“What ‘We are in Good Shape’ and ‘We are Happy’ really mean…”
How many times has a friend or your spouse asked, “How are you?” and your response was “I’m good”? I would bet that this response is less than truthful. What you are really saying is one of the following:
- I’m tired and want to be left alone
- I’ve had a great day but would rather discuss something else
- I don’t want to re-live all the bad stuff that happened today
- Now is not the time to discuss how I’m feeling or I’m not comfortable being honest with you about how I’m feeling.
In the business environment the equivalent is, “we are in good shape” or “we are happy with our current situation”. The translation:
- We just made changes in this area and we need to see how they work out
- We have NEVER made a change in this area and there has been no pain so we are going to stick with the status quo
- I’m not the right person to have this conversation with
- I really thought this call was from someone else and shouldn’t have answered
It’s really hard to focus on something you don’t want to, especially when it comes via an interruption in your day BUT the next time you think about using one of these replies give it just a little more thought and share the “real” response with the caller. This should lead to more productive conversations, being taken OFF the radar if you aren’t a real prospect, and maybe, just maybe hearing about a solution or service that would make your day better!
Written by: Edward Stringfellow