The Glass is Full

My last two blogs have been about my trip to New Orleans.  This will be the third and final blog about this experience.  As I said in the last two blogs, my wife and I had a trip planned to New Orleans for our anniversary.  As it turned out our youngest daughter went with us so she could interview with a company in New Orleans.

I’m sure everyone wants to know how the interview turned out.  First, let’s go back to a blog from a few weeks ago where I talked about a speech at her graduation. The keynote speaker was very negative about the job market and advised the graduates to go and do social work, travel across Europe, take up yoga or origami, and to not worry about getting a job.  I suggested that this was a “the glass is half empty” view of the job market.

Luckily my daughter didn’t take this view.  She picked out several companies she would like to work for and sent resumes to these companies.  She had two callbacks from this effort, and one was the job in New Orleans.  As it turns out she has now accepted the job and is moving to New Orleans next week.  I am proud of her for taking the half full approach.

OK, so what is the sales message of the week?  Well it isn’t about her getting the job (even though I could use that).  I want to focus on the fact that I planned a romantic trip to New Orleans that didn’t go the way I planned it.  Sometimes we make the best of plans, but they are spoiled.  We have a choice to go with the punches and make the best of it or we can just give up and let it get the best of us.  In sales things rarely go as you plan and many times it is your reaction to these setbacks that creates the differentiation between you and your competition.  You should look at these setbacks as opportunities to excel.

My trip didn’t go as planned, but as it turned out it was much better than I could have ever imagined.  I spent time with a great sales person and got a multitude of ideas about how to improve the Salesnet business. I spent quality time with my wife and youngest daughter. My daughter got her dream job.  How can it get any better that that?  Oh yeah, I also got my last child off the payroll.

Until next week,

Good selling and make sure you go with the punches; you never know what good things are just around the corner.