Before the hate mail streams in, let me preface: there are a ton of professions besides sales that people are passionate about. This article is for everyone EXCEPT for those passionate people.
Wait, Sales? Really? Why?
It's the SAFEST career on planet earth
Contrary to popular opinion, sales is an extremely safe career. A lot of sales people will say, "If you can sell one thing, you can sell anything". And in 99% of cases, this is true. Sales is not only a career; it's a skill and a mindset that you bring into your life. Once you understand sales, you're immediately employable by thousands of employers, at any time. Great salespeople can jump from selling $2 dollar bottled water, to $2 Million dollar enterprise server hardware, in a relatively short amount of time. No matter the economy or the location you live in, salespeople are always in demand. Profits ultimately drive businesses, which are in turn, driven by salespeople!
It's the most FLEXIBLE career you'll ever have
In sales, we always say that "You eat what you kill". If you unexpectedly kill a huge buffalo at 10AM, you're free to enjoy that buffalo the rest of the day and take off. There's no such thing as a 9-5 in a lot of sales jobs. Performance dictates your schedule.
As times change and things like Skype and Google Hangouts become more socially acceptable, the potential to work remote/from home as a salesperson is becoming a real thing.
You can make some serious money
While this may be a given, I'm not sure a lot of people appreciate the type of money there is to be made in sales. It's one of the only careers on the planet, where you can go from having no college degree, to earning 6 or even 7 figures in 5 years. Even then, I myself didn't realize the possibilities, until I received my first serious commission check. Want that $1 Million dollar house you've always dreamed of? But you don't have a Masters Degree or PhD? You don't need one any longer.
Your future is always exciting
A successful salesperson can virtually do anything he/she wants. Want to move to Europe for a year and work remotely for your company? It's possible. Want to start your own company from a great idea you've been cooking in your head? You can do it. Want to get a job with a company you've always dreamed of? Like a Tesla or a Google? It's all possible.
After you've established yourself as a quality salesperson, the sky is really the limit. Sales people are innately dreamers, and dream they will. Ever wonder why a lot of entrepreneurs started in sales in their past life? It's not unheard of for a salesperson to stash away his last commission check, quit his job, and create something of his/her own. The combination of flexibility, money, and safety will always allow salespeople to dream big.
You feel great all the time
Great salespeople have to feel great, to convey positivity. Whether it's over the phone, in person, or over e-mail, our lives must be a constant stream of positivity. This positivity becomes extremely addictive, and healthy at the same time. It changes your perspective on life, and allows you to appreciate the small things in life. Having a terrible week? A pipe burst in your apartment, your girlfriend broke up with you, and your commission check fell through yesterday. Too bad. Sales is not a job where you can bitch and complain. So you make yourself happy. The funny thing about 'making yourself happy', is it's sort of like the self-fulfilling prophecy; eventually you believe it yourself.
Positivity becomes the most important aspect of your life, and for that reason, great things just tend to happen. This is why salespeople will tell you that their job is the most fulfilling job they've ever had. Not because of the money; not because of the perks; but because that they're happy on a daily basis. Don't get me wrong--salespeople have their fair share of tough times. But isn't that any career?
While this post may seem like an advertisement for salespeople, it's really not : ) It's more so a way of conveying all the reasons why I, and many others get up in the morning, and are super excited to go to work. It's beautiful thing.
Good read. Do you have any advice on locating independent sales reps?
A lot of people in sales are open to part-time work, even if they are employed full-time. So Linkedin is a great place for that. Angelist is also a good resource to find salespeople who are interested in working for start-ups. Some of them will take a job that doesn't even pay, as long as they get some equity in the company. What types of reps are you looking for/what kind of location?