Tag Archives: Urgency

The Courage to Ask

Vol. 3, Issue 5

As part of my work with the Department of Defense, I recently addressed a group of sailors about to embark on deployment to such locations as Iraq, Afghanistan, Djibouti, and Guantanamo Bay.

I admit to feelings of inadequacy when I present to such a group. That’s why I embrace, so ardently, the comments of Sgt. Ryan Pitts, an Army vet who was awarded the Medal of Honor.

Amidst the comments he made during the commencement address he delivered at his Alma Mater earlier this year, Pitts said this about what he had learned about courage and confronting your fears: WATCH.

Have You Heard About the “3:30:3 Rule”?

Vol. 3, Issue 2

Summer is here and we’re heading into a holiday weekend. Let’s make this brief.

In his weekly blog, “The Sunday Snippet,” John Stevenson writes about the importance of observing of what he calls a 3:30:3 rule. Here’s what he has to say:

“The 3:30:3 rule works like this:  You must earn an audience’s interest in the first three seconds. Do you have something meaningful to say, and do you have a useful solution to my problem?

If you are successful in the first few seconds, they will most likely grant you another 30 seconds.

Assuming you’ve been on target so far, your prospect will now grant you three more minutes to make your case.”

Stevenson’s firm, Client Kudos, creates stories that gain attention and engage audiences in fresh ways. His 3:30:3 rule is proven to work with written communications, but is equally powerful to keep in mind when you are asking for what you want.

Directly asking for what you want gets your audience squarely focused on solutions in the first few moments of the conversation. It cuts through clutter and static. It differentiates you from others who spend too much time and provide too much information trying to get to their point.

The number one constraint in people’s lives is TIME. When asking for what you want, use The Asking Formula – and the 3:30:3 Rule – as a way to make the most of your and your audience’s time.