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1) Trust your hopes, not your fears.

2) The biggest mistake you can make is to be afraid of making one.

3) If you want respect, have self-respect and give respect.

4) Expect today to be a great day.

5) Always finish what you start.

As a member of the board of directors for the Niles, IL, Chamber of Commerce, and of the Deerfield, Bannockburn, Riverwoods Chamber of Commerce, Randolph Sterling offers all current Niles or DBR Chamber members a discount on sales consulting services.

Randolph Sterling, Inc. is a corporation which specializes in strategic business development consulting for small, medium and large businesses and for individuals. Richard Burghgraef is the President of Randolph Sterling, Inc. He has over 15 years experience as a sales account executive, sales manager, sales consultant, operations director and employment services professional, working with individuals as well as small, mid-sized and large businesses including Pfizer, Schering Plough, Seton Hall University, KSR Fasteners, Inc., Carlson Wagonlit, Milmour, Alliance for Affordable Insurance, Elite Staffing, and Howard Johnson Hotels. He holds a Bachelor of Business Administration Degree in Marketing from Pace University’s Lubin School of Business.

Mr. Burghgraef is also an avid fan of baseball, which he says helped him in sales because, “In baseball, you fail 7 out of 10 times and you go to the Hall of Fame. In sales, you work with a lot of rejection as well, especially if your sale involves a lot of cold calling, as mine have in the past. Much like the ballplayer who goes up to bat every time understanding that the odds are not in his favor but still knowing he is going to get a hit, the sales professional goes into every call understanding that there are a million reasons not to buy, but knowing that he is going to make the sale.”

Mr. Burghgraef is involved in several networking, community and business groups, serving:

	Board of Directors, Deerfield, Bannockburn, Riverwoods Chamber of Commerce
	Chairman, Ambassadors Committee, DBR Chamber of Commerce
	Board of Directors, Niles Chamber of Commerce
	Chairman, Marketing Committee, Niles Chamber of Commerce
	Board of Advisors, Optimal Level Center for Professional Development
	President of the Niles, Wilmette & Morton Grove Chamber of Commerce’s Business and Consumer Resources networking and leads group
	President of the Chicagoland Small Business Forum
	Vice President of the Northshore Networkers networking group.

Lisa Pickens is Manager of Outsourced Sales and SAM Group Membership Manager for Randolph Sterling, Inc. She has over 10 years of sales experience as a sales account executive and manager, specializing in mid-sized and large corporations coast to coast, including Million Dollar Round Table, IRI, Laurens Restoration, Zender Enterprises, and Injury Prevention Technologies.

“Continuing to cultivate new client relationships is the lifeblood of any company,” Mrs. Pickens states when speaking about the Outsourced Sales Department. “I really enjoy working with our clients to help them to find the right combination of customer service, personal attention, and client focused communication to build relationships with their ideal prospects."

As for the SAM Peer Advisory Groups, Lisa says, “A successful sales force not only helps to communicate the company's message in a positive way, but also facilitates problem solving to retain a high level of customer satisfaction, which leads to repeat business. By helping to get sales and marketing professionals working together and sharing ideas, we assist in not only their growth but in raising the value of the entire sales and marketing industry.”

“My region had the lowest revenue production and highest turnover rate in the company, but after working with Randolph Sterling all of my sales reps made their quota and five won sales awards.”

-Nick Charles, Regional Sales Manager, KSR Fasteners, Inc.

Watching the number 8 hitter get walked and then seeing pitchers try to hit is a disgrace to baseball, but the designated hitter takes away from the strategy of the game.

Baseball should change the rules to allow the designated hitter for both leagues. They should expand the rosters to 28 players and every time a pitching change is made, the designated hitter is replaced in his next at bat.