You’ve been crushing it as a closer—top of the leaderboard, handling every sales call like a pro. But stepping into leadership? That’s a whole new game. It’s not just about getting your team to close better deals; it’s about managing people, solving bigger problems, and making decisions you’ve never had to worry about before. Many new leaders struggle with this transition, and if you don’t adapt fast, you might feel like you’re failing at the very thing you thought you’d master.

If you’re serious about becoming a true sales leader, especially in a remote setting, you need to ditch the old closer mentality. Leadership is about data-driven decisions, building systems, and leading people—not just coaching reps or closing deals. Let’s dive into the mindset shifts and strategies that will take you from a great closer to an even better leader.

Main Points:

1. Leadership Isn’t Just Coaching—It’s Data-Driven Decision Making

Most closers stepping into leadership make the mistake of thinking their main responsibility is simply coaching their team to be better on sales calls. Sure, coaching is part of it, but great leadership is about understanding the bigger picture—and that’s where data comes in.

As a leader, you need to have clear data points guiding your decisions. This means tracking performance metrics across the entire sales process, from setters to closers. You should be asking questions like:

• What’s the show rate for individual setters?
• What are the close rates for each closer?
• Is a high-quality setter making it easier for closers to win deals?
• How many of these calls are truly qualified?

Without this data, you’re flying blind. You might coach a rep to close better, but if your leads aren’t qualified or your offer is off, the problem goes deeper than their technique. Leaders make data-driven decisions, not just gut calls.

According to the Sales Management Association, companies that use data to drive decisions see a 15-20% increase in sales productivity compared to those that don’t.

2. Drop the Ego: Leadership Isn’t About Being the Smartest Person in the Room

The hardest shift for many top closers is dropping the ego. You’ve been the smartest person in the room when it comes to closing deals. But leadership isn’t about proving how good you are—it’s about making others better. To be a successful leader, you need to let go of your need to control every aspect of the sales process.

Leadership requires humility and foresight. You can’t just rely on coaching your team through tough calls—you need a repeatable system that addresses deeper issues. Whether it’s optimizing your offer or streamlining how deals move through the pipeline, leadership is about creating frameworks your team can lean on, so they don’t have to depend on you for every solution.

When I first stepped into leadership, I made this exact mistake. I thought I just needed to coach closers on how to close better, but I overlooked a bigger problem: the offer itself was flawed. We were selling for a PR agency with a wide pricing range, from $10k to $100k+. The offer wasn’t clear, and closers had to figure out what the client needed on the fly. We were making their jobs harder because our system was broken.

It wasn’t until I stepped back, fixed the offer, and revamped our systems that we started seeing real consistency. Great closers can only do so much without the right support.

3. Remote Sales Leadership: It’s All About Communication

Leading a remote sales team is a different ballgame from in-office leadership. You can’t just walk into someone’s office or have a quick face-to-face conversation to clear things up. Communication is everything, and the best remote sales leaders know how to stay hyper-connected with their teams.

The challenge? Many people in remote sales struggle with communication. Messages get ignored, emails go unanswered, and miscommunication causes major problems. If your team isn’t communicating effectively, it’s hard to build trust, manage accountability, and hit your targets.

The best communicators in remote sales are the ones who thrive. That means frequent check-ins, clear expectations, and making yourself available for questions, even if it’s through Slack or Zoom. Tools like ClickUp can help here, especially if you use custom fields and dashboards to track your team’s progress and communication.

Set up regular 1:1s and use dashboards in ClickUp to monitor each rep’s progress. Don’t just react to communication issues—create a culture where your team feels comfortable asking questions and giving feedback.

4. The Biggest Mistake New Leaders Make: Not Taking Action

One of the most common pitfalls for closers-turned-leaders is making zero changes when they step into the role. They keep closing deals, do a few pipeline updates with other closers, and fail to implement any real leadership strategies. In other words, they stay closers with a new title.

As a leader, your job is no longer to be on every sales call. Your focus should shift to systems, processes, and people management. If you keep closing deals yourself, you’re not empowering your team to take ownership or build their skills. Leadership is about creating frameworks that allow your team to succeed independently.

Actionable Steps:

• Create clear processes and SOPs for your team to follow.
• Delegate key responsibilities and trust your team to handle them.
• Use tools like ClickUp to keep track of pipeline performance without micromanaging.

5. Balancing Accountability and Autonomy

New leaders often struggle to find the right balance between overseeing their team and giving them autonomy. The truth is, this balance depends on your team’s level of experience. Less experienced team members might need more help early on, especially with technical tools and SOPs, while seasoned closers might thrive with more independence.

Here’s how to approach it:

• Early Stage: Provide more hands-on support. Be available for questions, offer guidance on using tech and tools, and walk them through your expectations for pipeline management.
• Later Stage: Gradually step back. Trust your team to manage themselves and handle key responsibilities. Let them learn from their mistakes and encourage independent decision-making.

This balance isn’t static—it changes as your team develops. Over time, you’ll find that trusting your team to operate independently is what will ultimately make them stronger closers.

Actionable Tips to Apply This Week:

1. Start Tracking the Right KPIs:
   Set up dashboards that track show rates, close rates, and qualified call rates for each rep. Use these data points to identify bottlenecks in your process and make informed coaching decisions.
2. Delegate One Task You’ve Been Holding Onto:
   Pick one responsibility you’ve been reluctant to delegate and give it to someone on your team. Provide them with the necessary resources and autonomy to complete it.
3. Set Up Consistent 1:1s:
   Schedule weekly or bi-weekly 1:1s with each team member. These meetings should focus on their personal development, challenges, and feedback—not just pipeline updates.
4. Build a Culture of Communication:
   Encourage your team to ask questions and offer feedback frequently. Make yourself available for regular check-ins and establish communication norms (e.g., response times, best platforms).

Conclusion:

The leap from closer to sales leader is all about mindset shifts and building systems that set your team up for success. It’s no longer about closing deals yourself—it’s about creating a high-performance environment where your team can thrive. Start making data-driven decisions, focus on communication, and remember: leadership is about empowering others, not being the smartest person in the room.

Next Week: We’ll dive into a leadership self-assessment to see where your strengths lie—and where you can improve.

Call to Action:

If you’re ready to take your sales leadership skills to the next level, I’m launching an exclusive community designed to help you scale efficiently. Inside, you’ll get:

• Custom GPT tools to enhance your leadership decision-making and productivity.
• Step-by-step ClickUp setups tailored for remote sales teams to streamline processes.
• In-depth leadership insights on building high-performance teams without burning out.

If you want early access to these resources when we go live, email grow@stevenwerley.com and I’ll make sure you’re first in line!