About SkillWell Strategies
Why I started SkillWell Strategies
Selling sits at the center of keeping a business alive, but many people in sales related roles never get much intentional support in how to do it well. The focus is usually on targets and outcomes, not on building the skills and confidence that make those outcomes more likely.
After 12 years at Verizon, working with sales teams and new leaders, I wanted to take what I had seen work in that environment and make it accessible to individual sellers and growing businesses who do not typically have a dedicated enablement or training team.
SkillWell Strategies exists to offer thoughtful, practical help to people who carry sales responsibility, whether they chose sales on purpose or picked it up along the way.
What I believe about selling
A few beliefs shape how I work at SkillWell Strategies:
Selling should feel honest. If you have to become a different person to sell, the approach will not last.
Skills beat scripts. You need ways to listen, ask, and respond in the moment, not just lines to memorize.
Practice is where confidence comes from. People do not improve because they heard a great idea once. They improve when they try it, get feedback, and try again.
Simple structure wins. Clear next steps, checklists, and small adjustments beat complicated systems that never make it out of a notebook.
The goal is not to turn you into a stereotypical salesperson. It is to help you have better conversations with the right people so the right work moves forward.
Michael Thompson
Founder & Sales Coach
I founded SkillWell Strategies after 12 years with Verizon.
I spent my first four years there in sales roles, carrying a quota and working directly with customers. That experience gave me a front row seat to what selling feels like in real life, not just in a training room.
From there I moved into Learning and Development, where I focused on helping sales teams and new leaders perform. Most of my time was spent facilitating onboarding and upskilling programs, leading sessions for leaders who were new in role, and working with sales reps and support teams in classrooms and virtual meetings. I listened to what was actually happening in their day to day work and helped adjust how we taught so it was worth their time and showed up in real conversations with customers.
I am also a Certified Professional in Training Management (CPTM), and I hold an M.A. in Education. I have always been pulled toward roles where I can support others and see them succeed. SkillWell Strategies is where that purpose continues, with a focus on the sales side of the work.
What working together feels like
Whether you join a group workshop or work with me one to one, the feel is similar:
We start from your real world. The material connects to actual calls, emails, and sales moments you are facing, not hypotheticals.
You get room to practice. In workshops, that looks like small group breakouts, role plays, and live coaching. In one to one sessions, it looks like rehearsing upcoming conversations and debriefing what happened.
We keep it straightforward. I use plain language and practical tools so you leave knowing what to try next, not wondering what the model was called.
You always have a next step. Every session, group or individual, ends with something specific you can take into your next sales conversation.
If you want aggressive, high pressure tactics, I am probably not the right fit. If you want a thoughtful partner to help you make sales feel clearer, more grounded, and more sustainable, we will likely work well together.
Where to go next
If you are just getting to know SkillWell Strategies, a good place to start is the free Sales Confidence Session. It gives you a feel for how I think about sales and how I teach.
If you already know you want more support, you can explore the different ways to work together and then reach out so we can decide on a starting point together.