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A sure-fire way to improve thinking on your feet…
If you are a sales professional, the ability to think on your feet and respond well is vital. Have you ever been in the midst of a sales presentation where an objection came up, and five minutes after the meeting you thought of what you really should have said? It is easy to conclude that thinking quickly on our feet is a quality we either have or don’t. If you believe that, then remember the reply of golf legend Gary Player when he hit a great shot from a tough sand trap. Someone said to him, “what luck!” Mr. Player said, “Yes, and the more I practice, the luckier I get.” Ready to practice getting better at thinking quickly?
Like any sport or endeavor, doing drills are a part of building a particular skill. If you are learning to play a piano, the drill is playing scales. In thinking better on our feet, one of the best exercises I have seen is the “match drill.” Here is how it works: Get on your deep thinking cap, and think of the top ten objections you receive. Put these objections on the left side of the page. Then, take each objection, think of all the facts and features you could list that would alleviate that particular objection. Also include a benefit. For example, if the objection is price, and you can add value to the investment by saying, “That includes a three-week training plan, which means that your team will understand the system and get off to a strong start.” Write out this entire drill for each objection and memorize all your responses. Now light a match, place it between your fingers, and see how many facts and benefits you can rattle off before the match burns your fingers. (OK, you can use a stop watch too.)
One of my most successful clients does this exercise in the form of “flash cards”. He carries these cards with him everywhere he goes and practices in his blank spaces of time. He calls this his secret to his exceptional ability to think on his feet. It is not a secret any more. Try it!