Working with a new client recently I was reminded of the power of the calibration.
The participant eagerly shared the progress they had made between the training program and the first call.
In their mind they had already moved from a 6/10 at the end of the program to a 7/10- great progress. They could describe specifically what changes they had put into place and they were good solid changes.
I stretched them to think about what number they could possibly get to, what would be their personal maximum? If they could get to a 9/10 they would be very happy.
I probed on what the difference was between a 7 and 9… “I would be asking questions on the phone as I would if a customer was face to face”. Light bulb moment- I checked in on the types of questions and they were crystal clear as to the specifics.
Next step was to get underneath the behaviour and work out why this wasn’t happening currently. As the conversation unfolded the participant revealed they had been making assumptions around readiness to buy on the phone vs. face-to-face. On challenging their assumptions they were prepared to create a fresh set of assumptions and beliefs that would help them positively make the most of the call. Such as; ‘the client might choose to buy from me’ or ‘the client has to buy somewhere’. Note that the participant loved the training and had specifically put into place some actions. On stretching them we could take them to a new level and new insights.
I used the calibration tool to identify the gap on calls with most of my clients. It’s a quick and powerful way to identify an area where you can get some great results. Try using it with your team to stretch their perspective.