Steven These are wise tips for any executive, not "just" in sales -- thank you. And they remind me of Why Quitters Win author who eloquently shows how focus happens more easily when we let go soon of what is of lesser value. I wrote about the author's tips here http://www.forbes.com/sites/kareanderson/2013/10/07/be-a-successful-quitter-sooner-rather-than-later/

One way to motivate sales people will be covered in Work.com's webinar Communicate to Connect, Influence, & Sell: How apt Feedback Drives Sales Performance My free @workdotcom webinar @KareAnderson bit.ly/12MYJk2 @salesforce

I like the way Maynard's spot-on, actionable tips dovetail with Work.com's capacity to support sales professionals in coaching and collaborating in real time so they can collectively gain more insights about customers and prospects, capture more sales opportunities, solve problems sooner -- and thus achieve greater sales performance, internal team esprit de corp and a sense of meaning and accomplishment out of their work with others. Harvard's Teresa Amabile in The Progress Principle, describes how daily successes and appreciative managers spur employee satisfaction and happiness. Both Maynard's insights and Work.com's design make that more possible. Also Dan Pink's current book complements Maynard's points and the need for technology like Work.com to facilitate sales professionals in using their best talents for and with each other. Meaning matters, especially to the top talent that companies most need to keep

I am a long time fan of Vala's ideas, especially because his firm is actually doing what he advocates. More companies should conduct their social business transformation, from the inside out, as you advocate, Vala, and as Andy Jankowski recommends, to “operationalize” the change. In addition to Chatter and Saleforce’s other social tools, very little has been said about how to maximize the “ugly duckling” that continues to grow in versatility and value for companies and other organizations (despite little leadership on how to manage groups so they are valuable). I am talking about LinkedIn, of course, where employees can become avid, articulate and credible ambassadors of their company’s brand and, in so doing, burnish their own brand. I am turning to Lori & Mike at IntegratedAlliances in the coming weeks to help me with my presence on LI

I am happy for you, Joe Blow, that strongly felt negative feels do not adversely affect your life

One caveat Rachel, humans often affect how well the tech works or which tech is being used so the two are sometimes inextricably intertwined... as i have seen at all too many conferences, even for/with tech savvy staff & attendees, where some tech goes awry

I admire you, Jesse, for your heart-felt candor and vulnerability in writing here. While I am not an expert and can only express my personal experience, I found two things helpful. First, when in social situations, to ask others open-ended questions about themselves, as most of us love to feel heard and appreciated, and don't have it happen enough. That naturally warms others up to us, especially when we are genuinely interested. prosaic as it sounds. Also, to start in very small ways, with just a sentence of two of conversation, speaking in ways that pull them in around common interests. I am not saying it is easy, it does get easier over time however. I hope some of this rings true for you. It has helped me and it is always a precious delight when such behavior sparks in another person a genuine, deep listening response... those people are keepers as friends

You have a whole system to help us make a global message, product or program relevant in local cultures Val - much needed by many companies and organizations :-)

I, too, heard that show. As a former WSj reporter now speaker/author on connective communication and collaboration I, too, join that horde of presentation-weary folks who'd rather hear the main points, the unforgettable example upfront. Brevity infers clarity and can lead to more lively interaction in the gathering (rather than death by meeting).... another format for that that has also caught fire around the world is Ignite, which I wrote about here as well as citing Pecha Kucha http://www.movingfrommetowe.com/2008/01/17/fast-way-to-learn-from-each-other/ + http://www.movingfrommetowe.com/2008/08/17/you’ve-got-five-loooong-minutes-to-grab-their-attention/

Oh so true and well-stated: meeting organizers cannot ban Twitter (or texting,etc.) yet they can reach out to their attendees to ask if they want to crowdsource or otherwise seek feedback on suggested etiquette in the use of these "live" tools so there is at least a semblance of a collective agreement on what the "crowd" feels best serves them - and others who cannot be in attendance yet want to participate. These are exciting, changing times in a complex, connected world so we might as well capture every opportunity in the events/meetings world to ask would-be attendees what they most want on meeting formats, topics, speakers, opportunities to collaborate, cross-consult and otherwise network and continue the threads of conversations that got started at the meeting. As a speaker and co-creator of two annual gatherings I have been gratified to see innovations in some meetings finally happening - not an easy or smooth process. I also think that attendees would be well-served if planners took and Exposures Audit of their program and site and then, like a movie director, storyboarded the moment-by-moment, multisensory experiences that attendees (and others) might have at the event

What a motherlode of ideas to make a meeting more meaningful and memorable. Now that Ning has dropped its free option the FB option is even more attractive. Or create another online social network for registered members,vendors, (and, yes non-members – also registering) that enables network members to create groups is a good start. Have explicit rules for acceptable behavior. Perhaps have just one blog to begin with (rather than enabling all members to have a blog as it would be too much to track/moderate. In the blog, offer news, ask for feedback, as comments, enable members to rank/rate the blog posts. Sponsor a contest for best tips that serve the members. Invite all members to vote on 10 favorite tips. Give free annual conference attendance to 1- top contributors. Poll members re what they want for their annual conference speakers, topics, formats for meeting. Done right a small state association may attract more member activity/participation and thus sponsor/underwriting than the national association. Act to create the place that asn. members & vendors members want participate in conversations that improve the way they work,enable them to find help, customers, like-minded members etc. Don’t act and someone may start that social network to serve your kind of members – where ever they are in the world, • and keep honing the mix of social media ways to support those conversations, getting more underwriting for doing so, •then hiring some crackerjack professional meeting planners to manage the annual and other conferences that reflect what the members have indicated that they want. I hope more event planners read your blog and don’t let someone steal their members by the way they provide social media tools.I wrote about that possibility here http://sayitbetter.typepad.com/say_it_better/2007/10/how-an-online-s.html

As someone who was also shy I identify with this post and with the notion of "Shift" where connecting with my passion - and with others, especially those extremely different than me, around a Sweet Spot of shared passion or other mutual benefit has generated many of the most satisfying growth and creative experiences. Sometimes the online tools enable those connections to blossom between people of different thinking styles and speeds too. Also Cass Sunstein's book, Going to Extremes, cites similar conclusions as Bishop and his statistician co-author discovered.

John The "East / West" differences in how view the world start in childhood as Elinor Ochs, John Bradbury and others (described in the book Rapt) begin with our child-rearing practices. In Eastern cultures children are taught to look outward, to attend to others, whilst in Western, people in the highly individualistic West are encouraged early on to concentrate on their own needs and desires. This thoughtful post convinced me to get your book and "Geography of Thought."