THE TUESDAY BUSINESS CORNER :

Many of us have to prove that our way’s best.

This could be a salesperson convincing a customer to buy from them; an interviewee persuading an employer to choose them; a team influencing the Board to invest in their initiative instead of the alternatives.

And it can be tempting to ‘prove’ your worth by discussing the intricate details of how you will do the job.

But this just proves what you’ll do, not that it’ll work.  It’s like someone saying “here’s my 5-step process for getting a date on a Friday night” and then going into lots of detail about each one.  But when you ask “does it always work?” they reply “no, never”.

So, to prove your approach works, use one/more of:

Case studies: tell a story of when you’ve done something similar before.  Start your description with the results you caused, not the work you did, since that’s the thing they’re most interested in

Testimonials/references: obtain written/verbal endorsements from credible people you’ve delivered similar results for.  Again, start with the results and work backwards

Talk about something that shows you have new insights to help them deliver exceptional results (a good test: you want the other person to think “well I had never thought it about that”)

List all the initiatives/companies/customers you’ve delivered similar results with

Give the total results you’ve caused i.e. add them all up
Once they know that you deliver results, you’ve earned the right to discuss your process. After all, if someone said “I can help you find love on a Friday night. My approach has a 100% track record; and here are three case studies, two testimonials and a reference”, your response will be “Sounds great. How do you do that?”

Action Point

Identify when you next have to prove your way is best. Then choose one/some of the above to show you will definitely deliver results (this is very different to explaining the steps you’ll be taking).


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Written by NativeEnglish

Native English Spain is dedicated to make learning English simple, fun and affordable for Spanish people.