Today we’d like to introduce you to John Livesay.
John, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
After a successful sales career at Conde Nast selling print advertising in magazines, I was laid off in 2008. I had to reinvent myself much like actors from silent movies had to decide if they could make the transition to talkies! I learned how to sell digital ads for The Daily Beast. After two years, Conde Nast hired me back and I ended up winning the salesperson of the year for the entire company. This was my ah-ha moment that everyone’s identity is bigger than any one thing that happens to us. My TEDx talk “Be the Lifeguard of Your Own Life” is all about embracing disruption and getting off the self-esteem roller coaster of only feeling good if things are going well.
My latest book “The Sale Is in the Tale: 5 Storytelling Secrets to Keep From Drowning In a Sea of Sameness” is a business fable set here in Austin! It is a love letter to Austin with specific places mentioned so that as you read the story about storytelling, you are pulled into it. As a sales keynote speaker, companies bring me in at their sales meeting to show them how to use storytelling to win new business. Whoever tells the best story is the one that gets the sale,
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
My road has not been smooth. Having interviewed over 450 people on my podcast The Successful Pitch, I see that nobody has a smooth linear path to success. One big challenge was having to navigate the pandemic which caused all live events to be canceled. My pivot was to create compelling virtual keynote talk to hundreds of people on Zoom by using Ecamm for special effects to keep people engaged. We all have to continually learn and bring new ways of connecting to our careers.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about The Pitch Whisperer?
When Anthem Insurance invited me to be their storytelling keynote speaker, I offered to stay after my talk and whisper in people’s ears while they were doing an improvisation handling objections. When INC magazine heard this, they said, “You are The Pitch Whisperer.” That is now what helps me stand out.
Most salespeople in healthcare and tech struggle to be memorable and are seen as a commodity. Having written four books on the power of storytelling, I show people how they can become better storytellers. This helps people in both their professional and personal life! If people want to learn to be a better storytelling, they can work with me via my online course and virtual coaching so they no longer feel like they are drowning in a sea of sameness. They start closing more sales without feeling pushy.
The crisis has affected us all in different ways. How has it affected you and any important lessons or epiphanies you can share with us?
One of the important lessons I learned during the pandemic is that the need to connect will never go away. Even if we can’t be in person, we need to connect with others emotionally. We are wired to be social animal and storytelling is one of the best ways to build a connection.
Contact Info:
- Email: john@johnlivesay.com
- Website: https://johnlivesay.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thepitchwhisperer/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/John_Livesay
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChWp7P-2gv2a-nppJpXswoA
