I was just minding my own business when 3 KB people approached me today. This Kind Behavior all started early this morning when I asked a woman if she could break my dollar for the bus and she just handed me 50 cents. I insisted on giving her my dollar but she refused and said she had tons of quarters from doing her laundry. Once I started walking, I heard “excuse me” and turned around to see someone pointing at my backpack to remind me that my zipper was open and to close it. And while I was waiting in line at Peets for my ginger carrot muffin, someone asked if I wanted to read the Wall Street Journal they just finished reading.
I’m glad this happened today because I’ve noticed a lot of bad behavior these days and believe during a recession, there is more bad than good behavior. Have you been behaving during this economy? We hear about Buyer Behavior during this economy and how buyers have become more demanding, educated and risk adverse than ever before. Marketo recently presented their buyer behavior in a recession webinar.
What about Seller Behavior? How are inside salespeople behaving these days? We know most of them are walking around with a large quota and lots of objections- leaning on the panicked, paralyzed and pushy zone. Does this translate to good behavior? Should they are just go out and shop and join the women splurging on shopping trend to tame their emotions?
The ME FIRST factor kicks in during uncertain times. Makes sense when the only way you take care of others is to take care of yourself first. But what if KB could start your or end your day? I wrote last year about Random Acts of Kindness and this year want to give you 5 ways to get your Kind Behavior back on track:
1. Be the first to say hello- instead of glancing in another direction when you see someone you know, get out there and say hi first.
2. 3 people- 1 complement each- whether you like what someone is wearing or the way they asked a question or the great idea they came up with or the great presentation they built- say something nice.
3. Don’t exclude- people want to feel included and be part of something- social networking is all about inviting others to the conversation.
4. Don’t text and drive- more and more accidents are happening these days because someone forgot to look at the road to see who was crossing but instead had their eyes glued to their iphone or blackberry screen.
5. Who wants a goody bag? You can have so much fun building up a goody-bag with cheap stuff in it. Throw in there a Starbuck gift card, Twix bar, chapstick, Smart water, cliff bar and a toothbrush.
1 Comment
Josiane, I could not agree with you more. These times are challenging, no doubt about it. If we treat each other with honesty and respect, we can accomplish more than succumbing to economy-driven panic that is fueled by self-doubt and perhaps even fear. These are times to rise above rather than sink under. As sales professionals we must lead out of darkness into the light. That, to me – more than the economy -is always the challenge.