Fear the Phone

If you've been paying any attention to my status (frequent) updates on Facebook, you are aware that I've taken on a new role in life, that of Pampered Chef Consultant.  But being an Independent Consultant is not nearly enough challenge for me, I had to go and take the challenge of joining the Leadership Group, which is basically a fast track to being a director; not entirely sure what possessed me to do that.

Ah, well, never one to shy away from a challenge, I'm also working toward a Mediterranean Cruise in 2013.  That is an award given to those who meet certain sales criteria, and certain recruiting criteria.  I've really got my work cut out for me.

It seems that I'm missing the challenge of being in the hospital and on the ward, where life is fast-paced and unpredictable and coworkers can become a second family under the right conditions.

As it is somewhat unclear when I will be returning to nursing (due to back injury), I need to keep myself busy and surrounded by people.

I've already really come to appreciate the women I've met through Pampered Chef; all of them supportive and friendly.  Its a group in which I feel I can relax and be myself with no pressures to be someone I'm not; no hiding my personality and delightful sense of humor.  Yes, I just declared myself to have a delightful sense of humor.

Its not all fun and games, though.  Well, actually it is.  Even the work is fun.  Hosting cooking shows allows me to be the center of attention for a few minutes.  Going into other people's homes also allows me to meet and interact with a never-ending supply of new faces and personalities.  In that regard, it is similar to nursing, minus the bodily fluids, of course.

There is one aspect of direct sales that I am having a bit of a challenge with, but I'm sure its only temporary.  I've never met a challenge that I couldn't beat, and this one is no different. It'll just require lots of practice and perseverance, in addition to a sense of humor.  The rule is not to take myself too seriously when I'm making the calls.

Up until today the only calls I'd made were to family.  However, if I'm going to reach my goals, I'll need to get uncomfortable and reach past previous boundaries I've unconsciously set in my life.  So today I made calls to women who were not related to me.  The first call was not unsuccessful, nor was it done by the book.  I had the pre-written script in front of me, just as a guidleline, and promptly was unable to follow it.  The second call, I ignored the script entirely and relied on my charming personality instead.  This felt better.

The third call was the best one yet!  It went something like this:  "Hi Myrna, this is Marla."  (I'm Myrna, so this was completely backwards). 

Silence.

"Hi Marla, this is Myrna."  Whew.  I remembered my own name. 

Today yielded two "no" responses; I'm well on my way to my goal of 100.

Anyone with any experience in sales knows that for every four "no" responses, one "yes" is generally forthcoming.

I'm happy, because according to my calculations, my next four calls should be "yes."