Be Curious, Not Judgmental: Open Minds Close More Deals

A lesson from Walt Whitman and Ted Lasso

Welcome to the final part of our "Sales Success Through Business Acumen" series written by CEO Mark Savinson . If you missed part three—Keep Your Sales Team Ahead of the Curve—find it here .

One of the most memorable quotes from the TV show Ted Lasso is "Be curious, not judgemental". This phrase, originally attributed to the poet Walt Whitman, captures the essence of a positive and open-minded attitude that can benefit anyone, especially salespeople.

I would like to explore what it means to be curious and not judgemental in sales, and how it can help you create more value for your customers and yourself.

Be curious

Curiosity is the desire to learn or know more about something or someone. It is a key skill for salespeople, as it enables them to ask effective questions, uncover customer needs, generate insights, and build rapport. But being curious is not just about asking questions for the sake of it. It is about asking questions with a genuine interest and care for the answer, and using the knowledge to create reasons to change and solution criteria that make a difference for the customer.

Some of the benefits of being curious in sales are:

• It helps you understand the customer's situation, challenges, goals, and motivations better.
• It helps the customer discover compelling reasons to change.
• It helps you differentiate yourself from the competition, create value and ultimatley establish yourself as a trusted advisor.
• It helps you foster a collaborative relationship with the customer, where you both learn from each other and work towards a common goal.

Not judgemental

Being judgemental is the opposite of being curious. It is the tendency to form opinions or conclusions about something or someone without sufficient evidence or understanding. It is a common trap for salespeople, as it can lead to assumptions, biases, stereotypes, and prejudices that can harm the sales process and the customer relationship.

Some of the drawbacks of being judgemental in sales are:

• It can make you miss important information or insights that could change your perspective or approach.
• It can make you underestimate or overestimate the customer's knowledge, needs, or preferences.
• It can make you come across as arrogant, condescending, or disrespectful to the customer.
• It can make you lose the customer's trust, respect, or interest.

How to be curious and not judgemental in sales

So how can you cultivate a mindset of curiosity and avoid being judgemental in sales? Here are some tips and best practices to follow, depending on your role as a sales executive or a sales manager.

For sales executives

• Empower yourself to be curious by always seeking to learn something new, whether it is about your customer, their industry and market, how you as a business help, and lastly yourself.
• Listen actively and attentively to what the customer is saying, and avoid interrupting, jumping to conclusions, or imposing your own agenda.
• Use your discovery to help the customer to discover why they need to change and what the ideal solution criteria would be.
• Use the customer's words and phrases to reflect back what you heard and validate your understanding, and paraphrase or summarise the key points to show that you are paying attention.
• Show genuine interest and appreciation for the customer's input, and acknowledge their expertise, experience, or perspective.
• Challenge your own assumptions and beliefs, and be open to changing your mind or admitting that you were wrong.
• Learn from your successes and failures, and celebrate your progress and achievements.

For sales managers

• Encourage your sales team to be curious by providing them with opportunities to learn, grow, and experiment, and by rewarding their curiosity and initiative.
• Coach, don’t tell your sales team. Get them to identify for themselves the options and way forward.
• Model curiosity and refrain from being judgemental by being open to different perspectives and approaches, regardless of the seniority of experience of the person it comes from.
• Support your sales team to challenge assumptions, and to be willing to learn from their mistakes and successes.
• Celebrate your sales team's curiosity and achievements, and recognize their contributions and efforts.

Being curious and not judgemental is a powerful way to improve your sales effectiveness and customer satisfaction. It can help you discover new opportunities, create more value, and build stronger relationships with your customers. It can also help you grow as a professional and as a person, and enjoy your work more. As Walt Whitman and Ted Lasso would say, "Be curious, not judgemental".

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