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Cool Friend: Madson
Patricia Ryan Madson is our latest Cool Friend. She's the author of Improv Wisdom: Don't Prepare, Just Show Up. According to its advance press, the book is "an irresistible invitation to lighten up, look around, and live an unscripted life." Tom's quote from it is this: "There are people who prefer to say 'Yes,' and there are people who prefer to say 'No.' Those who say 'Yes' are rewarded by the adventures they have, and those who say 'No' are rewarded by the safety they attain." Madson discusses her 13 maxims for getting the most out of being more spontaneous in your life in her Cool Friend interview here. You can also see constructiveliving.com to learn more about her ideas.
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Comments
Madson's comments reminded me of a former business associate: she was starting a consulting practice (I was one of the consultants), and I accompanied her on several presentations to potential clients. We'd sit down with them, introduce ourselves, and then she'd launch into a snazzy "canned" presentation (complete with PowerPoints) about the wonderful services we provided. We didn't get a whole lot of clients.
Later I went out on my own. When I sat down with potential clients, I'd start by asking (in essence) "Why did you call me?" After they had described what they wanted (and told me about themselves in the process), I'd tell them how I could give them what they wanted. I was much more successful than I'd ever been with the consulting firm.
Posted by Paula at February 16, 2006 6:04 PM
Paula,
Your approach is a great example of using the rules of improv to approach a business problem. You really listened to your client, and that made the difference. Brava!
Posted by Patricia Ryan Madson at February 19, 2006 2:29 PM
Thanks!
P.S. -- I finally bought the book, and I love it. It's an easy read, but every chapter left me thinking.
(And it's a nice tie-in to another recent Cool Friend's book, Goal-Free Living. If you choreograph your entire life/career/whatever and focus tightly on that, not only will you pass up opportunities that could take you far BEYOND your original goal, but you'll miss out on a lot of the fun along the way.)
Posted by Paula at March 10, 2006 6:45 PM