I recently caught up with a friend of mine, someone who has held senior sales leadership roles and has extensive knowledge of business development. He told me he enjoys reading my BD articles, but then he admitted something that made me smile. “Doug, I like the ideas, but sometimes I just don’t know how to put them into action.”

If a seasoned BD pro can feel that way, no wonder the rest of us do too. We all fall into the gap between knowing what to do and knowing how to do it. And in business development, that gap is where momentum often gets lost.
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It’s a little like football—you don’t score points just by drawing up clever plays on the whiteboard. You’ve got to execute the plays. As a big American football fan, this time of year always gets me fired up. Preseason is over; it’s time to kick off the season. And just like on the field, in business development, it’s not the playbook that wins the game; it’s running the plays.

Last week at the park, my 4-year-old daughter, Macie, was carrying a brand-new pink plastic cup from the ice cream store.

Out of nowhere she said, “Daddy, I want to fill this with special things—like diamonds.”

I told her, “If you fill it with diamonds, you’ll be a rich princess.”

She looked at me and said, “Daddy, it’s not about being rich. It’s about being special.”

Of course, my adult brain immediately thought, Well, being both would be nice… But she’s right—special beats rich.
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I had to chuckle at Macie’s comment because it applies to most things in life—and especially to having the right mindset in business development. Many firms make revenue targets the primary measure of success, so it’s no surprise professionals get caught up in the dollars. But when money becomes the goal instead of the outcome, it pushes you toward short-sighted decisions that kill trust, erode relationships, and burn bridges you might need later.

’m writing this from Costa Brava, Spain, where my family and I are spending ten days exploring the coast, soaking in the culture, and getting our fill of castles, beaches, and Mediterranean food.

One thing that’s hard to miss here: the pace. Everything moves slower—and it’s by design. Shops and restaurants shut down in the afternoon for siesta. People take their time. There’s less urgency, yet everything still gets done.

My wife and I have also been getting in some beautiful bike rides through the hills and along the coast. The theme is the same: slow, steady, and intentional often beats fast and reactive.

It’s a good reminder that slowing down often leads to better outcomes—in life, and in business development.​

I’m currently traveling through northern Spain with my family. We’ve been exploring new cities, leaning on our basic Spanish, and doing our best to communicate with a mix of words, gestures, and context clues.

What’s stood out to me is that we're not alone. Every day, I see people from all over the world trying to speak the local language. Some are better than others, but most are struggling just like we are.

Many don’t even try. They jump straight into English and hope the locals will adapt. Sometimes that works, but more often, it creates a little distance. You can feel it.

But when someone makes the effort, even if they butcher the pronunciation, something shifts. The locals lean in. They appreciate the attempt. They meet you halfway because effort shows respect.
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The same thing happens in business development.

I just got back from packing up and moving out of our house in Rancho Mirage. We sold it recently, and it was bittersweet. We loved that house and the memories we made there, but it just wasn’t the right investment for our family in the long run.

It was 117 degrees while we packed (which we won’t miss), and we decided to drive the full nine hours back to Truckee in one shot—kids, U-Haul trailer, and all. We assumed it would be too much, but it turned out to be doable. Tiring, yes. But worth it.

And it got me thinking…
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In business development, we often cling to strategies, habits, or even relationships because of how much time or effort we’ve already put into them, even if they’re no longer serving us. Like a vacation home that used to make sense but now drains more than it gives.

As someone who raced cross-country mountain bikes for years, I know firsthand that the key to riding fast, especially on tough terrain, isn’t just about fitness. It’s about staying relaxed, even when the trail gets rough. The more relaxed you are, the more control you have, and with more control comes speed, both uphill and downhill.

That’s why I was especially excited to see Christopher Blevins at the top of the men’s mountain biking World Cup standings, something we haven’t seen from an American male in this European-dominated sport in over 30 years.

His secret? As Blevins says, “Cross-country racing is a game of how much you can be at ease with effort.” Most elite riders understand this concept. The ones who can truly master it are the ones who rise to the top.
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This mindset applies to business development, as well.

Last week, I was talking with a client who felt stuck. She had sent over ten thoughtful check-in emails to former clients, people with whom she had strong relationships, and mainly received silence in return. A couple of polite replies, but nothing that led to a conversation.

She asked, “Should I stop trying? I don’t want to come across as annoying.”

I told her, “This is actually what business development looks like. You’re practicing professional persistence.”

That phrase has come up a lot lately. The hardest part of BD isn’t the strategy; it’s the follow-through. It’s finding a natural rhythm to stay in touch, showing your contacts that you’re thinking about them and available, without being a nuisance.
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And it works.

The day before our first Little League game, one of my son Lukas’s teammates, Ryden, showed up to practice with his arm in a cast. He was devastated. He had been looking forward to playing baseball all year.

But he didn’t think about going home.

Instead, he asked if he could still be part of the team. I said, “Of course!”

Ryden stayed. He ran drills as best he could. He even took batting practice — one-handed. Lukas couldn’t stop talking about it for days. Neither could some of the other kids.
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And to be honest, I couldn’t stop thinking about it either.

Now that Easter and Spring Break are behind us, it’s a great time to reset and refocus.

Coming out of spring break, a few clients mentioned having a hard time finding their rhythm again. Honestly, I felt it, too. We were down in Palm Springs for the week with the family, and it took me a couple of days to get my own BD swing back. That stuck with me, so let’s talk about how to get the wheel turning.

There’s a moment in business development when things just click.

You’re not pushing as hard, yet conversations feel easier. New opportunities show up more regularly. It’s like a flywheel finally catching speed.

That’s not magic; it’s momentum.

The professionals I coach who consistently generate business aren’t necessarily the most connected, the most charismatic, or the loudest voices in the room. They’re the ones who keep showing up. They check in with their network. They follow up. They ask better questions. And over time, those small, intentional actions start to compound.
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That’s the BD flywheel.

Business development is still about curiosity, follow-up, and staying visible. That hasn’t changed. What has changed is how efficiently we can do those things if we’re willing to experiment. AI won’t do the work for you, but it can remove friction and help you move faster.
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Professionals who integrate AI into their BD routines are freeing up time, staying more visible, and following through more consistently without having to work harder or become “tech people.”

​Here are a few areas where I’m seeing AI make a real difference: