When the sun has gone down, or you're sitting in your cube at work, or standing in your apartment realizing that you are totally alone, or you get bored with Everything, and start thinking about going out for drinks, getting stoned, or watching television. Basically, becoming entirely unproductive...
So, I've started this list of things that I should do when I am faced with any of these thoughts. This is basically an admission that I am an animal, and have no control over my desires- I will run to the most fun, easiest, tastiest, and ultimately worst options when faced with any serious decision.
SHOULD DO LIST
PHYSICAL
- Workout (situps, pushups, jog, jump rope)
- Yoga
- Jujitsu Practice
MENTAL
- Write (48 blog, movie projects- Promise - 48 Hour - Sketches - New Projects)
GET OUT
- Comedy Connection???
- Take a Class? (Writing, Project Management, Acting - Improv Boston)
HOUSE PROJECTS
- Plaque
- Lamp
- Apartment Organization
HOUSE
- Clean room (fold clothes, sweep, organize)
- Clean Kitchen (dishes/dishwasher, counters, floor)
- Clean bathroom (floor, toilet, sink & shower)
Friday, August 1, 2008
Presenting to Tough Cookies
- Or, Never Go to Bed Angry
Wow. I just got off a "wicked tough" call.
We don't do your garden variety conference calls around here - this IS WebEx, so everything is a video call. Now, it's a Friday, which means- oh, yeah - casual Friday! So, here I sit with my Pink Floyd t-shirt as the rep du jur launches us into a session with some gents from Boston (our office is just outside of Boston, but keep in mind that I'm from Maine, I'm not a Bostonian, I don't have the accent). The purpose of the meeting is to talk tech with the customer- which is my job here, I'm the SE - and the rep lets them know what we'll do and where we'll go.
I start off with my standard presentation, covering what makes WebEx different than our competition - 1) the MediaTone, 2) our SAAS method & customer-success orientation, 3) our Integrated Telephony, and 4) our Centers/Features. So I launch into some basics about #2, just to preface what's coming next- and almost immediately one of the gents on the line yells into the speakerphone "STOP talking about SERVICE, You're Going To Lose Mr. X! Start Talking Tech!!!"
Whew! Okay. It's really really rare that anyone raises their voice at me on a call, I work hard to stay on target and cover the topics that people want (as well as work to build a business case for "Why WebEx" - that's my job, after all!). That being said, here are some of those precautionary measures...
Josh's Precautions to Take to Keep People Cool
1. Stay on Topic
2. DONT talk over anyone else. EVER. It's rude.
3. LISTEN to your customer/attendee - the Lost Art of Selling is simply "to listen"
4. 3 slide/5 minute rule - every 3/5, ask if everything makes sense. Check for questions.
5. Show Video! - it's a familiarity thing, but people will usually get MUCH more engaged with you if they SEE you. There are subsets of this one, like - LOOK AT THE CAMERA, and SMILE ALOT, BE ENTERTAINING, or Have a "clean" background (think of it like a "set" in movies & commercials)... I'll cover them in another post!
Obviously, I messed up on #1. Bad Josh. Bad bad bad.
But, and this comes from my martial arts training - and I am sure that most any athlete who's competed in something has felt/created the same mental space as this... The best thing that you can do when someone gets upset or gets hot with you, is to CREATE SOME SPACE. Breathe. Get calm. Starting thinking about what your options are... You could rush in/through, you could run away, (those are fight or flight...) or you could ORGANIZE. Naturally, unless you're a brute (in this case, a Bill Gates-esque brilliant Engineer, which I wish I was, sometimes) you're going to have to learn how to organize and compose yourself. Therefore, we're choosing to FIGHT, but MINDFULLY.
Josh's Process to save the call- and yourself
1. Get mad - Sure, this is an emotional response, but it's unavoidable. We all get mad, because something like this hurts- it is uncomfortable to have someone take you to task so publicly and in such a straightforward manner. But, if I was really bothered, I'd be in some other line of work. The key is to take the negative feeling, and "let it turn." So step QUICKLY over this, it's never worthwhile to get mad at someone in a professional environment. Getting mad is like torture in international politics- WE need to set the example of how to behave, of professionalism, so that everyone else understands the baseline of civility. IE Don't TORTURE. Getting mad will give you the Fire to Get Going- it's an Instant Sense of Urgency.
2. Re-orient - The wheels start turning - what do we do now?! This is where what you've learned- your TECHNIQUE - comes into play. This is why we train, so that when we're in this kind of situation, we're ready to respond correctly.
3. Don't Panic - Hey, it's on that little book I carry around, it MUST be worth something! Remember, YOU CAN DO IT. If you can't, you should be in another field of work, because the stress here may kill you.
4. Get back on TRACK - Hmm, sounds familiar... This is when being prepared, trained and having LISTENED to your customer makes a HUGE difference. Pick the thread of information that the customer wants to mine, and just GET TO IT.
5. Keep Your Sense of Humor - If you haven't got one, GET ONE. Go to comedy shows, get some friends, pray to God, go to Laughing meditations, drink alot. Whatever it takes, find your inner Laughing Person. And keep it real!
So, keep your cool, have fun, and go to the mat only when absolutely necessary. Remember, it's all part of the game, and we can have a LOT of fun with this kind of thing- just don't EVER take anything too personally.
Oh, and always remember to synch up with your colleagues afterwards to have a good, releasing laugh, and finish it off on a positive note- never leave an interaction unresolved. It's like the old saying about marriage- never go to bed angry; treat your customers as such - they're getting into a serious relationship with your company, and need to know that they will be listened to and that their needs will be met.
Always remember, customers are the lifeblood of the company.
Wow. I just got off a "wicked tough" call.
We don't do your garden variety conference calls around here - this IS WebEx, so everything is a video call. Now, it's a Friday, which means- oh, yeah - casual Friday! So, here I sit with my Pink Floyd t-shirt as the rep du jur launches us into a session with some gents from Boston (our office is just outside of Boston, but keep in mind that I'm from Maine, I'm not a Bostonian, I don't have the accent). The purpose of the meeting is to talk tech with the customer- which is my job here, I'm the SE - and the rep lets them know what we'll do and where we'll go.
I start off with my standard presentation, covering what makes WebEx different than our competition - 1) the MediaTone, 2) our SAAS method & customer-success orientation, 3) our Integrated Telephony, and 4) our Centers/Features. So I launch into some basics about #2, just to preface what's coming next- and almost immediately one of the gents on the line yells into the speakerphone "STOP talking about SERVICE, You're Going To Lose Mr. X! Start Talking Tech!!!"
Whew! Okay. It's really really rare that anyone raises their voice at me on a call, I work hard to stay on target and cover the topics that people want (as well as work to build a business case for "Why WebEx" - that's my job, after all!). That being said, here are some of those precautionary measures...
Josh's Precautions to Take to Keep People Cool
1. Stay on Topic
2. DONT talk over anyone else. EVER. It's rude.
3. LISTEN to your customer/attendee - the Lost Art of Selling is simply "to listen"
4. 3 slide/5 minute rule - every 3/5, ask if everything makes sense. Check for questions.
5. Show Video! - it's a familiarity thing, but people will usually get MUCH more engaged with you if they SEE you. There are subsets of this one, like - LOOK AT THE CAMERA, and SMILE ALOT, BE ENTERTAINING, or Have a "clean" background (think of it like a "set" in movies & commercials)... I'll cover them in another post!
Obviously, I messed up on #1. Bad Josh. Bad bad bad.
But, and this comes from my martial arts training - and I am sure that most any athlete who's competed in something has felt/created the same mental space as this... The best thing that you can do when someone gets upset or gets hot with you, is to CREATE SOME SPACE. Breathe. Get calm. Starting thinking about what your options are... You could rush in/through, you could run away, (those are fight or flight...) or you could ORGANIZE. Naturally, unless you're a brute (in this case, a Bill Gates-esque brilliant Engineer, which I wish I was, sometimes) you're going to have to learn how to organize and compose yourself. Therefore, we're choosing to FIGHT, but MINDFULLY.
Josh's Process to save the call- and yourself
1. Get mad - Sure, this is an emotional response, but it's unavoidable. We all get mad, because something like this hurts- it is uncomfortable to have someone take you to task so publicly and in such a straightforward manner. But, if I was really bothered, I'd be in some other line of work. The key is to take the negative feeling, and "let it turn." So step QUICKLY over this, it's never worthwhile to get mad at someone in a professional environment. Getting mad is like torture in international politics- WE need to set the example of how to behave, of professionalism, so that everyone else understands the baseline of civility. IE Don't TORTURE. Getting mad will give you the Fire to Get Going- it's an Instant Sense of Urgency.
2. Re-orient - The wheels start turning - what do we do now?! This is where what you've learned- your TECHNIQUE - comes into play. This is why we train, so that when we're in this kind of situation, we're ready to respond correctly.
3. Don't Panic - Hey, it's on that little book I carry around, it MUST be worth something! Remember, YOU CAN DO IT. If you can't, you should be in another field of work, because the stress here may kill you.
4. Get back on TRACK - Hmm, sounds familiar... This is when being prepared, trained and having LISTENED to your customer makes a HUGE difference. Pick the thread of information that the customer wants to mine, and just GET TO IT.
5. Keep Your Sense of Humor - If you haven't got one, GET ONE. Go to comedy shows, get some friends, pray to God, go to Laughing meditations, drink alot. Whatever it takes, find your inner Laughing Person. And keep it real!
So, keep your cool, have fun, and go to the mat only when absolutely necessary. Remember, it's all part of the game, and we can have a LOT of fun with this kind of thing- just don't EVER take anything too personally.
Oh, and always remember to synch up with your colleagues afterwards to have a good, releasing laugh, and finish it off on a positive note- never leave an interaction unresolved. It's like the old saying about marriage- never go to bed angry; treat your customers as such - they're getting into a serious relationship with your company, and need to know that they will be listened to and that their needs will be met.
Always remember, customers are the lifeblood of the company.
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