How Multipliers Build Winning Teams and Drive Unstoppable Growth
Why Leadership and Psychology Matter More Than Ever
The Power of Multipliers in Sales: Why Leadership and Psychology Matter More Than Ever
In any sales organization, leadership is the deciding factor between a high-performing, motivated team and a stagnant, struggling one. While many managers focus on processes, quotas, and strategies, the real difference comes down to how they lead and how well they understand people.
Every sales team has two types of leaders—Multipliers and Dividers. Multipliers elevate their teams, creating a culture of confidence, trust, and high performance. Dividers, on the other hand, drain energy, limit potential, and force people into a survival mindset. The gap between these two styles can mean the difference between record-breaking sales and high turnover.
A perfect example of this played out with two managers I observed in the same market, selling the same product, with access to the same resources. One transformed his team into a dominant force, while the other saw his team disengage and fall behind. The biggest difference? How they understood and leveraged psychology in leadership and sales.
When Mr. X. took over his team, he made it a priority to understand his people first. Instead of forcing a system on them, he met with each rep individually to uncover what motivated them. He listened more than he spoke, asking questions like:
What drives you?
What do you believe is holding you back?
What would make you excited to come to work every day?
By identifying their pain points and aspirations, he was able to tap into what made them want to perform at their best. He focused on empowerment rather than control, trusting his people to take ownership of their own success while holding them accountable to a high standard. Within a year, his team had increased sales by 42%, and retention was at an all-time high.
On the other hand, Mr. Z, the other manager, did the exact opposite. He was all about control—hoarding information, micromanaging every deal, and correcting people in public. He wanted to be the smartest person in the room, which made his team stop thinking for themselves. Instead of leveraging psychology to understand what motivated his reps, he used fear and pressure to drive performance. The result? A 18% drop in sales in just six months, along with a revolving door of frustrated employees.
The difference came down to one critical skill: the ability to understand human behavior.
The Number One Skill in Sales: Psychology
Sales isn’t about memorizing scripts or perfecting rebuttals. It’s about knowing why people buy and why they don’t. The best salespeople—and the best leaders—understand that emotion drives decision-making.
Think about it when people make a major purchase, whether it’s a car, a house, or a luxury item, logic justifies, but emotion decides. Customers buy because of how a product makes them feel safer, more successful, more in control, more aligned with their identity. If you don’t understand that, you’re just pushing features and hoping they stick.
This applies just as much to leadership. If you want to create a high-performing team, you have to tap into what drives people to excel. Fear-based leadership gets compliance, but it doesn’t build commitment. Multipliers create an environment where their team feels valued, inspired, and driven to succeed—not just for themselves, but for each other.
The best sales teams operate like elite sports teams. They trust each other, push each other, and thrive in a culture of healthy competition. When one person wins, the whole team wins. This kind of competition is contagious, and it only happens when a leader creates a culture where winning is expected.
What This Means for Sales Leaders
The sales landscape is evolving, and the leaders who thrive are the ones who understand people first.
If you want to be a Multiplier, ask yourself:
Are you empowering or controlling?
Are you listening or dictating?
Are you making your team smarter, or making yourself the only decision-maker?
Are you leading with psychology, or just process?
Are you FAKE and everyone knows it or are you a genuine human being?
When you get the psychology right, everything else follows. Sales will always be about people, emotion, and connection. The best leaders multiply the potential of those around them—not by force, but by understanding what makes them want to win.
That’s the difference between a good sales team and a great one. Which one will you build?