Most of us – business owners, sales teams, employees in small firms – we are all concerned about the state of the company’s bank account. We are constantly looking for the next customer, even to the point of distraction.

When I sit down with my Israeli clients and ask them where the next sale will come from, I am frequently greeted with a blank look. As the business mentor, I push, and am still greeted with an empty expression. And this is what bugs me.

So, I turn to them and employ tactic number one: Imagine the bank is about to close your account, but has given you one month’s notice. What can you do in 30 days to turn things round? In other words, your business has been placed on a ‘sink or swim scenario’ – what are you going to do, NOW?

It is amazing how many people then respond, by saying: “Well, I could do X that I had been thinking about for ages”. And once the proverbial floodgates have primed open, this statement is usually followed by a wave of other suggestions.

Let me be clear. Rarely do all of the strategies hit their mark. Yet invariably, a month later I have a smiling client in front of me.

Meanwhile, I have already employed tactic number two: I ask my client to take out their mobile phone and to start to go through their address book in order to see who they can call. Sometimes, this request is greeted with skepticism.

Yet invariably, the client finds old customers of theirs who require a quick chat and / or new potential targets. To ram home my point, I ask my own client to make the first few calls there and then. Surprise! Sales meetings are set up on the spot.

Bottom line: It is bewildering how often the next sale is so close to us, but we are not prepared to recognise it or to look for it.