MedTech + Mindset Newsletter #010

Welcome to the MedTech + Mindset Newsletter! 

This week we talk about Making History, Sales Strategy, It Will Never Get Easier, and An Experiment of One.

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1.  Read About History...or Make It. 

Insight from Matt Tucker

My stepson is a big history buff.

And our family has been in Puerto Rico for our annual family vacation.

We were sitting for breakfast Saturday morning in advance of a hiking excursion to the rainforest - the only one in the US.

6:45 am, weary-eyed but curious, he was on Wikipedia learning that El Yunque were treated as sacred grounds to the indigenous peoples of PR.

So I asked, ‘If it’s deemed sacred, and maybe they knew something we don't, what do we think about soaking up the experience together, rather than worrying about what photo we can post?’

I got some half hearted commitments.  But that's ok.  It did seem to make them think.

Every situation is a choice - we can study history, watch what others do on Instagram - or choose to make history ourselves.

In the end, everyone came out the other side saying it was one of the most interesting experiences of their lives.

I guess some history was made.

2. Sales Strategy Success Secrets

Insight from Matt Tucker

I posted on LinkedIn about sales territory planning recently.

I've been fortunate to have been involved in a number of launches and sales force restructurings and startup spin-ups.

It's required me to create new sales territories and develop a methodology that is simple, straightforward, and effective.

One could say...this isn't that important for me, because i'm not doing that now, or maybe even ever.

But, using this approach you could evaluate for gaps in your sales force structure that are hindering success.

My recipe:

• Use data to stack rank hospitals, accounts, areas, etc. If you can't find script or procedure data, default to zip code data. Use population zip code data. There's probably a 90% correlation to your opportunity.
• Decile rank that data
• Establish as Tier 1 the small number of accounts / areas that make up the decile 8-10. Focus at least 70% of a reps time on these accounts.
• Establish as Tier 2 the next set of accounts / areas for decile 7-5. 30% of selling time can go to these accounts.
• Establish a do not call list of the decile 4 and below accounts / areas. Even if they are accounts that reps can 'stop at along the way' they are a distraction. Particularly in a small company.
• Compensate on three tiers. Tier 1 is base salary and goes from 0-80% attainment. 80% attainment to 120% is Tier 2 and pays out variable compensation to reach target comp when 100% is achieved. Tier 3 is when a rep exceeds 120% and should get a special kicker for over-performance.
• Pay monthly on expected earnings, but true up quarterly.

Most underperformance is driven by a lack of direction and focus. This is a simple way to drive performance. It should get you more than 90% of the way to a best in class approach.

3. It Will Never Get Easier...

click on the image to play 

4. An Experiment of One

Insight from Kevin Kermes

A few years back, I decided I wanted to run an Ultramarathon. 50 miles, to be exact.

I'd done my fair share of endurance "events" in the Army and a few after I got out...

but this was a BHAG (big, hairy audacious goal).

While I learned a lot about the sport (and even more about myself) during the event, there were countless lessons and insights I gathered in the training leading up to the run...

and I wanted to share one of them today that I see constantly in both my clients and myself.

The lead-up...

The military taught me a lot about the importance of preparation. Two things that I leaned into a lot as I committed to this 50-mile race:

1. Train as you fight.
2. Learn from those who came before you.

"Train as you fight" meant always preparing for a run (whether it was 3 or 50 miles) like I would on race day. Every. Single. Detail.

One of the most impactful decisions was to NEVER run with music.

Since the event was USATF (USA Track & Field) sanctioned event, personal listening devices were not allowed.

"Train as you fight" means if it ain't happening race day, it ain't happening ever.

The byproduct of that commitment meant countless hours at all times of day/night in various weather conditions...

alone with my thoughts. Alone with me.

And a funny thing happens when YOU have nowhere to hide from YOU...

Coupled with pain and fatigue.

You start seeing through the stories you tell yourself VERY quickly.

You are literally too tired to put up with your own B.S..

Things get real, fast.

It was the most beautiful, unintended gift that this experience gave me.

And, while I haven't run an ultra since, it certainly was one of the many entry points leading me to do transformational work shoulder-to-shoulder with clients and colleagues.

That's actually not the insight I felt called to share with you today though.

The one I've been sitting with comes from #2:

"Learn from those who came before you."

Early on, I was introduced to a listserv run by Dartmouth which was dedicated to Ultramarathons.

(Unfortunately, it was archived years ago)

It was an amazing community of those in the sport sharing everything from training plans, recovery suggestions, equipment reviews, relationship advice, and more.

It was a community all about giving and supporting one another. Frankly, it was apropos of what I found the entire Ultra community to be for me: crazy supportive.

And, almost every single post ended with the came caveat for the preceding "advice:"

"I am an experiment of one."

For me, it continues to serve as a constant reminder that other people's advice is based on their experiences...

their experiments.

In most cases, those posting presented what they did, their rationale behind their choices, and the outcomes (good, bad, and indifferent).

No one was selling or advocating for a "way" or a "path."

Again, simply what they experienced and how they arrived there, with the intent of helping others...

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That's it for this week.

 — Your Friends at the M+M Team.

 
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