Have you watched The Incredibles? Remember the part where Syndrome is giving a monologue and Mr. Incredible catches him off guard?

This is a common theme in superhero movies. The villain reveals his whole dastardly plan then creates some absurd way to kill the hero, who then comes up with an equally absurd way to escape and foil the dastardly plan which he now has all the details of.

How about Fight Club? Remember when Jack and Marla are talking at the beginning of the movie? There is a poignant line here.

Did you catch that? I’ll repeat it.

Jack: They really listen to you…

Marla: Instead of waiting for their turn to speak.

This is a common theme in real life. We sit around and tell stories about some adventure we had, and the person we’re with responds with a story that appears to be an attempt to top our story. So we tell another story about how something else amazing happened.

While our friend was talking we were focused on the next story we could tell, not what the other person was saying.

Talking to clients

When you’re on the phone with a prospect, are you really listening to their needs, or are you just waiting to jump in and tell them why you’re the best person for them to work with?

Are you taking the time to truly understand their problem, or are you listening just enough to come up with a scenario that was similar so you can tell them you’re awesome?

Does that really serve the client? Would it perhaps be better to dig deep with their problem and understand it?

I think we all know the answer. No more monologues.

photo credit: ericconstantineau cc