![]() It was also the first time I had the opportunity to earn “commission”. It was a fairly aggressive industry where the interaction with the customer could greatly impact the outcome of their visit to the store. Getting a job in retail forced me to learn how to cold approach customers, which was uncomfortable at first. I landed in sales by sheer luck, if you believe in that sort of thing. Were you hesitant to get into sales? Why? What helped you overcome it? I learned formal education wasn’t for me, but I did get plenty of practice selling. Long story short, my first exposure to sales was working the cash register in high school, followed by my stint in retail after dropping out of college (I did say it was a semi-successful attempt )). This resulted in many debates with authority figures, employers, and eventually customers. I was always a contrarian in my childhood and questioned everything. ![]() Certain people discover that they enjoy it and are good at it, and oftentimes are drawn to jobs and careers that allow them to leverage this skillset. Everyone needs to be able to sell, regardless of their chosen profession. From selling ideas and negotiating with parents, teachers, friends in childhood, to selling yourself to potential colleges and employers in adolescence. Looking back now, whether you like it or not, you’re selling throughout your entire life. A decade later we find ourselves almost financially independent, which has already created many options for how/when we want to work. I realized that in order to really accelerate my path to FIRE, I needed to come up with ways to increase my income. This sounded great, except for the fact that I was making a measly salary with some commission thrown into the mix, and saving 50% of my income would mean living below the federal poverty line. The so-called “super savers” dubbed by CNBC who were able to save half their income, sometimes even more, and retire in their 30’s. There were new ideas and non-mainstream folks writing blogs about extremely early retirement. Which at the time felt like it was written for me! The timing couldn’t have been better, and the idea of retiring in 15-20 years instead of 40+ was my gateway drug into the world of FIRE. Money Mustache’s The Shockingly Simple Math Behind Early Retirement post A few short weeks had gone by, and I finally stumbled upon Mr. Down the rabbit hole I went……since mid-January was a slow time in retail, I found myself with a lot of downtime to read blog posts, articles, peruse forums, and consume as much content on how to not have to work 40+ years in uninspiring jobs. ![]() It was then and there that I pulled out my smartphone and searched “how to retire early”. A couple of years and accompanying promotions later, I found myself standing in my own store thinking, “is this it”? Please tell us a little bit about yourself: How did you find financial independence and where are you on the path?Īfter a semi-successful attempt at college, I ended up in a retail job. He has an interesting story about navigating his way into sales and the freedom and flexibility this afforded him. Our first interview is with 2Birds1Stone. This interview series is meant to highlight those who’ve achieved financial independence or are on the path to financial independence through a sales-related role. One of the underlooked paths to Financial Independence is a career in professional sales. ![]()
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