I was recently talking to an individual who had observed someone at my company sitting with a client. When I asked how things went, my colleague said, "They didn't connect with the client."
I asked how it went giving that individual feedback, and my colleague said, "They thought they did a tremendous job."
Ouch! How do you give someone feedback on something they think they are great at?
1) Start by asking questions about specific points in the meeting where you saw a lack of connection. What did they see, what did you see? No judgements yet, just what you both saw.
2) After talking about what you both saw, ask what the result of that portion of the meeting was. Was it a move forward in a positive direction, did things branch out in a different direction, did the client move to a different topic?
3) Can the individual now see that MAYBE there was some room for a better connection that would lead to a positive result?
4) Role Play specific language that would help the individual connect in a more positive fashion with the client. That means you have to have the specific language in your head first. The mortal sin is to tell someone to "connect better" and then not have specific language that will bring this to pass.
5) Repeat for each situation
If you want to grow yourself, ask a very good friend if there is an area they feel you need some help with, that you are unaware of. Take a deep breath as they start talking, as it will probably be something you feel you have a world-class aptitude for. Ask for specific examples and work through the area together.
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