Don’t Try to Enlist Dead People into Your Cause

You: Hi, may I speak to Charlene Morton?

Operator: No

You: When might she be available?

Operator: Never

You: Oh, I see. Is Charlene no longer with the company?

Operator: You might say that. Charlene died nine months ago.

Ouch! Talk about a cold call! If you make this kind of mistake, it’s hard to recover and get the information you need for your career change. This kind of error could happen for several reasons:

1.    The business database you are using is really out of date
2.    You haven’t been able to track down the right person because you are changing careers in a new city.
3.    You got in a hurry and overlooked important steps.

Check out the accuracy of the information! Imagine using this approach instead:

You:  Hi, I was given Charlene Morton’s name as the Operations Manager at FrogLeap Industries. Is this information accurate?

Operator: No, Charlene died about nine months ago.

You:  Oh, I am so sorry. That must have been difficult (pause by taking one full breath). Tell me who is your current Operations Manager?

Operator:  That would be Richard Rodriquez, I’ll put you through.

Now obviously, it’s not that easy. Chances are the operator will ask you what this is in regard to. If you don’t have a good answer, you might be blocked. Do not mention that you are changing careers. Instead, tell the operator you are gathering first-hand information from leaders like Mr. Rodriquez for market research purposes.

Script it out. Anticipate objections. Plan out answers to those objections before you call.  Here’s the good news. Usually cold calling as a career change strategy is seldom needed, but you want to be prepared anyway, especially if you want to avoid trying to talk to dead people!

Changing careers will require you anticipating what obstacles might get in the way of your success. Reaching the right person is only one of many.

DON’T GO IT ALONE

Is it time to bring in an outside career expert, like me? Tell me about your current situation by calling 314-560-1088.  If you ARE ready to get started now, sign up for my two-hour diagnostic session that will pinpoint what’s getting in the way and receive recommendations on how to fix that. Why wait? Ready To Get Started?