Greg's Right FIT #412

Quick notes to help you grow your business in less time with less effort. . . sometime next week. 

In this issue: 

- Thoughts on Gratitude
- Being Human
- Random Stuff

Thoughts on Gratitude

• I like to revisit these ideas from Dr. Martin Seligman every year. It's his "Three Blessings Exercise" via his book, Flourish.

  "Every night for the next week, set aside ten minutes before you go to sleep. Write down three things that went well today and why they went well. You may use a journal or your computer to write about the events, but it is important that you have a physical record of what you wrote. The three things need not be earthshaking in importance (“My husband picked up my favorite ice cream for dessert on the way home from work today”), but they can be important (“My sister just gave birth to a healthy baby boy”).

  Next to each positive event, answer the question “Why did this happen?” For example, if you wrote that your husband picked up ice cream, write “because my husband is really thoughtful sometimes” or “because I remembered to call him from work and remind him to stop by the grocery store.” Or if you wrote, “My sister just gave birth to a healthy baby boy,” you might pick as the cause … “She did everything right during her pregnancy.”

  Writing about why the positive events in your life happened may seem awkward at first, but please stick with it for one week. It will get easier."

Being Human - Better selling through stories

"History’ is mostly ‘story."— Ken Burns

To improve your team's sales technique, find places in their presentations where they can tell stories. Most of us already use stories to get points across, but we don't always do it on purpose. When I observe sales calls I think, "oh, tell the XXX story," but I rarely hear any story being told. This is especially glaring when prospects are asking questions/objecting to something. 

The reason it works is similar to the saying "a picture is worth a thousand words." A well-placed story does serious heavy lifting in a short time. Best of all, it's easy. There aren't many rules to follow: it's good to use personal anecdotes, short stories work better than epic tales, and specifics work better than generalities. 

Help your people gather stories by reviewing your team's common objection cards. The ones that have an objection on one side, and the rebuttal/question on the back side. As you read out the objection, ask your team, "What's a quick story we can tell instead of a standard rebuttal?" It will take a few tries, but stories will emerge. They'll be rough, but you'll hear them.

Once the stories are out, I find it's easiest to refine the stories by pretending we are telling the story to a relative unfamiliar with our services. Someone like my Mom. If you can tell a story that helps her understand, you're on your way to some serious jumps in understanding.

To improve sales techniques, encourage the use of these short stories, metaphors, analogies, and similes. It's how we humans have communicated for eons.

Good stuff. 

Random Stuff

"The instant of birth is exquisite. Pain and joy are one at this moment. Ever after, the dim recollection is so sweet that we speak to our children with a gratitude they never understand."
— poet Madeline Tiger

A new baby is coming into the extended family. Evidence of his impending arrival was easy to detect when I saw the young couple last week, and this morning we have news that the mother-to-be is in the hospital, settling in for a long day's work. 

Naturally, my thoughts drift back to the arrival of my youngsters. That mix of anxiety and anticipation. Mothers have been birthing for eons, but there's an element of real risk. It's an awe-inspiring event. And I was merely an observer. I can only imagine what it's like to experience it as a mother. 

This weekend, make a positive thought for the 300,000+ births happening today. One of those will be my very first great nephew.