Going forward by looking back

Tag: personal growth

  • People First, Profits Second: What I’ve Learned About Relationships and Sales

    For a good portion of my career, I treated business and personal relationships like two separate worlds.

    Work was work. Personal was personal.

    The reality is that those lines blur fast. Especially in sales. Especially when you’re working with people over long periods of time. Especially when money, pressure, and pride get involved.

    So let me lay it out simply:
    Sales is relationships.

    Selling With a Heartbeat

    In any sales process, you’re working with a real person, someone with a family, a career, a past, and a future. Sometimes you’ve known them in other roles. Sometimes you’ve never met. But if you want to earn their trust, it starts by showing up as a person, not just a pitch.

    Yes, I have goals.
    Yes, I represent a company.
    Yes, I want to close the deal.

    But if I lead with that, I lose the thing that matters most: connection.

    When the Deal Doesn’t Happen

    Here’s a hard truth: some deals aren’t meant to happen.

    Maybe the budget isn’t there.
    Maybe your solution isn’t the right fit.
    Maybe they just don’t want to move forward.

    That doesn’t mean the relationship failed.
    That doesn’t mean you lost.
    That doesn’t mean they’re not worth keeping in your world.

    One of the biggest mistakes I made early in my career was burning bridges if I couldn’t cross them immediately. It’s a short-sighted move. Because in business, as in life, people circle back.

    If you can maintain the relationship after the deal falls through, you’re doing it right.

    Emotional Triggers and Financial Stress

    Let’s talk about the pressure. The “I need this deal to pay my mortgage” kind of pressure. I’ve been there. When I was in that mode, I sold from fear. I made bad decisions. I acted selfishly. I damaged relationships that could’ve lasted.

    The irony is, the more desperate I was, the less people wanted to buy from me.

    Only when I got my personal finances under control, and stopped tying every lead to my survival, could I finally show up as a helpful partner, not a hungry salesperson.

    The Long Game

    Some relationships take months. Others take years. If you play the long game, if you show up honestly, consistently, and with curiosity, things tend to unfold.

    Even when you’re not “selling,” you’re building trust. Trust turns into deals. Or referrals. Or friendships. And sometimes, all three.

    Here’s my current compass:

    • Be honest. Even if it costs you a deal.
    • Be curious. Even when there’s nothing immediate to gain.
    • Be kind. Even if they pick a competitor.
    • Be patient. You don’t need to win every time.

    My Mantra

    Whenever I’m feeling anxious or out of alignment in a business relationship, I come back to a simple mantra:

    I’m enough.
    I deserve to be in the room, flaws and all.

    I have much to contribute.
    My experience and ideas matter–and can help others.

    I have much to learn.
    Every person I meet knows something I don’t.

    That last part has saved me more times than I can count. Especially when I feel like I need to prove myself.

    Final Thought: Relationships Over Revenue

    Agency owners, freelancers, consultants, we all live in the balance between relationships and revenue.

    You’re going to mess up sometimes. You’ll take things personally. You’ll push too hard or ghost someone who didn’t “convert.” I’ve done it. We all have.

    But with time, and a little humility, you can build a career where your integrity is the value prop.

    Because in the end, we don’t do business with businesses.

    We do business with people.

    And if you take care of the relationship, the sales will follow.

  • The Hard Easy

    I call it The Hard Easy—but really, it’s just a shift in perspective.

    We all know those moments when a task feels heavier than it is. Dishes in the sink. A report we meant to write. A sales call we’ve avoided for days. They seem small, but they carry weight. Emotional weight. Decision weight. And the longer we let them sit, the heavier they get.

    That’s the Hard Easy in action:
    Do the hard thing now, and it becomes easy later. Wait for it to “become easier,” and it only gets harder.

    Take the dishes. Right after dinner, they’re quick work—rinse, done. But leave them overnight? The food crusts. The water turns cold. The next day you’re scrubbing, not rinsing. Add in one late meeting or an unexpected phone call, and suddenly it’s a bigger problem than it ever needed to be.

    In work, it’s no different. Sales calls, for example. You know most people won’t answer. You know most who do won’t be thrilled. But if you build the habit, if you stay consistent, you’ll find the people who need what you offer. The hard part is starting. The easy part comes later—when results start to snowball.

    Or take writing a report. Wait too long and your memory fades. Details blur. But if you capture it while it’s fresh, everything flows more easily. The hard part is sitting down. The easy part is realizing how much you remember when you act quickly.

    The Hard Easy isn’t about hustle. It’s about momentum. And mercy—for your future self.

    So if you’re staring down something that feels heavy today, just remember:
    You’re not failing.
    You’re just on the edge of a moment.
    And you have a choice.

    What’s one “hard” thing you can do right now… that your future self will thank you for?

    (If you’re new here, this idea came from my intro post—feel free to start there.)

  • Welcome to Roger Williams Media

    Why I’m writing, what you’ll find here, and what “The Hard Easy” means to me

    I’ve spent most of my life surrounded by media. Books, magazines, TV, arcades, music, the web—I’ve consumed and created across nearly every format. And over time, I’ve come to see media not just as entertainment or information, but as a mirror. A mirror of who we are, what we want, and where we’re going.

    This blog is my place to explore that—personally and professionally.

    Roger Williams Media is part archive, part notebook, part digital campfire. I’ll be writing about:

    • The tools and platforms that shape how we work
    • WordPress, open-source, and the tech community I’m proud to be part of
    • Communication, content, and the ethics of digital marketing
    • Leadership, career shifts, and choosing your own path
    • My personal journey with things like health, training my dog, and walking trail half-marathons in the desert
    • And bigger themes like media addiction, clarity, purpose, and building a meaningful life in a noisy world

    Underneath it all is a simple idea I call The Hard Easy.

    It’s the philosophy that guides how I live and work:

    If you do the hard thing now, life often gets easier later. If you avoid it, things usually get harder.

    It shows up everywhere—from building websites to building habits. From answering that one awkward email to launching the project you’ve been avoiding for months.

    I believe in making things, in helping others, and in sharing what I’ve learned—even when I’m still figuring it out.

    So whether you’re here for a practical tip, a perspective shift, or just to see what I’ve been thinking about lately, I’m glad you stopped by.

    Let’s see where this goes.

    —Roger