God gave us 2 ears and 1 mouth. I think He expected us to listen twice as much as we speak.
Today too many managers and salespeople believe they have all of the answers and that they need to share those answers with everyone regardless of what the people around them are saying. These people only listen to respond. They either interrupt the other person or impatiently listen but only with the intent to respond with the answer they already have conjured up in their mind.
Great Salespeople and great Leaders are great listeners. Great Salespeople and great Leaders know “People don’t care what we know, until they know that we care.” People know we care when we ask questions and we listen to learn. Great Salespeople and Leaders listen with the intent to learn and they ask questions. They are listening to learn the needs and concerns of the person or people they are talking with.
Great Salespeople and great Leaders understand that we hear with our ears and we listen with our heart. Think about the people you love to be around. I bet they are people who are great listeners. They want to know what is going on in your life and they want to hear about your joys and your concerns. A Great Salesperson or Great Leader makes you feel good about yourself.
Are you looking to become a better Salesperson or a better Leader? If so begin to practice being a better listener. The Top Performers in the world are great listeners but they weren’t born that way. They learned how to listen and how to listen to learn vs. listening just to respond. Take a good look at yourself, are you a good listener? If so then I know you will be in total agreement with this article. If not, it is not to late to become a good listener. Start by not responding until the other person has finished. Then think about what they said and why they said it. Only then do you respond and if you want to be a Great Salesperson or a Great Leader, ask them a question about what they said. Then that person will know that you care about them.
Jeff Raver is a John Maxwell Certified Speaker, Coach and Trainer and has been training and coaching Top Performers for over 20 years.
If you are ready to lift your Sales Lid and become a Top Performer contact Jeff at Jeff.Raver@BeginToWinNow.com for a FREE Consultation.