In 1995, my wife and I decided to go back to Hawaii for our fifth wedding anniversary, staying at the Maui Marriott.

One morning, we went down for breakfast. As we’re sitting at our table, the waiter comes up, looks at me, and says, “You’re Ron Karr.”

I reply, “Yes, I am.”

He goes, “No, you don’t understand,” which surprised me because I thought he recognized me as a loyal customer. But that wasn’t why he knew me.

He said, “I was in your audience a few years ago.”

I asked, “Which audience?”

He replied, “When you gave the keynote for Hertz Equipment Rental.”

As a sales strategy consultant, I often focus on sales success training for organizations, and I was curious to hear what impact the talk had on him.

I asked, “Great! So what happened?”

https://youtu.be/w7i2lOJ8oJU

He explained, “You taught us to ask a vital question about customers: ‘What will success look like to you?’ I asked that question of myself, and I realized I wasn’t enjoying my sales role—I needed to be outdoors, surfing. So, I found a job that let me fund my passion, surfing every day. I just wanted to thank you.”

Now I have to tell you, when he told me that story, his idea of success was different from mine. I was there to teach them about overcoming sales barriers and challenges to reach sales success. He took that lesson, realized he wasn’t happy, and chose to make a life change.

The takeaway here is that your version of success is probably quite different from the person you’re trying to influence. So if you really want to make an impact, ask what success looks like to them. It may differ from your version, but that’s okay—focus on what they’re looking for, and you’ll have a better shot at closing deals.

#VelocityMindset #SalesSuccessExpert #SalesLeadershipKeynoteSpeaker