The following story is almost true. And it happens almost every day, to an unsuspecting, cool entrepreneur. Can you relate?
You’ve gotten up the gumption to connect with Life Coach Sally and she says yes. You’ve set up the time and you dial the number. You are excited about making the connection and taking it to the next level, but not sure where it will go.
The conversation is feeling really good—you like her energy and are really starting to see the potential in this relationship.
Then she tells you about her upcoming program in 3 weeks and invites you. Cool!
Then she asks you to share it with your list and if you get 5 people to pay her $5,000, Ms. Sally will let you attend for free!
What happened?
How did a great conversation turn into ME getting pitched by someone I just met?
And why would this person think it’s ok?
You may have experienced this first hand. Or you may even have been Ms. Sally…
The problem?
You just don’t know how to go from meeting someone to creating a strategic ROI (return of investment—it’s your time in this example). Know that this situation is fixable.
What went right?
The conversation went from a Facebook relationship to an email connection to a phone conversation. This is good. The conversation started with learning about each other and about each other’s businesses. This was all good!
What went wrong?
The problem occurred when Ms. Sally decided that the conversation needed to create an ROI now. Truth be told, relationships are not built in a day—even when they start out on Facebook! Conversations and relationships need to grow…they need to be nurtured…and they need time and space to develop into something that will last longer than my 7 year old’s attention span.
How can we fix it?
If you have been subjected to this type of conversation or even created this conversation, have no fear. Do not slam the door on the good energy and possibilities that inspired the connection!
Here are three simple steps to fixing a bad conversation:
- Focus on the good parts of the conversation—the parts BEFORE the conversation turned selfish.
- Be grateful for the opportunity to connect and the enlightenment you experienced.
- Keep the door open. After politely declining (or accepting if it feels right), make sure you allow for future conversations as enlightenment and possibility arises.
And finally, be understanding—for your connection and yourself! Most of us are just plodding away, doing what they think they have to do in order to earn a living, support a family and achieve success.
Have you experienced a conversation turned bad? I would love to hear your experience and how you handled it. Or, hypothetically, how WOULD you handle it?