I have had the opportunity to visit some incredible places and meet some special people throughout my career so far. Bob Stokes was a legend in the Philadelphia market and was known as Mother Stokes. He always took such great care of his customers. Bob told me that the reason he loved sales so much was that every day you go to work is never the same and he felt that that was the best part! I have come to learn he was right.
I have been incredibly lucky to have so many people that had an impact on me and taught me so much. The start of Steve Keating's implementation of the Toro Selling System program with the Toro Commercial sales group coincided with my start of sales, the timing could not have been any better. The chance to learn from Steve about the sales process and understanding that process was the foundation for my career.
One of the things that truly is amazing, as I look back on the last 29 years, is the changing availability of information and communication. When I started, my older brothers both of whom are in sales, steered me to the Franklin Maps store in King of Prussia to buy my road atlas. Each night, before you hit the road, you would need to plan the trip. This is just slightly different from today where I plug an address in my phone, and I am directed there, even taking into account the traffic on the way. Even funnier is the progression of communication since the early '90s! From stopping throughout the day to call the office from a payphone to check messages, then on to a pager, then the early versions of cell phones, to my favorite, my Blackberry, where I could first send emails, to today's smartphones. It is truly an amazing transition!
Not sure if I have another 30 years in me, but I hope I have the opportunity to keep doing it for many more years to come!
WJC