I have already lost touch with a couple of people I used to be. Joan Didion
I found this quote some time ago and it really spoke to me. Since I retired, I seem to be morphing into someone I barely recognize at times. I am not so sure that is a good thing, but I am certainly being prodded and pushed places that previously, I would not have dared to venture.
On September 22nd, Teresa and I celebrated three years of being podcasters. When we launched Earrings Off! I didn’t even know what a podcast was. Along with Teresa, I have had to learn which equipment to purchase, take numerous classes on how to work the purchased equipment. master recording, editing and how to craft engaging show notes to tell our audience what they can expect in a particular episode. Part of my podcasting journey has been a leap of faith and a lot of it has been through trial and error. All of this was hard for me at first, but nothing prepared me for how much I suck at marketing!
When I was fresh out of undergrad and realized my full-time bank teller pay was not going to be enough to pay my apartment rent and allow me to actually eat too, I took a part-time job selling Olan Mills portrait packages. Pam (a lady from the bank) and I started the part-time gig the same day. I remember the training and the room where we worked with the small desk and the landline phone on each desk. I was given a script and told not to deviate from it.
Once I arrived at work, I would be given the names and numbers I was assigned to call that day. I don’t like to brag, but to say that I was great at selling those packages, would be an understatement. I think it was because the folks on the other end of the call didn’t know it was me and because I personally liked the product. I sold those packages like my life depended on it! That was my only real experience selling anything, so all these years I thought I was a natural born saleswoman. However, my new gig as a podcaster has pulled back the curtain and shown me how very, very wrong, I was in my assessment. I am way too much of an introvert to sell stuff. I make myself do it because I believe in the product (Earrings Off!), but it is hard. However, until we can afford to hire someone full-time to handle it, I will keep trying to get better at it. (This is not Teresa's strength either.)
Want to offer me some encouragement and let me know that I am better at selling than I think, get your conference ticket:
Women’s Empowerment Conference, Oct 14th from 6:30pm until 10pm. The Westin Richmond Hotel. Tickets at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/403785492277.
