Entrepreneurs, from designing to running a business, are essentially problem solvers.
So, how would you solve this case of two persons shouting at each other?
Think on it for a few seconds.
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Your answer will typically fall into two categories: a product/service or sapience.
If your answer is something like anger management classes, couple counselling or maybe psychiatric help, then those are products/services.
What kind of answers constitute sapience?
Consider this story:
A saint who was once visiting a river to take a bath found a group of family members on the banks, shouting in anger at each other. He turned to his disciples, smiled and asked.
'Why do people in anger shout at each other?'
The disciples thought for a while, then one of them said, 'Because we lose our calm, we shout.'
'But, why should you shout when the other person is just next to you? You can as well tell him what you have to say in a soft manner,' asked the saint.
The disciples gave some other answers but none satisfied the other disciples.
Finally the saint explained,
'When two people are angry at each other, their hearts distance a lot. To cover that distance they must shout to be able to hear each other. The angrier they are, the stronger they will have to shout to hear each other to cover that great distance.
What happens when two people fall in love? They don't shout at each other but talk softly, because their hearts are very close. The distance between them is either nonexistent or very small...'
The saint continued, 'When they love each other even more, what happens? They do not speak, only whisper and they get even closer to each other in their love. Finally they need not even whisper, they only look at each other and that's all. That is how close two people are when they love each other.'
He looked at his disciples and said,
'So when you argue do not let your hearts get distant, do not say words that distance each other more, or else there will come a day when the distance is so great that you will not find the path to return.'
Do you feel that that kind of answer deals with the underlying problem instead?
Sapience is going beyond mere practical wisdom and includes self-knowledge, interconnectedness, and deeper understanding of the state of mind. This type of wisdom can also lead to actions with appropriate judgement, a broad understanding of situations and greater appreciation/compassion towards other living beings.
When you have sapience, you would truly understand why your customers are your customers, and know how to convert them into regular customers and generate word of mouth. If you had not heard of the Buyer-Seller Disconnect, you should start being familiar with it. The Buyer-Seller Disconnect is the difference between “Here's how we can help you deliver your goals” and “Please listen to why our product/service is so great.” However, the Disconnect is just a symptom of the real problem, and that is the lack of sapience.
If you feel that this struck a chord and helped you gained clarity on how to advance your business, please give a vote of appreciation. If you would like to know more on how to have a better command of sapience, please leave a comment . If you feel that there is something more than this, please also leave a comment.