Don’t Let Time Make the Decision for You
Earlier this year, I had a goal to get more media coverage for my work.
Not simply because I wanted to be on television.
I wanted more people to hear a message I deeply believe:
Too many people know what they want, but wait so long to ask that time makes the decision for them.
A good friend of mine, Jennifer Dodd of OMGG, makes amazing gluten-free desserts and had been featured on morning television several times.
One day, during a casual conversation, I asked her a simple question:
How did you get there?
She told me about her experience. And then she did something else.
She shared a contact.
I could have thanked her, saved the information and told myself I would reach out "when I was ready."
Instead, I worked on my pitch.
I thought about the audience. I thought about the message. And I asked myself why the conversation I wanted to bring to television would matter to the people watching.
Then I sent it.
Within a month, I was sitting on the set of Good Day DC talking about The Negotiator’s Mindset™.
And after the interview, I was asked to come back for another segment.
That experience reminded me of something I say all the time:
Negotiation begins long before the ask.
It started with getting clear about what I wanted.
It continued when I asked Jennifer how she had done it.
Then I had to take the information she gave me and do something with it.
The introduction did not guarantee the opportunity.
The pitch did not guarantee a yes.
But I had to be willing to put myself in a position for the answer to be yes.
And that brings me to the fourth quarter.
We are in that stretch of the year when it is easy to focus only on what we need to finish.
But I want you to think about something else:
What do you still want?
Maybe it is a conversation about your career.
Maybe it is about money.
Maybe there is an opportunity you have been thinking about pursuing.
Or maybe, like me, there is something you have quietly been calling a dream.
Before another three months disappear, ask yourself:
Who could I talk to?
What could I ask?
What move could I make?
You do not need to know exactly how it will happen.
I certainly did not know that one conversation with a friend would lead to a television appearance within a month.
But I did know what I wanted.
And eventually, I had to ask.
One of the reasons I created The Negotiator’s Mindset™ Calendar was to give us a regular opportunity to stop, reflect and act on the things we say matter to us.
Because thinking about what you want is not the same as moving toward it.
Don’t let time make the decision for you.
What is one ask you can make before this year is over?
