Call On Me…. I Know!

A seasoned salesperson recalls the following question-and-answer session with a shudder. The president of a large corporate plan asked a reasonably simple question. Every member of the three-person presentation team proceeded to answer the question, each putting a new spin on the answer of the last, until the president no doubt wished that she had never posed the question. All in all a dazzling display of one-upmanship—the kind of interaction that gives the lie to any claims of teamwork.

Moral: Avoid one-upmanship.