A short excerpt from a YouTube video by Christian Polk about how to have empathy on sales calls. Polk argues that even if you don't naturally feel empathy, performing the actions of empathy (e.g., imagining the client's life, recalling your own similar experiences) produces better results. The clip shows him coaching Speaker B to relate to a client's problem (lack of time with their children) by remembering his own feelings (disappointment).
I feel like I'm lying on these calls. Not in regards to, like, I'm telling things that are untrue about, like, what I'm offering. I just don't care. On the inside, I'm like. Like, I really don't give a shit.
Well, is it natural for you to care much about people you don't know much about? Can you very easily put yourself in other people's shoes?
No.
Like, number one, who cares? Does this have to be true for you to make the most amount of sales and do what you need to do? The answer is no. Ultimately, what you feel inside your head, if you still do the actions that are required, you will still get the results. So I'd be more focused on that part. And how do we start to actually empathize with other people, be able to put ourselves in their shoes? The best way that I will do it, and I try to do it on every single call, is I'm going to put myself at least as close as I can into their shoes as possible with whatever it is that I'm doing. For example, talk about, like, one of the problems that they might have. What's one of the problems they might have?
Don't have the time to spend with their kids. They don't have time to do things. Things that they want.
So has there ever been a time in your life where you haven't had the time to do some of the things you want?
Yes.
Okay. How'd you feel?
Disappointed.
Right now. You have empathy, bro. If we're really wanting to understand and have a bit more empathy, it's just about, how can I connect this to my life, to my shoes, as best as I can?
