We do love to tell reps to “provide value” in every conversation, don’t we?
Problem is, when they are so eager to do that, the conversation becomes a game of waiting for the other person to stop talking so you can jump in and deliver that value that you’ve been rehearsing in anticipation :/
I’ve felt that pressure myself to show that I have all the answers, for prospects or for my team, and it leads to the same result.
Switching to active listening probably isn’t something you can do at will (or because someone on LinkedIn told you to ;)) but a simple cue might be a good place to start. When the person you’re talking to finishes their piece, take a breath, pause and see if you can sum up what they just said before you answer. It probably feels like it’d take an eternity but to the other person, I promise it’ll be a natural pause