What Does My Wife’s Hatred Of Needles Have To Do With Selling?

My wife, Lori was committed to having the baby without anesthesia. That is until the pain meter started spiking off the charts. If you've ever been in the delivery room with a mom in labor, you know the contractions get worse the closer you are to the actual delivery.

Lori and I went through the Lamaze classes. She learned how to breathe through the pain. And, it was all good, until the day she went into labor. I was holding her hand; she was wincing as we both, in harmony, would say, “Hee, hee, hee, haw.”

I tried to be enthusiastic, but it didn’t help. She threw in the towel on having a baby the natural way.

But, she hated needles almost just as much.

In rolls the Anesthesiologist. He sits Lori on the bed, head down over the belly.

And then he said, “Lori, here’s what’s going to happen. You’ll feel a wet sponge on your back. Then I’ll dry it off. Then you’ll feel me kind of pinching your spine. Then a little prick, a piece of tape and it’s all done. Are you ready?” She replied, “I guess.”

Then he did it; sponge on her back, wiped it off, pinched her spine, a little needle prick, and then some tape.

I had a bird’s eye view of the whole thing. I was completely surprised that she didn’t freak out, but she didn’t.

Why not? Because the Doctor rehearsed her through what it was going to be like before it ever happened. So, when it did happen, she was ready.

When I teach a class on selling, we always spend a lot of time on the REHEARSAL technique. It’s a way to rehearse, or prepare the prospect on what it's going to be like to tell the incumbent it’s over.

When you do it right, it’s amazing. The prospect is ready for the assault if it happens and doesn’t get freaked out about it. And if it doesn’t happen, then they justify it by saying, “I guess the incumbent didn’t really care about my business after all.”

Have you used rehearsal in your selling? Tell me about it below.