Avoid jumping to conclusions

There’s a story going around about a new CEO who was on a tour of one of the company’s
facilities. As he was talking to the assembled group, he noticed a young fellow leaning against
the wall. The CEO was angry at such disrespect while he was delivering an important speech. He
pointed to the guy and asked, “How much money do you make?”
The guy said, “About $400 a week.”
The CEO reached for his checkbook, wrote a check to cash for $1,600, handed it to the guy and
said, “Here’s a check for four weeks’ pay. Now get out of here and don’t come back.”
After the guy pocketed the check and walked out, the CEO turned to the group and asked, “Does
anyone want to tell me the meaning of that little event?”
A voice in the back said, “Yeah, you just tipped the pizza delivery guy $1,600.”
True or not, this story usually generates a chuckle – and it illustrates the pitfall of making
assumptions. Imagine the problems the CEO created for himself in just a couple of minutes: In
addition to embarrassing himself, he made a terrible first impression by showing a careless lack
of judgment. How would they look at him in the future? How could they trust his decisions or his
leadership? Or to take it to the extreme, would the board of directors allow him to keep his job?
We’ve all jumped to conclusions at one time or another, especially in sales situations. It happens
when our perceptions don’t match reality. We jump ahead in our thinking, without taking the
time to examine the situation. Let’s just hope that our conclusion-blunders have been less severe
than that CEO’s.
There’s a lesson here. How could this real or imagined CEO have handled things differently?
First of all, he could have asked for the right kind of information, instead of assuming the guy
worked there and asking how much money he made. He might have asked – with a smile, not
with anger – “Excuse me, what’s your department?” If the man had answered that he worked in a
particular department (human resources, for example), the CEO could have used that opportunity
to create a welcoming environment: “It’s great to see human resources represented here today.
You don’t have to stand. Please feel free to find a seat. There are some good spots right there on
the second row.”
On the other hand, if the guy had replied that he was delivering pizza – and if the CEO wanted to
be a superstar – he could have offered to pay for the pizza order on the spot. Then he could have
stated that he would like to treat the entire company to pizza next week. Of course, the pizza
delivery guy would get credit for the order.
In either case, everybody wins.

The next time you find yourself forming a hasty opinion, take a moment to dig a little deeper.
You might find an opportunity to be a hero.

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(c) Copyright 2024 by John Foust. All rights reserved.
 
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John Foust has conducted training programs for thousands of newspaper advertising
professionals. Many ad departments are using his training DVDs to save time and get quick
results from in-house training. Email for information: john@johnfoust.com