(Surprise! You're getting this newsletter a few days early because I need your feedback ASAP on something. See my questions below and let me know.)

The Monday Friday Morning Building Product Advisor
​Issue #95

Almost 400 books line the bookshelves in my office. If you’ve ever had a Zoom call with me, you’ve likely seen them.

One interesting business book I came across and now sits on my shelf is called Will It Make the Boat Go Faster?

The British rowing team that inspired the book had one big edge… They knew exactly what they were racing toward: Olympic gold. A clear finish line and a measurable result. Everything they did either moved them closer or it didn’t. They were busy training hard, showing up, and doing the work. But they couldn't seem to get out of the middle of the pack. Then, things changed when they got ruthlessly specific about one question: “Will it make the boat go faster?”

If yes, do it. If no, stop. If maybe, test it and decide.

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You probably don’t have that clarity.

You’ve got quarterly quotas that reset. Activity metrics that measure motion, not progress. Architects who seem less interested in relationships than they used to be. Manufacturers who change priorities mid-stream. And a growing suspicion that all this talk about “trusted advisor relationships” is outdated.

Architects used to have time for lunches. Reps could build territories over years, not just quarters.

So, here’s what the rowing metaphor might actually teach us: A filter is helpful only if you know what to filter for.

The rowing team’s question (“Will it make the boat go faster?”) worked for them. Because they all agreed on what the boat was and where it was heading.

Do you?

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The Filter That Might Actually Work

Are you still building trusted advisor relationships with architects? Do you still believe it’s the best path to sustainable success? Then your filter is straightforward:

“I’m doing this work anyway… How do I make it build momentum instead of just filling time?”

You’ve still got meetings to take, emails to send, and territory to cover. The question isn’t whether to do the work. It’s whether that work compounds or just consumes you.

• Take that same lunch meeting… But bring a specific question about their project instead of making small talk.
• Send that same spec sheet… But add two sentences connecting it to the challenge they mentioned last time.
• Make that same job site visit… But walk it with the architect to understand what’s causing them problems. (Not just the super to confirm installation.)

That’s the boat moving. Small adjustments. Better decisions. Momentum that carries forward.

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But here’s what I actually want to know…

Last month, I asked if you wanted me to make a tool.

It’s a system that’ll help you research architects before your meetings with them. I got so many great responses with more ideas on what you’d like to see it include.

Then, you may have noticed I missed sending a newsletter at the end of October. And I didn’t write a LinkedIn post for over two weeks.

That’s because I’ve been building that research system for you. And several other tools to help support it. I think it’s going to be great for you…

But here’s the thing…

I can keep sending you frameworks and strategies for building relationships with architects. I’ve got 28 years of experience translating between architectural and manufacturer languages. I know what works.

But I’m not sure anymore if that’s what you need.

Because if the job has changed…

…if you’re finding architects have become more transactional…

…if the system rewards activity over relationships…

…if the path to sustainable success doesn’t look like it used to…

…then better tactics won’t help. They’ll just make you more efficient at something that doesn’t matter.

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So I want to hear from you:

What’s actually working in your architect relationships right now?

Not what you think should work. Not what used to work 5 years ago. What’s actually working today? In your territory, with your architects, with your quotas, and your manufacturers’ expectations?

What used to work that doesn’t work anymore?

Where do you feel like you’re spinning your wheels? What advice have you tried that sounded good but didn’t land? What relationship-building moves feel increasingly like wasted effort?

Do you still believe that being a trusted advisor to architects matters?

Or has the job become something else? Is success now more about volume, responsiveness, and hitting your activity numbers? And less about the depth of the relationship?

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I’m genuinely asking. Because if your world has changed and the old playbook no longer fits, I want to know.

And, on the flip-side…

If you’re still building something sustainable but just need better tools to do it… I want to help with that, too. It means I’m on the right track.

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Hit reply and tell me.

A sentence is fine. A paragraph is great. I’m not looking for polished thoughts. I’m looking for truth.

What’s actually happening in your world right now?

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~ Neil “Give-it-to-me-straight-I-can-take-it” Sutton
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P.S. If you're reading this and thinking, "I don't have time to write an email," that might be the answer right there. And that's useful for me to know, too.