The Month of a Salesman

Four weeks into my career…

So I just finished the first four weeks of my business career, and boy oh boy is the “real world” different than college. It’s really amazing. By substituting classes for business meetings, dorm food for catered four star lunches, and frat parties for wine mixers, independence has taken on a whole new meaning. The first few inklings of this next phase of my life have me awfully excited for what lies ahead.

Specifically, I have found that working in sales is the full roller-coaster of emotion. The days speed by, breaks are avoided, lunches are shorter, and actual phone conversations with human people are welcomed with open arms. Although the world of entry-level sales is by no means rocket science, it certainly is an up-at-dawn, nonstop adventure. Working in a young, vibrant startup office presents an ideal environment to “Always Be Closing.” Here are a couple of my brief observation/encounters in my infant days as a real-live salesman:

1. Salespeople have way too much in common. In my department, everyone of my colleagues is just like me: extroverted, competitive, personable, funny, educated…the list goes on and on. Think your sales personality is unique? Think again. There are clear reasons why most salespeople are not crunching numbers, performing stock quotes, creating products, taking classes, etc. We don’t belong in those realms; we belong with our phone, salesforce account, and sometimes too confident of personalities. Boy, do I feel right at home! Also, word of advice, no matter who your target market is for your product (Engineers, marketers, etc), try and locate salespeople at that company. They will be way more open to speak with you, and immediately catch your drift for your intentions (Which is absolutely not a bad thing).
2. Streamline the process. As Alec Baldwin so famously stated, “there is only one thing that matters in this world…get them to sign on the line that is dotted!” In sales, you have one goal: make the sale. Everything else is definitely necessary but can sometimes lead some of us into a maze of information without a place to go. Think of it like a soccer team. Teams go through so much training, tactical practice, formations, set plays to prepare for victory in every game. That’s the team’s goal: to win and dually scoring more goals than their opposition. However, unexpected events happen in games all of the time. If an own goal by the other team occurs, you can still win the game but did all of the training come into play? Absolutely not. Finish the deal, simplify the process, and don’t discount unexpected wins (often times, they’re the most beneficial).
3. Be yourself. I’d like to clarify #1 by stating even though we are from the same bread basket, we are all vastly different types of bread. We all have different tactics because we’re all different people! Do you! Don’t follow someone else’s path just because it worked well for them, and don’t discount someone’s path because it didn’t work well for that person. Develop your individual style and rythm, both on an organizational and conversational level. I personally have noticed my style to be less by the book, with a heavy balance on rapport and focus on the end-game. This has been so crucial for me to acclimate to my new role and profession.
4. I’m confused why Sales is not an Olympic sport. Okay, well maybe not actually a registered sport, but I have been enamored with the sport-type structure of this profession. Hitting certain numbers, beating opposing competitors, working in teams…those attributes alone would fit in under the descriptions of a number of sports we watch on ESPN. If a competitive fire is not burning deeply within you, this profession is not for you. There is a reason why former athletes tend to do well in sales, they cannot lose, and if they do, they will sure as heck give it their all before the loss. I LOVE THIS ASPECT OF MY JOB! I think it is such a powerful force and drives me to succeed unlike any other mechanism. Michael Jordan would thrive in this world.
5. The story is just beginning. From frequent conversations with the more experienced salespeople at my company (yes, other people have worked longer than one month!), I have been told my sales journey will change consistently over time. The stories will change, the marketplace will change, the products will change, the peers will change. The only thing that will remain the same is the driver in control of the journey: ME! The beauty of starting off in sales is the realization that I can dictate any direction in business to take these experiences. The individual control is the essence of this stage of life and I can’t tell you how fired up I am about it!