I help sales professionals and business owners create sales meetings in minutes by starting with the one thing that drives every result: mindset.
As a Mindset Coach, Business and Sales Consultant, and Owner of Lisa Thal Consulting, I partner with leaders and teams who want consistent growth, not one-time wins. I blend real-world sales strategy with practical mindset tools so sellers stay focused, confident and disciplined, even when business is noisy, competitive or uncertain.
I am the Author of Three Word Meetings and CEO of The Three Word Podcast, where I use simple three-word themes to shift thinking, spark better conversations and move people to action.
Episodes
3 hours ago
3 hours ago
7 min
Choose to Change
Change nothing, and nothing changes.
Is there something you've wanted to change but aren't sure how to start, or why it matters? This episode is for you.
Lisa talks about what it takes to get off autopilot and make a real choice to change. It starts with one honest sentence, "I don't like where I am," and one decision, "I want to make my life better."
Lisa shares her own story of changing her mindset first. After 39 years in broadcasting, she faced a season that asked more of her than her career could give. Olivia's cancer diagnosis. Her 95-year-old mom living with vascular dementia. Her sisters carrying so much of the care. The story in her head said she could not walk away at 59. So she changed the story and found her why. That shift became her WIN framework. What's Important Now.
In this episode:
- Why autopilot feels safe and keeps you stuck
- Step 1 of any change: naming what you do not like
- Why mindset is often the first thing to change
- Small, specific actions for your health, your job, and your relationships
- How adding one thing that gives you energy can fuel the change you choose
This week's challenge:
Name the one thing you do not like. Choose one small action. Do it today.
3 Words: Choose to Change.
If this episode speaks to you, share it with someone who may be ready for their own next chapter.
You Got This!
Oct 6, 2026
Oct 6, 2026
6 min
The 30 Minutes That Could Change Your Business
Your calendar is full, your responsibilities keep growing, and the one project that could improve your business keeps getting pushed to another day.
In this episode of the Three Word Podcast, Lisa shares a conversation with a busy friend who knows exactly what she needs to complete but cannot seem to find the time. The solution may not be clearing an entire day. It may be protecting thirty focused minutes.
Thirty minutes a day, five days a week, adds up to two and a half hours each week, approximately ten hours each month, and nearly 130 hours over a year.
Imagine what that focused time could do for your business, your skills, and your revenue.
In this episode, you will learn:
• Why urgent priorities often crowd out important work
• How to identify the one thing that could move your business forward
• How to choose the best time based on your energy and focus
• Why scheduling the time is more effective than waiting to find it
• How small, consistent actions can build momentum and create results
Your challenge this week is to identify your one thing, choose your best thirty minutes, and place it on your calendar.
Your three words: Protect Your Thirty.
Sep 22, 2026
Sep 22, 2026
8 min
Three simple words can carry the weight of regret or reveal the possibility of change:
I wish I.
In this episode of the Three Word Podcast, Lisa reflects on the wishes people often carry through their careers, relationships, and personal lives.
We want to build something meaningful, become a stronger version of ourselves, and create deeper relationships. Yet when progress feels slow, it can be tempting to stop before our effort has time to produce results.
Lisa also shares what caring for her 95-year-old mother and supporting her wife Olivia through cancer taught her about time, presence, and the danger of waiting for someday.
When people look back on their lives, they may wish they had spent more time with the people they loved, trusted themselves enough to take more chances, and worried less while enjoying more.
The question is not only what you may wish for someday. It is what you can do about it today.
In this episode:
-
How “I wish I” can represent regret or possibility
-
Three wishes people often abandon when results come slowly
-
Three things people may wish they had done differently
-
Why a lack of visible progress does not mean nothing is happening
-
How to replace wishful thinking with intentional action
-
Why someday is not a day of the week
This week’s challenge:
Complete this sentence:
I wish I would…
Then rewrite it using action.
“I wish I would make the call” becomes “I am making the call.”
Choose one wish you have been carrying and take one step toward it before the end of the week.
Finish the sentence. Listen to your answer. Then take action that can help you replace “I wish I” with three new words:
Glad I Did.
Sep 8, 2026
Sep 8, 2026
5 min
Why Does Motivation Keep Letting You Down?
Motivation gets you off the couch. It doesn't keep you in the room.
We wake up motivated to make the calls, eat better, drink more water, be more present with the people we love. Then something happens, the morning gets hard, and the motivation is gone. In this episode, Lisa makes the case for the thing that actually carries you when the feeling walks out: a standard.
A goal you either hit or miss. A standard you get to live up to every single day. It's the line you hold no matter how the day is going — the effort you give on your hardest day that looks exactly like the effort you give on your best.
Lisa also reflects on the loss of Dolly Parton, and why so many of us feel like we lost someone we knew. Most of us never met her. We felt her standard anyway. That's what a standard does. It reaches people you'll never meet.
In this episode:
Why motivation is a feeling, and why feelings come and go.
The difference between chasing motivation and honoring a standard.
The one question to ask before your next hard call.
What Dolly Parton's life teaches us about the reach of a standard.
Three words: Standards Over Motivation.
You got this.
Aug 25, 2026
Aug 25, 2026
8 min
During my early-morning runs, I have been passing children waiting for the school bus, wearing new backpacks and fresh clothes, with parents making sure they have everything they need.
It took me back to the days when I was the one standing at the bus stop. I started thinking about the advice I would give that younger version of myself.
I would tell her that the most important decision was not what to wear on the first day, which classes to take, or where to sit on the bus.
The bigger decision was this:
Who do you want to become by the time the school year is over?
That question is not only for students.
Maybe you are helping your child prepare for a new school year while quietly thinking about something you want to change in your own life.
A business you want to start.
A healthier life you want to create.
A book you want to write.
A new direction you want to explore.
Picture yourself one year from today. What would you love to be able to say you started?
You do not need to have every step figured out. You may only need to make one clear decision, commit to the next small action, and begin before you feel completely ready.
In this episode of the Three Word Podcast, I share three words that could change the direction of your next year:
Decide. Commit. Begin.
What is one thing you are deciding to begin?
Share it in the comments. Naming it could be your first step.
Listen to the episode : It is posted in the comment section.
#ThreeWordPodcast #Mindset #PersonalGrowth #DecideCommitBegin
Aug 11, 2026
Aug 11, 2026
8 min
One exit on the drive to a golf tournament took me back 39 years to the beginning of my sales career at WSWO and WKFI radio stations in Wilmington, Ohio.
At 21 years old, I walked into Bright Appliances ready to present my first radio commercial. Instead, the cassette player ate my tape, the owner blamed me for breaking it, and I left the store in tears wondering whether sales was the right profession for me.
I had a decision to make. I could allow that experience to define me, or I could learn from it and try again.
I returned to the station, recreated the commercial, and went back the next day with a new tape and my own cassette player. The client loved the commercial and purchased the advertising schedule.
In this episode, I share how that early experience helped shape my 39-year journey as a sales professional, leader, and mindset coach.
You will discover:
- Why one difficult moment does not define your ability or future
- How resilience is built through experience
- The importance of managing your emotions and taking the next step
- How to shift your mindset from failure to learning
- Why growth happens when you apply what an experience teaches you
The experience may be painful, but it does not have to become failure. It can become information.
If something is not going as planned, give yourself a moment to feel it. Then look for the lesson, adjust your approach, and try again.
Keep pursuing. Keep learning. Keep growing.
Three-Word Takeaway
Learn and Grow
Reflection Question
What experience in your life or career could become a lesson that helps you move forward?
Until Next Time, my friend.
Jul 28, 2026
Jul 28, 2026
7 min
The Moment You Can't Afford to Miss.
How a NATALIE moment could change your life, business, or future
Not every hour carries the same importance.
In his book What to Make of a Life, Jim Collins introduces the idea of a NATALIE moment:
Not All Time in Life Is Equal.
Some moments may look ordinary at first but carry the potential to change everything that follows. It could be an unexpected business opportunity, an important conversation, a new relationship, or time with someone you love.
In this episode of the Three Word Podcast, Lisa shares how to recognize these moments and respond with the attention, energy, and courage they deserve.
You’ll discover:
- Why not every opportunity deserves an equal response
- How to recognize a potential turning point in your life or business
- Why being fully present may help you see what busyness hides
- How to invest more intentionally in meaningful people and opportunities
- Three questions to help identify what deserves more of you right now
Your calendar divides time into equal blocks. Your life does not.
This week, remember these three words:
Notice the Moment.
Listener Reflection
Consider these three questions:
- What deserves more of my attention right now?
- Who has entered my life that I should invest more time in?
- What opportunity might I regret treating as ordinary?
Some moments look ordinary until you realize they had the power to change everything. This episode may help you recognize the next one.
Until Next Time, my friend.
Jul 14, 2026
Jul 14, 2026
8 min
Practice Makes Permanent
We were all taught the phrase, “Practice makes perfect.”
The intention was good. Keep working. Keep improving. Keep showing up.
But chasing perfection can create anxiety, pressure, and hesitation. It can keep us from making the call, having the conversation, giving the presentation, or trying something new.
In this episode of the Three Word Podcast, Lisa Thal shares a powerful mindset shift:
Practice Makes Permanent.
What we repeat, we reinforce. What we practice consistently becomes part of who we are.
Top athletes do not wait for game day to find confidence. They practice the shot, the swing, the footwork, and the routine until it becomes natural.
Top sales professionals do the same. They practice opening calls, asking better questions, listening longer, responding to objections, and creating clear next steps.
This episode is a reminder that practice is not about becoming perfect or scripted. It is about becoming prepared.
Key Takeaways:
Practice does not make perfect. Practice makes permanent.
What you repeat, you reinforce.
Confidence is not something you wait for. It is something you build.
The habits you practice today are shaping who you become tomorrow.
Practice can make the right behaviors permanent, but it can also make rushing, avoidance, and excuses permanent.
Preparation creates confidence before the pressure arrives.
Reflection Question:
What are you practicing right now that is becoming permanent?
This Week’s Challenge:
Pick one skill, behavior, mindset, conversation, or habit you want to strengthen.
Practice it with intention.
Practice it when it feels awkward.
Practice it before you need it.
Practice it when no one is watching.
Because when the moment comes, you want your preparation to meet the opportunity.
Three Words:
Practice Makes Permanent
If this episode landed with you, share it with someone on your team who may be chasing perfect. They may need the reminder that they do not have to be perfect. They just have to practice what they want to become permanent.
You Got This.
Jun 30, 2026
Jun 30, 2026
6 min
In this Fourth of July-inspired episode of the Three Word Podcast, Lisa Thal shares a mindset message around personal independence, action, and creating momentum.
The episode theme is Red, White and You, and the three-word topic is Light Your Fuse.
As we celebrate freedom, fireworks, family, and the Fourth of July, this episode invites listeners to look inward and ask: What do I need to free myself from? What is one action I need to take? What is one thing I need to say no to?
Lisa reminds us that a fuse may be small, but once it is lit, it sets something bigger in motion. The same may be true in our lives. We often wait for confidence, clarity, or perfect timing, but momentum often starts with one decision, one commitment, one conversation, or one brave no.
Three Word Topic:
Light Your Fuse
Episode Theme:
Red, White and You
In this episode, you will hear about:
The meaning of personal independence
Why one small action can create momentum
How saying no can create more space and energy
Why confidence often comes after action
The importance of keeping one promise to yourself
How to move from waiting to doing
Why freedom is something we practice through our choices
Key Takeaways:
A small spark can set something bigger in motion.
You do not need to change everything. You need to choose one thing.
Every yes has a cost, and every no creates space.
Confidence is built through action, follow-through, and self-trust.
Mindset is not only about thinking better thoughts. It is about making better choices.
Freedom may begin with one decision, one action, and one brave no.
Listener Challenge:
This week, choose one thing to do and one thing to say no to.
Ask yourself:
What is one action that could move me forward?
What is one thing I need to say no to so I can create more space?
What would personal independence look like for me right now?
Closing Thought:
The spark you are waiting for may not be in the sky. It may already be in you.
You just have to light it.
Until Next Time.
Jun 16, 2026
Jun 16, 2026
10 min
Episode 298:
Sales is a numbers game, but it is also an effectiveness game. The way you approach someone new can determine whether they lean in, listen, or shut the conversation down.
Three Words:
Your Approach Matters
Episode Summary:
In this episode, Lisa shares a real-life moment with a young pest control salesperson who was cold-knocking in her mom’s neighborhood. His effort, courage, and activity were impressive, but the conversation created a bigger lesson for every sales professional: activity matters, but the approach behind the activity matters even more.
Lisa breaks down how salespeople can create better first impressions with new prospects by being more disarming, respectful, and curious. She also shares why tracking numbers is important, but improving effectiveness within those numbers is where real growth happens.
Key Takeaways:
-
First impressions open or close doors
Before people understand what you sell, they decide how they feel about you. Your tone, words, and energy create the first layer of trust. -
A disarming approach lowers resistance
When you respect someone’s time and give them permission to say no, they may be more open to listening. -
Activity matters, but effective activity matters more
Sales is not just a numbers game. It is an effective numbers game. The goal is not only to reach more people, but to create better conversations. -
Curiosity earns the next step
A strong approach does not lead with a pitch. It leads with awareness, relevance, and a thoughtful question. -
Small adjustments can change outcomes
A better opening line, tone, question, or follow-up can turn the same amount of activity into stronger opportunities.
Disarming Sales Example:
“Hi, I know you were not expecting me, and I will be brief. I am working with a few families in the neighborhood around lawn care, and I am not sure if this is even something you need. Would it be okay if I asked you one quick question?”
Reflection Questions:
-
How am I approaching people who do not know me yet?
-
Do I sound like I am trying to sell, or trying to understand?
-
Am I tracking only my activity, or am I also tracking my effectiveness?
-
What is one small adjustment I could make to my opening line this week?
-
How can I make my first impression feel more respectful, calm, and helpful?
This Week’s Challenge:
Look at your numbers, then look deeper. Review your calls, emails, cold calls, or client outreach and ask: Where can I improve my effectiveness? Focus on one part of your approach, your opening line, tone, first question, or follow-up, and make it better this week.
Memorable Line:
“Your numbers tell part of the story. Your approach tells the rest.”
Closing Thought:
Sales is not about convincing people to care. It is about creating enough trust that they are willing to have a conversation.
Three Words to Remember:
Your Approach Matters
Until Next Time.