Page 226 - Paulisms: Gold Nuggets for Small Business

I could see raised eyebrows from the consultants and others in the room. I was professional and didn’t react in the meeting.
Afterwards I spoke to her professionally. ‘Regarding the meeting yesterday, thank you for your input. It’s appreciated. You had some strong views which I would like to discuss.’ I explained that I had joined an organisation called EO where I meet with the owners of very successful businesses once a month and one of our rules is that we are not allowed to give opinions, we are not allowed to disagree, and we leave egos at the door. I suggested that instead of saying ‘I disagree’, she might want to replace the phrase with something along the lines of ‘I can see how you think that way, but from my experience...’, and instead of saying ‘In my opinion...’, it’s best to say ‘From my experience...’
‘Talking from experience rather than giving opinions gains a lot more respect and gets more mileage with your thoughts and ideas if you are less strong in your views’ (I tried not to say opinionated). Then I mentioned that in these meetings it is very important not to show emotion and try and control our negative body language when things don’t go your way.
Lastly, I said, ‘When you asked me the other day a question about property, I spoke from experience, not my opinion.’ From my experience, there is more respect hearing from experience rather than individual opinions.