How To Sell Dirt
shadyacres.tumblr.com
shadyacres.tumblr.com
This is a distinction I wish engineers would treat as more importantly, because we sell stories, too.
P.S.: If he put a wee little translation in Japanese in the box he'd sell one to just about every Japanese tourist who passed his stall. Same dirt, same words (modulo translation), different story.
It's random but likely that I even know who the guy is he's referring to; he's just stands out that much (AA initials?). He's a good storyteller but what makes him even more successful is that he's passionate about what he's selling--- a connection to the holyland--- not dirt.
My favourites are some that I picked up walking up a mountain in Torridon - the surrounding sandstone having been eroded away leaving these nice coloured pebbles free after nearly a billion years of being buried.
Two decades later, I'm still kicking myself for not buying a piece when I had the chance.
It really does help to have good communication skills for anything, be it speaking to that interviewer, discussing costs with some sales rep, selling your product etc...maybe even being a little bit aggressive, but not in a bad way, you know?
Yes that is right, they are selling empty (but closed and captioned) cans.
I'm not trying to be mean but, how old is the author? How much work experience does he have?
When I was 12 years old I went knocking door to door with my snowshovel in the dead of winter, trying to convince people I had something of value to offer. When I was 14 I convinced a local pizza parlor I had something of value to offer and got my first "real" job.
Trying to convince others of your value and economic worth is a daily affair for most people. It's an accurate way to look at the situation. It shouldn't be a hardship.
I would hardly call it a "daily affair". It's the sort of thing you do when you look for a job. That being said, that sentence is somewhat vague. I was referring to the consulting component of the job. Almost all of the jobs I've ever held were salaried jobs where my fit for it was a no-brainer, and all I had to do was convince them that I was better than the next yokel, which was at time difficult. However, the job description was always very well described, and the type of person they were looking for was always pretty clear-cut.
Consulting is a completely different beast. They had a task they wanted to have completed, and they were looking for someone - anyone - who could do it as best as humanly possible. I'm competing against everyone who knows how to do it. The job description is "able to do this job", which to me makes the application process that much more difficult; you have to be able to describe not only why you're qualified, but also why you're the best.
Maybe it's the same thing, but it sure felt different when going through the motions.
When you feel truly confident in your skills, in interview situations you'll make it sound like the only rational thing they can do is hire you. That kind of confidence will come with time.
Good luck. You're on your way.