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12/11/2004: "I start Monday"
Thursday, I had an interview with the general manager of a dealership. Friday, he called and asked me to come in again that afternoon, at which point I met with the sales manager. After a brief 20-minute chat, the general manager said he'd call me on Monday. Well, instead I got a call earlier today from him, asking me if I can start Monday. He also mentioned that he's sending one of their current salespeople for training in London, and I'd be joining them if the course isn't full. I think I have a job.
Of course, absolutely nothing concrete was mentioned, other than having to be there for Monday morning 8:30am. There's been no talk of commission rates, salary (if any), benefits, car allowance, or anything. So as far as I'm concerned, there's still a lot to agree on here, and it's not necessarily a done deal. However, knowing that this dealership is held in high regard, I'm willing to bet that everything should work out fairly amicably.
On one hand I'm kind of excited to start this new chapter in my life, but at the same time it scared me silly - I have absolutely nothing to wear! Dress code in the winter is shirt and tie (golf shirts in the summer). Although I have a large number of ties, I only have two decent dress shirts, and only one pair of dress pants, the ones that belong to my suit. Sure, I have some decent button-down cotton shirts, and a few pairs of passable cords and cotton slacks, but they simply weren't going to cut it. So, in a move VERY uncharacteristic for me, I went shopping today.
First I went to a local 2nd-hand store that deals exclusively in clothing, but of course they had very little selection. I came out of there empty-handed.
[Actually, I went there second. The first stop was at a Nissan dealership that had an ad in today's paper advertising for a sales representative. Unfortunately, I missed the contact person by about 20 minutes, and they're not back in until Tuesday. Oh well.]
Next, I went to Moore's. You've probably seen the ads, and perhaps have even been in one. Believe me, if/when I ever need more business attire, I'm heading there. Those people were GREAT. I brought with me the 10 ties I have that are decent, and told them that I need a sales wardrobe on a budget, and to match these ties. So after about 45 minutes of having my daughter being friendly with every salesperson in the place, and going through piles of dress shirts, slacks, khakis, and dress pants, I came up with 4 dress shirts and 3 pairs of dress pants that will give me a healthy number of combinations to choose from when dressing every morning. Each shirt or pant has at least 3 ties that go with it, so I should remain fresh looking for a while.
So, I'm in it now. I've got a sales wardrobe, a sales job, and some sales training. Time to make some sales! For some reason I'm nervous about giving out the particulars of which dealership I'll be at until everything is agreed on, for fear of jinxing it. I'll tell more after my first day, and I know a bit more about where I stand.
Oh, and just to add to my career confusion, today's paper ALSO had an ad for a product designer that is pretty much me to a T. The cover letter for this application is going to be bang-on. If I don't get an interview, I will not only be very surprised and concerned, I will seriously have to wonder if I could every qualify for any other job on the planet. Yes, my experience is aligned that well to the ad's requirements. More on that as soon as I hear it as well.
