A Vignette in Sales…

Having spent what seems to be most of my lifetime convincing others to part with some of their earned wages in order to purchase the services or products my worn out briefcase holds, I can tell you that several very interesting characters and situations have crossed my path(s)…

Years ago I was handed the responsibility to describe, during one of my then company’s “share days” what it was like to sell life insurance. My experience was then much less than what it is now, but I had lived through enough already to be able to present what was called “A Day in the Life of an Insurance Agent”.  Which went something like this:

Some days start just wrong

-“Oh my Lord…” said this tired mind when the alarm clock went off at 7am… “already morning and I haven’t slept a wink, the baby was up half the night” … “I better get up” said I to self… “My first appointment is at 10am and it is quite a ways from here”

Then, as a semblance of life slowly crept into my body, along with the needle sharp water streams from the shower, the planned day began to unfold before my eyes. “Well … let’s see…” said my awakening brain “The 10am appointment could be good…”  “It is this guy who says he wants to fund an agreement guarantee with life insurance … haven’t met him yet, but we talked on the phone” Man, if this sells, then I’ll be able to take my son on the weekend hike I promised him … “Then” I continued on with this silently narrated documentary, “At  12 noon there is a meeting with Mrs. Roostic …” “Where did she come from?” … “Oh yeah… she came from John, one of our outside sources” … That means I owe him… Man, nobody does a favor anymore…

If you love to sell ...
you love this answer!!

 After the good morning-good byes were said, my car –looking about as worn out as I felt- did start … probably as a personal favor to me. Of course, only after I promised it a good wash and the overdue oil change later on in the day… Who says cars don’t communicate? Looking around, I realized it really did need that clean up…  Boy oh Boy!! Those wrappers are from last week!! And there were other, less easy to identify occupants of space… but the ever so important cup of coffee was nestled in its perch, right next to me, readily available for the occasional sip to be had. Ahhh! What a joy… riding free in my car, coffee in hand, singing along with the latest music from the cassette (yes, this was a while back!), the sun shining … What could go wrong?  Hmmm!!! Don’t tempt the fates, son!!

As we (my car and me) arrived at our first destination on this glorious day, out the door of this little, dirty space came a huge (as in grossly overweight) guy, bag of chips in one hand and a cigarette in the other … As I looked at him, my heart (and other parts as well) cringed… “Oh Dear God … Don’t let this be my prospect!!!” “I know, he’s just passing through here, he’s not … he can’t be … OH MAN … HE IS!!!” The picture I had just seen diminished the possibility of a sale by 80%...

Often, it is a group effort ...

 Put on a smile in the face of any adversity… (generic sales course 101, first lesson) greet your client like he/she is a long lost relative…  I held out my hand, hoping for the grease free left hand to be offered in return … no such luck …“Mr. Jones” I boomed out, loud enough to be heard through the probable layers of protecting grease inside the ears, “Glad to meet ’ya” … “I am Rafael (no formalities here) from XYZ insurance and we talked about your agreement … I’m here to talk a little more as to what we can do for you”.  “Oh man!!” said he in return… “I’m just going out to buy some lunch” … At least I understood this, as the sounds came through a labyrinth of chips and smoke in his mouth …

Sometimes, you just want to give it all up!!

I thought for a moment about the different ways in which I could restrain this mountain man, but he outweighed me by more than 100 pounds and I had to think about our image, you know… “well, this won’t take long” I hastily said, while trying to steer him back inside. This wasn't easy; I had a perilous hold on the hand and wrist used to shovel greasy chips … it was slippery.  But he went back in … one small victory for Insurance Man. We did talk … he wanted a “cheap” policy; I explained, as delicately as I could, that his overpowering, slightly larger than life presence, along with his smoking and the very high cholesterol levels (no surprise here) he showed in his last exam, did not make him into a prime prospect for any type of low cost products … Man, what a waste!!!  Impossible to convince someone who, when he looks into the mirror in the morning, sees nothing but the picture of perfect health no matter what the image shows. “Maybe he is actually the other side of Dorian Grey??” I said to self… silently, of course.

Oh, what a waste of a beautiful morning!!! The ever present optimist in me told the other half of itself, the one wanting to kill someone: “Well… it is a great morning and we still have another appointment in a little while…” I think I heard a silent, but loud answer … “OH…SHUT UP!!!”

 So, my coffee cold by now, a slightly overcast afternoon ahead and with nary a song in my heart, my little, somewhat faded green stead dutifully took me to meet Mrs. Roostic… Ahhh! There is a prize for those who do not give up!! “Guess what, Folks?” Said I to the enraptured audience, itching to … get back to work … Mrs. Roostic turned out to be a great appointment! She gave me home made cookies and tea while we talked about insurance.  No, there was no immediate sale, but we will meet again, this time with her son and her accountant. We shall prevail!!

But when it all works ...
The rewards are just great!!

 Then, after leaving good Mrs. Roostic and her tea service, I came here so you could hear all about a day in the life of an agent … “ And, By the way”, I added, as people were getting up and beginning to return to their posts… “My day is not over yet!!” … as most of them were actually ready to leave for the day, I added … “There is another appointment at the end of the afternoon, and then I am going home to take my son to ball practice”.

Well, the moral of this short vignette … (real, by the way… this day is one of many such which happened sometime late 1979, in Farmington CT) is that as we complain because of what we have to do on a daily basis in order to “bring home the bacon”; there are many, many others... who wish they could do what we do because ... they have naught else to do… Every type of work has its ups and downs; especially if you depend on your own efforts to make money; no guarantees involved. Don’t be afraid; do your best and do not give up ... the work will fall in place, along with the earnings to justify the efforts.

 Be well… Be Back!!

Farewell Notes...

• Remember… please send comments to otherboxp@yahoo.com ; it comes directly to me. I promise to read all coming messages. 
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