Top Salespeople Think Differently, Here’s How
Great salespeople don’t just hit quota, they shatter it. What’s their secret? It’s not luck, and it’s not just hustle. The best in sales approach everything with a different mindset, and it shows up in every conversation, every deal, every client relationship.
If you want to be someone who stands out in any industry, start thinking like a top performer. Here’s how to build that mindset.
Customer Focus, Not Self-Focus
Average salespeople panic about their numbers. Top salespeople stay laser-focused on the customer. It’s not about making the President’s Circle or padding the pipeline for a bonus.
When the focus stays on helping the customer, deals follow. Lose that focus, and you’ll find yourself scrambling.
“They are focused 100% on the customer, not themselves.”
A steady pipeline makes this possible. Top performers are always prospecting. They don’t build just enough to hit quota, rather they build to overachieve.
Stay Comfortable with Tension
Objections and tough conversations are part of the job. Top salespeople aren’t rattled by them. When tension builds, they lean in and ask more questions. They’re masters at uncovering the real issue and moving the conversation forward.
Most freeze at the first tough question. The best? They step into the challenge because that’s where real opportunity starts.
“They know if there’s tension, that means there’s an opportunity they can serve, that they can solve.”
Asking questions is the foundation. Presentations are secondary. If you aren’t asking questions and listening, you’ll never break out of the average bracket.
Play the Long Game
Short-term panic leads to desperate sales tactics like discounting or last-minute deals just to make quota. It’s obvious to customers, and it destroys trust.
The highest performers value the long-term. Relationships come first. Learning and growth are priorities. If they hit a rough patch, they don’t panic. They keep building, keep prospecting, and never telegraph short-term desperation.
“Great top-performing salespeople value long-term over short-term. They do not sacrifice that.”
Take Complete Ownership
Mistakes happen. Top salespeople own them—no excuses, no blame games. Tossing colleagues or outside partners under the bus only damages your internal and external reputation.
When you take responsibility, you earn trust and respect with customers and your own team. If a shipment’s late, own it and fix it. That’s how a mistake becomes a loyalty-building moment.
Never Satisfied, Always Improving
The best are never satisfied. There’s a constant drive to get better. Not out of fear, but out of a relentless pursuit of excellence.
They learn from peers, seek out new information, and show up earlier and stay later. Like elite athletes, they welcome competition because it fuels their hunger to grow.
Build and Value Relationships
Top performers know they can’t go it alone. They actively create circles of trusted peers and experts. They look to help others in their network and, in turn, learn and grow themselves.
Masterminds, peer groups, informal coffee meetings all become opportunities to push each other to new heights. Coaching their peers helps everyone level up.
Standards and Motivators are Non-Negotiable
There’s one more common thread at the top: a set of personal motivators and moral standards that never waver. Whether it’s faith, sports, community work, or family, that central passion drives every decision.
Personal standards outside of work reflect in professional behavior. If integrity matters off the clock, you can bet it will show up in the deal room as well.
If you want to think and operate like a top performer, start here. Don’t try to overhaul everything in one go—pick one principle and master it before moving to the next.
Top performers aren’t born, they’re built one mindset shift at a time.
Mark Hunter :
Top salespeople win more deals. And one of the big reasons is because they think differently. I’m going to show you why they think differently and how you can begin doing it too. Hey, and the show begins right now. You’re listening to the Sales Hunter Podcast with Marc Hunter, where the focus is to help you as a sales leader sell with confidence and integrity. And now, here’s your host. I love working with top-performing salespeople. You know, the ones that don’t just make quota, they blow past quota.
Mark Hunter :
They somehow find ways to close more deals than anybody else. And I don’t care what the industry is. I don’t care. There are certain things that they do and they do them well. And let’s dive into it because it all begins with them thinking differently. I’m going to share with you a number of things that they do. And I want you, as I go through the list, to say, hey, Which is the one I gotta zero in on? Which is one? First one, very basic, but I’ll tell you what, it trips up more people. They are focused 100% on the customer, not themselves.
Mark Hunter :
Now, this is key because they’re not focused on them making their quota. They’re not focused on them becoming President’s Circle. They’re not focused on— they are absolutely focused on the customer. Now, here’s the reason they can do this. Because if the customer goes wonky on them, they have a full pipeline because they have never stopped prospecting. This is the biggest difference I see between average performers and top performers. The top performers, they never stop prospecting because their whole goal is not to make their number. Their whole goal is to not to build a plan to make the number.
Mark Hunter :
It is to overachieve their number. And they know it requires consistency. They may have an unbelievable set of opportunities, but it can disappear tomorrow. And what happens is, if I don’t have a full pipeline and I got a customer that I know I have to have, I get overly concerned when they start doing something weird. And what happens is I begin, surprisingly, focusing on myself Not the needs of the customer. Big problem there. Hey, the other piece is, or another piece I should say, is they’re comfortable with tension. They are absolutely comfortable with tension.
Mark Hunter :
Now, why? Well, the reason is because they built their, their customer-facing skills not off of presentations. They built their customer-facing skills off of questions, asking questions and listening. And this isn’t just a one-trick pony. No, they’ve been doing this since the beginning. And as a result, they’ve learned over the years every single problem they could incur. They, they’ve been there. They’ve done that. I had a boss like that one time, and, and I’ll never forget, it didn’t matter the situation.
Mark Hunter :
He always had a question to ask, and regardless of how the customer responded, he was able to handle it. And we’d walk into some very tense tough situations. He always came out of it really with, with an outcome that the customer was pleased with and we were pleased with. You see, they know— top performers know if there’s tension, that means there’s an opportunity that they can serve, that they can solve. And you solve it by serving. And see, this is the whole thing. I see so many, so many salespeople They run into even the slightest objection, slightest issue, and they freeze up. They don’t know how to respond.
Mark Hunter :
What you want to do is you want to respond with a question. So in other words, anytime there’s an issue, tension, objection, I don’t care what it is, you respond with a question. And it’s okay however the customer responds, because you got to get their feelings out on the table. You got to get their concerns out on the table. And again, the top performer is absolutely comfortable with this because They’ve been doing it for so long, they’ve incurred every problem. I see too many salespeople, they run from asking questions. Oh, what happens if I ask a question I can’t answer? So they get hunkered down just on their presentation. You’ll never become a top performer.
Mark Hunter :
You will never become a top performer unless you are 100% focused on questions. Third piece, they value long-term over short-term. Oh, this is, this is huge. Go back to the first point I shared. See, because if, if I’m, oh no, I’m not going to make my quota, I become very short-term focused. But see, because the top performer is always prospecting, they always have stuff in their pipe. They always do. And they have enough credibility built up.
Mark Hunter :
They’ve been in the organization long enough that they know that they, they can actually miss their number, that they can miss their number for a quarter or or even 2 and be okay. Because their whole plan is this: they value the customer relationship and they value developing new relationships. And they know that it takes time. It’s going to take time. They value learning and they know how learning compounds. They know this mindset keeps them from panicking. doing something stupid. Because this is what happens when I am suddenly short-term focused.
Mark Hunter :
I begin to panic. And if you were in any form of account management where you’re dealing with the same customers time and time again, even if you’re not, you’ve— but if you’re in an industry where you may have one-off sales, but it’s an industry, you can very quickly develop the reputation that you’re short-term focused. And what does that tell customers. Hold out. Just wait. Just wait. Just wait. Because the salesperson is going to panic.
Mark Hunter :
They’re not making their number. And they’re going to wind up giving you a better deal. They’re going to wind up cutting prices. They’re going to wind up giving away the farm. You see, great top-performing salespeople value long-term over short-term. They do not sacrifice that. Next one is they take ownership of results. They absolutely do.
Mark Hunter :
It earns them a tremendous amount of respect. I’m going to share with you something that’s going to, that’s going to trip some triggers with you. They don’t throw others under the bus when, when they take hold of a problem. Others are really quick to see that. And when they don’t throw people under the bus, does 2 things. The customer now has a higher degree of trust with them, a higher degree of respect for them. And people inside their own company see that, hey, you know what, we made a mistake, but she is taking ownership, he is taking ownership of it. Wow.
Mark Hunter :
What does that mean? That means people inside your company will be more willing to support you in the future. They’re— they’ll be more willing to help you out because they know if something does go wrong, you’re not going to throw them under the bus. Top performers know it takes a team. I don’t care, again, what the industry is that you’re in. It takes a team. And when you take ownership, it is amazing. And here’s the other piece. When you take ownership of results, customers are far more appreciative of whatever the result is.
Mark Hunter :
Let me give you an example. There may have been a shipment that didn’t get delivered on time. When you take ownership of it and the customer sees you taking ownership of it and you had nothing to do with it, They’re going to accept the outcome much more easily than if you pass blame on some trucking company or some dispatcher, whatever it might be. They’re going to get much more hostile. And the result is when they become hostile towards some outside force, they begin to question you going forward on everything. But when you take ownership, they respect you. And it’s amazing how they’re gonna come back much faster to do more business with you. In other words, this problem doesn’t wind up ending the relationship.
Mark Hunter :
This problem actually allows you to create a deeper relationship because of the level of trust, because of the level of respect, and this is huge. And trust and respect are 2 different things. I don’t have time to dive into them, but it’s amazing the respect that they have. And what that means is that when you call in the future, respect, They’re gonna, they’re gonna be faster to respond to you. They’re gonna be faster to follow up with you. You need to change a meeting date because something— they’re gonna be more obliging. They’re gonna oblige to, to— because they respect you because of how they’ve seen you handle situations. Mistakes occur, problems occur.
Mark Hunter :
It always does. I don’t care who it is, what the company is. Nobody’s perfect. But the top performer takes ownership of it. And what I’ve seen is this: when I see somebody who says they’re a top performer but they in turn throw somebody under the bus, I know right then and there they are not a top performer. Next on the list is they’re never satisfied. Yeah, they’re never satisfied. They always have a degree of panic.
Mark Hunter :
Now, okay, now hold on. I’m not saying panic in the way maybe you’re thinking. What I’m saying is that They’re just in a panic because they always want to keep doing better. They’re always looking to learn from others. They value their peers. And what this means is, is very simply this: they’re always pushing farther. Their mindset is one of not being average. So they’re constantly out there looking for wherever they can find additional information.
Mark Hunter :
And this, this is cool because it gives them a level of motivation. when they’re never satisfied. It gives them a level of motivation and a level of energy that never seems to stop. It was interesting, Michael Jordan and LeBron James, they’re awesome. If you played on the same team as them, you couldn’t get in the gym before them. They were always there ahead of you. They were always there ahead of you. Kobe Bryant was notorious that he’d be in the gym at 3:00 AM in the morning.
Mark Hunter :
He Even though practice wasn’t until 6, you couldn’t beat him. And because they’re never satisfied, even though they are playing at the top of their game in basketball— these 3 people I described are all great basketball players— they were at the top and they always kept pushing higher. And that was kind of a pan— it was kind of a built-in panic that they just knew they wanted to keep doing better. But it’s amazing because they’re paranoid. that somebody is going to catch them. And that gives them motivation. And they love it when people are challenging them. They love it when people are nipping at their heels because it pushes them further.
Mark Hunter :
See, the top performer doesn’t get scared of other people trying to be on the podium with them. The top performer uses that as a challenge to go even further. Now, next one, they value relationships. I talked about this a little bit earlier because again, this is one of these key things that they’re never satisfied. So you’re right, they’re always looking for more relationships. They want to learn from others. They value, they value their peers, and they don’t hesitate to help those who they see who are part of their circle. Now, I’d like to say that top performers help everyone.
Mark Hunter :
I can’t say that’s the case because I’ve seen some very good top performers who are hesitant who will not go out of their way to help people who they don’t see as having great potential. I— that cringes me because I, I, I really feel I’ve always got time for everybody. But what I’m saying is that top performers, regardless of what category of top performer, they always are looking to help their peers and people who they see at their circle. I’ve seen this in every industry every type of salesperson. That is huge. So question, are you creating a circle of peers around you? Are you creating a circle of experts around you? And are you learning from them? Are they learning from you? You know, you’ve heard me talk about mastermind groups in the past. So critical, so key, because again, we learn from each other. You can’t just learn it all off the internet.
Mark Hunter :
You can’t just— I’d like to say that this podcast teaches you everything you need to know. No, it doesn’t. It’s a starting place. It’s, it, it’s one of the tools in the toolbox. But there’s so much that you’re going to get from your peers. Because what’s interesting is when you work with your peers, when you share ideas with your peers, you’re actually coaching them. You know what? They’re coaching you. Yeah.
Mark Hunter :
Hey, here’s the last one I want to share with you. They have a set of motivators and moral standards that they do not deviate from. Now you’re probably saying, wow, this is weird. What’s— here’s what I mean by this. This is huge. And, and I feel it serves as the dryer for everything else that they do. Hear me out on this one because it’s what fuels everything. I see some top performers who are passionate.
Mark Hunter :
They might be passionate about softball. They might be passionate about running marathons. It might be passionate who are 100% focused on their faith. Or maybe they’re, they’re driven because of the civic group that they belong to, whatever it is. But that’s their motivator. And that is, that is central to their life. And that’s great. Why? Because it also gives them a set of moral standards.
Mark Hunter :
I’ve never seen somebody who is 100% focused on softball, for instance, that doesn’t have moral standards that wrap around how they play softball. See, this is what I found. If I can watch you and what you’re passionate about outside of work, that’s going to tell me how you behave at work. Yeah. See, the two Literally do drive one another. Okay, we’ve gone through quite a list here, and I want you to identify what is it that you need to be focused on. You’re not going to become a top performer if you’re not a top performer by just saying, I’m going to do all these rules. You’ve got to master them.
Mark Hunter :
It takes them one at a time. Now, next week’s podcast is really special because next week I’m going to be talking about the daily habits. of top performers. So you’re going to want to catch that one next week. Okay, but here’s the whole thing. Top performers do things differently, but there’s no reason that you can’t be a top performer. No reason at all. No reason.
Mark Hunter :
Yeah. Hey, do me a favor, Jim. If you haven’t picked up a copy of my book Integrity First Selling, pick it up, would you please? It is absolutely great because I think it has a tremendous amount of advice in there in terms of the mindset of being a top performer. Do me another favor, if you will. Would you leave me a review on your favorite podcast app? I do 2 podcasts a week, one like this, single topic, second one where we do a deep dive with a subject matter expert. It’s all to help you see and achieve what you didn’t think was possible. I’m Marc Hunter, The Sales Hunter. Great selling.
