The Lion & the Watchdog
In the wild it is unheard of for a Lion to be friends with a Watchdog. In fact, Watchdogs are considered to be a healthy snack for the hungry Lion.
But Larry the Lion and William the Watchdog had an unusual relationship.
Larry raised William since he was a pup.
Larry saw something in William that the other animals did not..
Potential.
Larry is the king of his domain. He provides food & protection for all the other animals in his Kingdom.
Larry is so good at providing for his Kingdom that he often has excess resources like meat and fur that often go to waste.
“We should just eat more of the meat!” shouted William
“Oh oh actually we should wrap the meat in the fur in order to preserve it for later!” shouted William again
“Wait no. Let’s just bring more animals into our Kingdom to make use of the resources!” said William again
Despite Williams potential, Larry often grew impatient with him.
William is incredibly enthusiastic & full of ideas but is always in a rush so he acts prematurely before fully understanding a situation.
“William, come with me.”
Larry took William to entrance of the Kingdom.
“You’re going to stand guard here. Whenever an animal expresses interest in purchasing or trading for our meat and fur.. you bring them to me.” said Larry
“You got it!” exclaimed William
Larry headed back to the Kingdom.
Shortly after.. a little Crab shows up to the entrance of the Kingdom.
“I’m interested in learning more about your Kingdom’s meat and fur!” said the little Crab with a ton of bravado
“Perfect! Right this way!” William hollered
The two made their way to Larry’s Den.
“Larry, I got one!” yelled William enthusiastically
Larry got up and slowly made his way over to William and the little Crab.
William was salivating at the thought of bringing a good deal to Larry.
Before William could make the proper introductions, the little Crab blurted out in a condescending tone:
“Alright Lion, how much does your meat and fur cost?”
Larry, unamused, looks at the little Crab and says:
“You’re a crab. You have no use for meat and fur. Why are you really here?”
“That is not entirely true! You see, I come from the Kingdom down the river and must know your prices! mwhah!”
Larry roared at the little Crab and told him to beat it before he eats him.
The little Crab scurried off.
Larry looked at William disappointingly.
“William, I said to bring me animals that were interested in purchasing or trading, not trying to pump us for information.”
“But Larry, I thought he was interested!”
“You thought wrong. He’s a tire kicker.” said Larry
“Now go back to the entrance of the Kingdom and think about what I’ve told you.”
William headed back.
Shortly after, a Flamingo wearing a top hat showed up to the entrance of the Kingdom.
“Hey! how can I help ya?!” exclaimed William
“Ey young pup, I’m just lookin’.. Ya see, I’m a friend of Larry’s. Actually, I’d like to see Larry. Is the giraffe in?”
“The Giraffe? Don’t you mean the Lion?!” said William
“Aw yeah that’s right. The Lion! Sorry. Long day!” said the Flamingo
“Wait.. I’m only supposed to bring buyers to Larry” thought William
“Hey Flamingo, are you interested in purchasing or trading for our meat and fur?”
“You bet!” exclaimed the Flamingo
“In fact. I hear you guys have the best meat and fur in all the land and I’d love to potentially buy some!” continued the Flamingo
“Great!” shouted William
The two made their way to Larry’s Den.
“Larry! It’s good to see you my old friend.” exclaimed the Flamingo
Larry slowly looked up.
“I don’t believe we’ve met.” said Larry
“Sure we have. Uhh, we were on that Safari once years ago. Remember?”
“Nope.”
“Uhh well. Anyway, I’m interesting in potentially buying some meat from you!” said the Flamingo
Larry paused for a few seconds and then asked:
“When you say ‘potentially’, do you mean that you’ve already decided you want to purchase meat from us or you’re still evaluating meat from the other Kingdoms?”
The Flamingo was taken aback.
“Well, Larry my old friend, I heard you have some of the best meat and fur in town and wanted to see it for myself!”
William was salivating.
Larry smirked and then followed up with:
“Flamingo, answer my question. Which is it?”
“I guess I’m still evaluating the alternatives.”
“And why are you still evaluating? Why haven’t you made a decision yet?”
“Well.. to see what you have of course”
“But why? Our meat is significantly more expensive than the other Kingdoms.”
“Well.. it is also of great quality. So I hear.” said the Flamingo
“And other than tasting the meat for yourself there is no real way to know just how high quality it is, is there?” said Larry
“I guess not”
“Fair enough. So let’s do this. You buy some of the meat. Try it. And if you like it I’ll let you come back and buy more.”
“Oh that sounds great Larry. Any discounts for an old friend?”
“I have no idea who you are” said Larry
“Ergggh.. but what about a discount for a poor Flamingo like myself?”
“Flamingo, you came here in a top hat. And you didn’t come to my Kingdom to save money, right? And I assume a gentleman like yourself demands only the finest quality.. unless I’ve over estimated your taste?”
“No you’re right. I want only the best!”
William was taken aback.
The deal had closed and William couldn’t contain his enthusiasm.
“LARRY *bark* THAT WAS *bark* INCREDIBLE WOW HOW DID YOU DO THAT?”
“William, I’ve developed a blueprint for you to use. It’s programmed onto that coconut. Take it with you to the entrance. Whenever you feel like you need help, just look at the coconut and it will give you the answer you seek. I want you to use it on every single animal that approaches us. Got it?”
“Yup!” Said William
“Good. And if I see less of you then I know it is working.”
William was confused.
“Now go!” roared Larry
William scurried back to the entrance.
A few hours passed.
“Why would he want to see less of me? Does he not like me?” thought William
Before William could continue over analyzing what Larry had told him, a Raccoon approached the entrance.
The Raccoon was shy and timid.
William was nervous too. But then he remembered the coconut. He looked to his right and there it was. It read:
‘Mirror the animals body language and tonality at first to build trust’
William took a deep breath and in a reserved tone said:
“Hello Raccoon”
The Raccoon perked up.
“Hello Watchdog”
William looked at the coconut. It read:
‘Be casual’
William looked at the Raccoon:
“Uh, what’s up?”
“Oh sorry.. uhh, I’m in-interested in purchasing some of your Kingdom’s fur”
“Why did he apologize?” thought William. Then looked at the coconut and it read:
‘Whoever supplicates the most loses!’
William was tired of losing. Before responding he took another glance at the coconut, it read:
‘Seek decisions, not validation’
William smiled and then asked the Raccoon:
“I see. And have you already decided you want to purchase fur from us or are you still exploring alternatives?”
The Raccoon fell quiet and then a few moments later responds:
“Yes. I’ve already decided I want to purchase from your Kingdom.”
William was about to erupt with enthusiasm before glancing at the coconut again.
The coconut read:
‘Act like you’ve done this many times before so you’re not excited.’
and
‘Always be curious.’
William turned to the Raccoon and asked:
“Oh? And can I ask ‘Why?’”
“Well, I’ve heard a lot of good things about your Kingdom and its’ fur. I heard the fur holds up even during harsh weather. My only concern is cost.”
William was afraid. He had never negotiated price and wasn’t ready to.
He looked at the coconut. It read:
‘Extract more information than you give’
“Your main concern is cost. I see. Give me a ballpark figure of what you were expecting to pay for our fur and I’ll tell you if it’s realistic or not.”
“Uhh no more than 15 gold coins for one piece.”
William looked at the coconut. It read:
‘Play ‘Let’s Pretend’ to find the truth.’
and
‘Go for the No’
“So let’s pretend you saw our furs and loved them. But it is closer to 25 gold coins. Are you saying there’s no way you’d pay that much?
“Well I would have to really love it”
William remembered to always be curious and asked:
“Can I ask.. Why are you interested in purchasing our Fur? No animal wakes up one morning and decides they need fur. Why now?”
The Raccoon got emotional.
“My wife and I have been having marriage trouble and I want to impress her with a nice fur”
William began to feel emotional too. Then he looked at the coconut. It read:
‘Be a professional’
and
‘Turn the sale emotional’
William regained his composure and followed up with:
“And how do you think she is going to feel when you tell her you spent a little extra in order to get her the best fur?”
“Well she will probably be upset at first that I spent a little extra but I think she will get over it and actually love it.”
“And what kind of difference do you think that’ll make on your marriage?”
The Raccoon fell silent and began to tear up.
“A good one.”
Before leading the Raccoon to the fur, the coconut rolled over. On the surface it read:
“Can they and are they willing to make a decision?”
William paused.
“So you don’t need your wife here to buy the fur?”
“No. It is a surprise gift for her.”
“Ok. Come with me.”
William took the Raccoon to Larry’s Den.
Larry came out. “It’s been a few hours William, what’s up?”
“All good Larry. I’ve got it.”
As they were approaching the furs, William asked the Raccoon a series of questions to better determine what kind of fur the Raccoon is looking for.
William brought the coconut with him. On it it read:
‘Neg the prospect’
William walked over to the most expensive fur.
The Raccoon followed.
William pretended to be infatuated with it.
“Hmm yeah this one would be perfect. But. Ah.. never mind. Follow me” said William
The Raccoon was intrigued. “Wait what’s wrong with that one?”
“That’s our finest fur but unfortunately it is out of your budget.”
“Wait. Show it to me”
The Raccoon held the fur and even nestled his little head onto the fur. He was hooked.
“William, I love this one.”
“Can I ask why?”
The Raccoon began to get emotional again.
“It has the same smell of the forest diner where me and my wife had our first date.”
William fell silent. The coconut read:
‘Pause for minimum 3 seconds to keep the prospect talking’
The Raccoon, head still nestled onto the fur, continued:
“I’ll do anything to rekindle that spark we once had.”
William asked in an empathetic tone:
“I understand. Raccoon, can I ask you a blunt question?”
“Yes”
“Do you love this fur?”
“I think I do”
“You think or you know?”
“I do”
“Good. So how would you like to proceed?”
“I’ll take it.”
William gift wrapped the fur for the Raccoon and sent him on his way.
Larry, smiling, congratulated William on his sale.
“Well done, William!”
“Thanks Larry. That coconut helped me out a ton. But I feel like I was too reliant on it.”
“It’s ok William. That’s part of the learning process. Think of the coconut as your training wheels when you learned how to ride a bike.”
“Yeah I guess you’re right” said William
“Cheer up, William. You got a deal!”
“Yeah. I did” smiled William
6 months later
Sales are booming in Larry’s Kingdom. Larry can’t provide enough meat and fur to keep up with the demand.. even after hiring a few hunting animals to help.
William is now the top performer and leading a small team of other sales animals.. and still using that coconut Larry gave him.
One morning the coconut stopped working.
No more answers.
The coconut had reverted back to being just a coconut.
“WTF!” shouted William
“I can’t perform without this! I need to fix this ASAP”
William bolted back to Larry’s Den with the coconut.
“Larry! Something is wrong with the coconut. It’s not giving me the answers anymore!”
Larry smiled.
“That’s part of the design, William.”
“What?! What do you mean?”
“I programmed the coconut to stop giving you the answers once it has given you all the information you needed”
“But why would you do that? There are still questions I don’t know the answers to” said William
“That’s true. There are questions nobody has the answers to. But what I provided you with is far more valuable than just ‘answers’”
“And what’s that?”
“I gave you a new way to think so you can find your own answers.”
Larry continued.
“All the great sales performers eventually take off the training wheels and use their newfound knowledge to accomplish whatever they want in Life.”
William was still sad.
“Tell you what. Go another 6 months without the coconut. If you fail, you can use it again. If not, I’ll give you a special gift.
William agreed.
6 months later
“The numbers are looking good, William. Well done.”
“Thanks Larry”
“Turns out you didn’t need that coconut after all huh?”
William paused for a moment. He nearly forgot about that coconut.
“Wow. I almost forgot about that thing. I guess you’re right.”
“William, come with me.”
Larry took William to the mountaintop overlooking the Kingdom.
“William, one day I won’t be here. And I will need someone I can trust to look over my Kingdom.”
William slowly turned to Larry.
“So what are you saying?”
“That one day this Kingdom will be yours. And when the time comes, you will find a worthy successor.. like I did.” Larry smiled
William, with tears in his eyes, gave Larry a big hug.
“Thank you, Larry.”
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Shout it from the mountaintop! Learning not to supplicate was huge -- I train my sales ppl that we are doing prospects a favor by visiting them. Flips the frame totally.
Brought me to tears