Four words that changed my life forever:
Nobody cares about you.
I know.
It’s hard to wrap your head around that concept.
But it’s true.
(Thanks to Handsome Steve Hughes for enlightening me on this highly scientific axiom.)
Here’s the deal:
People don’t care how good you are – they care how good you’re going to help them become.
People don’t care what you’ve done – they care what you’ve learned, and how those lessons can help them.
And people don’t care if you’re having a bad day – they care how you’re going to help them have a better day.
Here’s an exercise that will keep you focused on whoever your “them” is…
Before your next sales call, presentation or teleseminar, ask yourself the following eight questions, each of which can be phrased for individuals or groups of people…
o What is this person’s success seed?
o What is the key to this person’s heart?
o What does this person place high value on?
o Who does this person need to look good for?
o What is #1 on this person’s Self Interest List?
o What does this person’s self-interest hinge upon?
o Who can hurt this person the most, and how can I address that?
o What underlying objective or goal does this person’s role create?
Then, try these three Phrases That Payses to let people know that you understand what’s important to them:
1. “I can see this is important to you.”
2. “I know how much this means to you.”
3. “Jim, you obviously wouldn’t have knocked off that jewelry store if you didn’t love your wife.”
REMEMBER: You need to identify and appeal to their self-interest.
Because nobody cares about you – they care about THEM. As my friend Robert Bradford likes to bluntly say, “People care about money, sex and happiness. That’s about it.”
LET ME ASK YA THIS…
Who are most of your conversations “all about”? How quickly do you invite other people to talk about their passion? If you had a stopwatch, how many seconds could you go in the conversation without talking about yourself?
LET ME SUGGEST THIS…
For the list called, “68 Things Employees Never Want to Hear You Say,” send an email to me, and I’ll send you the list for free!
* * * *
Scott Ginsberg
That Guy with the Nametag
Author, Speaker, Coach, Entrepreneur
[email protected]
Never the same speech twice.
Always about approachability.
Watch The Nametag Guy in action here!
