Deep Health for Sales People

Sedentary Sales Environments and How Artificial Intelligence Can Benefit You

How fast is your life? Seriously. Despite the COVID lockdown environment, many salespeople are experiencing a faster, more difficult pace to drive sales. Gone are the in-person interactions that require travel to and from a customer's location. Sedentary activities like Zoom meetings, telephone calls, and many email chains (often with fewer responses) are the reality of today. In fact, McKinsey research published in October 2020 found that 70-80% of B2B decision makers prefer remote human interactions or digital self-service. The study concluded "With the massive shift to digital resulting from COVID-19, video and live chat have emerged as the predominant channels for interacting and closing sales with B2B customers, while in-person meetings and related sales activities have dropped precipitously."

As Karen Kelly, Sales Coach, Certified Virtual Trainer, and Podcaster says “To be good at what you do, we have to adapt to the way people are buying now.” To be good at what you do as a salesperson, you also need to adapt to the requirements of working remotely. 

As a lifelong sales professional, my co-author of "Deep Health: Using Artificial Intelligence to Live Longer and Healthier" relished the opportunity to meet with customers face-to-face. Rob Kowal says, "One's adrenaline pumps a little faster, one's sociability kicks into gear, and the ability to communicate using body language and tone are heightened."

But not so when a customer location is closed or has restricted access due to the pandemic. In that case, you're working from home, alone, online, in place. Sedentary. 

How do you know how this new "forced" lifestyle is affecting you and your health? 

In early 2020, Peak Sales Recruiting launched the COVID-19 Sales Force Impact study finding that “On average, respondents indicated that sales have decreased by 39% since the pandemic hit North America, which is also taking a toll on the mental health of team members.” A 2019 Impacting of Working Remotely study published by buffer.com found that many find it difficult to unplug, others feel lonely, some are distracted or lack motivation while others worry about job security.

When Rob and I wrote "Deep Health", we were thinking about others like us, who wanted to better understand our bodies and minds and use that knowledge to drive our fitness, nutrition, and wellness behaviours. Over the last four years, we have researched, debated, and actioned those debates culminating in the writing of our book "Deep Health." We share our personal experiences about how artificial intelligence combined with smart technologies and wearable devices could improve our chances of living longer and healthier lives and continue operating at peak performance.

Isn't that your goal? As a salesperson, your success depends upon many factors, including optimal health. Better sleep translates into better decision-making and energy during the day. My Samsung Active Watch 2 measures the amount of light, deep, and REM sleep I get every night, allowing me to tweak my pre-sleep activities to get the best sleep score (Yes, there's a score!)

Being sedentary can impact your weight, your energy, your blood flow, and your cognitive ability. A 2019 study published in the Indian Journal of Health Sciences and Care titled "Sedentary Lifestyle among Salespersons: Cognitive Performance" found that "sedentary behaviour is significantly associated with cognitive decline in salespersons. It is, therefore, essential to identify and take corrective actions to encourage physical activity for healthy lifestyle practices among salespersons." 

Such corrective actions need not be monumental or all at once. My watch reminds me to stand up every hour. My smart weigh scale tells me about 12 measures in my body, including my muscle mass, subcutaneous and visceral fat, body water, overall body fat, and more, and how it trends over time – sending all the data to my smart phone. I get to choose which behaviours I undertake based on real information about my physiology – not a generic recommendation. 

It's so easy to allow yourself to let gravity do its work. You come to rest. Yet what is the right amount of physical activity, water intake, diet, and nutritional supplements for that audience of one – you? Insights into your 'Deep Health' offer the chance to hyper-personalize your fitness, nutrition, and wellness regimen leading to better health and greater success!

If you're looking for specific recommendations you can engage in today, check out these tips:

Top 5 Ways to Less Sedentary Sales

1) Start tracking how often you stand up, drink water, breathe deep, etc. Do the simple things first to reinforce how easy it can be.

2) Find sales and leadership experts like Rob Kowal, Karen Kelly and Joanne Trotta online to gain great insights in managing through the new sales environment

3) Comparison shop AI-powered smart technology like watches, scales, etc. to track your key physiological measures like blood pressure, weight, and body fat

4) Find others in your situation and share best practices around being less sedentary

5) Check out our book "Deep Health: Using Artificial Intelligence to Live Longer and Healthier" to get lots of ideas about how AI tools can help you.

#digitalhealth #ai #artificialintelligence #healthcare #healthtechnology #fitnesstechnology

Brian Lenahan is the author of four Amazon-published books on artificial intelligence including the Bestseller "Artificial Intelligence: Foundations for Business Leaders and Consultants". He is a former executive in a Top 10 North American bank, a University Instructor, and mentors innovative companies in the Halton and Hamilton areas. Brian's training in AI comes from MIT and he writes extensively on artificial intelligence and quantum computing. 

Email: [email protected]

LinkedIn: https://www.dhirubhai.net/in/brian-lenahan-innovation/

Aquitaine Innovation Advisors: www.aquitaineinnovationadvisors.com