People often ask us, “What kind of health coaching do you offer?” We tell them, “Intrinsic Coaching,” and then we get, “What does ‘being more intrinsic’ mean, especially when it comes to personal wellbeing?”
Definition: Intrinsic = from Medieval Latin meaning “inward.” The American Heritage Dictionary definition: “of or relating to the essential nature of a thing.” Synonyms: native, innate, natural, true, real.
We health educators have spent the better part of the past several decades telling people how they “should” live to add years to their lives. Though the messages have been helpful and even life changing for some, most struggle to meet the global (systemic) public health standards we’ve set.
We have pitched strategy after strategy at the public often failing to remember the full person in the word public. A strategy is only as good as a person’s desire to use it.
What we are now realizing, with a great V-8 slap of the forehead, is that the “personal desire” aspect is the key to the kingdom — the essential nature of a person. Uncovering that nature is what Intrinsic Coaching helps people (the public, one person at a time) achieve.
The funny thing is, once you start to look for the intrinsic, you begin to see it everywhere. In talking about sales in his blog, our friend Bob Burg went right to that target and summed up the intrinsic perfectly:
“The saying is old. The saying is also true.
Each and every year, millions of 1⁄4-inch drill bits are sold, yet nobody buying any one of these 1⁄4-inch drill bits actually wants a 1⁄4-inch drill bit.
Then, why do they buy them? Because they want a 1⁄4-inch hole!
What’s my point, and what does this have to do with influence and persuasion?
People do things/buy things, not for the thing itself, but for the benefit that doing/buying the thing brings them.
What makes this challenging is that those reasons are not always obvious. And, without knowing what they are, the chances of their taking the desired action are considerably lower.
The key is to find out by asking the right questions. In sales, not everyone has the same buying motivation. Some base their decision on price, others on quality, and still others on style or convenience. Your job is to find out in order to help them get the 1⁄4-inch hole they want.
It is the same outside of sales; people act upon their own reasons, which are often different from ours. In order to influence, you must know what their 1⁄4-inch hole is. Not yours; theirs!”
Even Dale Carnegie knew the intrinsic was the key to reaching people:
“The royal road to a man’s heart is to talk to him about the things he treasures most.”
(sorry for the gender bias here, but you get the point)
By way of example, last week we heard the story of our friend who quit smoking because the most important thing to him, what he treasures, is his grandchildren. He decided it’s time to take them on trips to places like Washington DC but his smoking addiction and travel don’t mix. After four decades and a hundred strategies (or drill bits) later, he quietly quit cold turkey, affirming that his grandchildren rule and smoking is now finally and utterly inconvenient.
The intrinsic defined: native, natural, true, real, essential… Treasured.
In short, the intrinsic is the inner result you truly want – the ¼ inch hole.
So… Are we clear? What matters most to you that helps you live your best life? Let me know, on the PATH Ahead.