Playing golf in a two-day event at a highfalutin course in St. Louis a few weeks ago now, I encountered two wildly different caddies.
Mine was Nolan. He was very quiet at first, waiting for me to let him know where I needed him.
Nolan was reading the room.
My playing partner, Ahmed had Will. He jumped right in and completely took over Amhed’s life. Will read putts, dictated where the shot would go, and told Ahmed which club to use…
…all of which was done unsolicited.
Day one, I let it go, assuming Ahmed had asked him for help. The second day, when Will’s habit of sharing endless unspoken thoughts started coming my way, I very quickly, directly, and (probably rudely) shut him down.
Nolan got a fresh Benjamin for his efforts. Will got a lump of coal.
Read. The. Room.
Each new sales relationship is a chance to look for signals on how to communicate, how to behave, and which buttons to push in order to make a sale. To some, you might be a helpful contributor. To others, you are annoying. A good salesperson (and a good caddy) observes first and acts second, shape-shifting and adapting the message so it can be heard.
There is no one-size-fits-all relationship. If there were, Will would be $100 richer, too.
Read. The. Room.
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