Did I mention, I'm in Sales? part 3

Here's a quick recap in case you missed the first two installments and you think reading them will require to much energy: Jenna Bradley sells MRI devices but the economy has destroyed her sales and she thinks quite possibly her mind. (Let's call it her attitude!) She's found solace with daytime TV and cheap vodka. She's being evicted from her home and has sold her washing machine to make her car payment. Her Sales Manager is no where to be found and that's just as well. He's yellowish green, needs a bra and could use a stomach staple or two. (Added now for better description. And yes, he might be jaundice) She's in over her head. And then she falls asleep and dreams of Napoleon Hill. She thinks it's actually God. It is a dream after all.

Holy cow, that WAS a strange dream. For a moment, I wonder where I am. Like when you're traveling and you wake up in a strange hotel room. Was I drinking this morning? For a moment, I can't even remember what day it is. But I am painfully aware that I need to be working. That I should be trying to sell something.

I look at my watch and realize it's already 1 pm. Ughhhh, it's much too late in the day to start prospecting and really get the momentum going. (How's that for rationalization?) I find my blackberry under some blank order forms and notice I have a missed call. Thank goodness, it's from one of my accounts and not my "shrek" looking boss. I decide to return it. Dumb Mistake. It's a customer needing service.

"Oh, your display panel on your system is blank? Did you turn it on? No, I'm not trying to be smart," I hear myself saying. I suddenly feel like asking, "Do I look like the service department? Do you see a BIG service tag with a 1-800 number in three places on your machine?" But better judgment takes over. For a moment I consider calling our customer service department myself for the account but my company "frowns" on that. Instead, I direct them to the number on the system and hang up. I feel enormously proud that I have done some work today. I've earned my minimum wage salary.

And then it hits me.... I haven't eaten all day! I head to the kitchen to make myself a sandwich. Scouring the cabinet and refrigerator for food, I'm struck by its emptiness. My whole kitchen seems lonely, like it needs a good friend. I settle instead for a Slimfast bar and resist the urge to dip it in vodka. Thank goodness tomorrow is payday. I'd be starving if I had to live off straight commission. And then it really hits me...

I am one step away from being homeless. Actually worse, I am one step away from living with my mother. 18 months ago I was in the top 10% of ALL the salespeople in my company. Today I am worried about food and eviction notices. I wonder if I have a brain tumor.

"What the mind can conceive, it can achieve!" I mumble to myself. Oh, that sounds like something Dr. Phil would say. I'm pretty sure that guy isn't even really a Doctor. Then I remember my dream.

With a vengeance, I search for my day planner. No I don't use my blackberry to keep appointments. I'm only slightly living in the 21st century. I find the section for notes and write. "What my mind can conceive, it can achieve." I can feel something stir in my soul. And then I write my first goal. "I will sell one device by the end of the month. I except to make $8,000." I add, "When I accomplish this, I will give 10% of the commissions I earn to the Homeless Shelter." I purposefully leave the book open on my desk. And then I decide to write it on 10 pieces of paper to hang around my house. For the first time in a long time I feel hope.