Shifting Perspective - Paul Kennedy (CEO Biarri Networks)

Paul Kennedy is CEO at Biarri Networks; a company that provides optimization software for the design of fiber optic networks. As CEO, Paul leads the development and delivery of his company’s design solutions. He’s a leader in optimization and in his Paper Napkin Wisdom, Paul shares how we can optimize the way we communicate with people. In his Paper Napkin Wisdom, Paul says: “They’re not trying to be difficult; they’re trying to do their job.” Paul says it’s been his observation that people get frustrated with buyers on the consumer side when they’re trying to sell and not being received well. They start to take it personally. You have to remember, he says, that the buyers aren’t trying to be difficult; they’re trying to do their job. It’s their responsibility to protect their company from spending money badly. If you stop and take a moment to try and get into the mindset of the buyer, to understand what they’re trying to achieve, it will often decrease your stress and help you approach them from a more effective angle. If you can consciously recognize when you’re taking things personally and falling into that Us vs Them mentality, you can take a step back and make and effort to understand that risks the person you’re dealing with is trying to mitigate. What might be holding them back? Is it that they feel they’re spending money on something unproven? Is there too much uncertainty for them to be confident in the contract? Figure out what’s holding them back and then appraise what it is you’re selling to them. You might be pitching it in the wrong way or perhaps you simply haven’t addressed one of their concerns. This philosophy is one that goes further than the buy/sell relationship. It’s a philosophy that applies to any kind of relationship. If you’re trying to communicate with someone, it’s important to try and consider things from their perspective. Taking things personally prevents you from getting personal with someone. You have to make a conscious effort to shift perspective to how you’re going to solve things and determining what’s driving the other person. If you know that, you can tailor your negotiations to something that makes sense to them. As we’ve talked about previously on Paper Napkin Wisdom, people prefer to do business with people they know and trust. You have to build those relationships, create positive inertia, and follow up. The best companies are the ones that find a way to deliver on a personal level. Make sure to stop and ask yourself: “Where is this person coming from? What is it I’m offering that isn’t working?” Sometimes, the answer to these questions may be things you have to seek out directly from the person in question. Visit them and ask what is concerning them so you can tailor your approach. When we take the time to consider things from a different perspective and resist falling to a position of placing blame, we remove stress and make ourselves more effective. This is true of both business and personal relationships. Like Robert Wagnon said, “Most people are fighting a heroic battle we know nothing about.” Shifting our perspective is essential to developing human capital. Think about your experiences with people in the last few months. Do you find yourself falling to that Us vs Them dichotomy? If so, it’s time to start reminding yourself to take a step back. They’re not trying to be difficult; they’re just doing their job. It’s your job to try and see things from their perspective and move forward. Listen the conversation with Paul here: