Synergy, salesmanship, Pete and Haldol...

[Dien Rice]

Originally Posted by GordonJ

As I was doing this, I was talking to him about golf, because I knew he was an avid golfer and he knew I was a golf teaching professional.

We discussed the four shots of golf, the tee shot, approach shot, recovery shot, and putting.


I was able to weave the words of golf, the lingo, into the discussion of psychotropic drugs, and the care of our residents.

It was then that I realized the synergy that was taking place.


Oh the drug was reduced and in 30 days later our resident was taken totally off of Haldol.

Turned out the poor guy who couldn't speak, would get migraine headaches, which in turn caused him to" act out"...a couple of aspirin and he was a new guy. Anyhow,

This synergy, was a combination of the vocabulary, of the lingo,the jargon people in different fields used to communicate.

Jargon is the shortcut.

Jargon and the lingo of one discipline, could be applied to another area totally different, totally opposite and allow you to get RESULTS.

The lingo of a salesman, could be;
the sale begins when the customer says no. Salesmanship is about gaining attention, getting interest, arousing desire and all things that lead to a sale.

The lingo of a psychiatrist, could be about side effects, counter indications,
liability, psychotropic medication etc.

The lingo of a golfer, could be big dog ( is used in the movie Tin Cup), par, birdie, eagle, double bogey.

So in talking to the psychiatrist, I would say things like I know Doc you don't want have a double bogey on this one, so let me be the caddie and make sure you have the right club in your hand when we make a shot.

Now it sounds totally unrelated, but see I was able to enter into his golf world, and related to his real Dr. world. It was through the jargon and the lingo and of course, my assured body language, and my confidence that this was the right thing to do.

Of course, that was because I clearly understood what was at stake, and the real motivations and the obstacles as a salesperson I had to overcome.

That day, was when I realized the power of jargon, lingo and the language we spoke doing our jobs.

It was then that I drew the circle and put the target inside the circle and understood if I my goal was to get that person to take the action I wanted them to take, I FIRST had to step inside their world and use the language they were used to hearing because it was a shortcut into their brain.

Synergy is the combining of two or more "things" to get a new and different thing...

I combined the best of what Social Work offered, the business world and sports and recreation to create, the forerunner to my Square One Workshops.

Thanks Gordon for another FANTASTIC post, full of amazing insight...

I have learned so much over the years from your posts (and also from your books and reports, and luckily for me, from you personally)...

I really think what you said about "synergy" is extremely valuable stuff! I agree with you, that's probably how you delve into someone's "subconscious"...

It reminds me a little of Dale Carnegie's "How to win friends and influence people" - though what you're talking about is at a "deeper" level...

I was lucky to have read "How to win friends and influence people" as a teenager. (My parents had an old dog-eared copy on the bookshelf.) In a nutshell, he recommends you find out what the other person's interests are - then ask about those interests.

For example, if you want to befriend "Adam" for example, and you know that Adam is crazy about horse-riding - you could ask Adam about his most favorite horse-riding experience. Adam's eyes will probably suddenly light up, and he'll spend a while telling you all about it.

If you happen to also know something about the topic, and you can also speak all the "horse-riding" jargon - so much the better!

I like the "synergy" idea - because it helps to enable you to "guide" someone to the destination you want them to go to, using the power of their own interests and passions...

Anyway, thanks, Gordon - I'm going to re-read your post a few times, and of course save it on my computer, too!

Best wishes,

Dien

P.S. I would say it sounds to me that Peter was using an "authority"-type of approach (in the bunch of approaches that Robert Cialdini writes about). He is the "authority," he has the experience, and he makes sure the customer knows it. As Cialdini showed, people will tend to obey an "authority" figure. Would you say that's accurate? He also "assumes the sale" too, as you pointed out...

[GordonJ]

Originally Posted by Dien Rice

P.S. I would say it sounds to me that Peter was using an "authority"-type of approach (in the bunch of approaches that Robert Cialdini writes about). He is the "authority," he has the experience, and he makes sure the customer knows it. As Cialdini showed, people will tend to obey an "authority" figure. Would you say that's accurate? He also "assumes the sale" too, as you pointed out...

Hi Dien,

I'm NOT a big Grinder/Bandler NLP fan, of theirs anyway, but the GREAT Milton Erikson, whom neither could hold a candle too...thanked them for telling him what he was doing...that is they gave names to his techniques.

Mirroring, Pacing, Reframing all came out of therapy and salesmanship.

Cialdini immersed himself in the cults of salesmanship, and he created "click Whirr" and the jargon of "authority".

I just wanted to make that comment...YES, Pete was an authority and presented himself, but, it is different than someone who says, "I'm going to use the authority technique."

Or any NLP authority, and many Ph.D. in psychology are low life carnival barkers in my opinion...but, anywayz...

I used to record Pete and myself, to see what we did different than what the kids were taught...I don't have the exact transcripts, but this recreation comes pretty darn close...

A guy walks to vcr's.

Pete: VCR?????

Guy. Yes, I came in for...

Pete interrupts, "You want this one." Points to vcr beneath his legs.

Guy, looking at price, "ohh, that's more than I want to spend, I came in for this one" shows Pete the ad from the Sunday paper.

Pete points down to the low end, sez, "down there, first ones, just grab it and take it to the register"

Guy, "I have some questions"

Pete interrupts and sez, "I'll get one of the junior associates to wait on you"

Guy, "What, you can't answer the questions?"

Pete. NOPE, waste of my time. I don't sell those pieces of crap"

Guy, getting irritated, "Why do have the pieces of crap in your store then?"

Pete, points to name tag, sez, "I'm Pete, the store is MACE, who used to run a great store, now his sons, Larry Curly and Moe run it...and they are the ones who order the products, and Larry curly and moe have never asked for my opinion."

Guy, "Well, that's a hell of a way to run a business"

Pete, "Yea, I know, they probably will run it into the ground" (They did, only took about 3 years from the time the sons took over until bankruptcy).

Guy, "Well, tell me about that one then"

Pete. MGA, best vcr in store, it is a great Japenese company still a little uncertain how their name, Mitsubishi is going to be taken over here, so they are dumping higher quality products, which it is...and you get their benefit of still being embarassed about being Japanese"

Guy, What about Magnovox?

Pete laughs, "almost all of these are made by ONE company, Matu****a, but they slap a different cover and box on them."

"They are OK, but, MGA is a better product, you won't be bringing it back into the store and besides, I make more money on it. "

Guy, "You're kidding me, you're getting paid more just to tell me they are better."

Pete, "No I'm getting paid more because they are charging the Stooges a lot less money than anyone else, so because the margins are larger, Larry curly and moe WANT us to sell more of these, and knowing they won't be coming back into the shop...well, they at least got that right.

And so on.

Pete closed, not because of any selling strategy, but because of ATTITUDE, you can't teach that, you can't say, Timmy, use the Authority close, cause timid Timmy isn't ever going to come off as an authority, he just doesn't have it in him...

So, Pete's AUTHORITY came based on 10 years of experience and being able to call the owners of the company STOOGES. They WERE.

Totally sank the ship in 3 years, after about 20 years of their father's continuous success. One reason, they had EGOS. Pete and I were one of a handful of people in the company that had sold this stuff...NEVER asked any of us our opinion.

they hired 20 year old kids, armed them with scripts, and canned presentations and, perhaps, that is why it only took 3 years to go bankrupt.

They overextended their credit, tried to use the OLD loss leader (bait and switch in our minds), which was industry standard...but proved fatal.

Pete and I and a few other's, didn't get with their program and as we got further into their program, it was easy to see the writing on the wall.

ALL of the top salesman were the older guys, who went off script and sold from instinct.

You can practice LINES, like in what is called Seduction or Pick Up strategies...until the cows come home and you'll still go home empty handed while guys like Halbert, just had to flash a vial of coke, and whamo mamo, another big boobed bloned in the sack...

just sayin,

it takes more than memorizing words, and scripts, you have to put some emotion into it...

And, I can see where Pete the super salesman broke many rules, but he got ONE right...

ATTENTION.

He commanded their attention with his somewhat JERKY attitude, but, once he presented the reasons WHY, it just made perfect sense...

It was all sublimanal, body language...a give a crap attitude, Pete knew he was going to sell, and he wasn't going to waste his precious time on YOU, if you had the attitude, you mr prospect, just aren't worth it...

very hard stuff to teach...

confidence plays a huge part in it.

And confidence can't be faked, but it can be borrowed.

Sure, you aren't any good at this, or that, but remember back in the 5th grade you won the spelling bee? Or anything, any success...can be called upon to carve out NEW neuronal pathways, which can be reinforced to the point of where the brain, can't tell the difference between a real event and one imagined...because of the neural firings...

As both Paul Thomas and Frank Rudolph Young wrote about...and a modern day guru, Dan Kennedy is such a believer he bought the book...Psych-Cybernetis from the Maxwell Maltz people...and brought out his own edition.

EVERYONE, even Timid Timmy, has something to call upon, they just don't know how to transfer the thought of a success, into something else.

It is NOT a skill taught anywhere along the American school track...yet the technolgy, of Cybernetics and from Maxwell Maltz and the god of cybernetics, Norbert Weiner to Paul Thomas who so elegantly wrote HOW to use it...

to modern neuro-science, and I have little respect for the so-called marketers using "ethical" persuasion, and support a particular candidate or politcal party...how is that ethical?????

But, the point...

We KNOW how to utilize the brain today...we understand more than we ever did...but, all the modern techniques and mapping of the brain have led us full circle around to say, gosh, these guys were right.

YOU can program your brain, and your mind...and your subconscious mind...and you can create NEW memory, deep and circulating memory which you can call upon at any given time you need it...

but, we don't.

Because it is like the English Literature you learned by rote in High School, you didn't have a passion for it...just for the grade you deserved. A students got A grades...that is how it worked....

But those with a passion, whom were deeply touched by Shakespeare, even the D- students, who put Shaekspeare into Circulating memory, can still call upon it as needed (although with google, we're all experts on what everyone said)...

POINT, sure salemanship can be learned, but the very best sales presentation (which matches the highest persuasion techniques)...is a resounding, reverberating, in synch and in harmony MESSAGE which resonates at the deepest level.

Gordon J

Gordon,

Great story. I can sure picture that attitude. Wish I could duplicate it ...

When you focus on attention, here's what I think of:

A few years ago, I had a PR person set up a series of radio interviews for me. To prepare, she gave me the book, How To Get Your Point Across In 30 Seconds Or Less, by Milo Frank (1986). Frank was a honcho at CBS and had been a screenwriter for MGM.

Frank would agree with you 100% that attention is the key. The focus of his book is exactly what to do to quickly get the full attention of your target.

The book is available online, and I highly recommend it. The very short, free version (my notes) is also available:

My Notes

Richard

[GordonJ]

Originally Posted by Richard Dennis

The very short, free version (my notes) is also available:

My Notes

Richard

Richard, Love the "Cliff Notes" type of things. How about a group of HOTSHEETS like these?????????????????? Hey, what if we all contributed ONE book report and made a collection?????

So, in the spirit of the short and sweet. Here goes my "everything I know about persuasion and influence" in an elevator pitch:

Start

People are preoccupied. Life preoccupations, gender specific, past and future and the ever present NOW. You must break their preoccupation, get their ATTENTION and hold it until they CONCLUDE they MUST have your product or they CONCLUDE your view is better than the one they hold.

ALL technique and methodology should end with THEM coming to a CONCLUSION because people may believe what you tell them, but will always believe their own conclusions.

END.

NOW, let's pretend the elevator has a few thousand floors...you have a brief period of time to CAPTURE or GET their attention...but, it is possible to hold it for longer periods of time...a good movie, will grab you and hold you all the way to the end.

A good book will do the same, although you rarely have time to read it in one sitting, but, you'll bookmark your page and return to it.

Most websites DON'T or CAN'T do that. MOST advertising doesn't do it. Most pieces of "junk mail" won't do it either.

ATTENTION is the essential piece, yet most don't know how to get it...and more importantly DON'T KNOW HOW TO HOLD IT.

Which is why I wrote, The Prospect as Product. What is the PERFECT, never wrong, never ignored product?

THEM.
THEY.
THOSE ONES you are trying get the attention from.

When your product, service or persuasive message is ABOUT THEM, it is always a welcome message.

When it shifts to NOT being about them, you stand a chance to lose their attention.

Persuasion of any kind is only as good as long as it is able to hold their attention and to FOCUS their thoughts on what you want them to think about...not an easy thing to do.

Amazingly, people are STARVED for a little light to be shined their way once in a while. Be the light bearer, and you'll command their attention as long as you want.

Resonance. Like a tuning fork, as long as your message resonates within them, you are in harmony and have their attention. Become incongruent in your message, dissonance and disconnection, then it is Adios Amigo.

There you go, short and sweet AND pithy even.

Gordon Alexander