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Colin Powell on bad news

"Bad news isn't wine. It doesn't improve with age."

And neither does no news. I was talking to my brother the other day about what makes a great salesperson (he's one). He said: "The ability to give the client bad news when necessary." I thought a lot about that insight and realized that that particular trait - to speak the hard truth in a soft way - is also what makes a great employee, parent, spiritual leader, or manager.

I have a question for you: If you contact a company for information on their products and services, and they diligently follow up with you, do you get back to them and let them know that you're not interested or that you've chosen someone else? I'm not even suggesting that you to tell them the reason behind your decision. But you should at least respect their time and let them know. Wouldn't you expect that same level of courtesy?

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Comments

Manners as counter-intuition. What a differentiator.

Very nice, Tom

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