The Importance of Adding Value

This is one of the lessons included in the Strategic Communication unit of Communication Mastery, my online program for organizations.

Becoming a person of value

Albert Einstein used to say:

“Try not to become a person of success, but rather try to become a person of value”.

However, what is value?

We value whatever helps us meet our needs or make our dreams and aspirations come true.

Becoming a person of value in the professional world implies helping other people or businesses meet their needs and achieve their goals, and it also implies doing so differently and better than anyone else.

If compared to your competitors, your way of adding value is more aligned with what your client or collaborator is looking for and, in addition, you’re capable of verbalizing it clearly, you potentially become the best option available.

However, how do we turn this concept into a practicable one? 

By understanding that the only job description that is common to all professionals across the board is the one of:

“Problem Solver”

However, in this case, we don’t necessarily understand the word problem as a painful or detrimental situation, but as a need or desire that needs to be met.

• It is like wanting to run a marathon and not being able to do so right now, either because you’ve got a broken leg or because, although healthy, you’ve never trained before. That’s a problem…
• If we never fell sick, we wouldn’t have to go to the doctor. The problem is the disease and the solution is the treatment prescribed by the doctor.
• If we were taught how to communicate persuasively as teenagers, this program wouldn’t make any sense. The problem is that we have a hard time reaching agreements, and the solution lies in developing our communication skills.

If your job was very easy to do, a less qualified person would get hired or it would be automated altogether. The problem is that your job is complex: the solution to this problem lies in the specialization that allows you to perform it adequately.

From this perspective, if there are no problems, there is no business and, therefore, no jobs.

In order to increase your chances of convincing others, you will always need to frame your ideas and proposals in terms of solutions to relevant, specific, and critical problems.

• Relevance: in order to be listened to, what you say needs to be either of interest or aligned with something the other person needs or wants. Otherwise, they won’t listen to you.

For instance: 

If there are no on-site events, it doesn’t make sense to learn techniques to master the stage, but to master videoconferences instead.

• Specificity: Each person has specific problems which affect them in a very concrete way. 

There are no general problems that affect the entirety of the population in the very same way. Specific problems require specific solutions.

For instance: 

Learning how to communicate to sell via videoconference is more specific than learning how to communicate for professional improvement.

• Criticality: Since time and resources are limited, people tend to make decisions based on what affects them in a more immediate and personal way.

For instance: 

If my most impending problem is my inability to connect with my team members remotely, developing this skill is more critical than learning networking strategies.

The key to adding real value and communicating it effectively lies in the preparation process.

More specifically, you will find it useful to get mental and verbal clarity about four concrete elements: Problem, Complication, Solution, and Benefit.

Problem

Ask yourself: 

Which problem, desire or need that hasn’t been met does the other person have and how can I contribute with an interesting and viable solution?

When you meet this person, make sure you confirm the problem and, particularly, ask them how this situation makes them feel.

For instance: 

This person needs to recruit someone for a position (for which you’re a possible candidate) and it turns out that they need to do it fast, but they can’t seem to find anyone qualified enough. This problem might be a source of stress since, without this hire, there is an important project that is not being developed as fast as it should.

Embarking in a previous reflection and research process will help you make sure that you have what it takes to solve this problem.

Complication

Ask yourself: 

What will happen to this person or their situation if the problem doesn’t get solved on time?

When you meet this person, it might be convenient to find out what they think could be the consequences of not solving the problem.

For instance:

The inability to develop the project and, therefore, meet quarterly targets.

Solution

Ask yourself: 

How can I help solve this problem in a specific way?

Remember that relevance is key. If you speak several languages fluently, but the position has a local reach, it doesn’t make sense to highlight your multilingualism.

When you meet this person, before explaining your proposal, it might be convenient to ask them what they think would be the appropriate solution to the problem or how they would define a successful outcome. This way you’ll be able to accurately personalize your speech based on their own definition of an ideal solution.

For instance: 

I’m looking for someone who can lead different projects at the same time and work in highly stressful situations.

Once you know this, whatever you say will have to be aligned with your capability to lead projects in stressful situations.

Benefits

Ask yourself: 

How will this person benefit from solving this problem on time?

People don’t buy ideas, projects, products, or services. People buy the concept according to which such ideas, projects, products, or services will help them meet their objectives.

That’s why it’s helpful to find the reason why they want a solution to their problem, the future vision for the desired outcome, and how this will make them feel. 

Likewise, identifying how you were able to help others in a similar context and the benefits that you helped to achieve is also useful.

For instance: 

The problem of not doing this project is that their credibility will be compromised because they had promised their bosses great results. However, if they succeed, they will not only cash an additional bonus for themselves and their department, but this will also open them the door to a new promotion.

In this case, you could talk about the times you’ve exceeded expectations when faced with deadlines, or how you achieved better metrics after accomplishing a project.

As long as you are allowed to use such data, mentioning these figures will highlight the value-added involved in having you on board.

If you are able to verbalize these points in a relevant and specific way when you address a relevant, specific, and critical issue, you will not only capture the other party’s attention, but they will want to continue the conversation.

Want to learn more about Communication Mastery and how to bring it to your organization?

Contact me at info@sebastianlora.com