In this special episode of Make It Happen Mondays, John sits down with Ryan Garland, an Account Executive at Coefficient, to dive into what happens when a rep actually cares about getting better. This isn’t a generic sales success story—this is the real, raw impact of putting in the work, embracing coaching, and taking ownership of your sales career.Ryan shares what drew him to John’s 1:1 coaching program, how he went from solid to standout by applying proven frameworks, and why most reps are leaving massive money on the table by being lazy and reactive. The conversation touches on the current sales landscape, AI’s impact, startup chaos, negotiation tactics that actually work, and what it means to take responsibility not just for results—but for your own personal growth.This is the kind of episode that reminds us why sales is still one of the most rewarding careers—if you show up for it. Ryan did. Now he’s winning because of it.Are you interested in leveling up your sales skills and staying relevant in today’s AI-driven landscape? Visit www.jbarrows.com and let’s Make It Happen together!Connect with John on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnbarrows/Connect with John on IG: https://www.instagram.com/johnmbarrows/Check out John's Membership: https://go.jbarrows.com/pages/individual-membership?ref=3edab1 Join John's Newsletter: https://www.jbarrows.com/newsletterConnect with Ryan on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rjgarlan/
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Myths vs. Science of Selling with Dr. Lorenzo Bizzi
Dr. Lorenzo Bizzi is a professor of strategic management at Cal State Fullerton, globally published researcher, and author of Myths vs. Science of Selling — a book that challenges some of the most popular (but unproven) sales advice circulating in the industry today.In this episode, we dig into the difference between what sounds good in sales and what actually works. Dr. Bizzi shares research-backed insights that turn conventional wisdom on its head — including why being liked by customers doesn’t necessarily lead to more wins, how emotional empathy can actually hurt performance, and why active listening isn’t enough unless it leads to problem clarity for the buyer.If you’re tired of fluffy sales advice and want to get sharper about what really moves the needle, this episode is for you. Expect a refreshingly honest, practical conversation bridging the gap between research and real-world selling.Connect with John on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnbarrows/Connect with John on IG: https://www.instagram.com/johnmbarrows/Check out John's Membership: https://go.jbarrows.com/pages/individual-membership?ref=3edab1 Join John's Newsletter: https://www.jbarrows.com/newsletterConnect with Lorenzo on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenzo-bizzi-0b0a4711/ Check out Lorenzo's Website: https://www.lorenzobizzi.com/Get Lorenzo's Book Myths vs. Science of Selling here
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Why Buyer Enablement Beats Sales Enablement with Rory Sadler
This week on Make It Happen Mondays, John sits down with Rory Sadler, Co-founder and CEO of trumpet, the leading digital sales room platform helping companies like Gong, HubSpot, and Personio increase sales velocity by transforming the buying experience.Before founding trumpet, Rory spent years on the front lines of SaaS sales—first as an individual contributor, then leading global teams at Hotjar. Along the way, he saw firsthand just how painful and chaotic buying software had become—and made it his mission to fix it.In this episode, Rory shares the aha moment that led to building trumpet, his early entrepreneurial grit (selling sweets and DJing as a teen), and why entrepreneurship is way different than just working at a startup. We also dive into:Why buyer enablement is the new sales enablementHow mutual action plans build real trust and alignmentWhat sellers are still getting wrong about personalizationThe massive opportunity in simplifying complex buying decisionsIf you’re in sales, RevOps, or just care about delivering a smoother, faster, and more human buying experience, this episode will hit home.Are you interested in leveling up your sales skills and staying relevant in today’s AI-driven landscape? Visit www.jbarrows.com and let’s Make It Happen together!Connect with John on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnbarrows/Connect with John on IG: https://www.instagram.com/johnmbarrows/Check out John's Membership: https://go.jbarrows.com/pages/individual-membership?ref=3edab1 Join John's Newsletter: https://www.jbarrows.com/newsletterConnect with Rory on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rory-sadler-trumpet/ Connect with Trumpet on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sendtrumpet/Check out Rory's Website: https://www.sendtrumpet.com/
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The 17% Rule: Why Most Reps Miss Quota with Guy Rubin
In this episode of Make It Happen Mondays, John Barrows sits down with Guy Rubin, CEO of Ebsta, the revenue intelligence platform that guarantees increased quota attainment—and was recently acquired.Guy shares the origin story of building Ebsta as a bootstrapped venture, the lessons learned through scaling without VC pressure, and how staying aligned with his values made the acquisition feel like a natural next step. But the real power of this episode lies in the data.We dive into insights from Ebsta’s 2025 Sales Qualification Report, which shows jaw-dropping stats—like how just 17% of reps are responsible for over 80% of revenue. It’s Pareto Principle in real-time, and it forces us to ask: What happens to the other 80% in an AI-first world?John and Guy dig into how the best reps qualify, the resurgence of full-cycle sales, and why the future belongs to reps who can ditch the features and start leading business conversations.This one’s a wake-up call and a roadmap for anyone in B2B sales looking to stay ahead in a fast-changing game.Are you interested in leveling up your sales skills and staying relevant in today’s AI-driven landscape? Visit www.jbarrows.com and let’s Make It Happen together!Connect with John on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnbarrows/Connect with John on IG: https://www.instagram.com/johnmbarrows/Check out John's Membership: https://go.jbarrows.com/pages/individual-membership?ref=3edab1 Join John's Newsletter: https://www.jbarrows.com/newsletterConnect with Guy Rubin on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rubinguy/ Check out Guy's Website: https://www.ebsta.com/
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The Ten Commandments of Selling with Dr. Yaniv Zaid
In this episode, John sits down with Dr. Yaniv Zaid—a global authority on persuasion, communication, and ethical influence. With a career spanning 22+ years, 2,500+ keynotes, and 11 bestselling books (including his latest, The New Bible of Sales: The Ten Commandments), Dr. Zaid brings razor-sharp insight into what makes people say “yes.”Together, they dive into the psychology of trust, how identity and narrative matter more than features, and the universal persuasion process that top sellers unknowingly follow. Yaniv also breaks down the fine line between manipulation and persuasion, shares why failure is one of the fastest paths to credibility, and challenges John on whether people really have to like you to buy from you.If you’re in sales, leadership, or just want to understand how to ethically influence others, this episode is packed with actionable strategies that blend science with story.Are you interested in leveling up your sales skills and staying relevant in today’s AI-driven landscape? Visit www.jbarrows.com and let’s Make It Happen together!Connect with John on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnbarrows/Connect with John on IG: https://www.instagram.com/johnmbarrows/Check out John's Membership: https://go.jbarrows.com/pages/individual-membership?ref=3edab1 Join John's Newsletter: https://www.jbarrows.com/newsletterConnect with Dr. Yaniv Zaid on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yanivzaid/Check out Dr. Yaniv Zaid Website: https://www.persuasion.co.il/en/
About Make It Happen Mondays - B2B Sales Talk with John Barrows
John Barrows is a leading B2B sales trainer and founder of JBarrows Consulting. His clients include Salesforce, LinkedIn, and Okta. Each Week he gives you actionable sales tips to close more business and brings on industry leaders.
Listen to Make It Happen Mondays - B2B Sales Talk with John Barrows, The Diary Of A CEO with Steven Bartlett and many other podcasts from around the world with the radio.net app
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