Most B2B deals don’t end in “no”.

They die quietly. No decision. No movement. No momentum.

In this episode, Marcus Cauchi speaks with Carl Schmidt, one of the original researchers behind *The Challenger Sale*, about what’s really broken in modern B2B selling, and what replaces it.

Buyers now do most of their thinking before they ever speak to a salesperson. Buying committees have doubled. Information is everywhere. Confidence is not.

This conversation explores why traditional sales approaches struggle in this reality, and why the best sellers are no longer pushing solutions. They’re helping buyers make sense of risk, complexity, and internal politics. You’ll hear:

• Why decision confidence matters more than solution confidence

• The fears that quietly kill deals

• How sellers unintentionally strip buyers of agency

• Why “no decision” is the real competitor

• What framemaking looks like in real sales conversations

If you’re a founder, CEO, sales leader, or an aspiring top performer, this episode will change how you think about discovery, deal reviews, and what it really means to help a customer buy. This is not about tactics. It’s about leadership in the buying process.

Are you settling for "good enough" while your sales organisation invests in an 85% loser rate?

In this episode, Marcus Cauchi sits down with David Brock, author of "Is Good Enough Good Enough? Mindsets and Behaviors for Sales Excellence," to challenge the traditional "metrics madness" that keeps founders and sales leaders trapped in cycles of mindless activity.

Dave shares his pragmatic, scientific approach to performance, revealing how top performers achieve their goals by being "intelligently lazy" and cutting out the "dead work" that consumes the average workday.

They explore the "Three-Pile Strategy" for auditing tasks, the high cost of customer churn, and why personal accountability is the ultimate differentiator between top performers and those who make excuses.

A major highlight of this conversation is David’s contrarian take on AI. Having used Claude AI as a "thought partner" and "debate partner" to co-author his book, David explains why AI is a "profound amplifier" that makes deep thinkers better but makes "lazy idiots" fail at scale.

Learn how to use discovery-based prompting to internalise strategic ownership and why curiosity remains the foundational behaviour for the next generation of leaders.

Key Topics Covered:

• The Trap of Activity vs. Outcomes: Why being "busy" is often a mask for underperformance.

• The Three-Pile Audit: Examine tasks and reclaiming 40% of your team's capacity. • Retention vs. Acquisition: Why the obsession with new logos is a recipe for wasted effort.

• AI as a Debate Partner: Moving beyond automation to elevate your strategic thinking.

• The Sacred Habit: Why scheduling 20 minutes of reflection daily is non-negotiable for excellence

Contact David Brock on linkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davebrock/

Email: dabrock@excellenc.com

Website: http://partnersinexcellenceblog.com/

Read the book: https://amzn.to/4brvQku

Contact Marcus https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcuscauchi/

Why do so many sales teams stumble despite talented hires?

In this episode, Peter Wheeler, serial entrepreneur and expert in scaling revenue velocity for early-stage organisations, explores the decline of apprenticeship in modern sales and the impact it has on team performance and long-term growth.

We examine why the traditional player-manager model often fails, how role siloing prevents junior staff from learning the ropes, and why leadership needs to move beyond administrative tasks to actively coach and support teams in the field.

Peter highlights the systemic dysfunctions caused by shareholder primacy and short-term thinking, including the hidden costs of high sales turnover, conflicting departmental metrics, and the erosion of trust and integrity in organisations. He explains why senior executives, not just salespeople, must engage with customers to understand real-world challenges and make informed strategic decisions.

We also discuss practical solutions to restore apprenticeship and learning in sales, including aligning teams around customer outcomes, leveraging AI as a personal coaching tool, and fostering a culture of trust, integrity, and long-term thinking.

Listeners will gain insights into how to build high-performing teams, reduce churn, and develop sustainable business growth, even in times of uncertainty or economic turmoil.

Whether you’re a founder, sales leader, or executive looking to improve team performance, this episode offers actionable advice, fresh perspectives, and strategies to thrive in a sales environment that too often sacrifices learning for short-term results.

Key Takeaways:

• The hidden costs of high sales turnover and short-termism

• How role siloing and player-manager models stunt growth and learning

• Why senior leaders must be actively engaged with customers

• Strategies for aligning departments and prioritising customer outcomes

• Leveraging AI for coaching, personal effectiveness, and customer-centric entrepreneurship

• Thriving through market uncertainty by focusing on what you can control

Contact Peter on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/peterledgrowth/

Contact Marcus https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcuscauchi/

or email team@principledselling.com