We all have patterns that influence the way we think and act…you and your team. These patterns adapt and change to the situation we are in.
Over 20 years ago I discovered Meta Programmes…the patterns that influence everything we do. Since then I’ve noticed them every single day in myself and others.
Knowing what your preferences are in given contexts allows you to either leverage them if appropriate…or to develop counter strategies so that you can show up as your best leadership self.
Being able to identify the preferences of your sales people allows you to better understand their map of the world and to tailor your communication so that it lands more easily.
In my experience, friction is most prevalent when you have opposing Meta Programmes at play. Think of these preferences as a continuum…you can be at either end or anywhere along the continuum. Imagine a coin in the middle of the continuum…this is the context or situation and you can view it from either side of the coin. For example…do you view COVID as a terrible thing that has wrecked your life, opportunities, status? Or do you view it as an opportunity, a happy special time with your family, a time to reflect on your life and make changes? Both perspectives are true…the coin in the middle isn’t right or wrong…it just is. Your Meta Programme preferences determine the truth you take from it.
There are many Meta Programmes but over the next few weeks I’m going to share the ones I believe have the biggest impact on sales, communication and sales leadership. In this blog I’m going to introduce you to Towards and Away From.
Towards and Away From
You are motivated by only two things…pain and pleasure. You’ll constantly seek to minimise one and maximise the other.
Think of an outcome you want in either the short or the long term, what makes this outcome so attractive to you? What will getting this outcome do for you? Will it give you pleasure…or will it move you away from pain and discomfort?
Ask one of your sales people what their outcomes are…and the reasons they are important to them. Some people will talk about being unhappy or uncomfortable in their current situation (Away From) whilst others will share how getting this outcome will have a positive impact on their lives (Towards).
Ask a person how they came to buy their current car. Was it because of their dissatisfaction with their old car (Away From) or did they decide that this was the one for them because they felt good driving it? (Towards).
If you are thinking that Towards is positive and therefore always good and Away From is negative and bad, think again. Imagine being in a burning building – it might be useful to have a moving away from strategy here. Like other Meta Programmes, Towards and Away From are just ways of being and are in themselves neither good nor bad.
Depending upon circumstances, one strategy might be more useful or appropriate than another. When setting your goals, it is far more useful to move towards what you want rather than away from what you don’t want.
If you want to give something up…by knowing your strategy you can enhance your ability to increase your willpower, for example…if you tend to move towards…think of the benefits you’ll get when you have given up. If you are away from you need to focus on the consequences of not giving up.
Most Noticeable Traits of a Towards Preference
- Self-motivated
- Driven
- Goal focused
- Use want, attain, achieve, gain, get, obtain, secure type language
- Can be blinked especially at times of great focus
- Often leave a trail of destruction behind them (they rarely look back) in the pursuit of their goals
- Can be overly positive and not see issues coming till it’s too late
Most Noticeable Traits of an Away From Preference
- Great problem solvers
- Notice potential issues way ahead of other preferences
- High desire not to fail
- Use don’t want, avoid, dodge, exclude, get rid of, side-step type language
- Pain averse so less likely to try new things
- Low risk takers
- Often perceived as negative because they focus on what could go wrong
Influencing Strategy
To motivate a sales person that has a Towards preference, establish and emphasise their desired goals and outcomes. Share how moving forward will help them get what they want. Focus on the benefits to them.
To motivate a sales person with an Away From preference, establish what they don’t want and reinforce the uncomfortable consequences of not taking a specific action. Emphasise that you can help them to avoid what they don’t want. Identify any potential problems and reassure them that these can be decreased or eliminated.
Are these preferences fixed?
Our preferences are already in place by the time we are 7 years old but it’s important to remember that they are context/situation dependant. It is not uncommon to attract people with a Towards preference in their career outcomes into sales. What you may notice in your Towards guys is that when things are not going well, they can often become more Away From….as could you! This is because the situation has changed, which creates more uncertainty and fear. This will be particularly prevalent at this time of post COVID lockdown.
It’s important to remember that a person is not only Towards or Away From…it is the situation or context that will determine which preference shows up.
You’ll find that you get on better or more easily with the sales people that have the same preference as you…this is what humans do. We like people who are like us. Not very helpful when you lead a team of sales people with a range of preferences. They can be wide apart at either end of the continuum…or anywhere in between. You’ll have all types in your team…unless of course you have recruited in your likeness. This is common! Having a team who are all the same preference leads to an imbalance and weakness because you’ll all agree with each other which is fine if you are correct in your assumptions but unlikely because you’ll be limited in what you notice.
Tailoring your leadership to suit both preferences will support your sales people in a truly positive way and really allow them to flourish, grow and show up as their best selves!
Until next time,
Leigh 😊
PS If you need help identifying the preferences in your sales team please get in touch.
Thanks Pablo Garcia Saldana for the great photo 😊
