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Growing up in Chicagoland during the ‘90s Bulls dynasty, I loved Steve Kerr. He was understated, underrated, and always aware of his role: Defer to Jordan, play solid defense, and knock down open shots.
What shaped Kerr’s life far more than partnering with Jordan—and later Steph Curry—happened on January 18, 1984. His father, Malcolm, was president of the American University of Beirut when he was murdered outside his office. Steve was 18.
Kerr poured himself into basketball and became one of the most unlikely NBA legends ever, amassing nine championship rings: five as a player and four coaching the Golden State Warriors.
His philosophy for developing champions? He just wants his players to do four things every day: Compete. Choose joy. Show empathy. Meditate. It’s a pretty good checklist for salespeople, too.
Compete
An NBA season is a grind: 82 games plus playoffs, stretching from September through June. It’s easy to go through the motions—and it’s the same in sales.
A rep’s phone is like the ESPN ticker, reporting constant fires to extinguish and quotes to place. Forget new business, reps say. I can barely handle what I’ve got!
Yes, account management and prompt customer service matter. But they’re distinct from selling. For me, competing means deliberately putting yourself in the path to hear the word ‘no’, at least once every day.
Anyone can inadvertently wander into operations—building a load, helping a colleague with an IT issue, tracking down a delivery a disorganized builder swears never arrived. But nobody accidentally starts prospecting.
Choose Joy
Our first core value at Hartmann & Co. came from a mentor at PulteGroup: Fun ain’t free, and it never goes on sale.
If you like complaining about people doing dumb things, construction is the industry for you! It’s decentralized manufacturing with hundreds of people installing thousands of products on unique plots of dirt, all at the mercy of nature and local municipalities acting like medieval lords guarding their fiefdoms. Annoyances abound.
That doesn’t mean we have to make everyone around us miserable though. Joy is a choice. Bring some energy. Smile. Laugh.
When I worked in purchasing, I met with salespeople all day. The ones who genuinely enjoyed the work stood out. I chose to work with them.
Show Empathy
The LBM industry is a relationship business. Empathy is where we prove it. It requires vulnerability in an industry dominated by men answering, “You doing alright?” with a reflexive, “I’m fine,” when everyone knows they’re far from fine.
Former Steelers coach Mike Tomlin spoke about being “open to intimacy” with his players and staff. He wasn’t going to force it, but he’d go first—letting people know he was there if they wanted a deeper relationship. The best relationships in this industry are built this way.
Meditate
This is where I risk getting a little woo-woo. Hang with me. My introduction to meditation—breathing exercises—was hardly voluntary. My wife was diagnosed with breast cancer at 39. Our boys were ten and six. I was, to put it mildly, ill-equipped to handle it all.
A builder suggested the Headspace app. Just sit down. Focus on your breath. Observe what your mind is doing. And don’t judge yourself. (That last one is the kicker.)
Salespeople often waste time and energy replaying yesterday’s conversations and rehearsing for tomorrow’s. I’ve found that ten minutes of guided breathing helps bring me back to what’s happening right now—a practice I began during my wife’s treatment and still do today. My wife is healthy, but her cancer journey continues. So does my breathing practice. There is no finish line.
Four Questions
Like all of us, Steve Kerr’s life has included plenty of peaks and valleys. And none of us can control what each day may bring, only our thoughtful response to it. Kerr’s four questions offer a good place to start: Did I compete? Did I choose joy? Did I show someone empathy? Did I spend a few minutes getting out of my own head?
Four things we can control. Check those boxes often enough, and that’s a pretty solid day in the life of a sales pro. Probably not a bad way to live, either.
Thanks for reading.
I’ll see you back here next week.
What 9-Time NBA Champion Steve Kerr Can Teach You About Winning in LBM Sales
There’s a lot we can learn from Steve Kerr, both on and off the basketball court. In this episode, I share a few personal stories and explore how his four daily habits can help us navigate the challenges of selling.
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Bradley Hartmann & Co.
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