I want it…

A while back I wrote a little ditty about financially justifying the purchase of technology. (See Cost or Value).  Since I spent 40+ years in technology sales, I felt comfortable with my credentials in discussing sales justification. 

In that write-up I mentioned that there are "justifications" and then there are "justifications".  The main difference between the two is those deals where the customer "needs it" (usually to alleviate some sort of business "pain"); and those where the customer "wants it".  Which motivation do you think is more powerful? 

Have you ever spent more than you intended on something because you, or a loved one, not only needed it but wanted it?  Permit me to offer this little story about the power of want. 

When my younger son was 10 years old he was in his second year in a youth horse riding program. I have written about the Westernaires often.  Feeling confident in his commitment, my wife and I decided to buy him his own horse.  (He had been renting a Westernaires' string horse and needed his own to advance in the program.) 

We learned about the Bureau of Land Management's wild horse adoption program out of Canon City, Colorado where a Mustang could be adopted for $125.   Following adoption by properly caring for the horse and passing the BLM's inspections, you would receive ownership papers after two years.  I'm thinking… my son needed a horse; we could adopt one for $125; the investment justification seemed straight forward. 

Interestingly, the BLM adoption center in Canon City was located on the federal penitentiary grounds known then (and still today) as "Super Max".  It housed some of the most infamous criminals of modern times.  The "Una Bomber"; "El Chapo"; and other "worst-of-the-worst" killers.  But I digress… 

We went to an adoption event at the prison one spring day.  We were escorted by two armed guards the entire time.  I thought we were "just looking" for a horse.  After all, it was our first "presentation of a solution".  What I didn’t understand is that my wife, and more importantly my son, were there to "buy".  It was a little gray mingled among a herd of some sixty Mustangs that caught my son's eye.  The four year old horse had the coloring of a blue roan.  It was at that very moment he decided this was the Mustang he wanted. 

Silly me…  I'm thinking well it's only $125.  And if that was the horse to make my 10 year old son happy, then it was a pleasure to buy him a horse of his very own.  It was easy for me to "justify" the $125 "investment".  Well within our "budget".  Little did I know how the money works when it comes to horses. 

Within the first three months, here's what we actually spent for adopting that $125 Mustang: 

90-day training with feed, farrier, and gelding           $   600

Bridle, bit and reins                                                    $   250

Big Horn cordura saddle                                            $   400

Saddle blanket                                                            $     75

Halter and lead rope                                                    $     45

2-Horse, horse trailer to transport the horse                $2,500

Chevy Suburban (used) to haul the horse trailer        $6,000

                                                             Total cost        $9,870

That was a cost overrun of 7,896%!  But for the horse my son wanted?  Worth every penny.

Sooo, when selling to a buyer, it's nice to justify their spend based on what they need.  It's much more powerful to sell based on what they want.  Don’t you agree? 

                                                            GAP 

When life gets tough we could get a helmet… or… we could leverage the peace and share the power of a positive perspective. 

Dressed for the part…

My wife and I just returned from vacation.  We visited our niece Lisa and nephew David in the Ocean Park area of Maryland.  Due to Covid, it was the first time we flew on an airplane in over 3 years. 

During our visit my nephew David noticed even in retirement and dressed casually, I see many things through the lens of business.  After a full career I guess that's something not easily turned off.  It's fun though (for me at least).  In business, especially in the sales profession, things are often not what they appear.  It takes a keen and disciplined view, or as Yogi Berra put it: 

            You can see a lot by observing. 

Saturday evening we went to a free concert in their community.  The outdoor patio area was, as Lisa would say, "bumper-to-bumper" with people; their cars in the parking lot; and boats in the marina.  Eclipse, a Journey cover band played from 6 to 10 pm.  They had the Ocean Pines Yacht Club rockin'!  I was dressed for the part: 

In addition to the great music and even better company with Lisa and David, I always get a kick from people watching.  I especially enjoy watching those from my generation who are…  well … old.  We don’t think of ourselves as old and my wife hates that description.  She prefers "seniors" or perhaps "elderly", but never "old". 

At the outdoor venue with perfectly warm weather one, gray-haired lady was dressed casually for the part including a walking cane.  She was sitting near us and enjoying the band with a group of "seniors".  To the casual observer she might have appeared… well… old.  Some might even have had concerns whether she would be too frail to walk back to the parking lot.  However, when the band played "Pour Some Sugar on Me" by Def Leppard, not only was she on her feet dancing with her friends, but I was close enough to see she was enthusiastically singing along.  She knew all the words!  Truly, my generation rocks! 

That evening I received several compliments about my shirt.  My niece wondered if I brought it on vacation specifically because of the concert.  I replied it was part that, and part coincidence.  After thinking about it further I realized my nephew had something in his comment about my business lens.  You see, throughout my sales career I was always trying to "dress for the part". 

I'm not sure how it works in today's modern, virtual, work-from-home business settings.  You don’t see many men suited up; wearing a necktie; sporting polished Wingtips.  A former Generation X colleague of mine once said, "Gary, I'm in software sales.  I don’t even own a tie let alone wearing one to work."  

Not only did I suit-up most of my career, but I even added suspenders back in the day when I was selling Oracle Financials (version 1.0 in 1989).  The software was expensive and buggy as hell - but I was dressed for the part.  I suppose Oracle wanted our prospects to feel our software was more mature and reliable than merely "betaware".  Oracle sales execs set the tone and we all added suspenders to our suit, tie, and Wingtips attire. 

Today, about the only people you see wearing suspenders are those from my generation who are … well… old.  But if you observe them carefully I bet you will see - they can still rock! 

                                                            GAP 

When life gets tough we could get a helmet… or… we could leverage the peace and share the power of a positive perspective.

How’s your day been?

Five years ago this coming Monday, I was in an earthquake in Mexico City; a 7.1.  How do you work that into casual conversation? 

September 19, 2017 at 1:15 pm local time, a powerful earthquake shook the bejeezus out of my training class; our lunch break; my colleagues; and me!  Thankfully, no one in our group was hurt. 

Unfortunately, there were many in Mexico City and surrounding states that did get hurt; over 200 people killed; hundreds perhaps thousands injured.  According to The Guardian ©; 

It was the second major earthquake to hit Mexico in two weeks and came on the anniversary of the 1985 quake that devastated Mexico City, killing 5,000 people and destroying 10,000 homes. 

In fact, because of that 32^nd anniversary; commemorating the devastation; we actually had an emergency evacuation drill at 11am in 2017; about 2 hours before the real thing hit again! 

During the episode, I was conscious of the fact I was experiencing an earthquake – on the 19^th floor of a hotel no less.  What started out feeling like a freight train passing by causing the table to vibrate, quickly erupted into what seemed like a prolonged period of ferocious shaking.  I could not keep my feet. 

Those much braver than I were calling out; directing us towards the archway leading into the room.  Firmly they instructed us to move away from the windows; calmly, they reassured us that we will be alright.  Ultimately, we filed out onto the streets joining tens of thousands of others.

I remember looking out the window and seeing the glass buildings across the plaza actually swaying.  It was surreal.  It reminded me of the scene in movie The Matrix where a helicopter crash caused the façade of a glass office tower to ripple. 

So many had invested so much before the earthquake hit – and after.  Gustavo Moussalli, our Latin American Division Director and the executive sponsor for the class had made a huge commitment to his local partners; coordinating a 3-day enablement class to support their success. 

Gerardo Diez Martinez, our local Channel Manager arranged the meeting rooms and set-up; AV equipment; food and beverage; Gerardo spared no expense to insure we had everything we needed for his partners. 

My colleague Susanna Lagtapon sacrificed time away from her daughter’s 13^th birthday; traveling instead to join us for the class.  Our colleague, Tony Caporal, with cooler head and bravery, prevailed following the earthquake.  He helped us retrieve our laptops and luggage.  (Even stopping at the lobby bar to grab a free beer on his way out of the hotel.) 

Our VP, Brian Enright, was our “home base”; coordinating flights out of town; hotel reservations; and anything else he could do to support us from afar. 

And especially Hector Garcia from our long-time partner NetSoft.  Hector insisted on personally driving us to the airport; would not hear of us taking a taxi or a bus.  He would navigate us through the city streets; on constant vigil for our safety.  Three hours to drive us 12 kilometers.  Three hours in the opposite direction from his own home and family – taking us in his care. 

As with all disasters, there were many heroes – named and unnamed.  But that was 2017; Mexico City; and an earthquake.  Today, it’s another crisis; another natural disaster; another conflict. 

We are all thankful for so many first responders and other heroes – named and unnamed.  May God bless them all. 

GAP 

When life gets tough we could get a helmet… or… we could leverage the peace and share the power of a positive perspective.

Dates never forgotten…

September 11, 2001 - we still remember.  What dates are never forgotten for you? 

In the novel, A Tale of Two Cities © is the contrast, “It was the best of times; it was the worst of times…” both occurring at the same time.  For many Americans, 9/11/2001 seems like a demarcation point between the best of times before that morning and the worst of times after.  That’s when terrorism literally collided into freedom.

Do you remember where you were when news and the images of the planes crashing into the World Trade Centers in New York City were broadcast?  I always will.  In a flash Americans were once again about to be tested on what we can endure during the worst of times.  

December 7, 1945 tested my parent’s generation; October 24-29, 1929 tested my grandparents’.  On a more personal level April 20, 1999 was the worst of times for Columbine High School in my hometown. 

It’s amazing what we can accomplish during the best of times; and what we can endure during the worst of times.  The bad times help us appreciate and enjoy the good times.  Here’s how Ernest Hemingway phrased it: 

Life breaks us.  And when we heal, we’re stronger on the broken parts. 

Our ability to gain strength from adversity should come as no surprise, though.  Our ancestry is made of up generations who were broken; endured; and then grew stronger. Is today’s adversity caused by gun violence, racial injustice, and other calamities akin? 

For those who did not suffer a direct loss of loved ones from the recent (and lingering?) pandemic, our hardships now come in the form of inconvenience and economics.  It’s more arduous today to keep up; we hear "supply chain disruptions"; housing prices are almost unreachable.  Things we once dreamed of seem further from our grasp.  Our available resources are nearing the breaking point.  

But for America, that’s nothing new.  Our country has been on the brink; had parts broken; and healed back stronger for as long as we have been a country.  Was the suffering from the Revolution, the Civil War, the Viet Nam War, the Civil Rights Movement, or any other national, local, family, or personal crisis less hard? 

We are again facing threats to our way of life; and indeed many of our life’s ways need to change.  We are strong enough to face these threats because we come from generations of strength - families who struggled to make for this country, for their loved ones, and for themselves the best of times.  Like past generations, Americans today will have to re-earn the better things in life.  Perhaps we first must re-learn what those better things are: 

To really enjoy the better things in life, one must first have experienced the things they are better than.  

Oscar Holmolka 

Sunday we will reflect on that never forgotten, life-changing event known as 9/11.  As impactful perhaps as  the day an American walked on the moon, or the night the men's Olympic hockey team won the gold medal to Al Michaels’ famous words, “Do you believe in miracles?”  Our Unknown Sage reminds us: 

The First Rule of Life: 

The best things in life aren't things.

America endured October 24^th, 1929; grew stronger after the December 7^th, 1941; my hometown stands firm following the April 20^th, 1999; we’ve overcome 9/11/2001.  Today, American must endeavor to re-unite again.  

We will succeed because we have never forgotten.                                 

GAP 

When life gets tough we could get a helmet… or… we could leverage the peace and share the power of a positive perspective.

Cost or value?

A friend of mine is a Project Manager for a national insurance company.  He recently submitted an updated investment justification for a technology purchase that was originally approved three years ago.  Turns out, the annual maintenance costs exceeded the initial projections.  The company's executives wanted to re-visit (and re-justify) the cost. 

I found this remarkable because in my sales career, my clients rarely went back and re-justified their purchases.  Let me ask you… post sale, how often did your clients go back to re-confirm the original cost justification?  

Products or services, I believe they all work the same.  George Eckes, a subject matter expert in Six Sigma manufacturing processes, chimed in…  (According to Wikipedia, “A six sigma process is one in which 99.99966% of the products manufactured are statistically expected to be free of defects”): 

About 30 percent of my clients have had a true Six Sigma cultural transformation; about 50 percent of my clients have obtained tactical results that justified their investment in paying my outrageous fees.  And about 20 percent of clients have totally wasted their money.           

Not every technology purchase has to be “justified”.  Here’s an excerpt from an interview published in the March 2012 issue of CFO Magazine: 

CFOs need to understand that you have to keep the core running, says NetSuite CFO Ron Gill.  Sometimes the CIO will say the phone system needs upgrading.  The CFO will ask, ‘What will we get from the upgrade?’ The CIO says, ‘Phones.' 

Way back in 1979 during my very first, B2B sales training class, we worked on feature-benefit drills.  Anytime we came across a feature we couldn’t immediately connect a benefit to, we were taught to use that famous, catch-all, cost justification phrase:  “Save Time; Save Money!” 

Over four decades later, I’m amazed at how often I still hear this phrase.  Maybe you say it yourself.  Oh and there’s the popular derivation that goes like this:  “With our automated, online, interruption, peddle, your people currently performing this task can do more important things for the company…”  More important things?  Such as? 

Much has been said and more has been written on how sales professionals can “cost justify” the sale of technology products and services.  “Value Proposition”; “Return On Investment”; “Total Cost of Ownership”, “Time to Value”; “Automating manual tasks”; what is your favorite justification technique?  (“Save Time; Save Money” you say?  Just shoot me!) 

When the client values the technology we're selling and wants the technology we're selling; they don’t always need a formal justification.  Don’t take my word for it.  ROI and the fact that it is often unneeded has been part of the technology industry for as long as there has been a technology industry: 

What's my return on investment in e-commerce?  Are you crazy? This is Columbus in the New World.  What was his ROI?

                        Andrew Grove 

In my experience, when I understood how the client valued my proposal a closed sale was at hand.  Of course, the term "value" is vague and varies by client.  We know it exists because it connects to the client’s “discretionary funds”.  Discretionary funds includes their original “budget” plus whatever it costs to get what they want.  They may not need it but if they value it and want it, who am I to say no? 

We might all consider seeking to understand what the client wants and then selling to the value.  After all, this approach could Save Time; Save Money! 

GAP 

When life gets tough we could get a helmet… or… we could leverage the peace and share the power of a positive perspective.

Facing our daily fears…

Where do you turn to find the courage to face your day these days? 

We face much fear, uncertainty, and doubt as witnessed by the blaring news headlines, true?  The de-valuing of our 401k; global warming; job security; what our children post online.  In fact, it was the news of our modern day that stimulated the creation of my slogan: 

When life gets tough, you could get a helmet or … Arm yourself with the Peace & Power of a Positive Perspective.

Fear; uncertainty; doubt; often appear as a “surprise” in my life.  I hate surprises – even good surprises.  I’d rather be in “control”.  

My wife hosted a Halloween, surprise birthday party for me once.  All of our guests dressed in old people costumes.  It was great fun right up until everyone yelled, "surprise!" and my birthday cake appeared.  After the party I thanked my wife but admonished her never to throw me a surprise party again, Halloween or otherwise.  (BTW - my birthday is in February so I was definitely surprised.) 

Sometimes I find myself trying to “control” the lives of my children and grandchildren, too.  I try to protect them from those unknown, painful surprises impacting us all.  Impractical I know; I just can’t help but fear the unknown for me and others. 

I do turn to our favorite Unknown Sage often for encouragement.  He tries to help in the fear, uncertainty, and doubt department with a reminder: 

            Fear makes the wolf bigger than he is. 

German Proverb 

You should consider yourself very lucky if the size of the wolf in your mind has not grown during recent years. 

Perhaps modern man can learn how to face our difficulties from ancient societies.  The ancient Greeks believed their gods inspired man to approach the unknown without fear.  Imagine what our life would be like if we approached the unknown without fear.  

Imagine more faith; less control; more peace of mind; less fear; more courage, even in the face of less certainty.  Where the ancient Greeks emphasized faith and inspiration, are we emphasizing antacids and high blood pressure medication? 

One would expect that the advancement of modern science and our higher level of thinking serve to lessen the fear, uncertainty, and doubt while increasing courage in our lives.  David Ben-Gurion suggested that knowledge and courage are linked: 

Courage is a special kind of knowledge; the knowledge of how to fear what ought to be feared and how to not fear what ought not to be feared. 

OK then; we obviously have things we ought to fear.  We can’t think those things away; or will them away; or gain such tight control over every aspect of our life that we never have to worry about another "surprise".  

Can we apply business knowledge to better understand life’s fears? 

Two types of uncertainty plague most efforts to introduce major new products: known-unknowns and unknown-unknowns. 

Norman R. Augustine 

“Known-unknowns” and “unknown-unknowns”?  The wolf is getting bigger!  Where is an ancient Greek when we need one? 

Can the remedy for the fear we face in our modern lives really be as simple as having the type of faith that prevailed in ancient times?  

To one who has faith, no explanation is necessary.  To one without faith, no explanation is possible. 

Thomas Aquinas 

Thomas Aquinas, a 13^th century theologian and philosopher.  He may not be on Facebook, but he's still a little more modern than the ancient Greeks. 

GAP 

When life gets tough we could get a helmet… or… we could leverage the peace and share the power of a positive perspective.

Agreeing to disagree…

I'm sensitive about the topic of retirement.  I know the vast majority of my readers are actively employed.  Even my wife is running a successful ecommerce business.  However now that I'm on the sidelines, perhaps I can offer a glimpse into what's happening to people in the working world; the other parts of the world, too.  Seems to be a lot of consternation and conflict, true? 

Ian Leslie wrote in his book Curious© this: 

A user of the social news and discussion site Reddit recently posted the following question: If someone from the 1950s suddenly appeared today, what would be the most difficult thing to explain to them about today?  The most popular answer was this one: I possess a device, in my pocket, that is capable of accessing the entirety of information known to man.  I use it to look at pictures of cats and get into arguments with strangers. 

Curiously, I am from the 1950s and we do use social media to get into arguments with strangers.  I worry how much I've been impacted: 

When I retire, I'll have the time to rediscover myself.  I used to be a nice person. 

Jeri Sedlar 

I've been thinking a lot about my skill and ability to disagree with someone else's point of view without coming across disagreeable.  I mean discussing or even debating different points of view is one thing; raising the temperature to a full blown argument and blasting someone online is something altogether different, don’t you agree? 

There, I said it (actually I wrote it), I'm trying to persuade you to agree with my point of view.  According to this 2020 post from thebalancecareers.com: 

Persuasion is convincing others to change their point of view, agree to a commitment, purchase a product or service, or take a course of action. Oral and written persuasive skills are valued in the workplace. Sales is the most obvious form of persuasion, but this skill is used in many other positions as well. 

Selling skills aside, I've noticed that I become angry too easily these days when I see or hear things going on around me that I disagree with.  Has the art of persuasion been usurped by social media and the ability to just lambast others and their points of view?

The article The persuasion triad - Aristotle Still Teaches, published in 2016 and referencing thought leadership from 23 centuries ago reminds us: 

Aristotle determined that persuasion comprises a combination of three appeals: logos, pathos, and ethos. Anyone seeking to persuade an audience should craft his/her message with facts (logos), tapping an argument's emotional aspect (pathos), and presenting his/her apparent moral standing (ethos). 

Facts, emotions, and moral standing?  I have improvement work to do.  Whether I'm right or wrong, I don't always have to look for a fight.  It's OK if we agree to disagree. 

According to Wikipedia, the phrase "agree to disagree" appeared in print all the way back in 1770:

…a phrase in English referring to the resolution of a conflict (usually a debate or quarrel) whereby all parties tolerate but do not accept the opposing positions. It generally occurs when all sides recognize that further conflict would be unnecessary, ineffective or otherwise undesirable. They may also remain on amicable terms while continuing to disagree about the unresolved issues. 

Agreeing to disagree; remaining on amicable terms.  There's a skill I can work on in retirement.  Wish I started working on it years ago. 

GAP 

When life gets tough we could get a helmet… or… we could leverage the peace and share the power of a positive perspective.