I was trying to do business with one of the smartest, wealthiest and most well established business builders that I had ever had the pleasure to meet, when one night he invited me to a business meeting that he was having with someone else, who also wanted to do business with him. Now Phil, the gentleman I wanted to work with, was extremely intelligent, a very fast talker and had incredible amounts of energy. But he was looking to expand his business into other parts of the state, and areas where I had contacts he didn’t. I thought this made us a great match.
On the way to this other meeting, with Andrew, Phil explained that he had approached Andrew about working together because Andrew had many, many contacts in an industry that Phil didn’t, and Phil hoped to leverage that into helping the customers, Andrew and himself. But Phil also explained that every time Andrew was asked to do something, something that could really set the ‘ball in motion’; he seemed to have some other issue that had arisen. Phil thought that tonight’s meeting was time for Andrew to “poop or get off the pot.”
To this day I don’t think I have ever heard Phil curse in any form or fashion and although he is younger than I am, this also seems to lend him a great age and seeming wisdom. His response is that its just forced him to be more creative in the words he uses.
So we pulled into a restaurant, this was to be a dinner meeting, and Phil made introductions all around, and we sat down and ordered. Nothing about business had been said, nothing had also been mentioned about who I was or why I was there. For all Andrew knew I was Phil’s accountant.
Finally as the desserts were brought and Phil’s sliced into his pie, he looked up at Andrew and said, “So Andrew, how did the meeting with Joe go?” Phil had explained to me before we had arrived that Joe was an established leader in Andrews’s area of expertise and Phil had asked him to meet with him and lay some ground work before the three of them started negotiations.
Andrew started to look a little uncomfortable and started his response with, “You know Phil I was just about to ask Joe to meet with me when…” Suddenly Phil did something I had never seen him do, up to that time, he interrupted someone speaking. “Your dog got sick, right?” Phil said, straight faced. Andrew’s eye’s few open and he said,” No, actually Angie went into Liver Failure.” Phil turned to me and said, “Angie is the cat.”
Doing my best NOT to laugh, I instead coughed into my napkin, when Andrew spoke up and said, “But Phil, HOW could you have known that?”
Phil, looking deadpan and staring straight ito Andrews eyes simply said, “Andrew, just pick one and stick to it, it’s much, much easier, look here’s a card, all the “reasons” have numbers, just pick one and shout it out next time. Phil then got up, grabbed the check and motioned for me to follow him…
WHY would he do THAT I thought? You too? Well check back later and find out why…
If you thinnk you KNOW why, send me a comment, if you’ve ever BEEN in this situatiioon, I’d like to hear that as well!
Either way Le me know your situation!
