Sales Journal Blog

Anyone know where the city Thimphu is located? If you answer that it’s the capital of the tiny Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan, located in South Asia and surrounded by China and India, would you have guessed it recently hosted a worldwide summit of top economists, including Nobel Prize winners, who gathered there to study an economic policy called Gross National Happiness?

In a fascinating article by a foreign service news correspondent, we are told about Gross National Happiness, a serious economic policy that is based on Buddhist principles. This unique approach to economic development may well begin to shine brightly through dark economic clouds.

The leaders in Bhutan consider human happiness a very important condition, and they have managed to convince more than a few traditional economists that human well-being and happiness should be a primary outcome of economic development.

The article’s author tells us that when considering economic growth, Bhutan policymakers “take into account respect for all living things, nature, community participation and the need for balance between work, sleep and reflection or meditation.”

The proponents of GNH recognize that on a planet of finite resources, the mindless pursuit of economic development is folly that will reap unimaginable misery on future generations. Albert Einstein declared sometime ago, “You cannot solve a problem at the same level of awareness that created it.” Echoing this sentiment, the head of the U.N. mission to Bhutan declared, “We can no longer approach the 21^st century with the instruments of the 20^th century.”

Most of us seem shy about using the word happiness when discussing economic activity; but why shouldn’t happiness be a corollary to economic growth? Must high productivity and economic expansion be synonymous with unhappiness or misery?

Bhutan’s 21^st century way of doing business is gaining worldwide attention, and surprisingly it is gaining traction in places like Canada, Australia, the United States and France. If it’s true, as Bhutan’s Prime Minister declares, that “New thoughts and ideas emerge from chaos and devastation,” I can’t image a better time for a new awareness, new thoughts and creative ideas about leading the world economy back to prosperity.

I mention Bhutan and Gross National Happiness only to introduce a perspective that just might provide some hope in facing the rather unpleasant economic environment we’ve managed to create for ourselves. It would be nice if a return to productivity and prosperity was accompanied by some happiness.  

Almost no one appears to be immune from the world-wide economic quagmire that threatens our prosperity for at least the next several years. Since it appears that we really are all in this together, it may be time to revisit the five rules I learned for playing Win-Win with customers.

Rule #1: You must promote open, honest communications.

Rule #2: Both parties must want to play Win-Win. Win-Win doesn’t mean you or your customer wins twice!

Rule #3: Your product or service must “fit” the customer’s wants, needs and ability to pay or perform.

Rule #4: As a sales professional, you are responsible for understanding WIIFM – the what’s-in-it-for-me for you and for your customer.

Rule #5: If it becomes obvious that a sale would harm one or both parties, you must be willing to walk away from the opportunity.

Explaining the rules of playing Win-Win to customers can be an effective tool for communicating your desire for mutual cooperation and qualifying your customer’s intentions. It also may help you and your customer survive, maybe even prosper, during these difficult economic times.

My friend Brad once gazed out at an audience that was seated to listen to a talk he was about to deliver. He noticed that half the chairs were empty. Discouraged at the large number of no-shows, Brad had difficulty starting his talk.

As Brad surveyed the audience, he realized that he could waste time and energy worrying about the folks who failed to show for the talk, or he could acknowledge the people in the audience with the best talk he could deliver.

I always remember Brad’s experience when I’m speaking to a group that is smaller than I expected, when an important influencer fails to show for a business meeting, or when folks opt out of our Sales Journal newlsetter mailing list. I do my best to remember that worrying about anything other than the audience at hand inhibits me from delivering the very best presentation , speech or article I can offer. It’s rewearding  to love the ones you’re with!

Steve Chriest

An old friend, Jim Hedemark, perhaps the best CEO I ever met, taught me about the guy. For Jim, the guy was a company’s primary customer. A master at strategic planning, Jim taught me that the strategic planning process didn’t start with a mission or a vision as is commonly practiced. Instead, it starts with an excruciating examination of the guy.

Before Jim began creating a vision for a company, and crafting its mission statement, he wanted to know everything about the guy – the demographics and the psychographics of the company’s primary customers. What is their average age? Are they primarily male or female? What income do they earn on average?

Just as important for Jim to know was the guy’s psychological makeup. What interests do they have? What do they value? What type of lifestyle do they wish to have? What would motivate him to do business with the company – now and tomorrow?

I’ve been convinced for some time now that every salesperson is responsible for crafting a strategic plan for his individual sales business. Whether it is a formal or an informal plan, it should always start with a thorough look at the guy.

Please feel free to offer any insights, observations or suggestions for a future article on the importance of analyzing the guy in the strategic planning process.

Steve Chriest

Our purpose in entering the blogosphere is twofold: First, since we publish the Selling Up™ eNewsletter, Sales Journal, a blog forum will allow us to test drive ideas we have for future articles about sales and management. Second, we hope to receive feedback and to learn from the comments of smart, thoughtful readers.

Expert bloggers tell us that posts should be informal, relevant, concise, and should impart some useful knowledge or insights to readers. Since this sounds like reasonable advice, we will observe these guidelines.