RED VENTURES PART-TIME JOB

I took this job in October 2016 to be financially stable while I finished up my final year at UNCC.

It is now the end of March 2017 and I never imagined that I would be a salesman in my life. I don’t have anything against it at all, I just actually considered the thought before the opportunity came around.

This experience has probably allowed me to apply most of my soft skills I have picked up in college. Fiedler comes to mind each time I take a new call with a complete stranger looking to set up Internet services because of how situational each call can become (Fiedler).

I have spoken to people from Indiana, Connecticut, California, Texas, Florida, Washington, North Carolina, Illinois, Oregon, and Michigan all in a week’s time. Each with their own personalities and needs. Thankfully my level of agreeableness I have developed is high enough where I have no problem being accepting and conforming to the needs of my varying customers (Goldberg).

I think back to my first weeks of training in October and realize that thanks to my desire to be informed and my high curiosity allowed me to quickly pick up the information to address customers properly about the products I can offer them and the best deals available for them (Goldberg).

I do notice that I play a Transactional role because my sales typically go with them telling me their online preferences and then I tell them what I can give them based on that (Burns).

More and more I realize that above all leadership is extremely situational and some approaches appear wrong but once you encounter a role that needs a “wrong” approach you see the value of every approach (Fiedler).

I had a tough time coming to terms with becoming a salesman who pushes for a hard sale. I have become a salesman who gives the information as it is and does not sugarcoat a product if it’s not adequate for the customers' needs.

My intent is to make a living as well as providing a good product. This, I believe to be my subconscious striving towards my authenticity as a leader (Northouse).

This allows me to make a sale based off of conviction that a product will suit my customers needs rather than overselling the quality of what I actually offer (Northouse). I have had customers thank me for telling them the benefits of the product and also its limitations without wasting their time “polishing” the product I offer them.

Now that I understand how I can integrate my own personality into my sale’s process, allows me to be much more authentic on the phone with my customers.