Click here to download the catalog as a PDF file. To view this site you need Adobe Flash Player and your browser must allow javaScripts. Go here to get the latest Flash Player. I asked Croot to give me one big lesson he has learned during his time in Iraq and Afghanistan “I have learned a lot, and our nation has learned a lot, over the last four years,” he says. “My directive as an Army Special Forces Soldier was to kill, capture, destroy, disrupt and deny the enemy. I now realize that is only 20 percent of what I do. Perhaps the more important 80 percent is to help Iraqi and Afghan people live normal lives. We want them to have schools, jobs and be able to provide for their families. If we do these things, we will gain their trust and then be able to help them even more.” As Croot spoke about his men, his mission and the people he was trying to help (Afghans and Iraqis), at times he got choked up. This man loves and believes in what he was doing, and it is his caring of others that is the fuel for his mission in the military. The more I listened to him, the more I realized that many of the same principles that he was discussing apply to great salespeople and leaders. Croot was what I call PRECISE. Competing against the Taliban For example, let me share with you a story about a “sales call” Croot made. It was Christmas 2004 and Croot was making a call in an Afghan village. That day, he was selling his favorite product he called “trust.” He had a huge quota on that product in ’04 and knew he had to make a ton of sales calls if he was ever going to have a successful year. But he also knew that many of his customers were buying from the competition known as Taliban Inc. Croot realized that if he came across as too pushy with his new prospects, they not only wouldn’t buy from him, they might even tell the competition what he was up to in their territory. But Croot wasn’t alone. His amazing sales administration director (his wife Tracy) thought that he could win over some customers with a little TLC, so she mailed some books and toys for Croot to hand out. With sales objective and product in hand, Croot stepped out of his car (HumVee) and approached an important prospect. There was immediate interest in what he was doing as many of the younger customers seemed happy to see him. The gatekeeper (an older Afghan man), however, was a bit apprehensive. He had never done business with Croot’s company before and wasn’t sure what to expect. Croot handed the man some toys and books to give out to his employees (kids) with hopes of making the gatekeeper look good. He thought it might be helpful to develop a “coach” in the organization who might tell others how CANVAS P37