Make It Happen Mondays - B2B Sales Talk with John Barrows

AI is everywhere in sales right now, but very little of it is actually moving the number. In this episode, John sits down with Gabe Larsen, CRO of Atonom, to dig into what is real, what is hype, and where AI is actually creating measurable ROI. Gabe walks through the SaaS golden age, the false positives it created, the rise of digital employees, and why most teams are still confusing efficiency wi...

The world is getting faster, but your nervous system still has to make the decision. In this episode, John sits down with Ishan Shivanand, a yogic scholar, Vedic educator, and mental health researcher born into a 21-generation lineage of yogis, to talk about stress, focus, resilience, meditation, and what it really takes to stay regulated under pressure. From growing up inside a monastery to build...

Stress is shaping more of your decisions than you realize. In this episode, John sits down with Bryan Post, one of America’s foremost child behavior experts and co-founder of The Post Institute, to talk about fear, love, stress, trauma, parenting, leadership, active listening, and why people often react from survival instead of clarity. If you are a sales leader, manager, parent, or anyone trying...

AI will not fix a business that does not understand itself. In this episode, John sits down with Julie Averill, founder of Gold Thread and former CIO of lululemon, to talk about real transformation, AI adoption, technology leadership, and what companies need to understand before they rush into the next big platform shift. Julie also shares lessons from her time leading technology through major gro...

AI agents are not just changing sales tools. They are changing the job of the seller. In this episode, John sits down with Kris Billmaier, Executive Vice President and General Manager of Agentforce Sales and Growth Products at Salesforce, to talk about Agentforce, headless software, AI-native sales workflows, and what happens when sellers start managing teams of agents. If you are in sales, sales...

IQ is a commodity now. AI can out-think, out-research, and out-process almost anyone in the room. So what is left? In this episode, John shares a conversation with Colleen Stanley, bestselling author and founder of Sales Leadership Development, to talk about the two things that AI cannot replicate — emotional intelligence and meaningful mentorship. Colleen has spent decades proving that EQ is not...

AI already knows your buyer better than most sales reps do. The question is — what are you going to do about it? In this episode, John is joined by Scott Gillum, author of The Hidden Buyer Journey , to unpack seven years of research on how buyers actually make decisions — and why our sales and marketing tools are barely scratching the surface of what's possible. From personality profiling and corp...

The sales playbook is being rewritten and product-led growth is at the center of it. In this episode, John sits down with Adam Carr, CRO at Apollo.io, to dig into how PLG has evolved, what AI is doing to the sales rep's role, and why the best sellers today need to think less like closers and more like go-to-market architects. From hiring smarter to building SDR programs that actually stick, this o...

The career ladder is burning. And if you are still waiting for the right moment to adapt, you are already behind. In this episode, John sits down with Ilana Golan, founder of Leap Academy, to unpack what it actually takes to own your growth in a world where 92 million jobs are projected to be displaced in the next two years. From growing up a shy kid in Israel and becoming one of the first women t...

Most BDR teams are struggling right now. Connect rates are dropping, email is getting ignored, and reps are rushing to get out of the role as fast as possible. Lauren Reeves is doing the opposite, and her team is booking more meetings every single quarter. In this episode, John sits down with Lauren Reeves, BDR manager at Swap Commerce and one of the most vocal advocates for the SDR and BDR profes...

Before your buyer takes your call, their AI has already researched you, evaluated your solution, and started forming an opinion. The question isn't whether AI is changing sales. It's whether you're going to catch up to what's already happening on the other side of the table. In this episode, John sits down with Kris Lawson, the sales leader, founder of Ruby, and Snowflake alumnus, to unpack the mo...

Every founder who has ever handed sales off too early has paid for it. Every single one. In this episode, John sits down with Lou Shipley, a Harvard Business School lecturer, board member, investor, and author of Unlikely Entrepreneurs, to dig into why sales is still the most misunderstood function in business, and why founders who treat it as a second-class citizen almost always fail. Lou draws f...

If your prospect thinks they can already get what you're selling for free, you don't have a product problem — you have a positioning problem. In this episode, John sits down with Eric Appel, CRO of Island, the company that turned a free commodity — the browser — into one of the fastest-growing enterprise security platforms in the world. Eric pulls back the curtain on how Island landed eight of the...

Sales is about solving problems. It’s about helping people achieve their goals—and that’s exactly what innovation is at its core. In this episode, John sits down with Jason Wild, author of Genius at Scale: How Great Leaders Drive Innovation, to talk about his journey from Chicago to becoming a high-level entrepreneur. Drawing from his experience working with companies like IBM and Salesforce, he b...

Start by asking yourself: What am I good at? What do I love doing? And ultimately, what will I get paid for? In this episode, John is joined by Roderick Jefferson to have a real conversation about ambition, ego, and the true cost of success across our lives, relationships, and leadership. Together, they unpack the importance of slowing down, why constant hustle can come at a price, and the powerfu...

Most startups obsess over growth. Very few actually understand when scaling makes sense—and when it doesn’t. In this episode, John talks with Mark Roberge about the real science behind building and scaling a company. They unpack the myths around product-market fit, the ethical decision point every salesperson faces, and why revenue alone can be a dangerously misleading signal for founders. If you'...

AI is changing sales. But trust still wins deals. In this episode of Make It Happen Mondays, John Barrows sits down with negotiation expert Tim Castle to break down what it actually takes to negotiate and close deals in today’s AI-driven sales environment. They dive into the real difference between influence and manipulation, why belief in what you sell matters more than ever, and how preparation,...

Artificial Intelligence is transforming sales faster than any technology shift we’ve seen before. In this episode of Make It Happen Mondays , John Barrows sits down with Peter Grant , CRO of You.com and a four-time unicorn operator who helped scale companies like Salesforce and Siebel . Peter shares his journey from the British military to enterprise software leadership , and how that experience s...

Stefan Feuerstein isn’t just an expert in delegation—he’s a humanitarian leader with a track record of real-world impact. In this powerful episode, Stefan joins John to unpack the simple but transformational delegation model from his book ABC Delegation . But this conversation goes far deeper than business. Stefan’s approach—Autonomy, Briefing, and Consent—was born not in a boardroom, but in the f...

This episode is different. Devin Reed returns to the podcast—but this time, it’s not about content strategy, marketing tactics, or growth frameworks. It’s about something far more personal and far more relevant. After posting a powerful message about how “business as usual” feels disconnected from reality right now, Devin made a conscious decision to stop staying quiet. That post sparked this conv...

In this episode of Make It Happen Mondays , John sits down with Saif Khan , Regional VP of EMEA and APAC at Semrush , one of the top SaaS platforms helping digital marketers drive visibility, traffic, and growth. But this episode isn’t just about tools or tactics—it’s about the real human side of sales leadership. From growing up in a council estate in West London to building elite sales teams acr...

In this episode, John sits down with Ashley Herd , a former General Counsel and HR executive turned founder of Manager Method — a movement and book that gives managers the real-world tools no one else teaches. She’s also a LinkedIn Learning instructor, podcast host, and a powerful advocate for human-first leadership . Ashley brings a sharp legal and HR background from brands like KFC and McKinsey,...

Amy Leneker is a recovering workaholic turned joy strategist—and her message couldn’t be more timely. In this episode, Amy joins John to share insights from her upcoming book Cheers to Monday , a science-backed guide to breaking the cycle of burnout and embracing joy as a leadership strategy. A former C-suite executive and advisor to Fortune 100 companies, Amy opens up about hitting rock bottom—no...

In this episode of Make It Happen Mondays , John Barrows sits down with Jake Stahl , a former top-tier sales trainer turned psychological strategist and the creator of NeuroStrategy™ —a groundbreaking approach that merges psychology, instructional design, and neuroscience to transform how companies train, sell, and scale. As the founder and CEO of Orchestraight , Jake has reimagined the sales enab...

Todd Caponi, bestselling author of The Transparency Sale and now The Transparent Negotiation , joins to talk about what sellers and leaders are still getting wrong about closing deals. He breaks down the four key levers every negotiation hinges on, and why transparency, when used right, is your strongest closing strategy. From reframing discounts as a payment for revenue predictability to exposing...