Sports / Entertainment

An Heartfelt Letter From Your Headset

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Dear Sweetie,

It’s about to get real busy again, so I wanted to write you this letter now.  

You and I don’t talk as much as we used to (at least not to each other).  Maybe it’s because I get up into your hair sometimes and am literally in your face all day, but our love feels like it’s waning.

I’ve been noticing some things and just need to get them off my padding before we settle in for our next push together to grow our business.  We’ve had great run together so far this year baby and I want it to continue.

I feel like I am in one ear and not the other.  And I’m not liking this trend.   A lot of the time I’m just hugging your right ear while the rest of me that should be on your left ear,  is dangling in your split ends.    I guess you do that so you can hear better the conversations of your friends or the Twitter feed or whatever.   But I like hugging you baby.   All of you.   Put me back on both of your ears and I think you’ll do better at your job too.   I can help you focus.

I’ve noticed your wandering eye.   Resist the One Eared ones dear.  Those headsets are trouble.  Oh sure, they dance around looking all sleek and sporty with that single ear “come hither” look.  I’ve seen some too that prance around without cords going brazenly wireless but they are bad news.  Don’t dump me for one of those honey, that just sends the wrong message all around.  You have got to listen and listen real good when talking with folks on the phone; that’s how we’re going to grow the business.  I’ve seen you staring at those One Eared ones though.  And while you can look; you cannot touch. 

You don’t show me a good time so much anymore.   My microphone has hit the monitors at least six times this year and you must remember the two times I got caught in the keyboard your head was so smashed up against the displays.   There used to be a time when talking to folks that you’d spin us around and look out the window or at the plants nearby.  Good times.    Seems you always had better and smarter conversations too when you weren’t obsessing with what’s on that darn desktop.   I want those days back love muffin, I really do.

You don’t smile at me as much lately.  When we first met you smiled and laughed a lot.   Sure, the job is hard but I miss your smile schnookems.  Smile on purpose and keep it fresh.  Heck, I’ve got hair gel, food crumbs and who knows what else encrusted on me ( which reminds me I could use a good cleaning) but everyday I try and make my sounds as fresh and clear as a daisy for you.    You have great smile and a great laugh and it may be the 50th person we’ve talked to today and we’re both tired, but heck,  being happy and positive is why I fell for you in the first place.

I don’t mean to sound all negative.  I don’t.   I feel so connected to you sweetie.  We are a great team.  Let’s buckle in.   The closer we get the stronger we’ll be.  Let’s work hard on keeping the magic alive.

With all my love,

Headset

Till next time,

Grow The Business.

Mark

The Bird

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I’m not thinking about the America eagle, or this year’s Thanksgiving turkey or even the late Detroit pitcher Mark Fydrich known as “The Bird” (loved that guy when I was a kid..RIP).

I’m thinking you know, The Bird.

This is a family blog though so I won’t just come out and say it.    Instead I’ll call The Bird a safe acronym like “TB” for the remainder of this post.   And since the acronym “TB” is more commonly known as Tuberculosis (which is a heck of a lot worse than this other TB I’m talking about) by comparison, mine is pretty tame.

What I will say and list for you, are the times during a typical day or a week that I feel I am getting TB (not Tuberculosis type) from businesses.  Not an “in your face” blatant nasty service experience that everyone writes and complains about, but a sudden unpleasant little message you flip in my general direction.  

And that is not good.  Maybe these little affronts are a sign of worse things to come from this experience, this business relationship.  Maybe these little affronts stop the relationship process really before it even starts.

My guess is that businesses may not have a clue they are doing this and if that’s the case, please get a clue.  And if it is being done on purpose, quit it.

The Bell.   If you’re a small business or even a large one and aren’t drooling at the prospect of a prospect walking in your door but instead place a little silver bell for me to ring to get your attention, then you are giving me TB.  Guess I’m not that important.  I suggest a mirror, a dog or some sort of bell on the door I open that gets your attention before I need to.

Flat Screen & Standard Definition TV:   Have a nice bar?  Have a nice place casual dining establishment?  Great, I love it.   But every time you hang that 47” screen over your bar but only show standard definition programming it’s like giving me TB.  If you can’t cough up the costs or work out the deal to broadcast HD don’t insult me with the blurry picture on your beautiful television screen while I sit paying 500% margins on your over priced local brew.  What’s next? Skimping on the soap for the dishwasher?

 “noreply @..”  Ever get one of these emails?  If your business sends out any emails with the sender labeled like this for any reason, you might as well give me TB.  Staff the darn mailbox or forward it to someone who cares because if the recipient is your customer and he or she cares to reply; you should care to listen.

Newspapers Outside The Lines:  This one drives me crazy.  You are giving me TB when you insist dear supermarket, that the newspapers be lined up against that wall at the far end of the store beyond the check out lines.  Now since I just decided upon viewing that I want a newspaper, I must decide to get back in line to pay for one. Nope.   Same goes for the firewood and charcoal and the winter shovels.   What is this losing sales tactic called anyway? “The After Purchase Purchase?”

The 24 Hour Sales Cycle (NOT); Ever get a LinkedIn invite one day and then an invitation to spend money the next?  Ever get a ReTweet on Twitter or a nice comment on your blog post one day and then a pitch from that person or business the next day?  I have.  I’ve gotten them from former colleagues, friends, people and businesses that I know or knew.  Ugh.    Faux Networking is TB in capital letters (I mean like really big capital letters).

TB is fowl.  And while you undoubtedly have your own examples of TB in the marketplace (and please feel free to share),  figuring out if you, your business, your team or your department is doing TB innocently to customers/prospects is important to think about too.   It may be hard to spot or put a finger on so to speak but it’s well worth the look. 

Till next time,

Grow The Business.

Mark

Mullet Over

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mark mullet years

Sales and Dating just don’t mix.  But when they do, there are lessons to be learned.

Tonight you are super sales guy Rock Ledger.  You are single and in a bar.  Good Times.

And lucky you, it’s also 80’s night.  This feels good.  This was your time.  This was where the Rock Ledger legend began.  So even though you are not much of a dancer, it’s flashback (and Flashdance) fever tonight so you have got it going on!

You Rock Ledger, you super sales man, you  did your pre – party research, and prepared well for this 80’s night.   And holy leg warmers, you spy someone you think you’d like to talk to.  You remember her name is Tiffany.

Excellent.   Time to make your move.

A bit sweaty now because you just had to break out some moves to the blaring tune Safety Dance, you are comforted knowing that the rusty Aquanet hairspray you found buried in your dresser drawer (literally from the 80’s you suspect), had enough juice to keep hair  securely shaped into that “oh so cool” Mullet.  You amble over to Tiffany in your now ill – fitting Members Only jacket and say:

“Well Hello there.” 

“Well Hello to you.”  She says.  She looks at you coyly.  She’s curious.  You look back.   An awkward pause ensues, but you are ready.  Conversation is your game.

“I was wondering” you say, (knowing full well how good your John Stamos Full House Mullet looks)….  “Are you happy with growth of your family or are you just looking to keep the family you have?”

 “Whaaaat?” She cries.

 “No, I ‘m sorry.  What I meant was, how happy are you recently with things?  Is life going well for you?  Are you really happy with your current boyfriend or do you want to be happier?”

“Listen Skippy, I barely know you..”, she says. (And of course you’re thinking that “Skippy” was Michael J Fox’s dorky friend on Family Ties and you definitely do not, look like Skippy)

“Ok I’m really sorry this is not starting off well.  All I want to know is why can’t I have a serious conversation with you?”

WHAP!! Your face, ego and hair sprayed Mullet all get whacked at once.  Face and ego bruised, the Mullet surrenders too and snaps back from whence it came.  Your 80’s night is now over.

**

Mildly entertaining?  Sure.   But Rock Ledger’s conversation with Tiffany is not that much different than some of the early conversations we have with our business customers and prospects.  Though we are well intentioned, many of us launch into some very deep questions right off the get go.

We are quick to ask these deep and frankly quite “personal” (especially when speaking with small to med size businesses) questions that while your customer won’t likely literally “slap” you like Tiffany did, they sure as hell might want to.

Think about what many of us ask after a few moments of introduction or in our first meeting.

  • “Are you focused on growth or maintaining your customer base?
  •  “How is the economy treating you, are you guys doing OK?”
  •  “Are you happy with your current supplier?
  •  “What’s the biggest challenge you are facing this year?
  •   “I want to understand your needs better, so I have some  questions..”

Should we be asking these questions of our customers?  Yes we should.  But should we take some time to buy the prospect a metaphorical drink or two and build a little trust and value about ourselves or our company first?  Prove we care about really helping the prospect first?   You bet.  Tiffany would have appreciated it.

This doesn’t have to take too long.  It can take as little as a first date but more often than not (especially today in this low trust competitive environment), you shouldn’t ask these types of “personal questions” till you’ve had a few dates or you might get whapped.  It’s tough, the pressure is on.  You need to perform.  Rock Ledger wants to close the deals right quick too, but you saw what happened to him.

You can dance if you want to.   And I suggest you do.  But dance the long dance version please first.

Till next time,

Grow the Business.

Mark

What’s Your Trigger?

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Louis Oosthuizen won the British Open Sunday.   And a little sharpied red dot on his golf glove had something to do with it.

That little red dot on his hand was what he looked at before each and every shot.  That glance, that focus on the red dot helped get him “into the zone” and to “dispel the distractions”.   It was and is his trigger.

  Triggers, as any sports person knows, are a big deal.   They can be a stare, a move, or even a thought but regardless of what they are, it is what they do that matters.   And for Louis, that trigger was something that helped him execute in a very tough job under a ton of pressure.

What’s your trigger?

Playing sports, mine was a tap of my left foot before the pitcher began his wind up.  My younger brother (a much better player) would slam his bat to the plate at the beginning of each at bat; a trigger that worked for well for him (and as an added plus, intimidated the opposition). 

But what’s your trigger at work?  We do great things.  We need to perform under pressure and just like Louis we’ve got to execute difficult tasks well (often repeatedly) without much room for error.

For some folks it’s a phrase or a word they say to themselves before the presentation starts, before the call comes in, or before they push that door open that says “no solicitors”.  For other folks it’s forcing that image of a mentor or a respected boss into your head, or it’s a quick look at your kid’s picture on your desk and the thought of who you are really doing this for.

But more often than not, I’m guessing there isn’t a trigger at all.

More often we just do.  We think hard and we work hard for sure, but I doubt many of us consciously while at work have a “trigger” that helps us get “into the zone” or “dispel the distractions”.  

I think we should find one.  One that helps you instantly lock into that zone.   Maybe it’s a head nod with your eyes closed for half a second as you hear the words or see the face that is your trigger.  Maybe it’s something you wear on your wrist you can cast a glance at 15 times a day. 

I have one.   I have a trigger.  I’ll admit I’ve gotten away from using as often as I once did but Louis inspired me to bring it back.  And yesterday (Monday) was the first day I employed it throughout the day in a quite a while. 

Grew the damn business I did.

Till next time,

Grow The Business.

Mark

Thank You Tom Watson

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Caught Tom Watson’s likely last walk over the historic stone bridge at St. Andrew’s yesterday.  A class act Tom is.  And what a thrill he gave us last year at the British Open. 

Here’s a look back.

Originally published 7/20/09

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Thank You Tom Watson

Years ago I heard someone say the difference between soap operas and sports is the “audience” that watches them.   At first pass, some might think the point is that one gender likes soap operas or sports more than the other but the point really is that soap operas and sports are so very similar.

In both lie often incredible and transfixing stories. 

Susan and I couldn’t take our eyes away from Tom Watson’s golf performance at the British Open this weekend.   In the space of 48 hours, we ran a gamut of emotions sitting in our living room and watching this story play out.

And I am so thankful for that. 

As I write this a few hours after he lost in a playoff to Stuart Cink on the final day of the Open; I realize how lucky I am to have invested here emotionally.   At 59 years of age nearly 25 years removed from his last major championship, Tom held the golf world ( and I suspect a whole lot of new weekend TV converts) captive.   Could he be the oldest man to win a major championship?  Could this gentleman, this statesman for the game sit atop the golf world once again and live for real, an improbable heroic story?

There was chest tightening nervousness in my living room as we watched him tee off on hole after hole on Sunday.  At times we refused to watch some of his short putts (his long time nemesis) for fear of either seeing him miss or like a jinx, by watching we might just influence that putt in a bad way.  We literally jumped and cheered when he sank the few birdies he made Sunday and there were tears when we realized he was going to win… and tears again when we realized that he wouldn’t.

It was exhilarating.  It was exhausting.    

I don’t think it matters much whether your deep emotions come out though a fictional story or a real life story, rather, that they just do.   It feels good this collection of intense feelings, a bit like a mental cleansing.  It feels good to have all those emotions across such a broad spectrum, be let out.

And who knows, maybe going for a ride on a wild emotional story once in a while has other benefits too.     Not for nothing, but after watching that tournament; I went downstairs and had one of the best workouts I’ve had in a long time.  I then mowed the lawn in some of the most artistic patterns ever and I swear at my grill, the beer was colder and the cheeseburgers tasted better than they have all summer. 

Thank you Tom Watson.

Till next time,

Grow The Business.

Mark