The Sales Leader Coach: Crucial Conversations.

Individual contributors (ICs) who aspire to become managers tend to have an ideal image of leadership roles. When they project themselves in their future jobs, they mostly envision the rewarding aspects.

As a matter of fact, they see themselves being in charge of guiding, monitoring, and leading an entire group. They crave the responsibility of motivating their team as well as inspiring positive communication within ICs so that they can work together toward achieving goals.

This is SUPER EXCITING and if an IC does not feel that way about Leadership, I would seriously question why they should be considered for the job! Yeah...you've got to be at least motivated, if not even PASSIONATE!

When all is said and done, Leadership is about solving problems which leads to having tough conversations. As a sales leader, I had to have challenging discussions with my team, team members, colleagues, and even my boss. These interactions are instrumental to the growth of your team, of your organisation, and to your own career progression.

What is a "crucial conversation"?

I love the definition provided in Crucial Conversations (Patterson, Grenny, McMillan, and Switzler). These conversations happen when (1) the stakes are high, (2) individuals have opposing opinions and (3) strong emotions.

Some examples in this category are Performance Improvement Plans (PIPs) and Performance Reviews (PRs).

How do you prepare?

Preparation is key in order to get the best outcome:

• You need to gather the facts
• Forget about how you feel (how unfair you believe the situation is in the case of a PIP)
• Do not compare yourself to others
• Think about the Positive Outcome you want to get from the conversation

Whether you are a Leader or an IC, you need to think about the outcomes you are aiming for. The ABC Game Plan is ideal as it guarantees success. This method of setting a goal/outcome ahead of the conversation allows you to consciously prepare. I suggest you have:

• Your ideal outcome- A
• A backup outcome- B
• A backup for your backup- C

Let's say that you are preparing for your Performance Review and you want to get the best rating. Here is your ABC Game Plan:

• Your Ideal outcome- A : Leverage facts to demonstrate you deserve the best rating (Outstanding).
• A backup plan- B: Speak clearly and confidently about your performance
• A backup for your backup/ aka safety plan- C: Learn something. The more feedback you get from your boss, the better you'll be able to do next time.

Having a safety plan ensures you are ALWAYS successful in your performance!

How do you handle the conversation?

• STAY AWAY from your emotions ?
• FOCUS on the goals of the conversation
• SHOW you value the other person's opinion ??
• SHARE the facts
• TELL your story (your interpretation) ??
• ASK for the other's story ??
• ASK for their point of view ?????(only THEN... ??)
• FOCUS on the solution ??

What about YOUR Energy?

Conscious Leaders practise self-observation prior, during and after the conversation. As you are preparing for your conversation, what thoughts and feelings are you experiencing? Be aware of them as they will impact your level of energy and your expected outcome.