Make it an easy yes

Answer any questions or concerns upfront

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:03):
Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of iHeartRadio. Good Morning,
This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast. Today's
tip is that if you have mastered the art of
saying no, you can use those insights to encourage others

(00:24):
to say yes. You know what keeps people from agreeing
to things, so you can answer those objections upfront. Today's tip,
like some others this week, comes from Laura May Martin's
new book Up Time. Martin, who is Google's productivity guru,

(00:44):
coaches executives on how to be more efficient with their schedules.
In her book, she shares lots of the ways one
might say no. You can ask for more information. You
can ask for more time to make a decision. You
can suggest someone else. You are probably familiar with all
these ideas. You want to save your yeses for things

(01:08):
where you know exactly what you are getting into and
that you know align with your values and priorities. So
if you know that, then you also have an idea
of how to get other people to say yes. If
you're trying to get someone to buy into your project
or to join you, you can use these tactics in reverse.

(01:31):
Martin says when I'm trying to get someone to say
yes to a collaborative project or support. I think about
why I say no to things and why I say
yes to things. So, for example, if you want someone
to do something, you should explain how this request aligns

(01:52):
with the person's priorities. Martin suggests a script, Hi, I
read through your public priorities for the quarter and found
one that aligns perfectly with something I'm working on as well.
I'd love to work to gather to achieve one of
your goals for the quarter in alignment with a project
I've started. Then you can explain what it is. Martin

(02:16):
notes that she also might say no or ask more
questions when her request is vague, So if you are
requesting something, give as much detail as you can. She
suggests a script like this, Hi, I'd love for you
to speak to my team. Here are more details that
might help make your decision. Then you can give the

(02:38):
date and time with multiple options so the person can't
just claim to be booked. You can share the number
of people who will be attending the structure of the
talk with multiple structures, ideally so they can pick what
sounds most appealing. You should definitely say why you are
asking this person specifically, and what success would like for

(03:00):
this event For all of you, I know that I
personally am more likely to say yes to requests the
future all of this. For instance, if someone asks me
to be a guest on their podcast, it really helps
if they tell me their listenership and the specific topic
they want to talk about, and how long the recording

(03:23):
will take, and give me a link to their online
schedule so I can choose a time that works best
for me. I am sure that you likewise have been
more compelled to agree to things when the ask is
specific and you can see that the person has thought
about what you might get out of it. So use

(03:46):
these tactics if you want a yes. It might not
always work, but it is a lot more likely to
work than a vague request to collaborate When someone doesn't
know what they are getting into that sounds like a
lot of work. When a request doesn't sound like a
lot of work, people are more likely to agree. In

(04:11):
the meantime, this is Laura. Thanks for listening, and here's
to making the most of our times. Thanks for listening
to before Breakfast. If you've got questions, ideas, or feedback,

(04:31):
you can reach me at Laura at Laura vandercam dot com.
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