Becoming Bulletproof: Protect Yourself, Read People, Influence Situations, and Live Fearlessly

by Evy Poumpouras

This helped accomplish four things: 1. I didn’t have to do any guesswork as to what they thought of my proposal. They would describe their favorite parts, what resonated with them, what was important to them, and their vision for the book. All of this information was valuable for me to know before I began to speak. 2. This allowed me to respond to their thoughts and vision, making it possible for me to enter the conversation in a meaningful way rather than blindly trying to figure out where to start my pitch. I didn’t have to spend the meeting wondering which parts they did or didn’t like. They told me on their own and the conversation flowed easily from there. 3. I was able to prime the conversation. Notice that we didn’t say, “Tell us what you thought about the proposal.” We asked them what they liked about the proposal. I wanted to begin the conversation on a positive note and prompt them to give me only positive feedback. Again, my goal was to sell the book concept. And I wanted to get each editor excited and primed so that we could discuss the book in the best mood possible, which is why I avoided the negatives. I knew constructive criticism would come eventually—but first, I needed to lock in a book deal (more on priming in chapter 21). 4. I could observe and absorb everyone while they spoke, as well as read the room, and decide on the best way to respond to their feedback.