Elsewhere in today’s electronic epistle you can discover all about our friend Aristotle from Greece and how he may well have been the first motivational guru with something valuable and not downright silly to say in the Sales sector.
While he didn’t run ideas up flagpoles to see who might salute, his wise words about the value of repetition leading to excellence also point to the importance of experience.
And, while he’s quite right, we’d also argue – not with Aristotle, Plato tried that and look what happened – this often can also lead an elephant into the room: actually he’s most often left sitting in a huff right in front of the career ladder, preventing anyone getting a foot on the first rung.
Yes, we’re talking here about how to get the experience that leads to excellence, Aristotle-styley, if someone doesn’t give you your first break?
There’s a term for this. In a recent report from the UK Commission for Employment and Skills it was described as Catch 16-24, the problem faced by young people trying to get into work but who have no track record of employment.
The Government has called on educational establishments and employers to collaborate on solving the problem by offering more work experience places. When that happens some of the difficulties might disappear, but that doesn’t help if you are faced with the situation today.
So what can you do right now to break the barriers to the workplace?
Persistence is key, as is having the confidence in your own abilities. Also, note to self: seek on s1jobs and ye shall find.
For anyone who thinks you have what it takes to make your mark, opportunities await – among the current vacancies are Sales and Customer Service roles where no previous experience is required.
The catch is you would be self-employed, working on a commission-only basis, which some might find daunting. However, if you are up for the challenge, this could be the ideal chance you were waiting for, providing you with the experience and skills that could kick-start your career and take you much further.
Here is your chance to show your strengths in Sales, Promotions, Customer Service and Marketing – precisely the sort of experience most employers down the line will want to see on your CV.
There are also vacancies for charity fundraisers to interact with the public, educating them on the role of many worthwhile causes and urging them to give these some level of financial support.
For this sort of job it is best if you can demonstrate as much bounce as Tigger. Armed with the confidence to start a conversation with a stranger, and the strength to withstand rejections yet still remain optimistic, then the pay-off is that time spent in a job like this will give you great transferable skills.
Aside from being satisfied that what you are doing is helping many worthy causes, the best way to look on this kind of job is as sales boot camp. It may be tough at the time, but you’ll come out of it with essential experience that will pay dividends throughout your career.
And once that career is established the sky really is the limit. From Tele-Sales to Estate Agency, Recruitment Consultancy, Media Buying and Business Development the range of Sales jobs on offer spans all sectors of service, business and industry.
Arnold Clark, BMW, the Herald & Times Group, Clyde Property and Apex Hotels – all of these and more are among the companies you will find recruiting Sales staff on s1jobs, all of them offering attractive packages to candidates with the right stuff.
And in many cases, if you can bring technical skills – fluency in a foreign language, for example – web and e-commerce experience or any other specialism to the table, you are in a strong position to command the high salaries and large bonuses that make sales such an attractive proposition.
And you don’t need to be Aristotle to argue that’s a good thing.