If You Think You’re Losing Your Marbles, You’re Not Alone
Do you ever think you’re losing your marbles? You’ve just had a conversation with someone, believe you’ve answered their questions, or told them something, and a moment later they ask you the same question. It’s as if you never had the conversation.
That’s happened to me a lot recently. At first, I thought I was the problem. Maybe my memory was going? Was I making assumptions, or were my communication skills gone to hell?
Then I figured out it wasn’t me. It was the other person. People don’t listen anymore. This is a relatively recent phenomenon and it’s getting worse.
The average attention span has dropped from 12 minutes ten years ago to about 5 seconds today.
According to the experts who study this that’s less than the nine second attention span of your average goldfish.
Here are a few more statistics on our attention span and the factors influencing it:
· People are bombarded by the equivalent of 174 newspapers worth of information every day.
· The growth of the internet, 24-hour television and mobile phones means we now receive 5 times as much information as we did 30 years ago.
· The average office worker checks their email inbox 30–40 times an hour.
· People spend 700 billion minutes on Facebook every month.
· Facebook users install 20 million apps every day, most of which are distractions.
· 12 million Twitter users follow 64 or more Twitter accounts.
· The human brain can store one million gigabytes of data. The average brain consumes 34 gigabytes every day. Lots of capacity, but according to Miller’s Law, it can only process 7 pieces of information at once.
· Overuse of social media leads to short-term memory loss.
· Information overload leads to stress and poorer health.
How do I know this? Where did I get this stuff? It’s thanks to writers and experts like Brandon Gaille, Rachel Ainsworth, Source Global Research, Dr. Martin Hilbert at the University of Southern California, and various others.
OK. You’re not losing your marbles. It’s not your imagination. Real communication today is more difficult that it’s ever been. Sure, information and people are more accessible but the very tools that make it possible also make it more challenging.
Attention span deficit is an annoyance in everyday life, but it’s a big problem in professional selling.
In personal interactions, when the other person is distracted, you can call them on it. You may just be feeling that they’re not giving you their undivided attention, or they’re totally rude and texting while talking to you.
Stop talking until you get their attention or say something like, “you seem to be distracted right now. Let’s pick this up another time.”
In a sales situation, your livelihood depends on getting your customers attention. A good consultative sales process is essential. That’s just the start. There’s no one-size-fits-all solution. You must focus on your customer and always be subtly answering the question WIIFM … what’s in it for me?
Look, you must understand most people don’t care about your stuff. They’re selfish. Their brains are focused on their own needs and whether you can benefit them or not.
Fifteen years ago, Patrick Renvoise and Christophe Morin wrote Neuro-Marketing. To me, it’s the “why” behind consultative selling and a must read for anyone in sales … especially in today’s culture of data overload. You can find it on Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/Neuromarketing-Button-Selling-Instant-Success/dp/0974348228
Multitasking doesn’t work. One of the statistics above, Miller’s Law, claims the average brain can only process 7 pieces of information at a time. I wish mine could. My capacity seems to be one thing at a time.
It is those who concentrate on one thing at a time who advance in this world. Og Mandino
I’m Oliver Connolly and I rescue under performing sales organizations. Connect with me at oliver@streetsmartsalesmanagement.com for a no-nonsense conversation about what I can do for you.
Check out my website https://www.streetsmartsalesmanagement.com for more information.
