SELLING YOURSELF, SELLING YOUR SOLUTION, SELLING FOR LIFE: WHAT RECRUITERS, SALES COACHES, AND CLIENTS DON’T WANT YOU TO KNOW!

Introduction

In 2011, I met a wonderful Colombian woman. She was a lawyer for Rama Judicial and I was a telesales representative at a major computer company. We were a very unlikely pair with her being 1.5 meters tall and myself at 1.8. Despite distance of over 3000 miles, video calls kept our love alive and growing. I finally took a personal vacation after my 2nd consecutive President’s Club trip to Aruba, to return to the tropics and visit her in person.

I fell in love with not only my future wife, but the country she called home. At this time, Colombia was still a very violent and dangerous place, with active kidnappings, ambushes on military outposts, and street crime that plagues all countries with major cities. Despite all this, I returned home to the US, to my desk, to my 9-5 job. I looked at my cubicle decorations, my friends, my family, and I decided, “I don’t love this, I love her.”

With that thought, I turned in my resignation, turning my back on a promising career in sales, which would have led to company hopping for 25-30 years between sales and management roles, playing the corporate game, living in the suburbs, and eventually giving my mother the grandchildren she wanted so much from her “baby” (yes, I am the youngest...and I hated it).

I didn’t want to live a life others had. I wanted to make a difference, I wanted to be different, and more than that, I wanted to be with this girl who loved me so much and took me in her arms, despite all my flaws and mistakes. With this, I sold my car, cancelled my lease early, gave my extras away, said goodbye through wonderful nights out, dinners in, and experiences I put aside for years. Then I packed my bags, bought the scariest thing of my life: a one way ticket to Bogotá, Colombia.

I took with me not just my life and experience, but like the Sicilian, German, Swiss, and Napolitano immigrants before, I took what I deemed essential: A suitcase of clothes, a suitcase of books, and the transport case for my cat. I arrived with a “I love my Colombian Princess” t-shirt (which actually I do still have!) and two days later arrived in Bogotá, in all it’s cold midnight air and mountainous beauty.

Now you may be thinking: You’re a gringo, you speak English 100%, you have an MBA from a great university, lots of sales experience, what could go wrong. Well, everything did. My career meant nothing, my transcripts were as the locals say “basura” compared to someone who went to the local equivalent of Harvard which becomes a club for alumni to get jobs because of those who graduated before and their network, and I bounced from job to job despite stellar insights and attitudes and work ethic. I couldn’t fit in.

I did however maintain a good job for two years with a major payments company, but this was only after they by mistake discovered my abilities of customer management when I saved a major international account from failing by of all things: Being honest. I didn’t bullshit, I didn’t make excuses. I said I was sorry, I said I didn’t know when things would be fixed, but at a regular interval, I came back, told them what had been done, never said nothing had been done, and always, while making progress, maintained the attitude I had learned years before in the restaurant industry at sixteen: Under promise, over deliver. This is the foundation of what later became the companies I founded, the success I had in the role I had before leaving, what kept commissions coming in, and what eventually lead me to leave the source of my inspiration to create what has become two major forces in not only finance, but change in the lives of those affected by our products.

The simple principles of customer service (keeping your word, being honest upfront, never over selling, following up, picking up the phone and calling, and sending a HANDWRITTEN thank you note) are just a few of the examples I will highlight in this short, but very valuable book.

I thank you all in advance for your purchase, and reading this. I guarantee, you will sell more, close more, and retain more customers, job leads, and even heck, personal connections, with the lessons you learn in the next few pages.

Chapter 1:

Finding the Job You Want

Do not use Monster.com, Indeed, CareerBuilder, or other "junk" job sites. The algorithms are very very strict about keywords and it's difficult to bypass these. This means, that yes, like you thought, nobody is reading your resume. Yes, it sucks, but we all knew it was true. How could some low level HR analyst sift through thousands and thousands of pages to check for the “top” candidate? How could a resume translate what you did, learned, or experienced?

I’ll tell you. It can’t. It didn’t for me, it won’t for you and you shouldn’t do it. Look for a company you want to work for, find who is the hiring manager, whether for the job you want or not, and talk to them directly. Find out their phone number, find their Twitter handle, message them on LinkedIn! Absolutely, do not send them blind invites, or sales messages in that invitation! Tell them you’d like “to talk”.

Don’t give them any information beyond that. Tempt them. Lead them along. It doesn’t matter. This is about getting their interest. Your personal voice will tell them your story. If they might say no to an email, let them try to tell you no on the phone. As much as you are afraid of them and refuse to call them, imagine being them and hearing your smiling (yes, SMILE. Don’t mumble, don’t stumble, and definitely don’t frown on the phone) through the phone. Then imagine being so cold hearted to say, “I don’t have time to talk to you now or ever”.

Pardon my French, but who in God’s name would say that shit?! Who would literally tell someone who just wanted a fifteen-minute conversation about a job that you desperately want to fill that you have no time to talk to them at all. They won’t and honestly if they do, not only should you not work for them ever and you are lucky to be warned so early by their behavior, feel free to tell me directly via my information at the end of this book. I’ve been known to give people a big piece of my mind, especially those who are rude beyond understanding to those I love or care about. I’m willing to go to war for my own people, whether it be my team members, my friends, or even my own clients against my employer.

Back to the good employers, these individuals appreciate creativity, they love an easy lead, and you reaching out, especially when they haven’t published a job that they may have internally means they save money. Saving money means you give them a return on their investment earlier. You make a great impression, and being a sales person, you’ve already shown you can qualify a lead, understand how to get in touch with them, and have the true desire to close with them and not just send an email or wait for a lead from your team lead.

Real sales people don’t take leads, they make leads. They ask for the sale, then once they close, they ask for more. This should be your philosophy when seeking a career. If you want “a job” apply at a fast food joint. Sell lemonade with your children. Those are jobs. There are a million of them in the world. But if you’re like me, a job isn’t enough: I want to be the best I can be. I want to make as much as I can. And most of all, I want to make a difference.

Now, I know that I am usually against the grain and a number of you will use the sites I blacklisted. I know I said you should not deviate from this method at all. However, I’m a realist and if you do use them, in your digital CV you use, in size pt. 1 font the keywords that are relevant to the job listing. If you do this, DO NOT SEND THIS SAME FILE TO THE EMPLOYER OR PRINT IT. The pt.1 font may appear and will make it seem unprofessional. How do I know this? You guessed it, I did it. I sent emails with the wrong name, the wrong company, the entire wrong cover letter.

I’m not stupid, I’m not a fool, and neither are you. I’m Human. The difference is, unlike most sales gurus, I am willing to admit I fucked up. I also, as you will see, swear. A lot. This happens. Even in sales pitches. I’ll tell you what, I never had a venture capitalist, candidate, or hiring manager blink an eye when I did. Why? Because I was myself, because I was honest, and because my words that weren’t “bad” were brilliant, focused, and showing them why they needed me, not begging for a job. I never applied to or accepted a job I believed I “needed”. I needed a salary to support my loving wife, to support my lifestyle, and most of all the support the causes that mean the most to me. We’ll explore this more in Chapter 3, but for now...

Chapter 2: Marketing Yourself

Do not look for a job. Look for a job you want and are willing to sell yourself for. The employer isn't looking for someone seeking a job, a pay-check, or a job to use till they find another. They want a person who will stay for at the position for minimum 2 years.

Now why would I say that? Funny you should ask... did you know it takes on average, with the cost of finding a candidate, planning for the candidate, hiring the candidate, training the candidate and finally you, the candidate making enough progress to earn your employee money, eighteen months to earn a return on investment?

Now some may say this is ridiculous, exaggerated, or some anarcho-capitalist pipe dream that I dreamt up. Well, you’re very sadly wrong. Talk to any human resources professional. The cost of finding, interviewing, hiring and training a new employee is enormous. I will not step my toes into the discussion of compensation and its associated costs during these times of zero return (that’s another book for another time).

An employer will spend enough money looking for you to only have a return on investment after eighteen months. Look for a foundation to your career, not a stepping stone or a paycheck. Many of my (millennial) generation claim that this is normal because they “don’t like” the culture or work environment when they get settled after the ink dries. This is not only ridiculous in my eyes, but irresponsible. If you really aren’t sure about a position, don’t accept it. You are not obligated to accept a job and if an employer really thinks that you really want the job when you don’t, then yes, you are lying. What a foundation to start off, eh?!

Marketing yourself doesn’t just stop at applications, it applies to your life in the street as well. You literally never know who you will meet. I’ve met CEO’s, Presidents, Comedians, Policemen and Women, Tribal Elders, Bums, Homeless, Shoe Shiners, and a very special young salesman who was just eleven years old but charmed my socks off to win a future job that doesn’t exist, yet. How did I conduct myself with these individuals? I’ll tell you a secret: all of them were treated the same way.

These individuals, before anything, were human. They deserved the same respect I give everyone. They deserved someone stopping to listen to them and in addition, to give what they said a chance. No hiring manager “doesn’t have time” to talk to a real candidate. But you have to get your hooks in early. Elevator pitches are rehearsed, practiced, and stumbled over after. Do not rehearse your pitch, own it. Make it your own, tweak it, change it. Nobody cares if it’s the same way your director told you to have it; it’s yours.

You have ninety seconds to convince someone to invest 60000 dollars a year in you. If I went into that meeting for my own project and asked for that much, believe me, it’d be much harder than any interview you ever had. And worst of all, I’d have to guarantee delivery based on my guidance. Imagine if your boss told you that in the interview... “you have 90 days to fix this major issue or challenge after we hire you, or Ciao”!

I doubt many reading this book would be calm, and I know I wouldn’t be at all myself. That’s why I’m here to help you!

Chapter 3:

Qualifying Your Employer/Lead

Now that you have found that position, whether it exists or not, you are going to find the ideal employer for you. Yes, you want to find a job, but you also want to have a good job, yes? Ok, so you are going to seek out a company that you like, you will enjoy, and you see yourself not only in the first position, but many after because you are going to be promoted!

You are an intelligent, talented sales person. Don't apply to a job then act as if you need the job. If you don't like the role, the company, or the hiring manager, you do not have to continue! You are valuable and your time is valuable. An interview is like a first date: you are both seeing if you like each other!

Always, always ask questions. If you are in an interview with me and you tell me that I didn’t say anything that prompted a question, you’re telling me one of two things: That somehow in my 15+ years of sales I explained every single thing possible about my product or service, or that you weren’t listening because you simply want a job, not this job (see chapter 1). All too many times, this is often the case with both candidates and sales people.

Rather than listen to the customer, sales people listen to their manager. They see SPIFFS, or commissions, thinking only of the current quarter. Maybe some hiring managers do this as well, but I see this way too often with candidates. They are blinded by zeroes, then complain after about the “great” pay that started but once they lost their personal sales passion, trainings and calls have become guide lines and there is no methodology.

Chaos reigns when you or your employer don’t qualify each other. They may love you but not realize that you are unhappy with certain conditions in the workplace. Your clients may be happy with you, but not happy with the platform. By not asking questions you will never find out about these issues and by doing this, acts as a cancer to your organization or your relationship with the client.

If I went into a store, bought some things, and the representative despite helping me for the first moments walked away for the rest of the time. Would I defend her when she swoops in when I checkout, to defend the fact that she was the first, but not necessarily the one who closed the deal? Absolutely no. If you walk away from a sale, candidate, or job, you lost it. There are no “do not go to jail” cards. There is however, a “go to jail, do not collect 200 dollars” card!

Sales absolutely is like the game of Monopoly, and as much as it seems the “banks” are the valuable asset, the property has a much higher price. The assets that are in front of an employer are yours, but only if you can actually convince them to talk to you. “How could I do that” you ask? Well, they’d first have to decide is this person worth my time? I know you are, you know you are, your grandma

knows you are. However, this hiring manager doesn’t know you from Adam. This is exactly why you first have to qualify your providers. They aren’t doing you a favor, they are in business.

When seeking your “exit” from the cycle of the bad jobs, remember that when you want to get a job or want a career, self-marketing is essential. Instagram and Twitter only go so far. Actually marketing goes much farther, but you have to qualify your leads and your employer. Especially as a person with a conscience, how could you put yourself and your family though the stress of unemployment only to then take a short term lead of work for a quick paycheck.

Qualifying the partner of your career reflects very highly on yourself and your financial future. I hope that the next chapter continues this theme in a way you really can sink your teeth into, after this serious overview!

Chapter 4: Leave Me Alone!

Regardless of whether you find a posted job on LinkedIn, Monster.com, Indeed, CareerBuilder (despite what I said in step one, which yes, I admit, you may find a great lead there, but probably it’ll be a mass posting), or a friend recommends a job, bother the hell out of the employer.

Apply online, send a hand written cover letter stating your interest and expectations and ask for an interview or even just a coffee to discuss the role! Even if you cannot make it to where the job is listed, ask for the appointment, ask for a call, ask for the position. You are a sales person! Sales people don't give then wait, they ask and take.

What is the worst they can say? No? Go away? A few calls and a letter, does not a restraining order make. Most times individuals defeat and turn themselves away from opportunities that hiring managers haven’t even looked at. You were rejected by a computer not a person! Did you get a generic, thanks for applying but... email?

Guess what, they didn’t even read your documents. Why? Because they most likely were a) not so good, or b) someone else beat you to the punch! How could they do that? By following this method to a T! They hustled, they didn’t accept a website as a means to a job, but as a stepping stone. You have to sell yourself, before you can sell for other people. This means, that like your client base, those who are established, new, or prospects, you have to follow up. Even if this means you contact the client twenty times before you close them. However, remember chapter 3! This does not mean waste your time!

I never would want anyone, especially not my readers, to waste their time at all! Wasted time is the enemy of a salesman. This means meetings, bad leads, overselling to an already closed client, etc. However, many salespeople assume that this means you can take an easier route because leads qualify themselves.

This is the last possible thing. In fact, this is exactly why I hate most Customer Relationship Management platforms (CRMs). They make sales people lazy. They think, this lead is stuck, why should I push it through. I probed, I found their budget is too small, so they move on to what they think are bigger fish. Trust me, in fifteen years of sales, no fish is ever small. Many fish aren’t your customers, but your customers are the perfect size. If they came to you, close them, if they want what you are selling. If it’s a small amount, the way you treat them means more than the volume orders you take in.

Many think I am crazy saying this, but in all honesty it’s true: Those sitting in front of you are nowhere near as important as those who they will speak to after! Maybe you will not get the job in this department or close this lead today, but they will remember your hustle, determination, and tenacity! The hunger for the sale is the most beautiful and impressive skills humans have in their personal interactions.

Every single time you have an interview, a prospecting meeting, or a coffee with a client, you should repeat the process till they say go away! If they don't reply to your emails, write a letter. If they don't answer the letter, pick up the phone. Call, write, email till they say STOP! By the time they say stop, you’ll either have qualified the client to not be a sale or you’ll have closed a client. I guarantee it.

Chapter 5:

Say What You Did, Not What You Were Hired To Do

In your CV, in your LinkedIn profile, in your emails, and in your calls, DO NOT write a description of what you did or what you studied! Write what YOU accomplished. Tell them about the times you led a team project. Talk about failures and how you overcame them.

Nobody is perfect and no boss is impressed by a perfect candidate. They don't exist. Talk about what you did, how you overcame the challenges, and what you learned from them. Talk about your wins too! If you were the top shoe saleswoman in a Payless Shoes, that experience matters! Every little piece of your story is important and being open, honest, and confident are what will win you not just a job, but a career.

Each accomplishment or failure means that you experienced something. Telling what you learned is the basis of a real leader and I know absolutely no executive who wants a limit on the number of leaders on his or her team. Leaders can take a step back and let their team fly, fall into formation and lead from the group, or take charge when times are tough. Even the time you missed the biggest deadline of your life will impress your future employer, if you admitted fault and made it right.

“What was your biggest failure and how did you overcome it?” is the most bullshit interview question besides, “sell me this pen”. Most hiring managers use this because they saw it in a movie or heard it was a standard question. These questions aren’t real qualifiers (like I mentioned in chapter 3), but rather questions that are parroted because they are thought to be effective.

The best qualifier I ever saw in a candidate was her ability to laugh. I told her that I wanted her to tell a joke. Dirty or clean, offensive or not, tell me a joke. The ability to break the ice with a real joke, a funny one, one that really made me laugh was what won her the job. “You have to be able to work with any situation” I told her after. “You can’t simple break down and say to yourself, “I want this, but I don’t know what to do?!”

Interviews are supposed to be stressful. You’re proving you’re ready for everything, but most of us aren’t at all. Most of us rehearse our lines like a struggling player in Broadway. We stumble over our words trying to remember the “pitch perfect” wording that will “definitely win us this job”

I’m sorry, but it won’t. You won’t rehearse before your first day of work, and you definitely won’t rehearse your last, even if you get to retirement. Life has no rehearsals, comedy comes from the soul, and real candidates shine under pressure.
Say what you did, tell me what you can do, then I’ll see if I have a slot for you. If I don’t and I still like you, I’ll introduce you to someone I know with a decent role. I never have nor will I ever make a career. I was unable to make one for myself, and through the kindness of others, I gained many blessings in this world.

Chapter 6:

Just Say Thank You, For Christ’s Sake!

After you have your interview, which I know you will get a large number of, whether on the phone, via skype, or the 2nd, 3rd, or 15th in person, each time take the name and contact information of the person interviewing you. Then, you are going to write a hand written Thank You note.

This is the most important part of all. It's not about saying thank you. It's about being in their memory. It's about you highlighting what you said in the interview and setting yourself apart from other candidates. You will most likely be the first candidate to do so, and even if others did, you will be the only one in this process doing such. This is about YOU, XXXXXXXXXX being the one candidate they think, "Wow, this person is really hungry for not only the job, but for me never to forget who they are".

Now, you may be saying, “Anthony... stop being ridiculous. I agree with 99% of this, but a note written in my handwriting? Ain’t nobody go time for that!” Well, guess what?

I’m guessing you are reading this while at work. Maybe you’re not, but many are. Isn’t this enough time to write a thank you note to one client? How much would this time and effort and supplies cost you. Ok, now think about how much you could make in a commission check? Is whining about a thank you letter worth sacrificing that amount of money? I sure as anything will welcome any one of my readers to donate the money value of this time to write a thank you note to me. I will gladly volunteer to write your thank you notes.

These notes, like your grandmother taught you, not only show appreciation, but interest. They strengthen the bond you made in the initial call or meeting, and this will ensure this person recognizes you in the future. These individuals could make or break a career and most likely make one.

All it takes is 5 minutes and maybe $0.20 of stationary. Send a thank you note, engage your clients, and pick up the phone! Engage the hiring manager too! I doubt any of them have ever received a thank you note. Heck, most recruiters never see any appreciation for the work they do. That being said, with this manual you won’t need them either, but the issue is more about how individual workers congregate and break the poverty line.

With these principles, any candidate will do well. But once you are assimilated, it’s very easy to slip into bad behaviors. Never ever break the job seeker’s spirit. Always call the client, always hunt, even when in account management, and always send a thank you note.

Chapter 7:

Did You Really Think I’d Say To Stop Following Up?

After two days of sending the thank you note, call the hiring manager and ask if they got the letter. If they did, they will be beaming with what you did and tell you what they think and possibly bump you ahead of others. If they didn't get it, they will look forward to the idea that you sent it and even cared that it will arrive! You'd be surprised by the number of candidates that think they are entitled to a job so they never even say thank you afterwards.

Returning to the principles of the earlier chapters, you have to be hungry. Hungry for a sale, hungry for advancement, and very hungry to accumulate clients. Not just for your client, but for you and your own hard work. If you went through steps 1-6, why would you just give up?

Is this a good lead? Is it a profitable lead? Then follow up! Send another message, send a letter, pick up the phone, go by the office physically, shake their hand, ask, in the words of Marvin Gaye, “What’s going on?!”

This extra step will qualify leads, close deals, and help you get back to those that are really interested if your main lead isn’t. However, unless you follow up and try to close each time, you’ll never know the answer! Columbus took a chance, why haven’t you?! Call a major VIP client today. Seriously! Don’t look up their email! Find their office address, their physical address. Call, (but not in a seriously harassing way) write a hand written letter and send it, or just drive by to say hey.

Mediocre sales people, those seeking a check not a commission, are those guiltiest of this mentality. They justify the past actions of those that may or may not be related to those involved. Each client interaction is different and the lessons of the bars I worked in during university still stick with me:

Under promise over deliver, be honest when you fuck up, and always follow up till you are sure they are done.
These are the principles I learned in an industry most will never know and have no intention of knowing. It’s a “dirty” “lower sales” job. However this dirty job laid the foundation for my current path and those ahead of me.

I really hope that this chapter has helped you and if you check on my wife’s and my social media you’ll see our beautiful new niece. I think we can hold off a bit till little Maria gets to enjoy her thunder, but for those who do wish to eventually congratulate me in the future...expect a hand written thank you note! I’ll be up enough time to write them when that small blessing comes to us.

Chapter 8:

Did You Really Think This Ended When You Got Hired?

Once you have received your job offer and accepted, do not stop following this method. This is not just a job hunting technique. This is the foundation of your entire career in sales. If you use this formula with prospects in sales, they will not only return to you and buy more time after time because you actually care, but also will follow you throughout your career.
You will never again have to start from scratch because at least one prospect will think of you and your intuitive style of engaging them in a way most have completely forgotten or don't even care to try will always be in their mind.
I’ve carried along clients of mine and relationships in my professional life since I left the US and before. Even more than that, I’ve learned so many lessons from each of my projects, even writing this book, that I want to be sure not only that my readers use these lessons, but keep them near and dear to them as well.

This guidance is a compilation of modern and ancient wisdom that I have compiled during my time in graduate school, childhood, and exodus from the US to start my new life. I totally appreciate each and every one of you, and please continue to the Epilogue if you have been having a very hard time to find a job in the current economic climate. I cannot guarantee I can help you, but I’ll do my best to do it if I can.

Epilogue

Please, for this first role send me your CV and your prospecting letter. Address me in the email as if I were the hiring manager so I can help you rewrite this if necessary. Writing it in Spanish or English is fine, but the important thing is that you save this method and do every single step! DO NOT SKIP A STEP. This is a formula I have used time and time again and will work!

I wish you the very best in your job hunt! I want to help you with this first step, and you can always call me directly if you need anything in the future.

Thank you so much for reading!

Anthony "Christopher" Conrad [email protected]