7 Sales Lessons That Helped Me Close $1.4 Million in the Last 12 Months

Here are seven lessons that have helped me close just over $1.4 million in sales in the last 12 months.

And I’m pretty confident that if you actually apply these lessons, you’ll make a lot more freaking money in whatever it is that you do.

The offer I’ve personally closed most of that revenue on is a business mentorship for health and fitness coaches.

But here’s what’s interesting…

I’ve watched these same principles work across completely different industries.

Health coaches helping people lose weight.

Relationship coaches.

Business opportunities.

E-commerce.

Consultants.

Wellness businesses.

All kinds of different offers.

In fact, I have a client in the wellness space who was doing about $55,000 a month in August 2025.

Fast-forward one year.

In August 2026, they generated $117,000 cash collected in a single month.

They’re now on track to do a little over $3 million in sales this year.

And a massive part of that growth comes back to the principles I’m about to walk you through.

Because sales, at least in my experience, isn’t really about memorizing some magical closing script.

It’s not about learning how to pressure somebody harder.

It’s not about becoming better at arguing with objections.

It’s about understanding people.

Understanding problems.

Understanding beliefs.

Understanding communication.

And then helping somebody confidently make the right decision.

So let’s break these down.

Lesson #1: Sales Is More About Diagnosis Than Persuasion

I think a lot of people look at sales like some kind of arm-wrestling match.

You’ve got the prospect on one side.

You’re on the other.

And whoever has the strongest pitch wins.

So they obsess over getting the perfect pitch nailed down.

They learn better rebuttals.

They learn objection-handling scripts.

They try to figure out how to push harder, create urgency, overcome resistance, and convince somebody to buy.

But at least in my experience?

That’s not how the best salespeople operate.

The best salespeople don’t convince people.

They uncover.

They uncover what the real problem is.

They uncover what staying stuck is actually costing somebody.

They uncover what that person really wants.

They uncover the gap between where somebody is and where they want to be.

And they do that by asking better clarifying questions, not by giving better pitches.

Stop Asking Generic Questions

Instead of asking something generic like:

“So… what are your goals right now?”

Try asking:

“What’s happening right now that made you decide you needed to solve this?”

Or:

“Why today? Why now?”

Or:

“How long has this been going on?”

Or:

“What have you already tried to solve this?”

And one of my favorites:

“If nothing changes over the next six months, what does that actually cost you physically, emotionally, spiritually, relationally, or financially?”

Now we’re actually uncovering what’s going on.

Think about how a doctor diagnoses a patient.

You don’t walk into the doctor’s office and say:

“My stomach hurts.”

And the doctor goes:

“Fantastic. Surgery is $10,000. Visa or Mastercard?”

That would be ridiculous.

They ask questions.

Where does it hurt?

How long has it been hurting?

What happened before it started?

What makes it worse?

What makes it better?

Have you experienced this before?

They’re diagnosing before prescribing.

Sales should work the same way.

Because humans are really freaking good at masking their actual problems.

Sometimes the thing somebody tells you they need isn’t even the real issue.

The “I Need More Leads” Example

This happens constantly in the business and marketing space.

A prospect says:

“I just need more leads.”

And maybe they do.

But maybe they don’t.

So instead of immediately saying:

“Great. We can help you generate leads.”

Slow down.

Ask:

“When you do get leads right now, are they actually converting? Walk me through that process.”

And they might say:

“Well… not really. A lot of them are unqualified.”

Okay.

Now we’ve learned something.

You might say:

“So you might not actually have a lead problem. You might have a conversion problem. Is that fair to say?”

Boom.

Now we’re diagnosing.

We’re helping them see the actual bottleneck instead of blindly selling them the thing they think they need.

That’s a completely different sales conversation.

So no matter what you sell, start here:

Ask better clarifying questions.

Understand the real problem before trying to sell the solution.

Lesson #2: People Buy When They Believe, Not When They Understand

This one is massive.

Information by itself does not create action.

It doesn’t create transformation either.

There’s a quote I heard years ago that basically says:

If information were all we needed, we’d all be billionaires with abs.

Think about it.

You probably already know you should eat healthier.

You know you should exercise.

You know you should follow up with prospects.

You know you should make content.

You know you should probably stop scrolling Instagram at 11:30 at night.

Knowing something intellectually and actually believing something enough to change your behavior are two completely different things.

And that’s why sales is so heavily connected to belief.

If you change what somebody believes, you change the way they think.

When their thinking changes, their emotions change.

When their emotions change, they’re willing to take different actions.

The Beliefs Your Prospect Needs Before They Buy

There are probably five or six major beliefs somebody needs before they confidently move forward.

First, they need to believe they actually have a problem worth solving.

The pain or the gap between where they are and where they want to be has to become big enough that they’re willing to do something about it.

Second, they need to believe the outcome they want is actually possible for somebody like them.

You see this constantly in weight loss.

Someone says:

“My genetics are the reason I can’t lose weight.”

And we’re like…

Nah.

But if they genuinely believe their genetics make the desired outcome impossible, why would they buy the program?

They wouldn’t.

Third, they need to believe that your solution or unique mechanism can actually get them there.

Fourth, they need to believe you’re somebody they can trust to help them.

And depending on the situation, they may also need to stop believing that their current approach is the best approach.

Maybe somebody says:

“I just need to diet harder.”

Okay.

Maybe the issue isn’t that they aren’t dieting hard enough.

Maybe the entire mechanism they’re using is wrong.

This is where belief shifting becomes incredibly powerful.

And one of the best ways to shift beliefs?

Storytelling.

I’ve done a bunch of videos around storytelling and belief shifting because the two work perfectly together.

Stories allow somebody to see a different possibility without you standing there saying:

“You are wrong. Believe me instead.”

Diagnose the Missing Belief

Here’s a really simple tactical example.

Let’s say I’m selling somebody a content system.

They tell me:

“I’ve tried content before. It doesn’t work for me.”

The worst thing I could do is immediately pitch harder.

“Well, that’s because you didn’t have OUR content system…”

No, no, no.

Instead, I might ask:

“Do you think content itself doesn’t work? Or do you think the way you’ve been using content hasn’t worked?”

See the difference?

Most logical people are going to stop and go:

“Well… probably the way I’ve been using it.”

Exactly.

Now we’ve shifted the belief from:

“Content doesn’t work.”

to:

“Maybe I’ve been using the wrong mechanism.”

Or:

“Maybe I haven’t been applying it correctly.”

You could do the exact same thing with weight loss.

“Do you believe eating healthy doesn’t work at all? Or is it possible that the way you’ve been approaching your nutrition hasn’t worked?”

Again, we’re not arguing.

We’re asking questions that allow them to reconsider the belief.

One question I want you to start asking yourself before sales calls is:

What would this person need to believe was true in order for this decision to make sense for them?

Then start building questions, stories, examples, testimonials, content, and conversations that help them examine those beliefs.

People buy when they believe, not merely when they understand.

Lesson #3: The Sale Usually Happens Before the Close

I heard a quote a long time ago that has stuck with me:

The stronger your marketing is, the easier sales becomes.

And the opposite is also true.

The weaker your marketing is, the harder sales becomes.

This is where a lot of people get themselves into trouble.

They might technically be generating leads.

People are opting in.

People are messaging them.

Maybe people are even booking calls.

But sales still feels freaking hard.

They’re constantly trying to overcome objections.

Every call feels like an uphill battle.

People don’t understand the offer.

They don’t understand why it’s different.

They don’t understand the methodology.

They don’t fully trust the person selling it.

And then we blame the closer.

But sometimes the closer isn’t the problem.

The marketing process failed before the prospect ever got on the call.

Your Marketing Should Be Pre-Selling People

Look at your positioning.

Do you look exactly like everybody else in your marketplace?

If so, you’re going to become commoditized.

Look at your messaging.

Is it generic?

Because generic messaging can actually work well enough to produce leads while simultaneously producing mediocre lead quality.

Look at your content.

Are you actually running a structured content system?

Are you making long-form content like this where people can spend 10, 20, 30 minutes learning from you?

Are you using short-form content?

Email?

Stories?

Testimonials?

Are you actively shifting beliefs?

Because all of these things compound.

Your positioning affects the words you use.

The words you use affect who pays attention.

Who pays attention affects your lead quality.

Your content affects trust.

Trust affects your sales conversations.

Your offer affects how compelling the decision feels.

It all freaking compounds.

And yes, I almost said “weed quality” instead of “lead quality” when I recorded this.

Don’t do weed, John.

Anyway…

Two Salespeople. Same $10,000 Offer. Completely Different Conversation.

Imagine two salespeople selling the exact same $10,000 offer.

Salesperson A gets a completely cold prospect.

This person barely understands the problem.

They’ve watched nothing.

They don’t really know the methodology.

They aren’t sure why this company is different.

They don’t understand the offer.

Then Salesperson B gets somebody who has:

• Watched five videos.

• Read emails.

• Seen testimonials.

• Learned the methodology.

• Understood the problem.

• Already started believing this might be the right solution.

Same offer.

Completely different freaking conversation.

Salesperson B almost doesn’t need to “sell.”

They need to diagnose, make sure it’s a fit, and help the person make the decision.

That’s where you want to be.

Before you blame:

• The sales script.

• The closer.

• The algorithm.

• The platform.

• The content.

• The offer.

Audit the buyer’s journey.

Did the prospect actually understand the problem?

Did they understand the solution?

Did they trust you?

Did they want the outcome badly enough?

If not, your marketing might be weak.

Fix that, homie.

Remember this:

You should not make your sales call do the job your marketing failed to do.

If you constantly have to convince people on calls, something earlier in the process needs to be improved.

Great marketing makes selling easier.

Lesson #4: Specificity Sells

Years ago I was consulting with a massive YouTube channel in the health and fitness space.

Millions and millions of followers.

They’re local to me here in Florida and one of the bigger companies in their space.

The guy who originally built the business was one of the OGs back in the ClickBank days selling nutrition e-books and stuff.

The company was doing eight figures.

So I would go into their office and work with the team.

And I said one phrase so many times that it became a running joke:

“We need to get more specific around the pain and desire.”

I said it constantly.

They would literally crack jokes about me saying it.

But guess what?

It worked.

Because they sold more.

Generic questions create generic conversations.

Generic messaging creates generic marketing.

And generic promises create weak desire.

Your prospect should feel like:

“Holy crap. This person gets exactly what’s happening in my life right now.”

There’s a famous marketing concept from Jay Abraham that basically says if you can articulate somebody’s problem better than they can, they’ll naturally assume you understand how to solve it.

That’s what we’re trying to accomplish.

Chunk Down the Problem

A weak question might be:

“What would growing your business mean to you?”

Okay.

Fine.

But compare that with:

“What are you doing monthly right now?”

“What are you trying to get to?”

“What would an additional $20,000 per month actually change for you?”

“How many clients would that require?”

“If you hit that number, what becomes possible that isn’t possible right now?”

Now we’re getting somewhere.

This is sometimes referred to as chunking down in a sales conversation.

Take a vague desire and make it real.

Someone saying:

“I want to make more money.”

…has almost no emotional weight.

Compare that with:

“I want to get to $30K a month so my wife can finally leave her job and I can stop taking sales calls at 8 PM.”

Completely different freaking situation.

Now we understand what $30K actually means.

It isn’t $30K.

It’s his wife leaving a job she hates.

It’s eating dinner with his family.

It’s not getting on Zoom at eight o’clock at night.

It’s freedom.

It’s relief.

It’s identity.

That’s why I want you to write this down somewhere:

Specificity creates emotion. Emotion creates movement.

Put it on a sticky note.

Plaster it above your desk.

Whatever you have to do.

Specificity creates emotion. Emotion creates movement.

That applies to your sales conversations.

Your content.

Your landing pages.

Your emails.

Your offer.

Your messaging.

Everything.

Lesson #5: Stop Pitching Features. Sell the Change.

You’ve probably heard some version of this before.

Don’t sell the plane.

Sell the destination.

But I still see very seasoned coaches, consultants, and salespeople screw this up.

People don’t really want:

• Coaching calls.

• Modules.

• Slack access.

• WhatsApp.

• Templates.

• Scripts.

• Software.

• Worksheets.

• Courses.

Those are just mechanisms.

People want the transformation those things create.

Connect Every Feature Back to the Outcome

A weak pitch sounds like this:

“You get 12 coaching calls, Slack support, scripts, templates, and a course.”

Okay…

Cool?

A stronger version would be:

“The reason we have weekly calls is so you’re never sitting there stuck for three weeks wondering what to fix. We can look at what’s happening in your business in real time, audit it, make the adjustment, and keep you moving forward.”

Same coaching call.

Completely different meaning.

One is a deliverable.

The other creates safety.

It tells them why the coaching call matters.

Another example from the work I do would be messaging.

I could say:

“We’ll rewrite your messaging.”

But that’s not really what somebody wants.

Instead:

“We’re going to make it so when your ideal client lands on your page, they immediately understand why you’re different, why they should care, and why what you do matters.”

That’s the change.

So here’s an incredibly simple framework:

Feature → Benefit → Desired Outcome

You get X, which helps you do Y, so you can ultimately achieve Z.

Anytime you explain your offer, ask yourself:

Why does this feature actually matter to the person sitting in front of me?

If you can’t answer that clearly, don’t expect them to do it for you.

Stop selling features.

Sell the change.

Lesson #6: Most Objections Are Symptoms, Not the Actual Problem

Somebody says:

“I need to think about it.”

Or:

“I need to talk to my spouse.”

Or:

“It’s too expensive.”

And immediately the salesperson attacks the objection.

I was so guilty of this when I was a rookie salesperson.

The prospect says:

“I need to think about it.”

And I’m like:

“WHAT DO YOU NEED TO THINK ABOUT?”

You know what I mean?

Now we’re opponents.

It reminds me of those little robot boxing toys where there’s a blue one and a red one and they’re just beating the crap out of each other.

That’s not what we’re trying to do, man.

You’re supposed to be on the same side.

So instead, slow down.

Get curious.

“I Need to Think About It”

They say:

“I need to think about it.”

You say:

“Yeah, totally fair. Usually when somebody says that, there’s a specific thing they’re still unsure about. What still feels unresolved for you?”

Or:

“What’s making you hesitant?”

Notice the tonality too.

I’m not using some commanding Andy Elliott tonality.

I’m not like:

“WHAT EXACTLY DO YOU NEED TO THINK ABOUT?”

Relax, dude.

I’m more like:

“Yeah, that’s totally fair. I get that. Usually when somebody says that though, there’s still something they’re unsure about. What still feels unresolved?”

Now we’re on the same team.

“It’s Too Expensive”

Prospect says:

“Honestly, it’s just expensive.”

A lot of salespeople immediately jump to:

“Do you have a credit card?”

“Do you want financing?”

“We have Affirm.”

“Can you split it?”

Dude.

Slow down.

You don’t even know if money is the freaking problem yet.

Ask:

“When you say it’s expensive, what do you mean?”

Or make it even clearer:

“Do you mean you don’t see enough value in what we’re doing? Or do you see the value, but cash flow is the issue right now?”

Those are two completely different objections.

If they say:

“No, I absolutely see the value. It’s just that I don’t have $10,000 sitting around right now.”

Okay.

Then I can say:

“So if you had the $10K cash right now, you’d do it?”

“100%.”

Great.

Now we know.

This is genuinely a financial objection.

But imagine they say:

“Honestly, I’m just not sure this is worth $10K for me.”

Whoa.

Totally different issue.

Offering Affirm isn’t going to solve that.

Now we need to understand why they don’t see enough value.

Different diagnosis.

Different conversation.

Another useful line is:

“If the money piece disappeared for a second, would you feel 100% confident this is the right solution?”

If they say no?

Money wasn’t the real objection.

There’s something else underneath it.

Maybe it’s:

• Uncertainty.

• Lack of trust.

• Unclear value.

• Fear.

• Timing.

• A false belief.

• Previous bad experiences.

• Doubt in themselves.

• Doubt in the mechanism.

Whatever.

The point is:

Slow down and understand what’s underneath what they’re actually saying.

Because objections are very often symptoms.

The actual problem is underneath.

Curiosity beats objection handling.

Lesson #7: Detach From Needing the Sale

I almost hate using the word “detach” because I feel like it has become one of those words like “authentic.”

Everybody uses it so much that it starts losing its meaning.

But I don’t really have a better word here.

You cannot want the sale more than the prospect does.

And listen…

I get it.

Maybe you’re at a place in business where you genuinely need money.

You’ve got bills.

Payroll.

Credit cards.

Whatever.

That’s real.

But you have to separate your need for money from your responsibility to the person sitting in front of you.

You need to truly detach from needing that sale and focus on helping the prospect make the best decision.

And when those two things happen to align?

Awesome.

Both people win.

Become Willing to Tell Somebody Not to Buy

One of the biggest upgrades I ever made in sales was becoming genuinely willing to tell somebody:

“I don’t think you should buy this.”

For a while, I had something like a 43% rejection rate.

Meaning I would literally turn people away or point them in a different direction because I didn’t believe what we were selling was right for them.

Think about how differently you listen when your goal becomes:

Help this person make the right decision.

Instead of:

How do I get this person to make MY decision?

You become calmer.

You ask better questions.

You listen differently.

You become more credible.

And ironically, you often become way more effective at selling.

It’s kind of like dating.

Who typically creates more attraction?

The person desperately leaning forward like:

“PLEASE LIKE ME.”

Or the person who is comfortable, confident, and slightly leaned back?

Usually when somebody leans out a little bit, the other person naturally wants to lean in.

Sales and relationships have a similar dynamic.

Neediness kills trust.

Now, conviction is different.

You should have conviction in what you do.

You should believe you can help somebody.

You should believe in your offer.

You should believe in your methodology.

But combine that conviction with detachment.

The mindset is:

“I don’t need this sale. If this is right for you, I’m confident we can help. My job is to help you figure out whether it’s right.”

Use Language That Creates Trust

Something as simple as:

“Look, based on what you told me, I genuinely think this could help you with where you’re at right now. But I don’t want you buying this if you’re not convinced it’s the right move.”

That builds a ton of trust.

Or:

“My job isn’t to convince you. My job is to help us both figure out whether this actually makes sense.”

And when it’s genuinely not a fit:

“Based on where you are right now, I actually wouldn’t recommend this. I’d go do this first.”

Then point them toward the thing they need.

You’re going to build way more credibility and a much better reputation doing that than trying to shove everybody into your offer.

We’ve probably all been sold something where we get inside and immediately think:

“Shoot, man. This just wasn’t the right fit.”

That creates buyer’s remorse.

It destroys trust.

It creates crappy client relationships.

And long term, it damages your reputation.

Help people make the right decision.

Even when that decision is not buying from you.

Bonus Lesson #8: Communication Is the Meta-Skill Behind Great Sales

After thousands of sales conversations, this is probably the biggest lesson of all.

I’ve been doing this in different forms for about 13 years.

I grew a gym to over 1,000 members.

I built an online fitness business and served hundreds and hundreds of clients.

I’ve now helped more than 500 people.

I’ve had thousands and thousands of sales conversations.

And over the years, I’ve generated millions of dollars in sales.

And after all of that?

I don’t think sales is some isolated skill.

There isn’t one magical sales book.

There isn’t one course.

There isn’t one script.

There isn’t one clever objection-handling framework that suddenly makes somebody elite.

At the core, sales is your ability to:

Listen.

Understand.

Communicate.

Shift beliefs.

And help another human being confidently make a decision.

That’s the meta-skill.

Understand These Five Things on Every Sales Call

If you can understand these five things, your sales conversations get significantly easier:

1. Where is this person right now?

2. Where do they want to go?

3. Why haven’t they gotten there yet?

4. Why does solving this matter right now?

5. What do they need to believe before they can confidently move forward?

That’s sales.

And honestly, it goes way beyond sales calls.

Communication affects your entire business.

It affects:

• Your positioning.

• Your messaging.

• Your content.

• Your emails.

• Your landing pages.

• Your VSLs.

• Your webinars.

• Your offers.

• Your sales calls.

• Your leadership.

• Your client relationships.

Everything comes back to understanding another person deeply enough that you can communicate something in a way that actually lands.

The 7 Sales Lessons, Recapped

Let’s bring all of this together.

1. Sales Is Diagnosis, Not Persuasion

Ask better questions.

Understand the real problem before trying to sell the solution.

Stop trying to convince.

Start uncovering.

2. People Buy When They Believe

They need to believe:

• They have a problem worth solving.

• The outcome they want is possible for them.

• Your mechanism makes sense.

• You can actually help.

• You’re somebody they can trust.

Don’t just dump information on people.

Shift beliefs.

3. The Sale Usually Happens Before the Close

The stronger your messaging, positioning, content, and marketing become, the easier the sales conversation gets.

Better marketing creates better leads.

Better content builds more trust.

Better positioning creates differentiation.

And all of that allows you to pre-sell people before they ever get on Zoom with you.

Remember:

Your sales call shouldn’t have to do the job your marketing failed to do.

4. Specificity Sells

Get incredibly specific around:

• Their current problem.

• Their desired outcome.

• The timeline.

• The obstacles.

• The consequences.

• What the result actually means to them.

Because:

Specificity creates emotion. Emotion creates movement.

5. Sell the Change, Not the Features

Don’t just explain your deliverables.

Connect everything back to the result your prospect actually cares about.

Feature.

Benefit.

Desired outcome.

You get X, which helps you do Y, so you can ultimately achieve Z.

6. Objections Are Usually Symptoms

Don’t immediately “handle” the objection.

Get curious.

Figure out what’s actually underneath it.

What are they uncertain about?

What are they afraid of?

Is it actually money?

Is it trust?

Is the value unclear?

Do they doubt themselves?

Do they doubt the mechanism?

Slow down.

Diagnose first.

7. Detach From Needing the Sale

Focus on helping the person make the right decision.

Even if that means they don’t buy.

Have massive conviction in what you do without becoming needy about who buys it.

That combination builds trust.

And the Bonus: Communication Is the Meta-Skill

Great sales come all the way back to your ability to truly listen to your ideal client.

Understand them.

Communicate clearly.

Shift beliefs.

Tell powerful stories.

And help somebody confidently make a decision.

That applies whether you’re making a YouTube video, writing a landing page, recording a VSL, running a webinar, posting on social media, or sitting across from somebody on a sales call.

Great Sales Is Really About Helping People See Clearly

I think this is where a lot of the sales world gets things backward.

We’re always looking for the next script.

The next closing technique.

The next objection handler.

The next psychological trick.

But the deeper skill is understanding people.

Understanding what somebody wants.

Understanding what’s keeping them stuck.

Understanding what they believe.

Understanding what they’re afraid of.

Understanding what’s actually costing them to stay where they are.

And then communicating clearly enough that they can see the situation differently.

That doesn’t require manipulation.

It doesn’t require pressure.

And it definitely doesn’t require you to turn every sales conversation into some kind of freaking boxing match.

You diagnose.

You clarify.

You shift beliefs.

You communicate value.

You help them make the right decision.

That’s it.

And I’m telling you from my own experience doing this over thousands of conversations…

If you can apply these seven lessons, you’ll make a heck of a lot more money.

But more importantly?

You’re going to help change a heck of a lot more lives.

Because when you genuinely have something valuable that can help somebody, learning how to communicate that value is part of the responsibility.

Your message matters.

Don’t be afraid to speak it.

Who Is Jason Meland?

I am a value creator, mentor, and entrepreneur. I help online coaches master their messaging, attract dream clients, and build thriving high profit, high impact businesses.

When You’re Ready, Here’s How I Can Help You:

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