When the clock is winding down, the timeout is an enormous part of a winning strategy. Take your two minutes... then, Sic 'em!
NFL Coach Bill Belichick is a master of clock management and, more specifically, when to use (or not use) a timeout at the end of the game. (See, Superbowl XLIX). In fact, according to a Computational Social Science Professor who studied their importance, from 2001-14, the team with the most timeouts at the end of the game wins 90% of the time.
But it’s not just how many timeouts you have. It’s how you use them.
Datamax Little Rock Account Manager Dave Duke understands the value and the strategic use of a timeout, albeit in a different light. The 35-year sales veteran has sold everything from IRA plans door to door, to computers, to radio spots, to wide format printers in his storied career. But he’s also learned (often the hard way) when to stop, what to do during your break, and then when to start the clock again.
For our purposes, we’ll call it the Two Minute Time Out. This concept doesn’t just apply at the end of the year, and it certainly doesn’t just apply in sales.
The Two-Minute Time Out essentially boils down to this:
When something very good occurs in your professional life, be it the landing of a new client or delivering a task with brilliant efficiency, take a total of 2 minutes to celebrate it. Drop everything else and give yourself a pat on the back, boast a little bit and maybe even yell aloud with joy. After those 2 minutes, get back to work, because there are many other battles to conquer. The same, of course, occurs when something bad happens.
“The highs will come, and so will the lows, and that’s just the nature of it,” Dave says. “You need to celebrate. You need to reflect. But do it for a short amount of time. Then, get back on the train and keep moving.”
Dave’s 4 Rules for a Using Two-Minute Time-Out:
1. Stop to Reflect a Loss.
Stop, but don’t dwell.
“When I was younger, when I’d lose a deal I’d wear it on my sleeve and be mad about it for days,” Dave recalls. “Along the way, I missed opportunities because I was going on and on about my loss.”
Instead, Dave makes it a point to reflect, to reach out to the prospect and ask “what could I have done to make this decision different?” And remember that moving forward.
2. Stop to celebrate a Win.
“You’ve GOT to celebrate your victories. When you have a good sale, ring that bell. Jump up and shout. Let everyone you want to know about it,” Dave suggests.
He personally chooses to simply let his boss know of the victory, and then get right back to it. “I just keep thinking I’m going to get a bigger deal down the road,” he says.
3. Start the Clock Again ASAP.
Dave can’t say it often enough. Guard against complacency.
“You can’t get too low when you lose a deal. When you win something the tendency is to slack off. The problem is, that gets easy. And then you never catch back up. It’s hard to get back on the train once you jump off,” Dave says.
4. Stay Even-Keeled.
“The highs are never that high. The lows are never that low,” he suggests. “You have to stay even-keeled… otherwise, you’ll talk yourself out of this business. It’s fun! But it’s not easy.”
