Carson V. Heady's Blog

If you’re not using AI to rewrite how you lead, communicate, and prospect… you’re already behind. These are the prompts that turned my workflow into a force multiplier — and they can do the same for you.

I even have it write a story for me to read to my 8-year old daughter every night where she’s the hero and solves cases with Encyclopedia Brown and the Thundermans, book cover and all.

AI will radically transform everything you do for the better if you use it right and keep humanity and relationships at the center.

Here are the prompts that power 80% of my day:

1. “Analyze this executive’s website, mission, annual report, AND LinkedIn tone. Draft a 2-sentence hook and a value-focused outreach message written in their style.”

This one prompt gets me meetings I used to think were impossible.

AI studies the leader, mirrors their voice, aligns our websites, and creates a message that feels built just for them.

2. “Draft a 1:1 or team meeting agenda based on my priorities, open projects, and the action items from the last meeting, including all Teams and e-mail between my direct reports and my leadership chain.”

Every week, AI prepares all my 1:1 agendas.

It remembers what I forget.

It tracks themes I don’t have time to track.

My meetings are sharper, faster, and more intentional.

3. “Take this journal file from the last 3 months and write my Connect/Appraisal in my leadership voice, with metrics, stories, and impact.”

This used to take HOURS across days. Now it takes minutes — and it’s 10x better. I can even feed it job descriptions of the next level promotion so it’s writing it for what I want next.

4. “Draft the newsletter I’m preparing to send to 30,000 customer contacts based on the events and material from these links. Propose titles. Generate 3 versions of the intro. Build a call to action. Create a subject line that maximizes open rate.”

What used to take 2-3 hours now takes minutes, and it’s more effective.

5. “Here’s a meeting transcript. Turn it into a viral LinkedIn post based on unique insights shared while removing references to people or company names.”

Every conversation becomes content that can help someone learn what I’ve learned.

Every insight becomes a story.

Every story builds brand, trust, and opportunity.

AI isn’t replacing leaders.

It’s multiplying the ones who know how to use it.

And the ones who build these prompt-driven systems?

They’re going to run circles around everyone else.

What’s the one AI prompt that has changed your workflow the most this year?

(Always looking to steal the good stuff.)

Every seller has that one story — the one meeting that felt impossible, the one gatekeeper that seemed impenetrable, the one deal that defined the entire year. For me, this is that story. And it began with the seven words no salesperson wants to hear:

“I don’t see value in meeting with you.”

Years ago, I was staring down a massive security opportunity that had the power to make or break my year. It was the deal. If we won it, we’d move markets. If we missed it, the year would fall short. The only path forward required engagement with the customer’s Chief Security Officer — someone widely respected in the industry, fiercely loyal to their existing vendors, and completely uninterested in our solutions.

The first outreach attempts failed. The usual angles fell flat. Nothing resonated. And that’s when I realized something important: if the standard playbook doesn’t work, you don’t abandon the game. You rewrite the playbook.

Understanding the Blocker

I started where all great influence starts: research.

This CSO had a significant public presence. They posted regularly on LinkedIn, spoke on podcasts, and openly positioned themselves as a security evangelist. They weren’t just a technical leader; they were a thought leader. They valued ideas, point-of-view, peer dialogue, and executive-level conversations.

And that was the unlock.

This individual was never going to entertain a seller-to-executive conversation. But they would consider a thought-leader-to-thought-leader exchange.

That meant I needed to elevate the engagement. I needed to meet them where they operated. And I needed to create value that aligned with their brand, their identity, and their motivations.

Reframing the Meeting

So I went internal and called in a favor.

I identified a senior leader within our organization — someone with the credibility, background, and presence that matched the CSO’s level of expertise. Someone who could sit across from them and speak the language of security strategy, compliance, risk, and enterprise protection like a peer.

And yes, I elevated the way I introduced them. Titles matter in these moments, not because we’re trying to embellish anything, but because the external world often requires different framing than our internal vernacular. Inside the company, we use one set of labels. Outside, sometimes the value is better understood with another.

Once I had the right person identified, I crafted a message that changed the entire trajectory of this opportunity.

I acknowledged the CSO’s platform. I recognized their influence. I positioned the meeting as a CISO-to-CISO mindshare session — a chance to connect on industry shifts, compliance roadmaps, emerging business risks, and strategic insights. I included profiles and bios of the experts who would join the conversation. I made it clear that this was not a product pitch. It was an opportunity to exchange ideas among security leaders.

And then I asked for availability over the next couple of weeks.

The Turning Point

I sent that message at 9:14 a.m.

Later that same day, I received the reply:

“Flattery can get you everywhere. I’d be happy to meet.”

That was the moment the door cracked open. From there, the relationship formed naturally. We collaborated. We listened. We built rapport. We created a shared understanding of what mattered, what needed solving, and what future-state security should look like for their organization.

Within eight months, we closed an eight-figure deal.

It became one of the most significant wins of my career, and I was honored with the biggest award in the company.

But the story isn’t about the award. It’s about what it took to earn the meeting that made the award possible.

The Lesson Behind the Story

This experience taught me several powerful truths that I’ve never forgotten:

People don’t reject you. They reject the version of you that doesn’t yet resonate with their world.

When someone says “I don’t see value in meeting,” they’re not saying value doesn’t exist. They’re saying you haven’t shown it yet.

The most important skill in sales isn’t pitching. It’s value creation.

Not generic value. Not recycled value. Not slideware value.

But highly specific, deeply personal, uniquely tailored value — the kind that resonates with the executive’s identity, challenges, priorities, and thought leadership.

And more than anything, it’s this:

There is always a way.

The door is never fully closed. The challenge is rarely insurmountable. The obstacle is only a signal that the path you attempted is not the right one.

If you can step back, learn from it, and reshape your approach, you’ll be shocked at what becomes possible.

Final Thoughts

Deals don’t materialize because of clever features or polished decks. They materialize because of relationships, influence, creative thinking, and the courage to approach things differently when the usual approaches fail.

If you’re staring at an impossible meeting right now, remember this:

There’s always an angle.
There’s always a way in.
There’s always a path forward.

You just have to find it.

Happy selling.

If you focus on enough of the right things and invest meaningfully and selflessly in relationships and knowledge, you can create your own serendipity.

These are the very words I live by.

I didn’t break into tech with any connections or knowledge or ability in tech. And yet I became the #1 social seller in tech in the world.

I didn’t have a straight path to leadership. I assumed the position and offered to help, serve, stretch, and it was my experience and hard work that propelled me into roles I never should have gotten.

My career has been built on moments that shouldn’t have happened—meetings I shouldn’t have gotten, opportunities I shouldn’t have received, outcomes I shouldn’t have attained.

There’s nothing I love more than being told I can’t do something or that something can’t be done. Watch me.

All of these things DID happen…

Because I spent years doing the quiet, unglamorous, unseen work that compounds.

Because relationships—real ones—opened doors no résumé ever could.

Because every time I got knocked down, overlooked, or counted out, I went right back to the fundamentals:

Adding value without expecting anything

Reaching out when there was nothing to gain

Sharing what I learned so others could win

Showing up on the days no one was watching

Staying consistent long after most people quit

People will call it luck.

But luck is just long-term generosity returning home.

Every major break in my life came from someone I helped years earlier…

A door I held open when no one else cared…

A relationship I nurtured when there was nothing “in it for me”…

A skill I sharpened before I ever needed it…

A community I poured into because rising tides DO raise all ships.

Serendipity isn’t magic.

It’s momentum built through meaningful human connection.

And the best part?

Anyone can create it—starting today.

What serendipity are you willing to create for your future self by investing in people today?

I just finished Falling Upward by Richard Rohr — and I can honestly say it found me at exactly the right time. A friend I deeply respect recommended it… and having just turned 47, it was just what I needed.


For the last 24 years, I’ve relentlessly chased everything — career goals, personal milestones, every mountain in front of me.

And I’ve been blessed to reach them all.

But life doesn’t end when you “arrive.” It keeps moving.

We keep moving.

We keep learning, unlearning, questioning the scripts we were handed, and discovering who we actually are beneath all the achievement.

Rohr puts words to something I’ve been feeling:

There’s a second journey — the one that begins when the first one ends.
The one where you stop proving and start becoming.
The one where you let go of the scoreboard and finally start living.

And in that journey, you realize:

Love is the only thing that endures
Growth never stops
Questions are holy
God is good
And our role is simply to love, to serve, to be good to each other, and stay open to wherever the journey takes us

If you’re in a season of transition…

If you’ve “achieved it all” but still feel the quiet tug toward something deeper…

If you’re asking new questions you never had space to ask before…

Falling Upward is the book I’d put in your hands.

Life is an incredible journey.

And love — truly — is all you need.

What’s a book that found you at the exact moment you needed it most?

In every conversation, you have a choice: chase outcomes you can’t control—or focus on the intention you bring into the room.

The difference determines whether your communication breeds connection or conflict.

True leadership, at its core, is not about being right—it’s about showing up with integrity, curiosity, and the courage to listen deeply.

1. Why Intention Matters More Than Expectation

When we enter a conversation, especially a difficult one, most of us carry hidden expectations—how we want others to respond, what we hope to hear, and the emotional relief we crave at the end. But those expectations tether us to outcomes we can’t control.

Intention, on the other hand, anchors us. It’s the internal compass guiding how we show up regardless of what happens. As co-hosts Hylke Faber and Carson V. Heady discuss, intention is about choosing honesty, kindness, and service over ego, control, and outcome.

“Ego is loud. Intention is steady.”

When we lead with intention, we become the calm center in the storm. Our tone, our presence, and our energy—often 93% of what others perceive—set the emotional temperature for the entire conversation.

2. The 1% Principle: Focus on What You Can Control

Hylke introduced the concept of the 1% principle—focusing on the small portion of any situation that’s actually within our control.

You can’t control:

How others respond.Whether they agree with you.Or whether the outcome unfolds as planned.

But you can control:

Your values.Your composure.Your clarity of purpose.Your emotional tone.

Carson echoed this beautifully: “Before every meeting, I anchor on the why—the collective goal we’re here to serve. Because if I’m not grounded in that, ego takes over.”

This mindset doesn’t just apply to one-on-one conversations—it transforms team dynamics. When everyone focuses on their 1%, meetings become spaces of collaboration rather than competition.

3. The COAE Framework: A Roadmap for Connected Communication

The Connected Communication Practices break down into four key stages using the acronym COAE:

Center – Regulate yourself before entering the conversation. Be aware of your energy and presence.Open – Share honestly and humbly. Transparency invites trust.Ask – Listen deeply. Seek understanding, not agreement.Exchange – Build solutions together, as partners—not adversaries.

This framework reminds us that connected communication is less about perfect words and more about authentic presence. When you show up centered and intentional, you naturally inspire others to do the same.

4. Leading Through Tough Conversations

Carson shared a leadership practice that embodies this principle. Before a sensitive team meeting, he told his team:

“Today, I’m not recording. I want everyone to be candid. My intention is to understand what really matters to you.”

By removing the layer of performance, he created psychological safety—a space where honesty could thrive. He didn’t seek to control the outcome but to connect authentically.

Leaders often avoid tough conversations, hoping issues will resolve themselves. But as Carson noted, “We’ve got to lean in, meet the moment, and be the first to model the transparency we wish to see.”

True leadership means addressing discomfort with composure—choosing calm, curious, and collaborative energy even when emotions run high.

5. When Conversations Go Off Track

Not every dialogue ends in harmony. Hylke described a challenging conversation with a vendor where things grew tense. His instinct was to fix or appease—but instead, he stayed grounded in his intention: to co-create a high-quality product with honesty and respect.

The result wasn’t immediate resolution—but it was integrity. By staying true to his purpose rather than forcing an outcome, he created the conditions for mutual trust to rebuild later.

As Hylke put it, “I didn’t give into the temptation to fix or force. I stayed in what was true.”

That’s what intention does—it transforms difficult moments into opportunities for alignment and authenticity.

6. Reconnecting Across Divides

One of the most powerful moments in the conversation came when Hylke shared a personal story of connecting with someone who held opposite political beliefs.

His expectation was to change their mind. His intention became simply to connect—human to human.

Even as the discussion heated up, he re-centered himself with a simple question:

“Who do I want to be right now?”

That inner pause shifted everything. He let go of being right and chose to be kind, curious, and present. The conversation didn’t end in agreement—but it ended in wholeness.

Carson added a poignant reflection: “When we decide we’re right, we start looking for people who are wrong. But if we let go of that need, we show up empty of ego and full of integrity.”

7. Powerful Practices You Can Start Today

Here are tangible steps you can apply immediately to build intentional connection in your team and life:

Set Your Intention Before Every Conversation. Ask: “What do I want to bring to this discussion?” rather than “What do I want to get from it?”Name the Emotional Tone You Want to Hold. Carson uses “Calm, Curious, Collaborative.” Pick yours—and return to it when things get tense.Pause and Recenter When Triggered. Take a breath. Ask yourself: “Who do I want to be right now?” Your answer determines your energy.Listen for Understanding, Not Agreement. Make it your mission to see and hear others fully. Everyone wants to feel seen and valued.Lead With Transparency. Model openness first. Whether in leadership, partnership, or friendship—someone has to go first. Let it be you.Let Go of the 99%. Release the outcome. Focus on the 1%—your intention, your presence, and your integrity.Final Reflection

John F. Kennedy once said:

“Let us not seek the Republican answer or the Democratic answer, but the right answer… Let us accept our responsibility for the future.”

That’s what intention is—taking responsibility for the future of our interactions. Every moment, we can choose to meet others not as adversaries but as partners in discovery.

Because when we communicate with intention, we don’t just change conversations— we change cultures.

Takeaway Thought: Before your next meeting, pause for five seconds and ask yourself one simple question: “What is my intention here?”

That single act can shift the energy of your day, your team, and perhaps even your world.

At some point in your career, you feel ready for the next step. You feel like you’ve earned the right to lead, to influence more, to expand your impact. That is a good instinct. Ambition is valuable. Yet ambition alone is never enough to secure the promotion you want. The question is not just whether you want the next level, but whether your body of work, your presence, and your readiness support the narrative of a leader.

Promotions are not about simply being good at your current job. They are about demonstrating that you are already operating at the level you want to be promoted into. They are about reducing risk for the decision makers who are placing a bet on you.

So if you want a promotion, the first step is not applying for a job. The first step is looking inward.

1. Reflect on Your Body of Work

People often feel ready for a promotion after a strong quarter or two of performance. Maybe they hit goal. Maybe they crushed their target. That is great. It matters. Yet results alone do not tell the full story of readiness to lead.

A promotion is not a reward for a strong month or even a strong year. It is a reflection of consistency, maturity, and influence.

Ask yourself:

Do my results tell a story of consistency over time?Do I model the behaviors, habits, and accountability I expect from others?Do I demonstrate emotional steadiness when things do not go my way?

How you handle adversity is often more revealing than how you handle success. If you were passed over for a promotion previously, that moment was defining. Did it fuel resentment, or growth? Did you step back, evaluate gaps, and elevate your game?

Leaders are forged in setback far more than in celebration.

2. Clarify Your Intentions With Your Manager

Promotions involve sponsorship, advocacy, and endorsement. Your manager plays a critical role in that. They may not be the final decision-maker, but they will be asked about your readiness, your character, and your consistency.

Make your intentions clear. Not as a complaint. Not as an entitlement. As a professional, thoughtful conversation.

Say something like:

“I believe I’m ready to take on greater responsibility. I’d like your honest perspective on the skills, milestones, and competencies required to be a strong candidate. Can we define a clear plan?”

Then listen. Really listen.

Ask:

What areas do I need to develop further?What does excellence look like at the next level?What would make me the obvious choice?

A promotion is never given. It is earned through aligned expectations and visible proof of growth.

3. Diversify Your Portfolio of Strengths

Think of your career like a portfolio. You never want it to be weighted in only one area. Even if you are exceptional in one dimension of your role, leadership requires a range of competencies:

CommunicationInfluence without authorityEmotional steady-stateCoaching and developing othersStrategic thinkingThe ability to navigate ambiguity and change

Promotions are a risk decision. The hiring team is asking:

“If we put this person in the role, are we confident they can handle the pressure, the complexity, the conflict, and the responsibility?”

Your job is to reduce the perceived risk. You do that by mastering both your strengths and your gaps.

Growth requires discomfort. So focus deliberately on the areas that challenge you. That is where the breakthrough happens.

4. Build Relationships Beyond Your Current Lane

Your relationships are often as influential as your resume.

Talk to peers who have held the role you want.Talk to hiring managers in the divisions you are interested in.Talk to your boss’s boss if the relationship allows.Reach out quietly, respectfully, proactively.

Introduce yourself. Ask for perspective. Ask for clarity on what success looks like. Share your goals without pressure or expectation.

If you send 20 thoughtful outreach messages, you will get conversations. Those conversations put you on the radar. Leaders promote people they know, trust, and believe in.

Visibility matters. Not self-promotion. Not noise. Presence.

5. Strengthen Your Presentation: Your LinkedIn, Your Resume, Your Narrative

When someone considers you for a promotion, they will do a quick scan:

LinkedIn profileResumePublic presenceStories and examples you tell

Your presentation should:

Highlight measurable outcomesDemonstrate collaboration and influenceShow leadership behaviors, not just task executionTell a clear, consistent narrative of impact

A strong candidate doesn’t just have results. They have a story that connects those results to future potential.

6. Stay the Course: Promotions Rarely Happen on Your Timeline

This is the hardest reality.

You can be ready. You can be qualified. You can even be the best candidate. Yet timing, business cycles, budget, or organizational shifts may delay everything.

Do not retreat. Do not rush to leave. Do not let ego outrun patience.

If you believe deeply in your readiness, then continue to perform at the level you aspire to. Make yourself undeniable. Make your name the one people bring up before you even enter the room.

That is how promotions are won.

Final Word

If you want a promotion, build the case through your work, your consistency, your relationships, and your leadership presence.

You will grow. You will refine. You will evolve. And when the timing aligns, you will be ready.

Stay the course. Trust the process. Become the obvious choice.

The Silent Epidemic of Sales Leadership Failure

Sales doesn’t get a bad rap because of the profession itself — it gets a bad rap because too many people have never experienced great sales leadership.

They’ve been micromanaged, manipulated, or misunderstood.

They’ve been told to “sell more widgets,” “make more dials,” or “update the CRM,” as if more activity without meaning could replace leadership with vision.

Bad sellers are rarely born. They’re built — by bad systems, bad culture, and bad managers who’ve never been taught to lead.

Culture cascades from the top. Every spreadsheet, every quota conversation, every “forecast call” either amplifies belief or erodes it. What leaders tolerate, they teach. What they measure, they multiply. And when an organization prizes short-term numbers over long-term development, it creates a factory of burned-out sellers chasing transactions instead of trust.

In The Show Must Go On, I wrote that resilience is born in chaos — and leadership is no different. Culture is not a poster on a wall or a mission statement on a slide. It’s the lived behavior of the people in charge when the pressure is highest. It’s the energy that seeps into every deal review and 1:1. It’s the oxygen or the poison in the room.

The Weight of Leadership: You Are the Weather

Executives and sales leaders often underestimate their gravitational pull. The way you respond to a missed target, a lost deal, or a hard question sets the emotional thermostat for everyone else. You are the weather — your tone dictates whether it rains fear or shines possibility.

When leaders operate from insecurity, their teams drown in it. When leaders operate from abundance, their teams rise with it.

The best sales cultures are built by leaders who see themselves as servants first and strategists second. They don’t bark orders from the balcony — they roll up their sleeves in the trenches. They don’t hide behind dashboards — they coach through real conversations. They measure what matters: customer impact, relationship quality, consistency of effort, and the development of their people.

You don’t create top performers by demanding more. You create them by expecting more while equipping more — through mentorship, modeling, and mission. When sellers know why they’re doing something, they will outlast those who are simply told what to do.

What Happens When Culture Fails

When culture breaks, sellers disengage. They start playing defense instead of offense. They stop innovating because “it won’t matter.” They follow scripts instead of their instincts.

A toxic culture turns creative problem solvers into compliance officers of mediocrity. It teaches people to survive, not to soar.

And the cost is exponential — lost talent, lost momentum, lost trust. Bad managers create ripple effects that echo for years. Good people leave not because they stop believing in sales, but because they stop believing in you.

For the Seller Stuck Under Bad Leadership

If you’re under poor leadership right now — I see you.

I’ve been there. I’ve been mismanaged, misunderstood, and micromanaged by people who couldn’t carry my quota bag if it were made of helium. But here’s the hard truth: You still own your story.

You can’t always control your leader, but you can control your learning. Be a student of the game. Study what great leadership looks like so when you get your chance, you’ll do it differently. Seek out mentors beyond your chain of command. Surround yourself with people who elevate your thinking, not drain your energy.

Keep a journal. Reflect on what motivates you and what doesn’t. Catalog every great coaching moment you’ve experienced and every painful one too — because someday, you’ll have a team of your own, and you’ll need to remember both.

Above all, remind yourself: nothing good or bad lasts forever. The best sellers rise not because of their environment, but often in spite of it. Greatness is forged in resistance. If your leader won’t develop you, develop yourself. Read. Listen. Network. Shadow greatness wherever you can find it. Because when opportunity finally knocks — and it will — you’ll be ready.

For the Executive Holding the Torch

Executives and sales leaders: the culture you create is the legacy you leave.

You may think your influence is measured in pipeline or percentage attainment — but it’s measured in people. It’s measured in the confidence of your sellers when you’re not in the room. It’s in the stories they tell about you years later: “He believed in me when I didn’t believe in myself.” or “She taught me how to win with integrity.”

Ask yourself:

Do my people feel safe to fail and learn, or scared to make mistakes?Do they know why their work matters beyond the number?Am I modeling the habits I want multiplied?

Because culture is caught, not taught. It spreads through example, not edict.

Empowerment doesn’t mean lowering the bar — it means raising belief. You can demand accountability and compassion at the same time. The best leaders I’ve known had a perfect balance of pressure and presence: they challenged you relentlessly, but you never doubted they were in your corner.

The Blueprint: How to Build a Culture That WinsLead with Purpose, Not Panic. Anchor your team to the mission, not the metric. Metrics matter, but they’re the scoreboard, not the game plan.Coach, Don’t Command. Replace “What are you closing?” with “What are you learning?” One conversation can change a career. Coaching compounds faster than criticism.Celebrate Progress as Loudly as Performance. Don’t just applaud outcomes. Recognize effort, consistency, and resilience. You’re teaching people what behavior gets repeated.Invest in Mentorship. Every rep should have someone to chase — and someone chasing them. Create a culture of peer learning and reverse mentorship.Stay in the Field. The best leaders still sell. They shadow calls, jump on customer meetings, and stay connected to reality. Never let distance dull your empathy.Create Psychological Safety. People can’t innovate or admit mistakes in a fear-based environment. Build trust first; the numbers will follow.Be Transparent — Especially When It’s Hard. Nothing kills morale faster than silence from leadership. Even imperfect communication beats no communication.When the Culture Shifts, Everything Shifts

When you transform culture, you transform outcomes. The data proves it: Gallup found that engaged teams deliver 21% higher profitability, 59% lower turnover, and 70% fewer safety incidents. Engagement isn’t fluff — it’s fuel.

Culture drives behavior. Behavior drives execution. Execution drives results.

You can’t “strategy” your way out of a cultural crisis. You have to lead your way through it.

The Mirror Test

Look in the mirror and ask yourself — am I the kind of leader I would want to follow?

If not, start there. Leadership isn’t a title. It’s a trust. The moment you accept that, everything changes.

Because in sales, just like in life, the show must go on — and you are the director of every act that follows.

“Bad Salespeople Aren’t Born — They’re Built by Bad Leaders | Fix the Sales Culture Problem”

Why does sales get such a bad reputation? Why do so many people cringe when they hear the word salesperson?

It’s not because selling is inherently bad — it’s because too many people have experienced the wrong kind of sales.

In this powerful and eye-opening conversation, Carson V. Heady — best-selling author, award-winning sales leader, and Managing Director at Microsoft — breaks down the real reason sales gets a bad rap. And it has nothing to do with the people on the front lines… and everything to do with leadership and culture at the top.

“I don’t think there’s always malice intended. I think bad sales leadership can beget bad sales culture. It starts at the top. You’ve got to have great sales culture to empower and enable leaders and frontline sellers to be successful and effective.”

In this clip, Carson shares hard-earned truths that every leader, executive, and seller needs to hear:

The Truth About “Bad” Salespeople
Most aren’t bad — they’re misled, mismanaged, or burned out by environments that prize numbers over people.

It’s Not About Selling More Widgets
You can’t motivate greatness with spreadsheets and pressure. Real performance comes from meaning, mission, and belief.

Culture Starts at the Top
When leaders care about their people, coach with empathy, and celebrate progress — not just quotas — teams thrive.

The Power of Empowerment
Enablement isn’t a buzzword. It’s the difference between mediocrity and mastery. When sellers are empowered, customers feel the difference.

Leadership That Lasts
Great sales leadership is about service — serving your team, your customer, and the greater mission. When you lead that way, results take care of themselves.

This isn’t a “sales talk.” It’s a leadership wake-up call — a reminder that people don’t quit companies… they quit cultures. And that culture is shaped by every leader who chooses to inspire instead of intimidate, to coach instead of command.

If you’re a sales leader, this video will challenge you to look inward.
If you’re a seller, it will remind you that you’re part of something bigger.
And if you’ve ever been turned off by the word sales, this conversation might just change your mind.

ABOUT CARSON V. HEADY
Carson V. Heady is a best-selling author, podcast host, and award-winning sales leader at Microsoft. He’s trained sellers across 11 countries, generated over $1B in revenue, and was inducted into the Sales Hall of Fame. Known as the #1 Social Seller in Tech, Carson helps others master modern selling by combining authenticity, storytelling, and AI-driven innovation.

Books by Carson:

Unbeatable: The Legend of the Salesman on FireThe Show Must Go OnBirth of a Salesman series

Podcasts:

Mastering Modern Selling (with Tom Burton & Brandon Lee)Connected Teamwork Podcast

WATCH NEXT:
How AI Is Revolutionizing Sales Leadership → [link]
The Real Secret Behind High-Performing Teams → [link]
From Invisible to Influential: Building a Personal Brand That Opens Doors → [link]

Join the Conversation:
What’s one thing YOU wish more sales leaders understood about building a healthy culture?
Drop your thoughts in the comments below

#SalesLeadership #SalesCulture #Leadership #Coaching #SalesMotivation #Empowerment #Mindset #Culture #ModernSelling #CarsonVHeady #Microsoft #SalesHallOfFame #Motivation #BusinessLeadership #PeopleFirst #MasteringModernSelling #Teamwork #GrowthMindset

We’re biologically wired for comfort and connection—to belong, to feel safe, to choose what’s easy.

But greatness doesn’t grow in the hammock; it’s forged in the pressure cooker—in the decisions you make when it’s hard, lonely, and no one’s clapping.

The Human Paradox: Built for Belonging, Tempted by Ease

We gravitate to the familiar because our nervous system prizes predictability. That keeps us safe—but it can also keep us small. Decades of research show connection is essential for thriving: people with strong social ties have about a 50% higher likelihood of survival than those with weaker ties, a health effect comparable to major risk factors.

Yet the same circuitry that pulls us toward people can pull us toward comfort—doomscrolling instead of building, rationalizing instead of reaching, repeating what worked instead of re-inventing.

Translation: Connection is non-negotiable. Comfort is optional.

Pressure: The Honest Teacher

You don’t “rise” to the occasion—you fall back on your habits.

Classic psychology frames performance as an inverted-U with arousal: too little stress and we’re disengaged; too much and we’re overwhelmed; a middle zone fuels focus and execution.

Modern reviews caution against treating this as a hard-and-fast “law,” but the pattern holds as a practical guide: find your optimal challenge zone and train there.

Mantra: “Pressure is a privilege.” It means you’re trusted with impact.

The Long Game Beats the Quick Fix

Extraordinary outcomes are not one heroic moment; they’re the compound interest of unglamorous reps:

The extra call after a rejectionThe 6:00 a.m. draft no one asked forThe follow-up when it would be easier to disappear

Skills sharpen with deliberate practice—goal-directed, feedback-rich, outside the comfort zone.

But lose the myth that “10,000 hours” is a magic number; what matters is the quality and consistency of challenge. Meta-analytic evidence shows deliberate practice explains a meaningful but not total share of performance differences—so yes, practice hard and get strategic about coaching, design, and environment.

When Willpower Isn’t Enough: Make Success Easier to Do

Relying on motivation is like relying on the weather. Strong performers engineer their behavior:

Implementation intentions (If-Then Plans): “If it’s 4:30 p.m., then I send five follow-ups.” Across dozens of studies, these plans show reliable, medium-sized effects on goal attainment.MCII / WOOP (Wish-Outcome-Obstacle-Plan): A brief, evidence-based protocol that pairs meaningful goals with mental contrasting and if-then plans, improving follow-through with small-to-moderate effects across varied settings.Habits over hype: On average it takes ~66 days for a new behavior to feel automatic (with huge individual ranges). Translation: be patient and consistent.

Playbook (fast):

Define the one action that moves the needle →

Name the obstacle you actually face →

Write the If-Then →

Put it on your calendar and in your environment.

Grit, Guts, and the Truth About “Talent”

Angela Duckworth’s research popularized grit—passion and perseverance for long-term goals—as a predictor of achievement across domains. Nuanced follow-ups show grit overlaps with conscientiousness and isn’t a silver bullet, but the signal stands: stick-with-it-ness matters.

So the recipe isn’t talent versus effort; it’s talent compounded by sustained, focused effort in the right direction, for a long time.

Connection Isn’t a “Soft” Skill—It’s a Survival Skill

High performance is a team sport.

Strong, diverse ties boost ideas, opportunities, and resilience—and they literally extend your life.

U.S. Surgeon General guidance and longitudinal reviews now frame social disconnection as a public-health risk on par with smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day.

Build your circle with intention; it’s ROI for both performance and well-being.

Leadership corollary: People do more for leaders who recognize and equip them than for those who simply manage them. Your job is to multiply others—spot their superpowers, reduce their friction, and raise their sightline.

How to Thrive When Comfort Calls (Field Guide)1) Pick a hill.

Clarity beats willpower. Define a 12-week outcome (what), input metric (daily/weekly behavior), and scoreboard (where it lives). Then protect it ruthlessly.

2) Design the If-Then.If it’s 8:00 a.m., then I block 90 minutes for pipeline creation.If a proposal is rejected, then I ask for one concrete reason and propose a 15-minute fix. Why it works: it shifts action control from feelings to pre-decided cues—a mechanism repeatedly validated in meta-analyses.3) Train in the challenge zone.

Nudge the difficulty just beyond comfortable competence; review fast feedback; iterate weekly. (Remember the inverted-U intuition: not too little stress, not too much.)

4) Automate the boring stuff.

Batch admin. Template recurring emails. Calendar your deep work. You’re not lazy—you’re human.

Systems beat motivation on a Wednesday afternoon.

5) Build your force field.

Three roles in your corner:

a truth-teller (gives unvarnished feedback),a connector (opens doors),an encourager (keeps you in the fight). Your health—and results—will thank you.6) Review the reps, not just the results.

Outcomes lag inputs. Score the controllables weekly. Course-correct mercilessly.

The Moments That Make You

The defining choices are quiet:

When you’re tired and choose another repWhen you’re afraid and make the call anywayWhen you could take the credit but hand it to your teamWhen you could coast on comfort but choose the next hard thing

These micro-decisions compound. You don’t notice the difference in a week; you feel it in a quarter; you become it in a year.

A Word on Discomfort

Discomfort isn’t the goal—growth is.

You’re not chasing pain; you’re chasing capacity.

And capacity comes from exposure: enough heat to harden the steel, not warp it.

That’s why we pair bold aims with connection, habits, and systems: to make the hard thing doable, repeatedly, sustainably.

Your 7-Day Comfort-to-Capacity Sprint

Day 1: Choose one 12-week outcome. Define the single weekly input that most predicts it.

Day 2: Write three If-Then plans for your top obstacles. (Make them calendar-visible.)

Day 3: Book two 90-minute challenge-zone blocks. Protect them like revenue.

Day 4: Recruit your truth-teller, connector, encourager. Put a biweekly 20-minute sync on the calendar.

Day 5: Automate one recurring task; create one template you’ll reuse 50+ times this year.

Day 6: Do the rep when you least feel like it (this rewires identity).

Day 7: Review inputs, not outcomes. Adjust the plan. Repeat.

Final Charge

You were made for connection—and tempted by comfort. Honor the first; outgrow the second. Extraordinary outcomes are not random; they’re earned by extraordinary effort, consistently applied—fortified by community, guided by evidence, and executed through systems stronger than your moods.

When the pressure hits this week, don’t reach for the hammock. Step into the crucible. That’s where the next, braver version of you is waiting.

One in 117,000,000,000. That’s roughly how many people have ever lived in the history of the world. And somehow… we’re the ones here right now. Think about that.

In the 200,000-year story of humanity, your life is a single line in the book of existence — a blink of an eye, a fleeting moment between everything that’s come before and everything that’s still to come.

The odds of any of us being remembered in a thousand years? Slim.

But the opportunity to matter right now — to someone — is enormous.

Every day we wake up with choices:

To build instead of break.

To encourage instead of criticize.

To love instead of hate.

To lift instead of judge.

That angry social media post?

That nasty reaction because we had a lousy day or didn’t like the pressure?

They won’t change the world.

But your kindness might change someone’s world.

We each get one life as a gift from God — infinitesimal in the grand scheme, but infinite in potential impact.

So spend it doing your best work.

Invest your time and energy in the people you love.

Be the reason someone believes there’s still good in the world.

We may just be one in 117 billion —

but the way we live our one life…

can still echo for generations.

#Perspective #Leadership #Kindness #Mindset #Legacy #Empathy #Gratitude #Purpose #Humanity