Working in sales is a tough job and I know that from experience. Also, if you don’t really love it, it’s the most boring job in the world. One thing is that you have to be a huge people person, or at least be able to be one for the time you’re at work. When I was in college, one of the (very short) gigs I had was demonstrating and trying to sell an overpriced vacuum cleaner at a Sam’s Club. I swear, I demonstrated that vacuum to so many people, and if I remember correctly, I didn’t sell even one. Looking back on it, I didn’t make the most of the opportunity. I dreaded the job before I ever went in, knowing I was going to have to sell something that I didn’t believe was worth the money, and trying to convince people to part with their hard-earned money. Now I know that if I had believed in the product, I may have actually been more effective at selling them. And the day wouldn’t have been so so long. The salesman in the joke below knew exactly what he was doing. Enjoy!
A young guy from North Dakota moves to Florida and goes to a big “everything under one roof” department store looking for a job.
The Manager says, “Do you have any sales experience?”
The kid says “Yeah. I was a vacuum salesman back in North Dakota.”
Well, the boss was unsure, but he liked the kid and figured he’d give him a shot, so he gave him the job. “You start tomorrow. I’ll come down after we close and see how you did.”
His first day on the job was rough, but he got through it. After the store was locked up, the boss came down to the sales floor. “How many customers bought something from you today?”
The kid frowns and looks at the floor and mutters, “One”.
The boss says “Just one?!!? Our salespeople average sales to 20 to 30 customers a day. That will have to change, and soon, if you’d like to continue your employment here. We have very strict standards for our sales force here in Florida. One sale a day might have been acceptable in North Dakota, but you’re not on the farm anymore, son.”
The kid took his beating but continued to look at his shoes, so the boss felt kinda bad for chewing him out on his first day. He asked (semi-sarcastically), “So, how much was your one sale for?”
The kid looks up at his boss and says “$101,237.65″.
The boss, astonished, says $101,237.65?!? What the heck did you sell?”
The kid says, “Well, first, I sold him some new fish hooks. Then I sold him a new fishing rod to go with his new hooks. Then I asked him where he was going fishing and he said down the coast, so I told him he was going to need a boat, so we went down to the boat department and I sold him a twin-engine Chris Craft. Then he said he didn’t think his Honda Civic would pull it, so I took him down to the automotive department and sold him that 4×4 Expedition.”
The boss said, “A guy came in here to buy a fish hook and you sold him a boat and a TRUCK!?”
The kid said “No, the guy came in here to buy tampons for his wife, and I said, ‘Dude, your weekend’s shot, you should go fishing.’