We all theoretically recognize that everyone has the right to their own beliefs. But in situations where we have great passion (or the moral high ground, as we would like to believe) we have difficulty being generous with those who disagree with us. Wouldn’t it be nice to persuade others to see the world as […]
With little ability to read during my bout with the flu over Christmas, I listened to NPR. What I heard was hopeful: programs discussing kindness. Kindness – not a word historically associated with corporations, those bastions of male verve – is now being equated with the bottom line. How times have changed. In the 90s […]
There’s been an age-old argument in the communication field: who’s at fault if a misunderstanding occurs – the Speaker communicating badly, or the Listener misunderstanding? Let’s look at some facts: 1. Speaking is an act of translating what’s going on internally into communication that enables others to understand an intent – choosing the most appropriate […]
Have you ever misheard clients or colleagues, made erroneous assumptions, and lost business as a result? Have any of your relationships suffered because you misunderstood an intended message – and possibly acted on your misunderstanding as if you heard accurately? We are not always able to accurately hear what others mean to convey. Sometimes we […]
Answer these questions to see how accurately you hear what your communication partner intends you to hear, and how much business you are losing as a result. How often do you enter conversations to hear what you want to hear – and disregard the rest? How often do you listen to get your own agenda […]
Like most of us, I assume I understand what my communication partner is saying and respond appropriately. I don’t think about it; I just do it. I don’t realize anything is wrong until it’s too late. But why do I make that assumption? I was never taught how to listen. From kindergarten through university, schools […]
As sellers, we’ve been taught that someone with a need that our solution fulfills is a prospect. But that’s not true or we’d be closing a lot more business and wasting a lot less time following the wrong prospects. Just because we see a need does not mean they A. want it resolved, B. want […]
Until now, we have approached change by starting with a specific goal and implementation plan and seeking buy-in to move forward successfully. While we take meticulous steps to bring aboard the right people, have numerous meetings to discuss and manage any change or disruption possibilities, our efforts are basically top-down and outside-in and end up […]
Our jobs as sellers, change agents, coaches, and managers is to motivate change. Whether it involves a purchase, a new idea, a different set of behaviors, or a team project, all successful change requires buy-in. As outsiders we are, after all, requiring a shift in the underlying status quo – the system – that we […]
There is a universally believed concept that resistance is ubiquitous, that any change, any new idea, will engender resistance. University programs teach it, Harvard professors such as Chris Argyris have made their reputations and written books on it, consultants make their livings managing it. Yet there is absolutely no reason for there to ever be […]
