Changing the rules

Apr 24, 2023
Orange hat thinking

"lt is like we are playing a new game and nobody is telling us the rules... and when we think we've worked them out they change again"

Orange Hat series - Sales Director Dilemmas #5

It's true

We all feel this

That includes your customers

So what can we do?

- Contextualise
- Communicate
- Collaborate

🔶 Contextualise
Develop a point of view that can be useful in making sense of what is going on
🔸Look at the current problems solving you are solving for customers
🔸Talk to people in own organisation in a similar role to who you need to speak to

🔶 Communicate
Start having conversations with customers to help them make sense of what is going on
🔸Shine a light on the issues the are facing
🔸Discuss other perspectives to stimulate new thinking

🔶 Collaborate
Don't try to 'sell' or force your solution
🔸Explore what your customer is trying to do (check out 'Jobs To Be Done' thinking to help with this)
🔸Share ideas to help make this happen (which might not necessarily be your solution)

Its not your fault things are changing and there is so much confusion around

You don't have to know all the answers

But you can develop your skills to help find them alongside customers

 

Why 'Orange Hat'

The Six Thinking Hats is a method used to amplify creativity by making sure that a broad variety of viewpoints and thinking styles are represented.
It was developed by Dr. Edward de Bono

The six hats are:

⚪ White: the objective hat, which focuses on facts and logic

🔴 Red: the intuitive hat, focusing on emotion and instinct

⚫ Black: the cautious hat, used to predict negative outcomes

💛 Yellow: the optimistic hat, used to look for positive outcomes

🍏Green: the creative hat, where ideas are abundant and criticism spare

🔵 Blue: the hat of control, used for managing the process

I've taken the liberty of addling a new one

🔶 Orange: the hat of applied sales thinking, used to address real life challenges and drive results today. 
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