Morris County Chamber of Commerce
  • JOIN
    • Become a Member
    • Premier Membership
    • Membership Inquiry
    • The Value of Membership >
      • Grow Your Business
      • Build Your Brand
      • Professional Development & Education
      • Government Advocacy
      • Community Outreach & Volunteering
    • New Member Survey
  • About
    • Chamber Team
    • Our Mission
    • Our President
    • Board of Directors
    • Morris Business Cabinet
    • Ambassadors Council
    • What Members Are Saying >
      • Share a Testimonial
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Forums & Committees >
      • Business Development Forum
      • Business Strategy Exchange
      • Health & Wellness Forum
      • Human Resources Committee
      • Not For Profit Roundtable >
        • Nonprofit Donations
        • Not For Profit Conference Scholarship App
      • Real Estate Forum
      • Tech Trends
      • Women in Business Program
      • Young Professionals Forum
      • Monthly Agenda Submission Form
    • Code of Conduct
  • Membership
    • Member Benefits
    • Member to Member Deals
    • Member Exchange Online Community
    • Member Marketing Opportunities
    • Grand Opening Support
    • Conference Room Usage
    • Member Referral Bonus
    • Connect to Morris Job Bank
  • Events
    • Chamber Event Calendar
    • Member Events Calendar
    • COVID-19 Safety
    • Signature Events & Programs
    • Submit an Event Idea
  • Directory
    • Searchable Business Directory
    • Member Spotlights
    • Nonprofit Organizations >
      • Not for Profit Spotlight
    • Legal Resources >
      • Employment Law
      • Commercial Services
      • Business Representation
      • General Legal
    • Enhance Your Directory Listing
  • News & Info
    • Certificate of Origin
    • Business Resources
    • Chamber Magazines
    • News Around the Chamber >
      • Around the Chamber Archive
      • Submit a Press Release
      • Submit a Neighbors Helping Neighbors Story
    • MCCC Blog >
      • Contribute to Our Blog
    • MCTV Let's Talk
    • Actionable Advice Video Library
  • Programs
    • Economic Development Corp
    • EDC Business Counseling
    • Public Policy Series
    • Leadership Morris >
      • Leadership Morris FAQs
      • Leadership Morris Application
      • Leadership Morris Program
      • Leadership Morris Alumni Council
      • Renew LMAA Membership
    • Women In Business >
      • Women in Business Mastermind
      • Women in Business Executive Round Table
      • Women in Golf Program
    • Entrepreneur Round Table
    • Intern Morris >
      • Available Internships
      • Hiring An Intern?
      • Hire an MCVSD Intern
    • Thrive Morris
  • Member Portal

MCCC Blog

Click Here to submit an article for our blog. 
Note: The views and opinions expressed here are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the position of the Morris County Chamber of Commerce.

No Mutual Mystification

10/21/2021

 
Picture
By Cal Thomas, Sandler Training
It’s time for a 21st-century reality check: We all live (and sell) in a ridiculously fast-paced environment. We all have more platforms, more information, more commitments, more conversations, and more priorities to address than we can comfortably handle. That’s kind of our defining trait these days: data overload and compressed timelines. As a result, we are sometimes spread too thin, which means we are prone to miss things, perhaps important things, that are going on in someone else’s world. 
For a sales professional, the possibility that we might miss something important that’s going on in a prospective buyer’s world is a major issue — an issue that needs to be addressed strategically.

We need to understand that, when we're talking to a buyer, there are going to be times when they’re going to say things and we are going to be tempted to fill in the blanks about what they mean — perhaps without even realizing that that’s what we’re doing. This may happen because we make an unwarranted assumption about what they’re talking about. Or it may happen because we fall into the trap of hearing what we want to hear (known as the “happy ears” phenomenon).  Or it may happen because we don’t feel like asking for clarification on something that seems unimportant…but it actually is.

Regardless of why it happens, we need to understand that this filling-in-the-blanks thing does happen. It happens on both sides of the conversation, especially when things get hectic and we are pressed for time. As professionals, we want to make a point of addressing this problem proactively. We want to learn to recognize when people may be operating under different assumptions or with different understandings than we have about their world.

So for instance, if we make a presentation and in response, the prospect says to us, “You’re certainly close” – what does that really mean? Does it mean that there used to be seven companies who were in the running for this business, and now there are only six? Does it mean as soon as the CEO gets back from vacation, we have a meeting with them to launch the project? Does it mean that if we change the color we’re proposing from blue to red, we’ve just won the sale? “You’re close” could be any of those things. Or it could mean something else. We just don’t know. And if we pretend we do know, we’re contributing to a dangerous cycle known as “mutual mystification.”

Whenever we don’t know the meaning of something a prospective buyer is saying to us – or even if we think there is a chance we don’t know the meaning – we have a professional obligation to say something. We have to pause the conversation and say something like this:

That’s great to hear. I’m curious—when you say that we’re “close,” what does that mean? What needs to happen next for us to be able to work together on this?

What you just read follows a pattern called “stroke/repeat/reverse.” We give the person a stroke, meaning we say something positive about what they just said to us (“That’s great to hear”). We find a way to repeat or restate it (“…when you say that we’re close…”). Then we reverse the direction of the conversation back toward them by posing a clarifying question (“…what does that mean? What needs to happen next for us to be able to work together on this?”).

Of course, we could be right about what we think they mean. But then again, we could be wrong. Which is why we need to get into the habit, even if we’re busy, of hitting that pause button, and using stroke/repeat/reverse to confirm that we both understand exactly what’s being said and what its implications are.

The next time you hear a buyer say something that could be interpreted in more than one way – like “This looks pretty good,” or “Let me think about that,” or “You’re in the ballpark,” or even “Money is no object” – remove the mutual mystification. Use the stroke/repeat/reverse technique to find out what they really mean, what’s really going on, and what’s really going to happen next. You’ll save yourself and the other person a lot of time, energy, and aggravation that would otherwise have gone into fixing a problem somewhere down the line, a problem arising from mutual mystification. In an era of data overload and compressed timelines, you don’t need any more problems to solve than you already have!

Pick up a copy of this NEW sales resource, 6 Strategies for Hybrid Selling Success
 
Register for a FREE Sandler Training session here: tailwind.sandler.com

Comments are closed.

    Archives

    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019

    Categories

    All
    Around The Chamber
    Business Advice
    Business Development
    Business Edge Magazine
    Chamber News
    Coaching
    Entrepreneurs
    Events
    Finance
    Government Affairs
    Health & Wellness
    IT
    Leadership Morris
    Legal
    Manufacturing
    Marketing
    Message From The President
    Nonprofit
    Real Estate
    Sales Strategy
    Seniors
    Strategic Planning
    Women In Business

    RSS Feed

    Please Note: The views and opinions expressed here are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the position of the Morris County Chamber of Commerce.
Picture
JOIN Us   |   CONTACT Us  |  LEARN About Membership  |  REGISTER for Events  |  FIND a Member Business  |  READ our Magazines  |  LEAD Morris |  FAQ

Picture
325 Columbia Turnpike, ​​Suite 101
Florham Park, NJ 07932 

​973.539.3882 | CONTACT US | ​MAP
If you plan to stop by, it's best to make an appointment to ensure that someone will be available for you.
The Power of Connection!  Your membership connects you to valuable resources, opportunities for business growth and rewarding relationships with members across the region, in-person and virtually. And you don't need to be based in Morris County to join!  Your membership investment provides a stable foundation that enables us to serve the people who power Morris County's businesses and community.
STAY CONNECTED: ​SIGN UP FOR UPDATES!
Socialize with Us!
Site Map

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Picture
TOURISM BUREAU
Picture
PROUD MEMBER OF
Picture
PROUD MEMBER OF
Picture
PROUD MEMBER OF
Picture
PROUD MEMBER OF
Picture
PROUD MEMBER OF
Picture

©2023 Morris County Chamber of Commerce  |  A 501(c)(6) nonprofit membership organization
  • JOIN
    • Become a Member
    • Premier Membership
    • Membership Inquiry
    • The Value of Membership >
      • Grow Your Business
      • Build Your Brand
      • Professional Development & Education
      • Government Advocacy
      • Community Outreach & Volunteering
    • New Member Survey
  • About
    • Chamber Team
    • Our Mission
    • Our President
    • Board of Directors
    • Morris Business Cabinet
    • Ambassadors Council
    • What Members Are Saying >
      • Share a Testimonial
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Forums & Committees >
      • Business Development Forum
      • Business Strategy Exchange
      • Health & Wellness Forum
      • Human Resources Committee
      • Not For Profit Roundtable >
        • Nonprofit Donations
        • Not For Profit Conference Scholarship App
      • Real Estate Forum
      • Tech Trends
      • Women in Business Program
      • Young Professionals Forum
      • Monthly Agenda Submission Form
    • Code of Conduct
  • Membership
    • Member Benefits
    • Member to Member Deals
    • Member Exchange Online Community
    • Member Marketing Opportunities
    • Grand Opening Support
    • Conference Room Usage
    • Member Referral Bonus
    • Connect to Morris Job Bank
  • Events
    • Chamber Event Calendar
    • Member Events Calendar
    • COVID-19 Safety
    • Signature Events & Programs
    • Submit an Event Idea
  • Directory
    • Searchable Business Directory
    • Member Spotlights
    • Nonprofit Organizations >
      • Not for Profit Spotlight
    • Legal Resources >
      • Employment Law
      • Commercial Services
      • Business Representation
      • General Legal
    • Enhance Your Directory Listing
  • News & Info
    • Certificate of Origin
    • Business Resources
    • Chamber Magazines
    • News Around the Chamber >
      • Around the Chamber Archive
      • Submit a Press Release
      • Submit a Neighbors Helping Neighbors Story
    • MCCC Blog >
      • Contribute to Our Blog
    • MCTV Let's Talk
    • Actionable Advice Video Library
  • Programs
    • Economic Development Corp
    • EDC Business Counseling
    • Public Policy Series
    • Leadership Morris >
      • Leadership Morris FAQs
      • Leadership Morris Application
      • Leadership Morris Program
      • Leadership Morris Alumni Council
      • Renew LMAA Membership
    • Women In Business >
      • Women in Business Mastermind
      • Women in Business Executive Round Table
      • Women in Golf Program
    • Entrepreneur Round Table
    • Intern Morris >
      • Available Internships
      • Hiring An Intern?
      • Hire an MCVSD Intern
    • Thrive Morris
  • Member Portal