/01
“You start with what happened.”
The date, first
He wants one thing and it is a date. Everything before it is heard as delay, however true it is.
Unhappy client, rehearsed out loud
1
person runs this conversation
10 min
The shortest conversation
He rang you, he is already angry, and he will not let you finish a sentence. Three things work on this call and explaining your process is not one of them.
C1 · advancedNative pace
What actually happens
Five things people say before they start.
One of them is usually the real reason. What sits underneath it is what actually gets scored.
/02
“Your best answer is a range.”
Not saying end of quarter
Any answer that is not a specific day is heard as a second evasion, and it is where a call goes from angry to escalated.
/03
“You both end up talking at once, twice.”
Being talked over
He interrupts. Stopping, letting him finish, and then answering the actual question is the technique; raising your voice to finish yours is the failure.
/04
“You apologise three times and commit to nothing.”
What you will do today
One concrete action with your name on it, before the call ends. That is what turns the temperature down, not the apology.
Not the situation you need?
Bring the real thing: the job description, the date on the letter, the words the school used. Everyone who runs unhappy client will work from what you actually walked in with.
How a first conversation worksWho you will be talking to
Unhappy client, with 1 of these 1.
In whichever order helps. The first 5 minutes with a free partner cost nothing, so you can talk to two of them before you choose.
Unhappy clientWhat it costs
One price a minute, whoever you talk to.
A harder conversation simply runs longer. The shortest way to rehearse unhappy client is 10 min.
You pay for the seconds you talk, and the minutes come off a balance you already hold. Nothing renews, and you are never sent a bill. Plans and refunds.
C1 · advanced
15 min
is how long a conversation at this difficulty runs
Ten minutes on the phone with a client who has been let down twice already.
- Minutes of talking in total
- 90
- What that costs here
- $40
- The same minutes with a tutor
- $300
- You do not spend
- −$260
At $50 an hour, rounded up to the 60-minute booking nobody will sell you less than.
Your first 5 minutes
What 5 free minutes are for.
01
Take it as a call
Derek is phone-only on purpose. There is no expression to check your answer against, which is most of the difficulty.
The terms, in full
- Free
- 5 minutes
- No card asked for
02
Count who interrupted whom
The metrics separate the two, and the ratio is usually the thing worth fixing.
Paid for out of your free minutes
- The date, first
- Not saying end of quarter
- Being talked over
- What you will do today
Questions
What people ask before they start.
Nearby
What people open next.
The rest of Work first, then everything else at the same difficulty.
All the situationsSalary negotiation
B1 · workingB2 · confidentC1 · advancedThe number, said once, without apologising for it or explaining it away.2 peoplefrom 10 minConflict with a colleague
B2 · confidentC1 · advancedTwo teams, one deadline, and somebody who thinks this is your fault.1 personfrom 10 minHard feedbackB1 · workingB2 · confidentYour manager has a specific example. What you say in the next ten seconds is the whole thing.1 personfrom 10 min
B1 · workingB2 · confidentC1 · advancedThe number, said once, without apologising for it or explaining it away.2 peoplefrom 10 minConflict with a colleagueB2 · confidentC1 · advancedTwo teams, one deadline, and somebody who thinks this is your fault.1 personfrom 10 minHard feedbackB1 · workingB2 · confidentYour manager has a specific example. What you say in the next ten seconds is the whole thing.1 personfrom 10 min