While on vacation recently, I took our guests up to the Hudson River for Whitewater rafting. Aside from getting up early after too many yarns at the campfire the night before, it was a beautiful day. 62 degrees was on the truck dash with a misty morning driving through the clouds in the pristine Adirondack mountains. However, the high was to be about 80.
Excitement filled the bus as we traveled to the head of the river near the dam. Since the late ‘80s, the state has released the dam every Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday, creating what is called the bubble. Hundreds of vacationers, locals, and adventure junkies ride this bubble for about 15 miles. Then, they hop on the bus and laugh and share the thrills of the day all the way back to the lodge.
It’s funny being on vacation. As a business leader, I often find it hard to unplug truly. We are always thinking ahead; employee engagement, client development, marketing campaigns, product development, cash flow, competition, growth, and too many other things to list here.
I’ve done this trip a dozen times, and the thrill for me now is more watching others who have not. The exhilaration of the first big dunk and splash with 56-degree water baptizing them is breathtaking. On the bubble, we ride about 12 sets of rapids that range from level 1 to level 4. Nothing too dangerous but enough to cause a pause. And they all have name; The Bus, The Narrows, Finches Pancake, The Hydraulic, and the 1 Mile. Between the rapids are calmer flowing and rippling floats with mountains shooting straight up into the puffy clouds where eagles coast on the wind. At one such spot, when we saw the eagle, one of our boat mates stood up and began singing the National Anthem. Of course, we all joined in. Those kinds of memories drive us to risk a cold dunk in the face and risk getting launched into the Hydraulic.
As I tried to be present, I was fighting the thoughts of work. Memories from the past kept showing up from previous trips. I often caught myself and had to self-talk my way back to the present. Stop thinking about all that. Just be here and now. Right here, right now. Enjoy the moment. Stop thinking about the past and stop thinking about the future.
Three-quarters of the way down the valley, the guide warned and coached us that we should be ready for the ‘1 Mile’ section. “On my command, everyone move to the center with paddles straight up… “DOWN”. We practiced a couple of times, and we were all good to go. Looking forward, there was nothing but whitewater. Huge waves, other rafts bouncing and disappearing repeatedly. Deep breath, and here we go…
Fifty yards in, we got turned sideways. That is never a good thing. Then boomshakalaka, we hit something. I got launched into the air, what felt like 3 feet above the raft; gravity brought me down quickly, and there was no raft. I was in the throws of ‘1 Mile’ level 4 rapids with me, my lifejacket, and my paddle. Can you guess why they call this section ‘1Mile’?
Reality hit hard in 56-degree water, and floating rapidly backward through the rapids, I remembered – keep your feet up. OK, that’s done, but the large bolder that sunk into my shoulder reminded me to have my feet downriver, not upriver. As I attempted to spin, the current wouldn’t let me. After three more reminders by large boulders and dunks underwater, I finally got turned right. Ouch! said my knee and my tailbone on the next whoop-ti-do over another drop into the abyss. Still holding my paddle like a pro, I moved the paddle in front of my feet to at least get an early warning from the granite rocks the size of a small car that could take me out.
At this point, I was very present. I wasn’t thinking about memories of previous trips, upcoming meetings, strategy for client development, or marketing. I was here and now, hyper-focused in my current state. I slowed down my thoughts. I calmed my adrenaline. I became very, very present. As I scanned the horizon in this direction, I saw another raft, a different raft than I started in, but it was a welcome site about 20 yards to my right, moving at my rapid pace down the river. Following my previous training, I swam in their direction, and in a short span, we intercepted close enough for someone to grab the T-grip on my paddle. Rescue was had. I didn’t quite run the entire ‘1 Mile’ section solo, but it sure felt like it.
While I hope this story is entertaining, some outstanding sales lessons come from this experience.
One of the most significant complaints prospects have about salespeople is that they don’t listen. One of sales leaders’ most prominent complaints about their salespeople is that they don’t ask enough questions. This is why! Staying in the Moment is a learned skill. Being present is crucial to asking the right questions. We can’t ask the questions that need to be asked if we are not listening. We can’t listen to what the prospect is saying with their words, their body, their tone, their eyes, their gestures, and their entire communication if we are thinking about the near future, the recent past, the objection overcoming technique from the last sales workshop, or anything else. The inability to stay in the moment and to listen acutely is the cause of ineffective consultative selling skills.
Staying in the moment takes practice, and listening takes patience. When you are face-to-face or voice-to-voice, stop thinking about what you want to say next, your next meeting, your past meeting, what is going on in your personal life, and everything else. Focus on what your prospect is saying and how they are saying it, and focus on the moment. Let your mind absorb the entire message. Trust your instincts and let it flow. The reason your prospect does whatever it is they do is way more important than what you are thinking about. When salespeople are thinking, they are talking to themselves. When talking to ourselves, we cannot listen to the one doing the talking.