Guy Kawasaki

You know what? If you come right down to it, there are only two fundamental processes in business. And somebody has to make it and somebody has to sell it. Everything else is easy. Counting it, getting the money, hiring, training. Everything else is easy. If you have somebody who can make it and somebody who can sell it, revenue comes in. And with revenue, as I say, sales fixes everything.

You know what? If you come right down to it, there are only two fundamental processes in business. And somebody has to make it and somebody has to sell it. Everything else is easy. Counting it, getting the money, hiring, training. Everything else is easy. If you have somebody who can make it and somebody who can sell it, revenue comes in. And with revenue, as I say, sales fixes everything.

Sales fixes everything. No more strategic partnerships. No more strategic bullshit. Sales fixes everything. So in the world, the world, you're either selling or you're making. So I was not an engineer. So I couldn't make. So I had to sell. And it was that simple. And I attribute my success in evangelism and selling. I work for a small jewelry manufacturing company in downtown L.A.,

Sales fixes everything. No more strategic partnerships. No more strategic bullshit. Sales fixes everything. So in the world, the world, you're either selling or you're making. So I was not an engineer. So I couldn't make. So I had to sell. And it was that simple. And I attribute my success in evangelism and selling. I work for a small jewelry manufacturing company in downtown L.A.,

And this was a manufacturing company owned by a Jewish family. And they embraced me. I don't know why. I mean, I could not be further from Israel than Honolulu, Hawaii. But, you know, whatever. So they embraced me. And basically, I schlepped gold and diamonds for the first five years of my life. And I tell you something, the jewelry business is a very, very tough business. We were a manufacturer.

And this was a manufacturing company owned by a Jewish family. And they embraced me. I don't know why. I mean, I could not be further from Israel than Honolulu, Hawaii. But, you know, whatever. So they embraced me. And basically, I schlepped gold and diamonds for the first five years of my life. And I tell you something, the jewelry business is a very, very tough business. We were a manufacturer.

We sold to retailers. And so we weren't the retailer. We didn't do business with consumers. We did business with businesses.

We sold to retailers. And so we weren't the retailer. We didn't do business with consumers. We did business with businesses.

So you learn patience because you make an appointment with a jewelry store and you fly to Kansas City and the appointment's at 10 and you get there at 9.30 and then all of a sudden it's 11 and they kept you waiting and then they say, okay, so now you can go see our buyer, but the buyer's about to leave for lunch, so you got 15 minutes.

So you learn patience because you make an appointment with a jewelry store and you fly to Kansas City and the appointment's at 10 and you get there at 9.30 and then all of a sudden it's 11 and they kept you waiting and then they say, okay, so now you can go see our buyer, but the buyer's about to leave for lunch, so you got 15 minutes.

So then you open up your bag and you show your goods and they look at the goods and they say, well, you know, there's five ounces of gold is one carat of diamonds. Diamonds are $300 a carat. 14 carat gold comes out to so much per gram. And so... They're basically reverse engineering. You say you got $300 worth of diamonds. You got $75 worth of gold. Your cost of goods sold is $375.

So then you open up your bag and you show your goods and they look at the goods and they say, well, you know, there's five ounces of gold is one carat of diamonds. Diamonds are $300 a carat. 14 carat gold comes out to so much per gram. And so... They're basically reverse engineering. You say you got $300 worth of diamonds. You got $75 worth of gold. Your cost of goods sold is $375.

Because I'm such a nice person, I'm going to let you make 10%. A bargain.

Because I'm such a nice person, I'm going to let you make 10%. A bargain.

$400 from me, and I need 90-day no-interest dating because I'm not going to pay you right away, and I need delivery in two weeks. And that's the good news. That's if you got an order. If you didn't get an order, you went to Kansas City for nothing. So basically, I learned sales in that kind of surrounding, hand-to-hand combat.

$400 from me, and I need 90-day no-interest dating because I'm not going to pay you right away, and I need delivery in two weeks. And that's the good news. That's if you got an order. If you didn't get an order, you went to Kansas City for nothing. So basically, I learned sales in that kind of surrounding, hand-to-hand combat.

Which if you tell that to most Gen Z people who say, this is what sales is like. You're sitting in an office outside the door. You're waiting for an hour. You get 15 minutes. Somebody throws your goods on a scale. They figure out the cost of goods sold and the scrap value. And because they're kind to you, they're going to give you 10% over scrap value. That's what sales is like. Not this bullshit.

Which if you tell that to most Gen Z people who say, this is what sales is like. You're sitting in an office outside the door. You're waiting for an hour. You get 15 minutes. Somebody throws your goods on a scale. They figure out the cost of goods sold and the scrap value. And because they're kind to you, they're going to give you 10% over scrap value. That's what sales is like. Not this bullshit.

Let's do A-B testing on our way of sight. You know, it's the purple bullseye. More effective than the red border. Do we get more clicks with this? Do we get more clicks with that? Should we put the button at the top or the button at the bottom? That's not sales.

Let's do A-B testing on our way of sight. You know, it's the purple bullseye. More effective than the red border. Do we get more clicks with this? Do we get more clicks with that? Should we put the button at the top or the button at the bottom? That's not sales.