How Did You Do on The Marshmallow Test?

We just finished Q2 for most companies - and I am positive that the standard flood of last minute deals was driving revenue operations, legal, and finance crazy. I have tracked this pattern in my own life, and plotted the chart of revenue flow across hundreds of companies. The last minute deal is real.

This last minute negotiation puts a lot of power in the hands of the buyer, and becomes a test for the rep. Will your sales team hold the line on price, even if it pushes the deal into the next period? Or, will they take the counteroffer from the prospective customer - making the quarter but losing commission dollars?

This is an amazing application of the marshmallow test .? Developed by Walter Mischel at Stanford University, it is a test to see if you can ignore the single sweet offered to you now - in exchange for even more later. Is your sales team prepared, and more importantly enabled, to practice delayed gratification?

If a rep comes to you and says that they could close now - and get the deal into this quarter - or they can hold out and possibly keep a higher price point - what do you tell them? Do you force the quarter close? Do you force the quarter close, but offer up a higher payout rate to compensate for the potential higher loss of commissions? Do you let the rep determine the timing (depending, of course, on their overall performance)? Where is the highest pressure on the rep? Delayed gratification is all well and good for sweets, but when it comes to a commission check - it takes on a new life.?

The choice of some now or potentially more later is also being made by sales leadership. If you are not confident in the sales forecast - you might find yourself grabbing that marshmallow of booked revenue off the plate in poorly-informed desperation. Tighten up your forecasting skills and that delayed gratification becomes an easier (and more profitable) decision.

So again - how did YOU do? Did you grab the marshmallow, or are you holding out for a better deal.

You can learn more about the test in Walter Mischel’s The Marshmallow Test: Mastering Self-Control , or if you want to teach it to your children, I recommend picking up Dan Graham ’s beautifully illustrated book How Can I Wait When There's a Treat on My Plate?