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First Up!
The CIA?
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THE SIP REVIEW
Greetings!

Just got back from a trip of a lifetime.  About three years ago I became involved with a solar company.  They make the most efficient panels on the planet.  I have done a lot of their sales training all across the nation.  In fact, in March of this year they took me to Hawaii to do a program on Oahu.  Tough job.  We stayed two weeks, took May, Jon and Shalaine and McKade, almost the entire clan. 

In July they mentioned to me that they might want to do a program in Manila, the Philippines, where they manufacturer most of their panels.  They also have a call center there which runs all night long.  They operate from 10 PM to 7 AM, almost the same as Pacific Coast Time, where they are headquartered.  The call center responds when you call to get more information about solar or set an appointment with a dealer.  They also have a group of dealer support staff who help the dealer with leads, installs, orders, all kinds of things.  They wanted me to work with both groups, help them improve service and delivery from 10,000 miles away.  

So I said I would be thrilled to go, then forgot all about it.  The last of August they called back, said "It's On!"  like the Southwest commercial.  So we looked at what they wanted, and when, and I pulled out of Colorado about 8 days later.  They wanted me to do a complete week, 5 days, so it was worth the 12 hour flight, plus the 3 hour flight, plus the 2 hour flight.  It is half-way around the world, almost exactly. 

So I am going to give you some highlights from the trip, spread out over probably three issues of my newsletter.  It was that big a deal, and I learned some really neat things on the trip of a lifetime (from here on to be know as TOL).
First Up...
philipiens What was I getting into?  I have never been to that side of the world, so I called an expert.  My sister.  My sister does what I do, only different.  She does training and consulting for a number of international companies, works all across the planet.  If you are an executive with GE for example, and moving to France, she will help.  She meets with the family for several days, sharing with them the local customs, what people expect, what to eat, how the school system works, all kinds of things good to know about a foreign country. 

She hooked me up with a CIA website (or course you can go on, just need my password!), actually no password needed, it is for public consumption.  She also told me several things about the people from the Philippines.  First they really love family, respect their elders, that sort of thing.  Many generations living together, some due to economics, but many as a choice.  Next, they take pride in their job.  They want to do well at the tasks they have been given.  And so they were really enthused about the training.  Now, if you do training for a living, as I do, one thing becomes really clear early on.  Not everyone is totally engaged in the training process.  In fact, some are just there taking up space.  There have been studies done that show that about 20% of the participants will embrace the training and apply it fully.  60% will apply some, and may need a nudge from time to time.  But there are 20% who just do not get it.  When asked how the meeting went, they say "Good Food!". 

I can tell you that the participants in Manila were all enthused about being there, and got involved completely.  It was one of the best training experiences ever.  When we broke for lunch, they all asked me if I had meal plans.  No, I was ready to eat with anyone who would eat with me.  So at each meal, they all asked me to share their table, and had about 50 questions for me. 
The CIA Website cont....
cia The CIA website also mentioned several groups of terrorist groups that are in the area.  Manila was an American colony for years, went independent in the 80s.  Every so often a group comes up and challenges the government, even by shooting several of the political leaders.  That would come under the heading of challenging.  So the website warned me about going up into the mountain areas north or south of Manila.  Not a problem to me, not going anywhere outside of the city, just doing some training.  Now, before you write me a letter, let me be perfectly clear that I am in no way saying it is an unsafe country.  That same site warns you about gangs in Portland and New York as well.  So it is a fact of life today that no matter where you go there may be bad guys waiting to take advantage.  Just be careful out there. 

So I called United and told them where I was going, and just had them make up the ticket.  Took four flights to get it all done.  Lots of options, so I wanted a professional involved.  The other reason I needed them involved was to be sure I could get business class on all legs.  I am 6'2", and a 12 hour flight would likely bind me up totally if I could not stretch out.  So I used miles to upgrade to business class, both ways.  That required me to go through China.  Actually Taipei, the People's Republic of China, kind of China but not exactly.  The billion people in China say they are not China; to the people of Taipei it is a positive thing to be considered as China, even if it is by a guy form Colorado.

So I had to spend the night in China.  Not excited about clearing customs, finding a hotel, that sort of thing.  So I did some research, discovered that there is a hotel in the Taipei airport, inside customs.  Got me a room, seemed to be perfect.  Told me to follow signs to the Evergreen hotel, don't go out of customs, that would be a problem.  So I got into the airport, at about 8:30 PM.  Right up till that moment I did not realize that there were two terminals in Taipei, 1 & 2.  The Evergreen in 2, I landed in 1.  No signs, so I just followed the crowd.  Ended up in customs area, where a bunch of guys with guns on their hips greeted me.  So I went through customs, ended up in main terminal, not happy about how that ended up.  Asked a friendly young lady at a information counter how to get to Evergreen hotel.  She said it is inside terminal 2, you are in wrong terminal.  So I just have to go back through customs, and I am there.  Not so easy, since China Air will not give out a boarding pass ahead of time.  They do not have an arrangement with the US carriers, so no electronic ticket, so no pass 24 hours before the time of departure, like we do here.  Only way is to come to ticket counter the day of the flight, which in my case was the next day.  So I am all alone in a foreign country, don't speak the language, and no idea where the nearest hotel is. 

To find out what happened, see my column next month.
 
OK, not gonna do that, each article should stand on its own. 

I went back to the information desk, the kind lady told me where to stay, got me a room reservation, hooked me up.  The hotel was called City Suites, a name that I liked right from the start.  One mile from the airport. 
So is there a message for us in here?  I believe so.  You and I take a lot for granted in this business of AC, heating, plumbing, solar, what we do for a living.  But to many of our customers, it is not business as usual.  It is in fact, an event of a lifetime.  Many have never had the experience of installing the stuff you sell before.  They have lived in their home for 15 years, it had the items you sell in it when it was new, now it needs to be replaced.  So they are somewhat concerned, the fear of the unknown.  So help them with the process.  Let them know what is going to happen next.  Equip each employee to answer all questions, to give guidance as to the best course of action, to help them through the event.  The lady at United that helped me with the ticket actually said I would enjoy flying through Narita (Japan), as it is a state-of-the-art airport.  And it was.  So I looked upon the trip with enthusiasm to see what that leg would look like.  My sister told me the people in Manila were very gracious and friendly, and they were.  I enjoyed the trip even more by anticipating meeting that group of people who really wanted to learn some new ideas. 
 
Sincerely,
 

James Hinshaw
Sales Improvement Professionals Inc.
Ph: (602) 369-8097
Em: [email protected]
www.SipTraining.com
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