Selling in a Crisis

39Listen Better

Listening is the key to effective discovery. It is how you learn your prospect's language and the key to tailoring a relevant business case that differentiates you from your competitors and says, “I get you.” Listening is also the real secret to developing deep emotional connections with other people.

Truly listening to another person is not complicated or complex, but it does require emotional control, self-discipline, practice, intention, and planning. This is why it is critical that before sales conversations, you prepare yourself to listen.

Prepare your discovery questions in advance. Center your mind on listening. Become aware of your own disruptive need to talk. Commit to being patient and pausing before speaking to avoid cutting the other person off.

One sure way to kill a conversation is to blurt out your next question or statement or, worse, talk over a stakeholder before they have finished speaking. Nothing makes a stakeholder feel like you aren't listening more than your talking over them.

When you feel that the other person has finished speaking, pause and count to three. This affords you time to fully digest what you have heard, before responding.

Pausing leaves room for others to finish speaking and prevents you from cutting them off if they have more to say. You'll often find that this moment of silence triggers stakeholders to continue talking and reveal important information they were holding back.

Learn to listen without jumping to conclusions ...