--- title: How Not To Be A Sales Poseur | The Sales Blog description: My friend Mike Weinberg says “No one defaults to prospecting.” What he means is that when salespeople have time between calls or meetings, they don’t automatically pick up the phone and start prospecting. And he’s right about this. When I was a young salesperson, there was only the phone. Every morning, I secluded myself in […] image: https://www.thesalesblog.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/shutterstock_136159928.jpg --- ### [Now booking SKO meetings for 2026/27! 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And he’s right about this. When I was a young salesperson, there was only the phone. Every morning, I secluded myself in an office and made prospecting calls. I started making calls at 8:15 AM, and I stopped for lunch at Noon, when I’d usually go to a restaurant with my peers. After lunch, I’d start making calls again until it was time to go home. As I made calls to every number in the business section of the phonebook, I wrote down every “good” lead on an index card. If someone told me that they used what I sold, they were a good lead. The next day, I’d flip through all of those index cards, knowing that they were better than the numbers in the phonebook. Then I started back through the phonebook. No [targets](http://thesalesblog.com/blog/2014/02/16/dreamclients/). No business intelligence. No social networks. No LinkedIn. No research. It was prospecting. All day. Every day. And then the appointments came. And after I made a sales call, it was back to prospecting. Lots of people were better salespeople than I was. No one made more calls. Prospecting was my default. As a young salesperson, no one had to tell me to prospect. I didn’t know what else I should have been doing. And there still aren’t many real choices available to you. When you need new business, you make your calls. Don’t be a sales poseur. [Pick up the telephone](http://thesalesblog.com/blog/2014/05/19/9-reasons-to-pick-up-the-phone/). I made two cold calls today. [Dave Brock](http://partnersinexcellenceblog.com) and his team make calls every week. ###### Tags: [Sales](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/tag/sales) [2015](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/tag/2015) Post by [Anthony Iannarino](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/author/anthony-iannarino) on January 19, 2015 Written and edited by human brains and human hands. ![Anthony Iannarino](https://www.thesalesblog.com/hubfs/ai-blog-profile-crop.jpg) Anthony Iannarino is an American writer. He has published daily at [thesalesblog.com](https://www.thesalesblog.com) for more than 14 years, amassing over 5,300 articles and making this platform a destination for salespeople and sales leaders. Anthony is also the author of four best-selling books documenting modern sales methodologies and a fifth book for sales leaders seeking revenue growth. His latest book for an even wider audience is titled, The Negativity Fast: Proven Techniques to Increase Positivity, Reduce Fear, and Boost Success. Anthony speaks to sales organizations worldwide, delivering cutting-edge sales strategies and tactics that work in this ever-evolving B2B landscape. He also provides workshops and seminars. Connect with Anthony on LinkedIn, X or Youtube. You can email Anthony at [iannarino@gmail.com](mailto:iannarino@gmail.com) [Follow me on my website](https://www.thesalesblog.com/anthony-iannarino) [Follow me on Facebook ](https://www.facebook.com/thesalesblog) [Follow me on LinkedIn ](https://www.linkedin.com/in/iannarino/) [Follow me on Twitter ](http://www.twitter.com/iannarino) [![AISA-square-ad-SKOs-26-27](https://www.thesalesblog.com/hs-fs/hubfs/AISA-square-ad-SKOs-26-27.jpg?width=400&height=400&name=AISA-square-ad-SKOs-26-27.jpg)](https://www.thesalesblog.com/authority) [![ai-cold-calling-video-sidebar-offer-1](https://www.thesalesblog.com/hs-fs/hubfs/ai-cold-calling-video-sidebar-offer-1.jpg?width=318&height=179&name=ai-cold-calling-video-sidebar-offer-1.jpg)](https://www.thesalesblog.com/free-cold-calling-video) ![salescall-planner-ebook-v3-1-cover (1)](https://www.thesalesblog.com/hs-fs/hubfs/salescall-planner-ebook-v3-1-cover%20(1).jpg?width=768&height=994&name=salescall-planner-ebook-v3-1-cover%20(1).jpg) ### Free Sales eBook: Sales Call Planner Planning your sales call improves the likelihood of making a successful call, and it demonstrates to your dream client your professionalism. [![DOWNLOAD EBOOK](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/2922376/c9f553be-fbba-4813-9199-95c1603472e7.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/2922376/c9f553be-fbba-4813-9199-95c1603472e7) ## Are You Ready To Solve Your Sales Challenges? ![Anthony-Solve-Sales](https://www.thesalesblog.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Anthony-Solve-Sales.png?width=290&height=221&name=Anthony-Solve-Sales.png) Hi, I’m Anthony. I help sales teams make the changes needed to create more opportunities & crush their sales targets. What we’re doing right now **is working**, even in this challenging economy. **Would you like some help?** [![Solve for Sales](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/2922376/d3a4938b-2008-4a27-8b44-7b2223f6d035.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/2922376/d3a4938b-2008-4a27-8b44-7b2223f6d035) ### Join my Weekly Newsletter for Sales Tips Join 100,000+ sales professionals in my weekly newsletter and get my *Guide to Becoming a Sales Hustler* eBook for FREE! --- ```json { "@context" : "http://schema.org/", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Anthony Iannarino" }, "dateModified" : "2021-06-15T6:34:00 PM", "datePublished" : "2015-01-19 20:23:29", "description" : "My friend Mike Weinberg says “No one defaults to prospecting.” What he means is that when salespeople have time between calls or meetings, they don’t automatically pick up the phone and start prospecting. And he’s right about this. 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