Dear Voornaam,
Back when I had dozens of employees, I asked many open-ended questions during the interview process. One of my favorite questions was:Â
"Tell me about a time when you had to make a big change in your life."
One time, I asked this question during an interview with a man named Michael. His answer landed him the customer service job for which he was applying and reinforced something I learned years ago about human behavior.Â
Michael started his answer cautiously:
"Well, when I was in my twenties, my sister passed away suddenly. Both my parents died when I was a child, and my grandmother raised us. My sister's passing left me all alone in the world. Trying to fill the need for belonging, I fell in with a bad crowd and began drinking a lot.Â
It got to the point where I had to have a drink first thing in the morning to steady my nerves, and then I drank throughout the day just to get by. Â
Every day was the same. I'd wake up and have a drink. Go to a local deli and buy some food for the day and more booze, and then I'd sit at home and eat enough to survive and drink until I passed out while watching TV. Â
One of the things I became good at was disguising the fact that this was my routine. I drank vodka, so there was hardly any odor. I always shaved and showered before going out to the market and liquor store. And I became smart about how I spoke so people couldn't tell I was impaired (at least early in the morning).
I had to walk through a small park to get to the market.Â
One day, walking through the park, I saw a man sitting on a bench under a small gazebo. And he looked up at me and smiled. I nodded and smiled back. As time passed, I started noticing him more often. He was there every day. He was sitting and staring into the distance. His glance always caught mine, and we began exchanging greetings.
I guess it was about three or four weeks after I first noticed him our greeting exchange turned into a conversation. The next day, the man invited me to sit next to him.Â
Having no particular place to go, and nothing to do, I welcomed the opportunity.
My conversations with this man were often long. Sometimes lasting an hour or more. This was time that I spent completely distracted from my mission â which was essentially to drink myself to death.
As the length of our daily conversations grew, so did the clarity I had. One day after talking for hours, the man invited me to join him for a walk. This trip ended as we parted company at the entrance to the basement of a church. The man said he had to attend a meeting there. As I turned to walk away, my friend of about four months invited me to join him.
That was my first Alcoholics Anonymous meeting. It was five years and fifteen days ago.Â
These days I run a couple of different meeting groups. I've been a sponsor for a few different people. And each morning, I sit in that park. On that same bench. I sit there in case someone wanders through and needs someone to talk to.Â
Those daily conversations saved my life."
Michael crystallized something for me in his articulate answer to this interview question. Something powerful.Â
As a business leader, your role is to have conversations. And sometimes these conversations alone are of so much value to your clients they will pay you to have the ability to stay connected.
What does this mean for you? What does it mean for your ability to build and develop a business? Â
It means everything.
As entrepreneurs or professionals, we spend lots of time alone. The expression "it's lonely at the top" was developed for people like us.Â
While I offer many services to my clients, like succession planning, M&A strategy, and sales and marketing system creation - one of the most valuable things I do is develop a relationship where my clients feel comfortable talking to me - about anything.
We are connected here in this asynchronous email conversation, but we have a relationship. I want you to feel comfortable picking up the phone and calling me.
If you'd like to talk about anything, and I mean anything, please schedule time with me. Use this link to schedule a time and connect to chat about anything on your mind.
Even in the B2B space, we do business with people. Good business starts with a good relationship.
Give me a call:
https://link.dlorenzo.com/widget/bookings/withdave/consult
Warm regards,
Dave Lorenzo The Godfather of Growth (786) 436-1986
P.S. You are receiving this email because we have a relationship, and I'd like to stay in touch. If you no longer want to receive these emails, let me know by calling (786) 436-1986.
If you click unsubscribe, I will never be able to email you again. Dave Lorenzo & Company Int'l 1442 SW 155 Court Miami, FL 33194 USA | Unsubscribe |
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