Yesterday I had a chance to meet with a group in Chicago called "The President's Forum". This is a group of business leaders that comes together to share best practices and improve their businesses. Our meeting began with a sobering discussion of the economic realities and challenges facing many businesses at this time. The recent election, the mounting national debt, increasing health care costs and the looming fiscal cliff were some of the challenges discussed.

What became immediately clear was this - this was not a group of people that will allow themselves to play the role of a victim. Instead, this is a group that came together to gain some ideas on how to sell their way out of these challenging times. I had a chance to share some ideas about leveraging coach relationships, gaining access to senior level decision makers and dealing effectively with gatekeepers. There is no doubt that this group is made up of the kind of inspiring people that will apply these ideas and others and drive revenue growth!