Becoming a trusted advisor is the goal of most professional service providers and sellers, yet only a select few attain that status. Why is that the case? Part of the answer lies within us, literally deep within us.
We are made of some 50 to 70 trillion cells. Each one of these cells has a memory and feelings. They have been evolving for millions of years and are capable of incredible calculations to ensure our survival. I think of these cells as our “subconscious mind. ”We are largely driven by our subconscious mind and, actually, are only consciously choosing our actions 5% of any given day. Our subconscious takes care of the other 95%.Your subconscious mind, or automatic pilot, is driving the ship we call “Me.”
Trust occurs at the subconscious level. Your cells quickly provide your senses with an assessment of whether to trust someone or not. The second you walk into a prospect’s office, your cells and his cells begin the dance of assessment. They read body language, tonality, words, eyes, face, mouth, legs, feet, hands, arms--they read the entire organism. And then they take the appropriate posture. Often, despite the smile and warm handshake, the cells are still sending signals that say, “Caution, not sure of all the data--yet.”
In a very real way, your cells and their previously encoded memories and feelings may be working against you.
Trust is certainly about credibility and reliability and in smaller ways about returning phone calls promptly, following through, and “walking the talk.” Trust also is about taking risk and becoming vulnerable. Yet most critically, trust is about lowering your self-orientation. It is about making others feel safe to talk freely, without judgment, and validating what they have to say before returning to your own story. That is, it’s about getting rid of “you.”
“But, Tim,” you scream, “I need ME to be present to make the call! ”Of course, you’re right. And this is where the challenge to achieve trusted advisor status surfaces: How can you get rid of you and yet at the same time use all of you? How can you learn to use the data--cellular data--more accurately?
Getting rid of you while using all of you are the heart and soul of our Sandler Training Trusted Advisor program. Each week we explore the different strategies that trusted advisors and great salespeople employ to become the very best at what they do. Make no mistake; our mission is to make you a “best-of-class” salesperson. It requires hard work on your part, not raw physical work, but building new beliefs and neural pathways that at times will seem unreasonable, difficult, not right, uncomfortable and perhaps even overwhelming. Best-of-class performers know the power of failure, lessons learned, heartache and disappointment. It’s all a part of the journey. If you would like to learn how, contact Tim at (317) 845-0041 or tim@thetrustpointe.com.
Tim has led the way at Sandler® Trustpointe in Indianapolis since 1998. He is a Trusted Advisor to CEOs, Sales Managers, and best-in-class sales professionals throughout the state and around the world. Tim's one of a kind presentation of the Sandler System is a transformational experience that produces ethical, strategic, high producing, and powerfully professional sales and customer service organizations. Reach out to Tim at 317-845-0041 or tim.roberts@sandler.com
