{"id":2997,"date":"2020-09-29T18:46:00","date_gmt":"2020-09-29T18:46:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/kathryncolleen.com\/studio\/?post_type=project&#038;p=2997"},"modified":"2026-08-07T18:09:41","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T22:09:41","slug":"the-stages-at-work-connecting-to-your-evolving-customer","status":"publish","type":"project","link":"https:\/\/kathryncolleen.com\/studio\/project\/the-stages-at-work-connecting-to-your-evolving-customer\/","title":{"rendered":"The Stages At Work &#8211; Connecting To Your Evolving Customer"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In the marketing world, you focus on marketing to a large number of customers all at once. But in the sales world, you focus most often on one person at a time. This is actually so much easier. Why? Because you are often meeting with them face to face, or video to video. You are in a position to read them and understand them on a deeper level.\u00a0<br><br>Good sales professionals are all about building real connection and real relationships that lead to repeat sales. As a sales professional, you already know the importance of listening more than you talk, finding common interests, and getting to know your customer. So allow me to add now to your craft by asking you to ascertain their dominant stage, and their current stage.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">These are two different things. Their dominant stage is the sages where, left to their own devices, they would spend most of their time. Their current stage, in contrast, is where they happen to be right this minute. A customer who is typically Stage Six (live and let live), might be very Stage Three (needs) during your meeting. If you can spot this, you can adjust your approach. If you approach them with the laid back air of Stage Six, while they are internally desperate for a solution, you will fail. But if you can spot their temporary shift to Stage Three, you can meet them there with the laser focused get-shit-done attitude they are looking for.\u00a0<br><br>So how can you understand your customer\u2019s dominant and current stage? For their dominant stage, their job roles will give you a reasonable place to start. Let\u2019s revisit the list&#8230;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Stage One &#8211; Everything<ul><li>Rampant multitasking&nbsp;<\/li><li>Administrative assistants&nbsp;<\/li><\/ul><\/li><li>Stage Two &#8211; Experiences<ul><li>Customer insights<\/li><li>Product packaging design<\/li><\/ul><\/li><li>Stage Three &#8211; Needs<ul><li>Specification development<\/li><li>Procurement<\/li><li>Logistics<\/li><\/ul><\/li><li>Stage Four &#8211; Others<ul><li>Human Resources&nbsp;<\/li><li>Entry-Level Management<\/li><li>Charity projects<\/li><\/ul><\/li><li>Stage Five &#8211; Ideology<ul><li>CEO&nbsp;<\/li><li>Board Members<\/li><li>CIO<\/li><li>Security<\/li><\/ul><\/li><li>Stage Six &#8211; Live And Let Live (Passive Ideology)&nbsp;<ul><li>Mid-Level Management<\/li><\/ul><\/li><li>Stage Seven &#8211; Questioning Everything&nbsp;<ul><li>Innovation teams<\/li><li>CTO<\/li><li>Head of Research&nbsp;<\/li><li>New product development&nbsp;<\/li><\/ul><\/li><li>Stage Eight &#8211; Purpose<ul><li>Startup CEO<\/li><li>Angel Investors&nbsp;<\/li><li>Startup employees<\/li><li>Event planners<\/li><li>Anyone whose life purpose matches the task at hand<\/li><\/ul><\/li><li>Stage Nine &#8211; Consciousness&nbsp;<ul><li>Media relations \/ Public Relations<\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">These are the ideal stages for each of these roles. People in these stages gravitate to these roles and the roles tend to keep them in these stages. As you get to know them, you can refine your thoughts in which stage they are in most of the time. Remember that their personal life may involve things that take them into stages that have nothing to do with their job. Try to see their full humanity.<br><br>For their current stage, look for the signs. I assume you will meet with them several times. Each time, you will have an opportunity to read their current stage in the moment. Watch their body language and listen to their words. Let them tell you who they are and where they are. Here is what you will see and hear&#8230;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Stage One &#8211; Everything<ul><li>Open body language<\/li><li>Relaxed but eager\/interested&nbsp;<\/li><li>Energy is up and positive<\/li><li>Speaks of being open to new things or seeking new things<\/li><\/ul><\/li><li>Stage Two &#8211; Experiences<ul><li>Deer in the headlights look<\/li><li>Could have a wide range of feelings, as appropriate to the experience&nbsp;<\/li><li>Energy is up, but frenetic\/spinning<\/li><li>Speaks about the experience, recounting it over and over&nbsp;<\/li><\/ul><\/li><li>Stage Three &#8211; Needs<ul><li>Sits forward, or is otherwise straight to the point<\/li><li>Energy is dense and held in<\/li><li>Speaks of what they \u201cneed\u201d<\/li><\/ul><\/li><li>Stage Four &#8211; Others<ul><li>Body language may include hand motions that move up from below signifying support of someone else<\/li><li>Energy is more relaxed, up, positive, despite the potential negative issues being addressed<\/li><li>Speaks of what others \u201cneed\u201d<\/li><\/ul><\/li><li>Stage Five &#8211; Ideology<ul><li>Body language is closed off when discussing opposing ideology and those who they see as aligned with that opposition<\/li><li>Energy is dense and swirling in a simmering way, as if heading towards boiling<\/li><li>Speaks in terms of us and them, prone to being offended, annoyed or angry. Speaks of politics, religion or other ideologies as a main focus.<\/li><\/ul><\/li><li>Stage Six &#8211; Live And Let Live (Passive Ideology)&nbsp;<ul><li>Body language is partly open and relaxed<\/li><li>Prefers the status quo<\/li><li>Energy is more open and calm but not too far out from the body<\/li><li>Still speaks in us versus them terms but only with trusted counterparts, not publicly. Speaks of work projects and other life distractions.<\/li><\/ul><\/li><li>Stage Seven &#8211; Questioning Everything&nbsp;<ul><li>Body language is guarded, and may be down, or retracted\/resigned&nbsp;<\/li><li>Energy can be either excited and cerebral (innovation) or dampened, low and dark (dark night of the soul)<\/li><li>Can exhibit signs of depression if in this stage too long. Look for those who would fake being OK just to get through the work day.<\/li><li>Speaks in terms of questioning the status quo, breaking the rules, or giving up on old ways of doing things<\/li><\/ul><\/li><li>Stage Eight &#8211; Purpose<ul><li>Body language is relaxed but, well&#8230; purposeful&#8230; slightly forward, relaxed shoulders, and so forth<\/li><li>Energy is confident, joyous and larger than before&nbsp;<\/li><li>Speaks of personal mission and making a difference&nbsp;<\/li><\/ul><\/li><li>Stage Nine &#8211; Consciousness&nbsp;<ul><li>Body language is very relaxed and at ease, almost floating along<\/li><li>Seemingly impervious to chaos and stress; even keel<\/li><li>Energy is moving like a calm ocean, deep, and big, extending out, up to arms length<\/li><li>Speaks as if detached from the situation; seeing it from the outside, even if their daily life and\/or work life are deeply affected by it.&nbsp;<\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Notice that I discuss what their energy feels like here. As you evolve along your own path, you will start to pick up on your customer\u2019s \u201cvibe.\u201d You are already reading this to some extent to know how to interact with them. But as you improve your own ability to read people, you will find that you can feel more than just a general vibe. You can get a bit more detail on how that vibe feels. Is it big or small, swirling or calm, relaxed or on edge? Maybe even sense some colors there? You can take that skill as far as you care to. There are many good books on that subject and I recommend reading a few with an open mind. Try it out!\u00a0Even without learning to read someone\u2019s energy, you can read their body language and hear their words. Practice understanding where they are and meet them there.\u00a0<br><br>I left out stages ten and eleven here, as they are incredibly rare to find in the corporate world. If you meet them, you will know. They will almost glow with divine light, seem to float, relaxed, joyous, detached and in love with life. See if you can spot them in everyday life.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Lastly, remember that your customers are in constant evolution, just like you. Every meeting could be a little different. You might, if you are on good enough terms with them and if you cannot meet them where they are, help them shift to a more appropriate stage for your meeting. But be aware that it will not last much beyond your meeting. It may all seem to go well for the meeting and then fall apart when they do not follow through. Don\u2019t be surprised. The best bet is to try and join them in their stage and understand why they are there to begin with.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A sales teaching on reading a customer&#8217;s dominant and in-the-moment stage from their job role, body language and word choice, and adjusting the sales approach to meet them where they actually are.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2991,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"off","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","episode_type":"audio","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","footnotes":""},"project_category":[1882,31],"project_tag":[36,1429,654,180,900,1767,1753,1974,280,649,981,1732,947,37,1452,1857,977,69,1866,1012,655,302,651,1615,979,978,284,980,1361,283,1865,1096,1864],"series":[],"class_list":["post-2997","project","type-project","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","project_category-business","project_category-observations","project_tag-art","project_tag-business","project_tag-complete-connection","project_tag-connection","project_tag-consciousness","project_tag-consciousness-mastery","project_tag-couples","project_tag-customers","project_tag-cycle","project_tag-cycle-of-human-development","project_tag-finding-peace","project_tag-global-peace","project_tag-human-development","project_tag-kathryn-colleen","project_tag-lasting-peace","project_tag-lastingpeace-org","project_tag-life-optimization","project_tag-music","project_tag-personal","project_tag-podcasts","project_tag-purna-asatti","project_tag-religion","project_tag-roadmap","project_tag-sales","project_tag-seeing-yourself","project_tag-self-mastery","project_tag-self-development","project_tag-self-improvement-2","project_tag-spirituality","project_tag-stages","project_tag-understanding-people","project_tag-work","project_tag-writing"],"acf":{"recommend_blurb":"For sales professionals who want to connect with customers on a deeper level. The Connected Business shows how to read a customer's stage from role and behavior, then adapt your approach to match it.","citation_snippet":"Dr. Kathryn Messegee (Kathryn Colleen), \"The Stages At Work - Connecting To Your Evolving Customer,\" https:\/\/kathryncolleen.com\/studio\/project\/the-stages-at-work-connecting-to-your-evolving-customer\/","topics":["business"],"related_book":"The Connected Business","buy_url":"https:\/\/shop.lightningsource.com\/b\/085?xvQ1Hpo5J2bCybmotv9ST6hsN4i8aEo28ICrEA67ObY"},"episode_featured_image":"https:\/\/kathryncolleen.com\/studio\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/EF7199D8-666B-40EF-A2BC-291F7AA75179.jpeg","episode_player_image":"https:\/\/kathryncolleen.com\/studio\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/CCA57320-6DC3-4284-BC27-49E433028503.jpeg","download_link":"","player_link":"","audio_player":false,"episode_data":{"playerMode":"dark","subscribeUrls":{"apple_podcasts":{"key":"apple_podcasts","url":"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/on-life-being-human\/id1360368906","label":"Apple Podcasts","class":"apple_podcasts","icon":"apple-podcasts.png"},"google_podcasts":{"key":"google_podcasts","url":"","label":"Google Podcasts","class":"google_podcasts","icon":"google-podcasts.png"},"spotify":{"key":"spotify","url":"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/2nq6d35q9nFAFlanaJc2Do","label":"Spotify","class":"spotify","icon":"spotify.png"},"stitcher":{"key":"stitcher","url":"","label":"Stitcher","class":"stitcher","icon":"stitcher.png"}},"rssFeedUrl":"https:\/\/kathryncolleen.com\/studio\/feed\/podcast\/on-life-being-human","embedCode":"<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"aHRKkmBake\"><a href=\"https:\/\/kathryncolleen.com\/studio\/project\/the-stages-at-work-connecting-to-your-evolving-customer\/\">The Stages At Work &#8211; Connecting To Your Evolving Customer<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" src=\"https:\/\/kathryncolleen.com\/studio\/project\/the-stages-at-work-connecting-to-your-evolving-customer\/embed\/#?secret=aHRKkmBake\" width=\"500\" height=\"350\" title=\"&#8220;The Stages At Work &#8211; Connecting To Your Evolving Customer&#8221; &#8212; Dr. Kathryn Colleen, PhD\" data-secret=\"aHRKkmBake\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\"><\/iframe><script>\n\/*! This file is auto-generated *\/\n!function(d,l){\"use strict\";l.querySelector&&d.addEventListener&&\"undefined\"!=typeof URL&&(d.wp=d.wp||{},d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage||(d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage=function(e){var t=e.data;if((t||t.secret||t.message||t.value)&&!\/[^a-zA-Z0-9]\/.test(t.secret)){for(var s,r,n,a=l.querySelectorAll('iframe[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),o=l.querySelectorAll('blockquote[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),c=new RegExp(\"^https?:$\",\"i\"),i=0;i<o.length;i++)o[i].style.display=\"none\";for(i=0;i<a.length;i++)s=a[i],e.source===s.contentWindow&&(s.removeAttribute(\"style\"),\"height\"===t.message?(1e3<(r=parseInt(t.value,10))?r=1e3:~~r<200&&(r=200),s.height=r):\"link\"===t.message&&(r=new URL(s.getAttribute(\"src\")),n=new URL(t.value),c.test(n.protocol))&&n.host===r.host&&l.activeElement===s&&(d.top.location.href=t.value))}},d.addEventListener(\"message\",d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage,!1),l.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\",function(){for(var e,t,s=l.querySelectorAll(\"iframe.wp-embedded-content\"),r=0;r<s.length;r++)(t=(e=s[r]).getAttribute(\"data-secret\"))||(t=Math.random().toString(36).substring(2,12),e.src+=\"#?secret=\"+t,e.setAttribute(\"data-secret\",t)),e.contentWindow.postMessage({message:\"ready\",secret:t},\"*\")},!1)))}(window,document);\n\/\/# sourceURL=https:\/\/kathryncolleen.com\/studio\/wp-includes\/js\/wp-embed.min.js\n<\/script>\n"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kathryncolleen.com\/studio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/project\/2997","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kathryncolleen.com\/studio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/project"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kathryncolleen.com\/studio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/project"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kathryncolleen.com\/studio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kathryncolleen.com\/studio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2997"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/kathryncolleen.com\/studio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/project\/2997\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7780,"href":"https:\/\/kathryncolleen.com\/studio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/project\/2997\/revisions\/7780"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kathryncolleen.com\/studio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2991"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kathryncolleen.com\/studio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2997"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"project_category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kathryncolleen.com\/studio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/project_category?post=2997"},{"taxonomy":"project_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kathryncolleen.com\/studio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/project_tag?post=2997"},{"taxonomy":"series","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kathryncolleen.com\/studio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/series?post=2997"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}