The Gift of Feedback

I am a Toastmaster and I have discovered that it is a great organization for developing leadership skills as well as speaking skills.

One of the most powerful tools a leader or manager has is the ability to deliver feedback that helps the employee improve; while not discouraging them. If you have experience in managing people you
recognize the dilemma. You see Steve showing up on a sales call and telling the story without conducting good Discovery. As you provide feedback you notice that Steve crosses his …

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Mindfull Selling

Far too often as sales people we are so focused on getting the deal or communicating our message that we don’t hear the comment that sold the
deal. Then we talk ourselves out of it.

Typically what has happened is even though we put on our consultative selling skills and asked questions and “listened”, we allowed our thinking to get high-jacked. We heard something and while the
buyer was talking we allowed our thinking to chase down a …

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They Get It – Office Depot

Every once and awhile, I encounter a business where I get customer service that stands out. This happened yesterday at Office Depot on Colorado Boulevard and Evans.
I went in for a keyboard for my iPad. When I got back the box had been opened and it was missing a cable and operating manual.

They took it back no charge and before I left the store we checked the  box to ensure it was all there.

…

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Can we leverage design to improve business services?

Fast Company Magazine recently issued its Design Issue. I love this it
is full of useful gadgets. I also like the idea of design. How can I
make the customers experience with my organization better?

  • – OXO Kitchen tools have large black rubberized handles to make them
  •   easier to grasp.
  • – Apple famously has produced an elegant interface with their iproducts.
  • – The Dyson Vacuum cleaner maintaining it’s suction.

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It Really Isn’t About You

You submitted your RFP Proposal and they’ve called for a demonstration. So you pull out all the stops. You are prepared to tell them all about your firm how you’ve
been in business forever, how you represent X% of the industry and all the awards you’ve achieved. If you do this you’ve lost the deal.

Remember the selection process is not about you. It is about the buyer.

What are the issues they are …

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Do you need experience in the field to be successful?

I was struck this week by a story of a young kid, 15 years old, who radically has changed the science of Cancer detection. He is not a science major, he is not particularly interested in science (so
he says), but he created a way to detect pancreatic cancer for pennies!

Pancreatic cancer is a particularly bad cancer because it is normally detected too late to reverse it. This kid developed the test from information published on the internet. Don’t believe it look
here. …

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