Accelerating Revenue Growth: The Inflexion-Point Blog

That very good Bob, isn’t it. 
 
 
 
I have long thought that much teaching in our societies is badly misguided, in this aspect of “Why” versus “What” or “How”. The example I’ve used over the years has been to compare trying to teach music by starting with… 
 
 
 
“Ping….” – “Now then children, that was middle C, so what can we learn from that?” 
 
 
 
…rather than letting them hear a bit of Beatles or Bach first, to illustrate the “Why” we are going to need to know about the different notes, and the many ways they can connect. We don’t, of course, in music, but we do seem to do it in most other subjects. 
 
 
 
It’s also evident, often in a parent/child setting, that children do what we do, not what we say – presumably working out (correctly) that we all do what we believe is best for us, even if that includes smoking, drinking, swearing or hitting each other, whatever we might say about such behaviour.  
 
 
 
And that got me to invent a caveman (or hunter/gatherer/farmer) analogy the other day, with a child starting to weigh up his/her options for becoming a cook, or farmer, or hunter or flint-napper, spear-maker, spear-chucker or whatever. 
 
 
 
There, the child would clearly witness the completed, lion-proof corral before tackling the thorny problem of collecting branches to make the extension, or would witness the entire hunting ceremony, from fire dance to dragging back a woolly mammoth big enough to feed the tribe all winter, before getting to the sharp end of examining and practicing spear making, chucking or butchery. And the early-day “Why” evidence of wanting to bang drums, make music through wind instruments, treat ill people with medicinal herbs or defend the tribe from danger or attack, would have been almost entirely self-evident. 
 
 
 
This has proved to be a good moment to reflect on whether my/our “Why”… 
 
 
 
I had a dream…..To improve the professional standing (and practices and people) of the UK sales profession, so that we all have better, more productive and more rewarding careers (and boost the country’s fortunes to boot). 
 
 
 
…is shining through as clearly as it could. Probably not, so thanks, and I’m working on it. 
 
 
 
Best - Neil