September 15, 2019

The trick to The Why Conversation

...is to keep going.

You ask a question. And then you ask another because you’re not satisfied with the first answer. And then you ask another, because you’re still not convinced. And then you ask maybe five more on the same subject until finally you understand.

But... isn’t this incessant questioning rude? How do you motivate yourself to interrogate your perspective clients like this?

You do it by genuinely caring about them.

You have to want to improve their condition. To leave them better off than they were before your engagement. To deliver 110% customer satisfaction.

You ARE NOT trying to convince them to give you their money. You are trying to determine if there’s a good fit between your two businesses. An engagement that is likely to generate a profit for both of you.

And you can only figure this out by asking them deeper and deeper questions about what they’re trying to achieve at a fundamental level. To help them uncover their core motivations. To share their hopes, dreams, fears, and nightmares.

It is only through this questioning process that you will learn whether you can help them more closer to their dreams and farther from their nightmares.

Yours,

—J