taking the time to listen to our show.

About the author, David Shriner-Cahn

David is the podcast host and community builder behind Smashing the Plateau, an online platform offering resources, accountability, and camaraderie to high-performing professionals who are making the leap from the corporate career track to entrepreneurial business ownership.

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