10 Reasons To Leave Corporate America

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I was sitting at home last night reading another absurd post from some CEO about how he was going to change the business world with his brilliant idea to eliminate his sales team. Well that's not actually what he did, instead he just renamed his sales team, and reduced their commissions.  I'm not so sure his sales team members were happy, but he certainly was elated.  Why wouldn't he be excited?  He reduced costs while spinning a new marketing tool at his customers.  I'm sure he'll manage a profitless company for 5 years and then sell it to a larger firm and cash out.  It's what a lot of start ups do, and they make a lot of money.  It's like script writers in Hollywood that never produce a single movie but make a wonderful living selling the rights to their scripts.  They never produce anything substantial but they convince everyone they're brilliant.

Well after reading this one particular post from another arrogant CEO, I realized why years ago, I left the cozy confines of corporate America and made my own way.  I did well in the corporate environment. In fact, most people would say I was very successful, but I felt like a mindless drone who was just using my talent to help other people above me be even more successful than I was. I had a choice to stay and be miserable or leave and succeed...or fail on my own terms. It was a difficult decision to make, but I'm happy I left. I still deal with corporations but now they are my clients, and I'm the one dictating terms, not them. 

I am not calling for all of you to quit your jobs.  Some of you might even like your job. However, below I have listed what I hated most about working in a corporate environment and why I believe many of you might feel the same way...and that's why you should leave if you can: 

1. Ass Kissing - When I was younger I always thought that my talent would carry me to a great career, and that if I just produced, I would be promoted.  However, talent only gets you so far, and you really have to kiss some major ass to get ahead in corporate America.  In fact, I would argue that you don't even have to be talented to get ahead, if you're a really good ass kisser.  I was passed over for a promotion one time for a guy who was not half as smart, or dedicated, or had numbers to support his promotion. However, he was a good butt kisser.  I was shocked but no one else was, in fact one of my best friends at the company said, "I saw that coming.  He had his head so far up the VP's ass, he could have performed a colonoscopy. "

2. Falsies  - I;m not referring to the padding some women use to enhance their bust line.  I'm referring to the false persona people put on in the corporate environment. I recall those days when the boss told a horrible joke, but everyone laughed, or someone had a particularly bad idea but since they were best friends with the CEO you could not be critical. People wear these false persona's to make sure they get ahead, but it's all so fake. I can remember one year my manager telling our whole sales team, "We need to re brand our image and not have so much fun when we go to the National Meeting.  We don't want to get a reputation as partiers and that we're not taking the meeting seriously."  And I was thinking, "Oh yeah that would suck to actually enjoy ourselves at one of these stupid meetings."

3. Corporate Uber - Whether you believe it or not, as a corporate employee, you are not driving your own career.  I know that Tony Robbins or  Bryan Tracy will tell you that through personal power or positive thinking you can change your life at work, but unless you actually are the company owner that's not always going to happen.  You have to rely on someone else to grant you the promotion, or the pay raise, or company car.  You can go to corporate seminars, and walk on hot coals, and make a boat together, and be told you're a Linchpin, but we all know who is driving the boat.  And unfortunately, it's not you.

4. Benefits Not Included- Years ago it didn't make sense to break from the corporate model because everyone in America could make a good living, receive company health care, raise a family, and be rewarded with a pension.  Not anymore! Nowadays, corporations have passed on the costs of health care and retirement to their employees.  Years ago those were costs that companies paid in order to keep their employees loyal and happy. But that model has changed because corporations have a wealth of workers to choose from and if people quit, a company can find someone to replace them pretty quickly.  You pay for the cost so they can maximize profitability, and they don't even send you a "thank you" card.

5. Wasted Talent - As a corporate employee you are working for someone else's benefit, not yours.  The people who are profiting from your talent and hard work are the company shareholders. If you own shares in the company, that is awesome!  Stay with company, but if not, get the hell out.  There is no point in working for someone else's benefit.  I have a friend who works in the fashion industry and she started with a small company that was generating $2 million in annual revenue.  She went in with her contacts, pitched some new designs, and increased their revenue to $20 million.  How was she rewarded?  With a promotion?  With a partnership in the company?  Nope.  With a $10,000 bonus each year.  Who benefited from all her hard work?  The CEO and CFO who were the owners.  For $20,000 they received a huge return on their investment, and naturally, she felt jilted. While she was eating at Del Taco, they were sharing stories of their trips to Paris and New York.   So she left, started a line with another company, and took her accounts with her.

6.  "Game Of Thrones"- One thing that I realized while working in a corporate environment is people will crawl over your dead body to get ahead.  I've seen people boldly lie in corporate meetings, and talk trash about people for no reason other than to gain an advantage for a promotion.  Fortunately for me, I always produced so I was promoted, but I witnessed other colleagues get passed over because some scumbag planted rumors about them around the region.  Not all companies are like this, but corporate America rewards this type of behavior and many times without repercussions.  It's sad.

7. Appearance Is Everything - I remember putting on ties daily and picking up dry cleaning weekly, just to make sure that I looked good for the corporate higher ups. Customers were okay with whatever I wore but not corporate.  When I was being considered for a promotion I had to go through a "certification" process and I received points off for not having the correct undershirt, and shoes that didn't have a mirror like shine.  The shirt issue I thought was ridiculous since they didn't approve of the neck line of a t-shirt, and the shoes were brand new!  I polished them every day, but the shoes had a flatter finish on them which made them look polished but not with a military shine.  I answered all of the questions the panel asked me and took a written test which I passed easily, but I did not pass the certification because of 2 absurd demerits for appearance.  It was ridiculous.

8."Money, Money, Money" - I can't believe I'm quoting an ABBA song, but so be it.  In the corporate environment no one cares about your kids, your wife, your mom, or your dad; they only care money.  How are you going to help the bottom line.  Your boss will say things to keep you happy but everyone is driving for the same goal which is maximum profitability.  I have to say that I admire start up companies because they are "money pits".  In the beginning, they aren't expected to be profitable so they sometimes do their best work.  It's when you have the specter of fear that you'll lose your job if you don't bring in $$$, that makes working in the corporate environment so difficult.  If you think people care about your personal well being more than they care about money...think again.

9. After Hours - The first time I went to Europe, I arrived on a Sunday and everything was closed.  I mean EVERYTHING! I walked around for hours searching for a restaurant, gas station, anything to get some food.  Even the hotel restaurant was closed, so I couldn't order room service.  Well that never happens in corporate America.  It's like a 24 hour Wal-Mart. And you are expected to participate.  If your boss is going to Happy Hour, she expects you to be there, or if she has an important meeting on Monday and needs your help on Sunday, you had better be available.  Company picnics, car washes, and bake sales on Saturdays are part of the corporate environment.  Those who participate thrive, while those who don't, are ostracized.

"Not for me! I'm outta here, Betty Crocker!"

10. Old Men - Yep, that's who will be running or ruining your corporate career.  A bunch of stodgy old dudes, many whom think the word "app" refers to a job application. Yep, gender and generational bias exists.  I remember going to a National Meeting of General Managers and there was 1 woman GM out of 300.  Exactly 1!  And none of the GM's were younger than 35.  When I turned 34 I was working for a GM and pretty much running everything for him.  He typed with 2 fingers, didn't know how to use the Internet, and was not a very charismatic leader.  I tried to figure out how he got into that position and someone told me he was the Region VP's best friend.  Old dudes stick together. If your young and in a hurry to get ahead, you had better slow your, roll because you might run up on the CEO's Rascal Scooter and if you run over his ankle, he might fire you.


I don't recommend this move for the faint of heart.  You have to be committed to make it on your own, and it's very difficult at first.  Not everyone comes up with an idea for a best selling app, or creates Snapchat, or Instagram, or even Words With Friends.  Working on your own requires long hours for little pay and even smaller rewards, but if you stay committed you just much reach your "tipping point".  

If any of you, can think of some more reason to leave corporate America feel free to comment.

Good night and good luck!

Let's Fire The CEO

Let me start out by stating that I am a CEO.  I have been a CEO for about 8 years now and I know this will upset a lot of fellow CEOs but I believe the position needs to be eliminated.  I have a great many friends who are CEOs, many whom follow my posts, and they work extremely hard and some of them are very proficient in their duties, but I still believe strongly that the position be eradicated from the current business lexicon.

Why?

CEOs have often been the guiding force in the future of many businesses.  The so called captain at the helm, steering the ship in the right direction, and making profits for the business and its shareholders.  CEOs have provided vision and leadership to their respective companies while maintaining employee morale and customer confidence. 

So again, why eliminate the position?

Simply put, "Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely...."-Lord Acton

Here are 4 reasons why we need to eliminate the CEOs

Relationships - The CEO partners and fosters relationships with fellow board directors such as the CFO, COO, but not often with the people who matter...employees.  The foundation of their success has been on building relationships which will get them more pay, stock options, or stock, but not the real foundation of success which is their employees.  They are distanced from the front lines much like a general in a battle, and the empathy they once had for employees has been eliminated so they can remain objective about hiring and firing.  Yet this distance also makes them clueless as to what is going on in the nuts and bolts of their business. 

Authenticity - In many cases since the CEO lacks emotional intelligence they will never be authentic or genuine in their interactions with fellow board members or employees.  They will use misdirection and political savvy to gain an advantage over people they deem "enemies".  Yet when they are authentic no one believes them, and so both parties suffer.  Even with small start ups, the CEO will often misinform partners in order to gain a larger ownership share when the company sells or goes public. 

Collaboration - I'm not sure CEOs even know what this word means, because they are often so focused upon seeing their vision brought to fruition that they ignore all sense of collaboration.  In their singular focus they overlook suggestions from other board members or employees to ensure that their agenda is followed...to the letter.  Sometimes even demanding that people step down or resign because they're "not a team player".  The CEO cannot see that just because they disagree doesn't mean they're not looking out for the team.  

Information - I have one word with reference to CEOs and information: Enron.  If you're not familiar with that scandal, the CEO was giving misinformation regarding profits and earnings through questionable accounting practices.  This over inflated the price of Enron stock and when the stock fell from $90 to $1, the shareholders were left with nothing but paper.  The company filed for bankruptcy and was out of business shortly thereafter.  CEOs act many times in their own best interest so getting the correct information can be tricky.


As businesses evolve and change, so will the role of the CEO.  Too many CEOs have taken advantage of their position to make themselves rich at the expense of shareholders and employees.  Maybe it's time we eliminated the position and place the decision making power in the hands of a committee rather than just one person.  That can be hard when you're the CEO of start up but you can always change your title to "COC"...Chairman Of Change.

What do you think?  Should we eliminate CEOs?

Cold Calling Is Not Dead

Years ago, and I mean years ago, there was a book written by some guy who was claiming that Cold Calling was dead.  I know, because one of my new reps handed the book to me, and said with great conviction, "This book will change the way you view sales and the business world.  It's brilliant."

First of all whenever someone defines anything as brilliant, I am always skeptical.  Brilliant is a term used to describe a diamond, not a book.  However, I respected her, and I love to read, so I read it, and my response to her was, "This book is relevant but not to our industry.  It has some very salient points but the guy's model does not relate to what we do.  Sorry but it's not going to stop me from requiring you to make cold calls."

"But I hate cold calling!  Did you read the WHOLE book?"

"Yes and I read the other book by the same guy about selling sucks."

"And?"

"And I think that people who scream heretically about stuff always gain a following because we all want the magic pill."

"What the heck are you talking about?"

"Do you remember in that movie the "Matrix" when the guy Morpheus offers Keanu Reeves the red pill or the blue pill?"

"Yeah what does that have to do with anything about cold calling?'

"Well your book is offering you the blue pill where you go to bed dreaming about how much easier your job will be without cold calling, where as I'm offering you the red pill which is the truth.  And the truth is you still have to cold call."

"I like the blue pill better."

"So do, I but that doesn't change the fact that for this job we still have to cold call.  Our customers aren't tech savvy, and many of them don't even have business email addresses.  If you can figure out a way to reach them without cold calling go for it."

" I thought I'd figured out a way to get out of it. I hate cold calling."

" Me too, and I wish you had.  But I don't care how you reach out to a customer it's still a "cold call".  We've had no previous contact with them before this. Right?  If it's via email, facebook, or the phone.  It's still a cold call."

" Are you saying I don't have to call them on the phone?"

" I'm saying that when you're in here for phone block use the phone, computer, social media, whatever means you can to get 5 appointments. But make sure you get those 5 appointments. "

" So cold calling isn't dead?"

" Cold calling is very much alive, it's just we use different ways now to cold call. But the contact is still cold, so try to make it warm if possible."

" How do I do that?"

" You're a smart young woman.  Think about why you would answer an email, phone call, or message on facebook.  Then go from there."

" Oh I get it.  Put myself in the customer's shoes. Wow you're not as dumb as you look."

"  Gee thanks?  Now go make some appointments."

I remember that conversation and the book vividly, because for a moment I thought maybe we don't have to cold call anymore, but we do.  It doesn't matter how you define it, the fact is that cold calling is definitely not dead.  It's more alive than ever!  If you send someone a message via LinkedIn that's a cold call.  If you contact them via twitter or facebook and they've never heard from you before that's a cold call.  If you stop by a doctors office to drop off information, that's a cold call.  Or if you call them on the phone for an appointment it's a cold call. 

Cold calling is not dead...it's just evolved.  Just like Sales has evolved.

Have a great day cold calling!

When "Friends" Attack Your Grammar...The Punctuation Police

I'm sure that many of you who use social media, have made a post, or two...or three in which your spelling or punctuation was not perfect.  Yet it seems there is always some "friend" who immediately corrects your error(s) with such zeal that they almost seem oddly excited about their discovery.  As if they're saying, "I'm smarter than you" or they make a pithy little joke along the same lines as James Thurber.

I do my best to make sure my grammar and spelling are in order, but there are occasions when the spell check on my computer misses something, or I simply forget to utilize it when writing.  Well, there's no need to worry, because the Punctuation Police always come in to save the day...or ruin it. If you've never heard of the Punctuation Police before, or read about it online, it's because the organization doesn't publicly acknowledge its own existence.  It is a secret organization comprised of overly zealous language teachers, and their students, who just can't let the inappropriate symbol, letter, or punctuation mark go uncorrected.  If you make even the slightest error, the Punctuation Police will be there to auto correct your error.  They claim to save lives because your message might be misunderstood, and could even be lethal?  Seriously?

About 6 months ago,  I was engaged in a "shootout" with one of its members because I apparently used an apostrophe incorrectly to represent the plural of CEO.  The person was both a follower of my posts but also an online "friend", and the online verbal exchange I have outlined below:

Punctuation Police: "You can't use the term CEO's to represent the plural of that term.  It should be CEOs, otherwise the apostrophe represents the possessive.  Did the CEO own something?  No!  It's errors like this that frustrate readers."

SFTD: "I didn't realize I was using it incorrectly.  Thank you for pointing this out. I'm sorry for the frustration but something tells me this isn't the only frustrating thing in you're life."

Punctuation Police: 'What is that supposed to mean? OMG!  You are using the term "you're" incorrectly. It should be "your".  Again, you must realize how annoying this is to readers. '

SFTD: "Lets talk more about this issue.  Our you saying that my readers are getting annoyed by all the punctuation errors in my posts? Or is it just you whose annoyed?"

Punctuation Police: 'I'm sure that it's not just me.  It's frustrating for everyone.  Just look at your last message! Once again you used the term "lets" when you meant "let's", and the term "our" when you obviously meant "are", and "whose" when you meant "who's"!!!  Please stop with the errors, I'm starting to get nauseous.'

SFTD: "I'm sure I am not doing it intentionally.  But it seems as if you understand the meaning of what Im trying to convey despite the errors in grammar and punctuation."

Punctuation Police: "You did it again!  I do understand the message in your posts but there are so many errors it makes the writing difficult for me to enjoy.  You must see how these mistakes upset your audience."

SFTD: "I see that its upsetting you, but not anyone else....yet. Let it go. :) "

Punctuation Police: "It's 3 periods for a pause, not 4, and I hate that song! Maybe I can help you by proof reading every post before you publish them. Just message me with the content and I can correct all the errors."

SFTD: "Let it go, let it go! Cant hold it back any more."

Punctuation Police: "Stop! I hate that song and now your just messing with me!"

SFTD: 'I think you meant "you're", not "your".  I understood what you meant though.'

Punctuation Police: "I hate you."

SFTD: "Mom?"

Punctuation Police: "Very funny, but I still hate you."

SFTD: "Dad?"

Punctuation Police: "I give up!  You're hopeless."

SFTD: "Thank's for following!"

Punctuation Police: "You are pure evil."


At least I let them have the last word.  It was the least I could due.

Why Corporations "Adjust" Sales Numbers

I should have written this post years ago, when I experienced my first "adjustment" from a corporation regarding my sales commissions. I was working for a service provider in the health care industry and I was having a pretty good year since my territory had started at just 60% to plan. I was tracking at 101% to quota going into the final business day of the year, and I had 30 pending new orders totaling over $3,000 to be delivered on that day.  In order for me to stay above quota, the company had to deliver only $121 of product to our customers.  Just $121, when my average delivery day in the territory was $869.  So how much product did my company ship, to my territory, on the last business day of the year? $40!  Forty f#%cking dollars! I finished the year at 99.95% and received no year end bonus for finishing above quota.  Coincidence or BS?  I'm going to have to call BS!

If you don't know what BS stands, think of a bull defecating and you get the idea.

When I asked my manager how that could happen she replied, "I have no idea, maybe they shut down early to save costs for the fiscal year, but it happens all the time.  It happened to me when I was in your shoes."

My response was, "Just because it happens all the time doesn't make it okay.  It seems like the company was trying to screw me out of commissions and save some money. It's just not right."

"I know it' doesn't seem fair but we've all had to deal with it. You'd better get used to it. A lot of stuff happens around hear ya know. You're not the only one who got screwed.  Angie finished at 99.98% to plan."

"Really?  Thanks for the pep talk? Anything else you want to say to cheer me up? Do we have sweat shops in China making our products? Get used to it, is not what I was expecting to hear. "

"Well I'm sorry but that's how this company operates.  Things don't always go your way. I know it's tough but you're gonna have to adjust like the rest of us."

Well I wasn't about to "adjust". I reached out to a recruiter that day, and quit the job within a month.  How could they expect to keep good sales people if they were obviously trying to avert paying bonus or commissions?

And why do managers try to relate to you by saying, "Well tough luck kid.  I know its wrong but everybody is dealing with the same thing."

What an absurd business philosophy! As a sales manager, I always supported my people when their bonus depended upon a slim statistical "error" which worked in the company's favor.  My regional managers were usually pretty supportive but I always had numbers to back up paying the reps commissions.  If it's not right, then as a manager you need to take steps to correct it, otherwise your people will quit. 

So why do companies make "adjustments" to Sales Numbers?  Simple, to improve profitability, and more specifically...earnings.   CEO's, CFO's, COO's,  in most cases have pay plans structured and linked to EBITDA. 

EBITDA stands for Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization. It really is the standard on how a company's performance is judged.  Not that I agree with it being a gold standard for performance, but that's a discussion for another post. 

If it's near the end of the fiscal year or quarter, and senior executives are not in line to hit their goal on EBITDA, or just profits in general, then it's in the company's best interest to avoid paying large sales commissions.  Sales commissions directly influence earnings because its a big expense especially if the reps are doing well.  Naturally, it would make sense for an executive to look at reps who are on the cusp of making a bonus, and by ensuring that those particular reps don't get that bonus, the company earnings will improve.  I'm not saying all companies put this theory into practice but I'm pretty sure that the one I worked for implemented it. It's not a smart business philosophy in my opinion because you end up losing good people.  However some senior executives don't regard sales reps as people. 

Some old friends informed me that the VP of Sales for my aforementioned company, overheard the CEO one drunk night at the bar say, "Sales reps are a necessary evil.  If I could get along without them, I would".

Not exactly the kind of thing any person in Sales would like to hear from the CEO.  Glad I left that company.

What do you think your CEO would say about your sales force? Or better yet, will he/she "adjust" their commissions.  Let's hope not.

Have a good day and keep your eye on the prize...and your commissions!

So You Think Sales Is Easy Money?...Think Again

For years I worked as a Service Sales Manager, and what we really did was service the customers and then try to up sell them on our "value added" products.  That's a very popular word in the sales arena, value added.  And it's the one thing you try to sell when you're working in sales.

"We don't sell products, or services,  we sell value." , my sales manager would always say.

"Oh well I was confused I thought we were selling a service, my bad. Hey how hard can it be to sell anyway?", I said to him, "All your people do is serve up a bunch of bullshit on a plate."

"You really think it's easy don't you? You want to find out how easy sales is?", he asked and he had this funny smile on his face.

"Sure.", I said all arrogant and full of myself.

"Okay, I'll schedule a ride along for you.  You can go out with one of my reps.  It'll be good for you to see what were selling out in the field.".

"It'll be good for me too.  To see what kind of lies your reps are telling people in the field.", I said with good natured smile and a "poke" at his team.  It was all in good fun, we did this kind of stuff all the time.

In order to prepare me for the initial ride along he scheduled, he handed my this huge book, probably about 500 pages all in a binder. 

"What the hell is this?", I asked.

" That's our sales process.  I'll give you a week to read it, and then I'll send you on a ride along with Scott.  You think you can handle that?"

"No problem.", I said, but I  really meant, "WTF is this? 500 pages of sales process? Am I studying Six Sigma? "

He set the ride along for a Friday, and I was thinking, "Oh this is great, sales reps are never around on Fridays!  I'll get to leave early! Woo hoo!"

First of all let's talk about Scott.  All the Service Managers hated Scott, but not because he wasn't a nice guy, but because we were all jealous of him.  He drove a nice car, he made good money, he was consistently one of the top sales people in the company, and he was always being talked about by upper management as the next possible General Manager.  In other words, he was our competition, if any of us were planning on being promoted.  That was really why we hated him.

I met Scott at our plant, and he asked me if I had read through the binder and if I could remember any of the sales process, or facts about the industry.  I told him "yes" which was a lie, and as we were grabbing sample products off the shelves, he started quizzing me on facts regarding our industry..   He asked me about 10 questions and when I got 5 of them wrong he look pissed.

"You're not taking this seriously are you?  Did you even read the binder?", he said very smugly which made me hate him even more. 

"I read it but I didn't memorize the damn thing."

" All you service guys think this is easy but it really isn't.  You have to commit all of that stuff in the binder into memory so you know what the hell your talking about and it comes off naturally.  It's not as easy as it looks."

"Right!", I responded in an equally smug manner.

"You'll see.  I tell you what. I'll do most of the talking today and you just observe.  Is that cool?"

"Lead the way.  I'm just a passenger on this train."

Scott did lead the way, and it was easy to see why he had done so well.  His personal appearance was impeccable, he spoke well, and his presentations seemed very well planned.  He put people at ease and the 4 appointments we had went very well, with him signing one account and getting a commitment on another.  He was batting .500 but that's pretty good in the sales arena.  I was actually impressed, which again made me envy him even more because I knew he was in line for a promotion the same as me.

The day wore on and I was getting anxious to try my luck at maybe at a cold call instead of just standing there saying, "Nice to meet you", and "Yeah I'm his trainee for the day."  Especially, since I was actually a manager and he was just a senior sales person.  I found it insulting, but still I was enamored with his ability.  It's hard to hate a guy you respect.  As it got close to 4 pm, I was thinking we would be ending our day, but he asked if I wanted to try my hand at a few cold calls.

"Oh really?  You're going to take of the leash?  Gee thanks dad.", I said with a great deal of sarcasm in my voice.

"Okay smart ass.   Now don't offer to shake any one's hand unless they extend it first, and be sure to look them in the eye as your introducing yourself.  You have to try and be smooth, it's not as easy as it looks."

He had been doing this for years and I hadn't ever been in sales.  I was eager to see how I would do.  In the back of my head I kept thinking, "I got this, I got this.  It's easy.  If Scott can do it I can do it.  Okay don't shake the hand unless extended, and look them in the eye.  And don't look afraid, and..."

We were on Van Nuys Boulevard and we walked into an old auto shop and I looked around for the owner.  There were about 4 mechanics in the shop, all looked to at me kind of funny, and I asked for the owner.  They pointed to an office.  I was nervous but I walked towards the office with Scott trailing behind, opened the door, and stupidly extend my hand to an older man who sat behind a desk.  It looked like he'd been drinking, and there was a Coors Light can on the desk.   I stood there with my arm extended and recited my lines.

"Hello sir I'm S from ______, and I wanted to talk to you about your uniform service.  I have a few ideas I think can help you.  Is now a good time?"

"F#$k you. Asshole. ", he said and he almost spit out the words at me.

"Oh I'm sorry, I see your obviously busy.  I can come back another time?"

"F#$k you.  Get outta my office." he said and held up the beer can like he was going to throw it at me. 

"Okay sorry, sorry.", I responded and backed out of his office and closed the door.  Scott and I then left pretty abruptly and as we rounded a corner he started laughing.

"Ha ha!  That went well didn't it!  Not as easy as it looks is it?" he said between snorts of laughter.

"F#$k you.  Asshole", I said, in the same tone as the old man had yelled at me. Scott laughed even harder.

But he was right.  Sales is not easy money at all.  It's hard work, and for the next two years I didn't even think about trying to make a living at sales.  I didn't want any of that "easy money".

How about you?  Are you ready for the "easy money".  Because remember, it's not so easy. 


-M