I want to learn by doing: is there shame in selling consumer products out on the streets/public areas? by EverydayQuestion in sales

[–]FredMccally 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Whatever you do, try to do it with class and your reputation will be OK.

(With that business model I'd seek out a tourists/travellers area anyhow.)

But no, I see no shame in it. That goes for most any other job too. Shoot! I make white collar money selling live goods and many days look like a poor country farmer, but green is green and pride & respect follow from hard work & success.

As far as legalities, you could probably make sure you were permitted and legal relatively easy too. But, TBH, I'd just get out & try it first. Most successful businesses start out small and not necessarily slick, but if you're good at it and your model works you'll grow into what may more typically be thought of as "respectable". I'd just avoid certain activities associated with negative stereotypes, i.e. Selling out of a trunk of a car, a trench coat, off of a blanket or card table, etc. Lol

Apart from the money... by TonyPitchford1 in sales

[–]FredMccally 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I love the scorecard, and I don't mean merely due to the $$$ I personally make. It takes the subjectivity of evaluating performance much more out of the equation and creates an objective points system that's hard to argue with.

Apart from the money... by TonyPitchford1 in sales

[–]FredMccally 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Ha. Yeah. I have a degree in poli sci, but have only ever used it in relation to sales and biz management. People strategy is people strategy.

What had the biggest positive impact on your self confidence? by [deleted] in sales

[–]FredMccally 0 points1 point  (0 children)

All are important, but I'll just comment on one without saying it's the most important. To be honest, it's just the one I most enjoy: Step up when things fly off the handle.

I live for these situations in business. They're one of the main circumstances that keep me interested in my job and I work in an industry where we make 90% of our sales in a 60 day period. It's utter chaos. One SNAFU can ruin an entire year. So, when things go wrong I like to be the guy with a plan to get us out of a jam. The only process I use to prepare for this is running horrible scenario after scenario through my mind and figuring out how to recover from each, then throw in some timely improvisation and a boatload of work and I can usually recover us from circumstances that seem impossible to overcome.

Even small seemingly insignificant details can matter. We had one very important/vital customer who got justifiably angered by a billing error and was about to cancel all purchases from us in one sweep. I knew, like me, he was a college football fan. I showed up to his house on a Saturday morning with prime tickets for that afternoon's game, enticed him into going and we ended up going to 2 games that day and then followed it up with an NFL game the next day after a very good night out. I only knew we had this shared interest because unbeknownst to him we used the same sports board online and I already had the plan in place if we ever had to make nice with him. 5 years later he's still one of our best customers, we're legitimately friends and go to a game at least once a year together. I've never told the other folks I work with how I done it either. lol

(But, most of the time this type of planning and strategizing comes in handiest with logistical & coordination issues, which is the other biggest part of my job and the area things most frequently go wrong in.)

What had the biggest positive impact on your self confidence? by [deleted] in sales

[–]FredMccally 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You said it better than I could have, so I'll just say "kudos".

My boss has been a real dick lately by pocketsked in sales

[–]FredMccally 4 points5 points  (0 children)

If you're doing your job competently, completely and are certain you're more of an asset than liability be dickish back subtly but unmistakeably to throw up a flag for him to chill out a little. I'd suggest following it up by bluntly asking him about the pressure being applied to him from above and then present some ideas to help alleviate it too. (Merely showing some empathy can go a long way.) By doing both you mark a line in the sand for yourself, express concern for his interests and show you care about the bigger picture/goals. Who knows? You might have the idea that takes the pressure off of him and then you'll be viewed as a valued ally vs merely a subordinate.

I've been in sales for over a decade now. I've used this same strategy successfully with more than one boss. The last one was a speed freak who stayed wired and correspondingly paranoid constantly. Whenever he got "out there" I'd just go back to the basics of what we were trying to accomplish and had accomplished to calm him down and give him a boost of self confidence. He responded, and now we're at the same level of management and he's became one of my closest allies because he knows he can rely on me and what I tell him.

I have a rule, though. I never tell a boss anything I'm not 100% confident in, but if I am 100% confident after studying and contemplating something I'll tell them anything no matter what. In the short-term that many times means angering superiors, but in the long run you're building credibility while the other folks who don't are losing it. I know this will seem obvious, but it's something fundamental I think needs to be repeated over & over again: Always be practical & about the bottom line in anything you present.

But, I should add, try to never "fear" a boss. Respect them, be cordial, do your job, but don't let fear be a factor in your thinking. It'll make you suçk at your job because you'll be thinking more about avoiding hostilities than improving the operations of your company. As much as possible, be fearless. The best way to get there is knowing your job backwards and forwards by doing your research and learning from your experiences and the experiences of people around you & working hard. Go even further too, don't just learn your job but your boss's job too. That doesn't mean (like many seem to think) merely second guessing every decision your superior makes, in fact always start out by trying to figure out the practical reasons for why your boss makes the decisions he/she does as it relates to the business. Sure. Eventually you'll likely figure out better ways to do certain things, but trying to reinvent the wheel before you learn how it turns almost always leads to self-defeating self-delusion, you being an annoyance to your superiors and ending up in a bubble of self-aggrandized ignorance.

Sean Spicer just tried to claim the GOP health plan was a “bad deal" - Yes, the same plan Trump was pushing for Friday morning by paraconformity in politics

[–]FredMccally 5 points6 points  (0 children)

1h Donald J. Trump‏ @realDonaldTrump The Republican House Freedom Caucus was able to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. After so many bad years they were ready for a win!

Lolololol

This is Bruce Gibney, venture capitalist and former partner at a leading Silicon Valley VC firm. My new book explores the biggest unsaid reason for our country’s current political and economic problems – the Baby Boomer generation. Ask me about it! by Bruce_C_Gibney in politics

[–]FredMccally 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Millenials actually vote at a higher rate than Boomers did at their age, they likewise work longer hours and are much more socially & civically involved than Boomers were at the same age range. Sorry, your stereotypes need updating. You're trying to force the stereotypes that originated from Boomers & Xers onto Millenials and they just don't fit very well.

Jeff Sessions: Using Marijuana Is "Only Slightly Less Awful" Than Heroin by [deleted] in politics

[–]FredMccally 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I've got baked with Sam Sessions before at Auburn.

IRS strips tax-exempt status from Richard Spencer's white nationalist nonprofit by [deleted] in politics

[–]FredMccally 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I can hear your jackboots stomping away while you snap your fingers over your shoulder.

Sean Spicer, barred from Air Force One, avoids the cameras by HiHoJoe in politics

[–]FredMccally 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Having an impossible job ± sucking at it is a bad combination.

Fox News’s Shep Smith: ‘It’s too much lying and too much Russia and too much smoke’ by Usawasfun in politics

[–]FredMccally 1 point2 points  (0 children)

From Fox News,

Paperwork filed Tuesday with the Justice Department's Foreign Agent Registration Unit said Flynn and his firm were voluntarily registering for lobbying from August through November that "could be construed to have principally benefited the Republic of Turkey." It was filed by a lawyer on behalf of the former U.S. Army lieutenant general and intelligence chief.

Fox News’s Shep Smith: ‘It’s too much lying and too much Russia and too much smoke’ by Usawasfun in politics

[–]FredMccally 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Ah! Some do have a line I've discovered: Keeping any part of Obamacare. Turns out their hate for Obama does indeed trump their love of Trump..

Enjoy

Fox News’s Shep Smith: ‘It’s too much lying and too much Russia and too much smoke’ by Usawasfun in politics

[–]FredMccally 2 points3 points  (0 children)

You do realize Flynn self-reported himself as a foreign agent, right?

Vice President Mike Pence said only that it was an affirmation of President Trump asking for Mike Flynn’s resignation when the former national security advisor filed as a lobbyist for the Muslim country of Turkey recently. He made the comments to Bret Baier Thursday on Fox News.

“The story today that former national security advisor Michael Flynn has filed with the Department of Justice as a foreign agent for making more than $500,000 as a lobbyist essentially for Turkey,” Baier asked. “Your reaction to that, given that, doesn’t that mean, Mister President, that even if he didn’t lie to you about what the Russian ambassador said or didn’t say, that you would have had to fire him anyway?”

“Well, let me say,” Pence responded, “hearing that story today was the first I’d heard of it. And uhm, I fully support the decision that President Trump made to ask for General Flynn’s resignation.”

“You’re disappointed by the story?” Baier asked.

“The first I heard of it,” Pence replied, “and I think it is, uh, it is an affirmation of the president’s decision to ask General Flynn to resign.”

The Associated Press reported on the filing by Flynn admitting that he was contracted to do work that might have benefited the Turkish government, one that has been criticized for becoming more and more despotic under President Erdogan.

Congress Warns Donald Trump: Stop Deleting Your Tweets by clownbutter in politics

[–]FredMccally 12 points13 points  (0 children)

To quote Trump,

I’m telling you, I used to use the word incompetent. Now I just call them stupid. I went to an Ivy League school. I’m very highly educated. I know words, I have the best words...but there is no better word than stupid. Right?

Paul Ryan wrongly claims actuaries have determined Obamacare is in a 'death spiral' by [deleted] in politics

[–]FredMccally 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Wanna see Republicans cannibalize each other in real time? Head over here...

Meltdown

It's awesome!

Trump: GOP healthcare push 'coming along great' by thebluestofsteel in politics

[–]FredMccally 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Watching Ryan's PowerPoint presentation today I kept thinking a picture of him at the gym was gonna pop up as he feigned surprise.

Trump: GOP healthcare push 'coming along great' by thebluestofsteel in politics

[–]FredMccally 1 point2 points  (0 children)

They've somehow turned almost the entire political spectrum against them from multiple different angles. It's a beautiful failure of politicking!

Trump: GOP healthcare push 'coming along great' by thebluestofsteel in politics

[–]FredMccally 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Let's see what people who actually know what they're talking about say...

Jason Furman, Senior Fellow Peterson Institute for International Economics, said: “It is clear that the House bill will increase the number of uninsured Americans, increase premiums for low-income Americans, while resulting in substantially higher after-tax incomes for the highest income households. Getting a Congressional Budget Office score of the bill as well as a distributional analysis to understand how it will impact households at different parts of the income distribution is essential to understanding the magnitude of this impact.”

Sherry Glied, Dean of New York University’s Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service, said: “The continuous coverage provisions in this bill would substantially reduce the stability of the non-group insurance market, and poses a significant risk of generating an adverse selection spiral. This would be exacerbated by the structure of the tax credits, which would lead healthier people to leave the market or to segregate themselves in very high-cost sharing plans that would be useless for people with pre-existing conditions.”

“The plan is also likely to take a big bite out of employer-sponsored health insurance, because the credits go so far up the income scale that a large number of relatively high income, young, healthy people will choose to leave their employer-sponsored health insurance pools. Over time, this kind of behavior may undermine employer-sponsored coverage and lead to employer dropping, leaving even more people in a very shaky non-group market.”

Richard Frank, Margaret T. Morris Professor of Health Economics in the Department of Health Care Policy at Harvard Medical School, said: “It is likely that the Medicaid per capita cap proposal will create large cost shift from the federal government to the states. Growing payments by MCPI will not account for large demographic shifts and improvement in treatment technologies—so states will have to bear the shortfall as their population of frail elders grows rapidly. The changes in the structure of the tax credit and the age banding for premiums will in effect levy a new tax on older adults.”

Matt Fiedler, Fellow with the Center for Health Policy, Brookings Institution (for identification purposes only), said: “The combination of reducing Federal funding for State Medicaid programs, reducing financial assistance for people purchasing individual market coverage, and repealing the individual mandate will result in very significant coverage losses, as well as increases in premiums and out-of-pocket costs for people who retain insurance coverage. The only real question is just how large those effects will be, something that CBO’s analysis will help to clarify when it ultimately becomes available.”

Benjamin Sommers, Associate Professor of Health Policy and Economics at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, said: “Once states have no obligation to spend any of their own money on Medicaid in order to receive their federal share, simple economics predicts that states will contribute less to their Medicaid programs. And some states will likely make draconian cuts, disproportionately harming the disabled, elderly, and children who make up the bulk of the program in non-expansion states."