Sales Never Stops, But Sometimes You Need to Strip It Down to the Essentials

May 25, 2025 | Sunday Sales Spark

Sales never truly stops. But after a big push, even the best of us hit a wall.

I just returned from the #VETS25 conference the week before last. And when executed well, conferences are a full-contact sport. There’s the prep beforehand, getting decks ready to present, lining up meetings, and making sure everything back at the office is handled before you leave. Then there’s the conference itself, speaking engagements, 1:1 strategy sessions, walking the exhibit hall, and hitting the networking receptions. And after it’s over? You’re not done. You’ve got to follow up with new connections while catching up on everything you missed.

And when I got back, life didn’t slow down, school activities, coaching baseball, kids’ sports. I was toast. So I made a conscious choice: I paused the one sales activity that was draining me most, social media.

And that’s the lesson. You don’t have to grind 100% of the time. When your energy dips, don’t hit the brakes entirely, just scale back to the essentials. Here are the four non-negotiables that I never pause, even during a recharge week:

1. Take care of your existing clients These are your easiest wins. Upsells, referrals, and follow-on work all come from keeping your current clients happy.
2. Follow up on open proposals You already have momentum here. A direct, assertive follow-up can move them closer to a decision. Don’t let these linger.
3. Don’t delay quoting Especially for product sellers, delays in quoting kill deals. Keep sending quotes on time.
4. Return messages within 24 hours Whether it’s a call, email, or LinkedIn message, respond. And if you can’t, set an out-of-office or autoresponder to manage expectations.

But everything else? You can take a short pause. Here are some sales activities you can set aside while you reset:

• Cold prospecting – Starting new conversations requires energy. Press pause and come back fresh.
• Social media content – This was the one I dropped. Key to our strategy, yes. Essential to execute all the time? Not when you’re recovering.
• Podcast appearances or interviews – Valuable, but you need to be at your best. Reschedule if you’re running low.
• CRM hygiene and admin – Data entry can wait a few days.
• Planning for the next conference – After a big event, don’t immediately dive into the next one. Debrief first. Recharge.

One more thing, put a time limit on your pause.

For me, I gave myself one week. Not two. Not “whenever I feel like it.” A week. Then I was back. It’s too easy to let a short break become a long slump.

Burnout sneaks up when we push without recovering. So be strategic. Strip things down, protect your essentials, and give yourself space to breathe. Sales never stops, but you don’t have to run at full speed to keep moving forward.

If you like what you see in this article and are ready to get to work on increasing your product sales margins, click here to schedule a call with me. Let’s put together a plan that works.

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