Shift the Way You Sell: Make Impact the Goal

When you listen to Lenny Andrichuk speak, you don’t hear a pitch. You hear a person who understands people. And that’s exactly why his approach to sales works, especially in complex industries like infrastructure, engineering, and manufacturing, where deals are long, trust takes time, and credibility can’t be faked. 

In Episode 16 of Driving Growth, Lenny Andrichuk shared five decades of experience in building trust, delivering value, and growing revenue through human connection. You’ll learn what it takes to succeed in complex sales: emotional intelligence, long-term thinking, and a genuine commitment to outcomes that matter. It’s a challenge to reframe what sales even is. 

For B2B organizations building a Go-To-Market system that can scale, Lenny’s story is both a masterclass and a reminder: Sales is a craft rooted in trust, purpose, and the impact you create for your customers. 

“Don’t be a salesman. Don’t sell. Be someone they trust.” 

Whether you’re a founder doing your own selling, or a seasoned leader committed to building a repeatable system, Lenny’s approach will make you rethink how you connect, how you convert, and how you create impact that lasts. 

He’s how he does it. 

1. Open Relationships, Not Just Deals 

The best salespeople don’t sell. They listen. They guide. They position for impact. 

Lenny doesn’t talk about sales pipelines. He talks about people, and his success has come from consistently choosing long-term relationships over short-term wins. 

“Locking in 52-week contracts wasn’t about controlling clients. It gave me the time to serve them better and to bring them more insight.” 

In sectors where you’re selling complex solutions or services, this isn’t a tactic, it’s how you create capacity to serve your customers better. You’re not just closing. You’re becoming part of your customer’s operation. 

2. Retention Is Where Growth Happens 

Lenny puts it bluntly: most companies obsess over new business and ignore the clients they’ve already earned. 

“Telecoms will spend $2,800 to acquire a new client and zero on keeping the ones they have. That’s backwards.”

Instead, Lenny focused on locking in long-term relationships and using that stability to drive proactive service, bring more strategic insight, and deepen the partnership. 

Every sale is just the beginning. If you operate within a mature Go-To-Market system, that first deal becomes a long-term, high-value relationship because retention and expansion aren’t afterthoughts. They’re built in. 

3. The Best Sales Openers Don’t Sound Like Sales at All 

Lenny doesn’t walk into meetings trying to “sell.” He walks in ready to connect as himself. 

“You don’t have to be the loudest guy in the room. You just have to be real. Customers can tell when you’re not.” 

He tells a story about walking into a running shoe store and the salesperson hit him with the usual line: “Looking for running shoes today?” 

Lenny’s deadpan response? “No, I’m looking for toilet seats.” 

That one-liner says everything about his approach: drop the script, stop performing, and just be human. For B2B sales teams, this is where deals begin. With transparency, presence, and a willingness to connect. Show up curious. Be helpful. Be genuine. And remember, no one wants to be sold, but everyone wants to feel understood. 

4. Earn the Yes Before You Ever Ask for It 

At a sales seminar, someone once asked Lenny, “What’s the best way to overcome objections?” 

He didn’t hesitate. “Don’t back yourself into a corner to get one.” 

To Lenny, sales isn’t about handling objections. It’s about caring enough to show up prepared. Knowing the client’s world. Understanding what they’re up against. Bringing something to the table that matters. That’s not just strategy. That’s respect. And when you lead with that kind of intention, people feel it. If you want to stand out in industries built on trust, this is where it starts. Not with what you say, but with the work you put in before the conversation even begins. 

5. Sales is the Starting Point. Impact is the Real Job. 

When Lenny talks about what he does, he doesn’t initially mention sales. He talks about impact. 

“People ask me what I do, and I tell them: I help governments lower infrastructure costs so they can invest in healthcare. I create employment. I bring new tech to market. That’s what I do.” 

That’s the mindset of someone who sees the bigger picture. Not just the deal, but the difference it makes. This is what great sales leaders understand: Your job is to solve problems. To move your clients forward. To build something that matters. When your strategy is grounded in that kind of purpose, it shows. Clients lean in. Your team rallies. And your impact compounds. 

One conversation, one solution, one relationship at a time. 

How to Turn Insight into Impact 

Lenny’s approach to sales is a mindset and a structured, practiced method. Here’s how to turn these insights into a sales strategy that builds trust, drives value, and creates real, lasting impact: 

1. Lead with integrity.  
   Start every conversation with transparency and intention. Great sales isn’t about persuasion, it’s about being someone your customer can count on. 
2. Serve with consistency. 
   Trust is earned through follow-through. Show up the same way every time: prepared, reliable, and committed to their success. 
3. Measure success by impact. 
   Measure your success by the outcome you help create for your client, their team, and the people they serve. 
4. Refine, don’t replace. 
   You don’t need to reinvent your sales strategy every quarter. Improve what works. Build on what lasts. Make your process stronger with every cycle. 
5. Understand your customer. 
   Know their world better than they do. Study the market. Ask deeper questions. Bring insights they haven’t considered. That’s how you become indispensable. 

Final Thought: Don’t Be a Salesman. Don’t Sell. 

The way Lenny approaches sales isn’t just different. It’s more human. More compelling. More durable. That’s the mindset shift that elevates every part of your sales strategy. When you lead with impact, sales becomes more than a job, it becomes a way to build trust, solve problems, and create lasting value.

With this approach, you can build a sales strategy you’re proud to stand behind. Not just because it works, but because it matters. 

Want more insight like this? 

Listen to my full conversation with Lenny Andrichuk on Driving Growth or