What?
 Kent Jacobson a.k.a. Mr. Success
Shortcut 2 Success

How aggravating is it when you are speaking to someone and the
first word out of their mouth is "What?" My first reaction is
thinking the person was not even listening to anything I was
talking about or even paying attention to me. Frustrating, oh my
yes, and also a waste of time for you and anyone else involved.

If you are as I am, a person that values their time, there are
three tips that I can give you to prevent this type of encounter
from ever happening.

Tip 1. When you first engage a person, start out with an
introduction; initiate a handshake or some other simple greeting
that makes the person engage you. What this first contact
engagement establishes is eye contact and gives you a sense of
whether this person is focused on you or potentially distracted
by someone or something else.

Note: If the person is not interested, break off and move on. If
you need to engage this person, do it at another time and try
again.

Tip 2. Tell the person what the subject is you are going to speak
to them about. Ask them if they understand; and if the response
is positive, press on and keep eye contact. You can tell if the
person is maintaining eye contact that you're the focus of
attention; just be cautious of not making the eye contact an
uncomfortable situation for them. Some people are not real
comfortable in prolonged eye contact.

Tip 3. Depending on the situation and person, when the response
is "What?" you can ask them a question to establish and
understand why they responded in this manner. Often when speaking
to someone, your tone or clarity may be the reason, and it is
much better to understand this before each of you gets into a
*What* back and forth conversation. At times people cannot hear
certain tones or they may be hearing challenged. The better you
understand the person the easier it will be to continue the
conversation, and it also makes the person feel as if you are
paying attention to them.

Remember, conversation is a two-way street; you must take charge
and establish the other person's listening level. On the same
hand, check yourself to make sure you are not the *What* person!
You are in charge of making your own successful way in this
world; embrace it.




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Kent Jacobson, a.k.a. "Mr. Success" is a trusted authority in the
success field and provides valuable success information for free
through his website at: http://www.Shortcut2Success.com . You can
also read Kent's Success Blog to find more success secrets at:
http://www.Shortcut2Success.com/blog