If you’re trying to be persuasive or helpful, if you need to sell something or influence someone, or if you need to get someone’s attention, you are probably hoping for a response.
Curiosity is a positive response. So is a statement. It could be an action like sharing, replying, or recommending. What it isn’t, is silence.
If you get only silence, the thing to do is to decide what to tweak. Deciding what to tweak can be hard because there is no formula for understanding the silence. For example, it might not be what you’re saying, but how you’re saying it (you can hone your message). Or, you may not be reaching the right people (you can hone your audience). It may also just be bad timing (in this case, consistency comes in handy). Most people won’t tell you “thanks, but no thanks.” If they do, that’s good feedback.
If you’re focused on getting others to take action be prepared to be patient and consistent. Be prepared for silence. Most of all, be prepared to make a tweak and try again.
Posts
Stand up
You always have a point of view.
You don’t always have a chance to share it.
Look for the chance, and take it when it presents itself.
Traction
Skis are slippery on the bottom, which is great when you want to ski down a hill. But how do you get up a hill if you don’t have a ski-lift?
This is where skinning comes in.
Skinning is an old indigenous practice of affixing seal skins to the bottom of skis. If the sealskin is attached so that the grain of seal hair faces in the right direction on the bottom of the ski, it creates traction and you can slide your skis up a hill.
If you’re just starting out, you may feel like you’re not getting anywhere, and that can be frustrating. Just remember the beauty of traction is that once you have it, your entire journey becomes possible.