Thundering Sales

This morning we woke to thunder rolling across the sky.  My selection of images of storms is virtually non-existent.  I love to watch them, but I never think to take photos.  This one isn't very representative because it is still dark outside and the heavy feeling in the air is nothing like the shower shown above.

Of our two dogs, one curls up at the back of her doghouse if there is any hint of thunder or, rain, while the other goes out and stands in the yard looking at the sky.  I don't know if he likes the rain or, is just curious as to what all the noise is about.  It's interesting to see the differences in their personality.

People are the same way; some like the storms and others want to hide until they pass.  I have a tendency to want to go watch them.  I'm sure I've written before about watching storm clouds while growing up.  I've seen lots of tornadoes and violent storms through the years.  That's part of growing up in the Texas Panhandle/South Plains area.

Back to personalities, though; I've always been intrigued by different personalities in people.  I like to observe and see how other people react to things or, how they react to other people.  I suspect it is part of what has helped me be effective in sales -- reading people.  Once you understand someone's personality, it is easier to determine what motivates them and how they make decisions.

Often, it is difficult to unravel what "makes people tick."  Personalities can be highly complex.  An example just happened to fly by as I was typing the previous paragraph -- a tiny gnat-sized flying critter passed in front of me.  I swatted it out of the air and it landed on the screen.  I then used my finger to remove it from the screen.  I was first annoyed by the bug, then was gratified at knocking it out of the air, irritated that it landed on the screen and then pleased that I was able to get it off without leaving a smudge.  Similar sequences of emotion pass through a prospective customer when you are presenting to them.  You have to learn to read those things in their body language, facial expressions and comments.  When you can do that effectively, you can zero in on the positives, avoid the negatives and improve your chances of completing a sale.

Now, how did I go from thunderstorms to sales?  Beats me.  I'll leave that to someone else to decipher....

A Sultry Morning

This morning as I step outside
The air is wet and thick,
Presaging what the forecast calls
A high risk of thunderstorms
With some likely severe.
It is days like this
That make me miss
The open plains where
A light breeze sweeps away
The heaviness of moisture-laden
Air.

The animals in silence
Pant heavily as they seek
The slightest breeze to relieve
Their misery
Of trapped heat that never
Dissipates into the
Laden molecules which
Are already at body temperature.
Relief will come later with
Rising winds, pelting rain and
Hail.

Into the Furnace

A hot dry wind
Blows across the Plains
Sucking the lifeblood of the prairie
In its searing blast.
The succulence
Of the rain engorged leaves
Is gone and the withered remains
Curl into grayish husks
Of their former selves.
Yet on the horizon
Tower the billowing
Marshmallow shapes of
Cumulus clouds reaching through
The heat blasted hole into the
Cooler air above
Where the hailstones form.
Relief comes at a price.

An Easter Spell

Just when you think
That Spring has arrived
You'd better start thinking again.
'Cause even though trees are blooming
And birds are singing
And wildflowers are raising their heads,
Until after Easter there's always a chance
That winter will make a return.
It's been a few years since we've seen such a spring
But there isn't a doubt that this year
Winter must have left something behind
Because it's returning in full gear.
The temperature is dropping
And the moisture is falling
And the wind's picking up from the north.
The weatherman's saying the chances are high
That a serious storm's drawing nigh.
The flakes should start falling
Sometime after Midnight;
Expect them to cover the ground.
We might get as much as six or eight inches
Of white stuff by the time Easter morn comes around.
I hope it doesn't kill my trees!