A recent meeting with my CFO got me thinking about different ways of looking at things. We are having a challenging year, and (rightfully so) our CFO is concerned about our numbers. As I was recapping what had gone on so far, I was struck at how similar the conversation was to some other things that are prevalent in my life.
For example, Buddhist teachings on the 4 Noble Truths tell us the following:
1. The truth of suffering, anxiety, or dissatisfaction
2. The truth of the origin of this suffering
3. The truth that suffering will end
4. The truth of the path that leads to the end of the suffering
So...for my meeting with my CFO, I pretty much could've easily gotten away with burning some incense and chanting, because:
1. The truth of suffering this year is that our numbers are down
2. The origin of this suffering is that advertisers are not doing as much print as they used to and are not embracing our digital offerings as emphatically as we would like them to
3. The truth is that the suffering WILL end at some point...because...advertising runs in cycles and it will switch back to our core products soon enough
4. The truth of the path that leads to the end of this suffering includes having our reps be as visible and accessible to their current clients and new prospects as possible, so they are top of mind when advertisers start to consider us for larger shares of their budget spend
Sticking with Buddha...karma is the thing drives the cycle of suffering and rebirth for each of us. The etymology of the word "karma" comes from Sanskrit and generally translates to either "work" or "action".
Hmmm. So, the truth of the path that leads to the end of suffering from poor numbers lies in me helping my reps to develop good karma in the marketplace? Right on! Sign me up!
For any other sales reps from a different company or industry who may read this, this goes for you too. Positive karma is a set of appropriate actions, put into the world to generate a good outcome. So, focusing on finding the right balance of understanding needs, communicating potential solutions, and following up on what you put in place to make sure it's working...is the only path to overcome the suffering of poor numbers.
This sounds like a gross oversimplification, but it really is true. Think about the reverse. You are having a challenging year, you start to lose faith in your own abilities and your own products, and you start a cycle of the self fulfilling prophecy where people aren't just not interested in buying from you...they don't even want to talk to you. When there is bad karma, the path to the end of suffering usually takes the form of a performance improvement (manage someone out) plan. Nobody wants that.
Karma also leads to rebirth...good and bad. Think about this in the sales environment. I have a rep who has been struggling to close new business. We got together and discussed changing karma. We got back to the basics of understanding needs and communicating solutions. This rep embraced this, put a bunch of good feelers out in the marketplace, and is about to close a $100K deal (which includes print AND digital). Would this have been the outcome if we had gotten on the bad karma path of simply checking weekly activity reports? I highly doubt it. This rep's rebirth would've probably come in a different role at a different company. That would have been a shame.
Who knew that Buddha was also such an enlightened Sales Leader? I certainly didn't...but I do now. I'll be paying MUCH closer attention to this moving forward. I hope all of you will as well!
Namaste
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