We were mid-way through the crackers and cheese when my friend said, “And after we come back from our September trip, I’m planning to have shoulder surgery.”

“Wow, that’s a lot of news,” I replied. “What’s going on?”

There followed a history of minor insults, injuries, weakness, and pain. [If we’d added a dog, a truck, some rain, and a whiskey, there was enough there for a good country music song.]

“How long will you recover?”

“About six months. The idea is: I have surgery in October and I play golf again in the Spring.”

“Very strategic,” I admired. “Who’ll do the work?”

“’I’ve talked to four surgeons,” he replied. “All considered ‘top notch’ in this procedure. They all talked about non-surgical options but I think we’re beyond those now. Each of their surgical strategies is a little different and their recovery time projections varied by a few weeks.”

“So, you picked the one with the shortest recovery time?”

“Actually, not. Three of the surgeons were all business. You know, it was ‘Hello, I’m Dr. So-and-so…X-rays… impingement… bone spur…open …cut … smooth … suture … close….done …physical therapy.”

“What did you think.”

“It’s hard to understand the differences between them and I think they’re all very good.”

“And the fourth surgeon?”

“That’s an interesting question,” he said. “Equally well regarded yet he’s the guy I’ve chosen because…. When we met, he smiled, introduced himself, and said, ‘I know we’re here to talk about your shoulder and we will and, before we do that, I’d love to hear about you. Tell me how YOU are.’”

Nick Miller and Clarity train banks and bankers to attract and develop deeper relationships with small businesses. Many more Sales Thoughts like this and a host of other articles and resources at https://clarityadvantage.com/knowledge-center/ .