So I graduated from college in the Spring of 06’ and promote/sell/present for a Healthcare company (I drive around and do presentations in front of employers to promote non-smoking, generic drug use, etc) and I get the business owner to sign off on health insurance rates for his company.
I figured it would be good experience for someone not really knowing where I want to go in life, but I am hating it. My father keeps telling me that it’s good experience and to just deal with it for a little while longer but I am just scared that I will be stuck in a very specific field (sales) with this sort of job. Also, the administration work they have us doing seems to overwhelm the actual out in the field time I was told I would do.
I have made it my goal during my time with the company to do things beyond the norm: I was recognized by the VP of the company for creating sales tools that have been adopted by the entire team, and I am training some of the veteran staffers how to be a little more tech savvy so they can spend less time in the office and more time in front of customers, etc. The downside is the veteran employees sort of despise me because I am supposed to be learning, not training/improving things (I guess hehe).
Do I sound like I am on the right track in terms of obtaining some experience that can open a few varied career path doors? I am not making a ton of money (low 40’s) and I am just miserable hehe. Sorry to whine, I am just afraid I am limiting my options in the future by being in sales/promotions. I have a feeling I belong on an untraditional career path where I may be good at presenting/sales but also very technical/creative. I just do not want to be stuck in a specific role forever. I despise people who know exactly where they belong in the work world hehe
Sounds to me like you’re on a very successful career track. It’s easy to hate someone who is young and inexperienced and yet manages to outperform you. I guess the trick is to be successful and innovative without making anyone angry enough to fill your keyholes with superglue. Anything short of that and you’re doing fine. Salary will come soon enough if you’re ambitious. No matter how good you are you still need to demonstrate you can maintain success over the long term and the rewards will certainly come to you.
And welcome to the boards. Hope you enjoy your time here. /w
Experience presenting in front of people, staying calm, being persuasive, etc. will serve you well almost no matter where you wind up. What is it you hate about the job, other than worrying you will get stuck? In my experience you are very unlikely to get stuck unless you make it a point to. What makes you miserable about the job itself?
I would kill a man in front of his own mother to make that much money. Suck it up and go into work knowing that every 3 minutes you make another dollar.
Since you don’t really know what you want to do in life, you’ll probably hate at least some part of every job you have until you figure out what exactly you want.
Virtually everyone in every field hates the amount of paperwork attached to what they’re supposed to be doing.
I guess what I am not happy about is for a sales job the discussion of bonus, incentive, etc is looked down upon. They used to give good bonus and now they are not giving any because they have a crappy year and are supposedly re-evaluating.
Also I just really do not like the industry. But if you’re sure that outside sales/promotions is good experience for lots of different paths then I will take my dad’s advice and just carry on for experience.
learning sales, knowing you could get whacked if you don’t perform, seeing bonuses disappear because the company is screwed (not because you’re not selling), learning to live fast on your feet, understanding what sales on the road really means – this experience is priceless.
I work for a leading multinational. The number of people in this supposedly sales company that don’t know how to sell is huge. Look, for the rest of your life, you’re going to have to sell, deal with sales people, and know how to go in unprepared to a meeting where you could make (or not) a huge amount of money. This is great experience. Plus you’re young with no attachments and getting fired tomorrow would probably seem a blessing rather than a curse.
If you can sell in this situation, you’ll be able to sell yourself forever. And that’s a good thing. Or if you find deep down that you like the thrill of closing (coffee is for closers - watch glen gary glen ross), then go sell something big where you make a million dollars a year. If you can sell and are street smart, you can go sell exploding radio active derivative instruments on Wall Street. Damn, someone has to, so you might as well be the one to make the 7 figure commission.
Your old man is a lot smarter than you think he is.
Once you’ve got about 2 years in, that’s a good time to start thinking about what your next step should be. That could be moving up or taking on more responsibility with the same company, selling something else, doing something else in healthcare/insurance, or taking your skills to do something completely different. It wouldn’t hurt to pick up a copy of What Color Is Your Parachute? That’s the classic book on deciding what you want to be when you grow up (for grown-ups). Finding a new job while you have a job is much easier than quitting, then looking for a job.
I work in Healthcare as well (large insurance company), and I started off making presentations, explaining benefits, and upselling.
If you continue in sales, you’ll have a fwe things going for you:
[ol]
[li]Every company out there needs salespeople. If they tell you they don’t…they’re wrong. Sales creates revenue…creates profit.[/li][li]In times of recession, you’ll find that people get “downsized”. If you stay close to the money (as in sales), you are less likely to get cut…makes no sense to cut the revenue people, right?[/li][li]You’re learning to make people trust you, listen to you, and build relationships. Even if you’re not so high on “sales” as a term, it’s training that most of my friends would have killed for early in their careers.[/li][li]Money. Since you’re in HealthCare (a relatively protected industry…off-shore perspective), you’re sheltered from economic downturns somewhat, and you can go to any number of other sales positions in like industries. I’d suggest making contacts in Pharma and Medical Supply sales.[/li][li]Networking. Go to a Toastmasters or Carnegie class (Toastmasters is low-cost). You’ll meet tons of other sales folks, and you can network.[/li][li]Paperwork…it never goes away. Get used to it.[/li][/ol]
Someone brought up GGR…so I’ll give you another GGR meme: “ABC!” It means “always be closing”. Truer words have never been written.
You don’t say where you live, but you should be aware that in much of the country, low 40’s right out of college is a lot of money. I have a masters’ degree and might make 40 after my next raise, almost.
Sounds like you’re getting a ton of great experience, unless there’s something else wrong with the job that makes you hate it. People experience is always valuable.
I got my degree from a good college in pre-law. I was going to go to law school but I decided it was not a fit and I wanted to jump into the real world faster.
In terms of what I want to do I am not really sure. I find some of the veterans, even my manager, are increasingly relying on my technical knowledge and treating me like a source, so I am hoping that maybe a company might identify some great areas for me too in the future.
I guess I just needed to hear from others that if you start in sales you are not only going to be marketable as a salesman.
I might want to train or design a marketing campaign or something else…who knows. Nobody at 23 years old wants to force themselves into a corner career-wise.
Thanks for all of the advice so far, it’s very helpful.
I wouldn’t worry about getting stuck at your age and experience level. I made a career switch around 25 and when they asked me in the interview why I wanted to “start over,” I told them that I had tried that other field, and while there were things that I liked about it (all relating to the job I was trying to get–heh), I had enough experience to know that I didn’t want it for a career. I got the job.
Trying a few different jobs in your twenties is expected these days, and no one will hold it against you if you decide to leave sales later. And sales/people skills are transferable to ANY field anywhere.
And as for “not making great money…” Well, just remember you that you’re doing fine compared to most everybody else your age.
EXACTLY. Everything you’re doing can be “spun” into other jobs – sales=public speaking/being comfortable with strangers/motivating people/seeing their agenda and motivation, technical savvy, administrative skills. Organizing and prioritizing tasks and agendas, thinking on your feet. At least give it a little time to see how far you go, and what other choices there are within your company.
My only concern has been when you actually go look at most new jobs they call for previous experience in that exact thing. I guess they sometimes make exceptions though.
that’s where you’ve got to sell yourself. And since you’re figuring out the sales thing, that should be pretty straightforward. Remember, most people don’t have real sales experience. Most people equate a sales job with a used car lot. Once you start doing “solution sales” you’re helping a real business make more money.
I’m lucky that I do sexy sales to about 30 of the biggest and best multinationals in the world. I “sell” things like making equity derivative traders more efficient and automotive companies make more cars in a factory. I have business heads asking to show more stuff they can use. There aren’t enough hours in the day to figure out the best repeatable opportunities and get a real solution in place. That’s a far cry from selling used cars.
If you do make sales your career, I echo the ABC. If you’ve got a full pipeline and are always closing, usually you’ll get more of the monster deals. At a minimum, it keeps everyone off your back.
