I always knew with hard work comes great success... but little did I know how good it feels when hard work is also recognized and rewarded by your own peers.
Making 80 calls, setting 5 appointments, and pitching 3-4 businesses in in one day is the usual at my job. This is the standard. You come in at 8:30am.. immediately look at your phone to see if a business you called yesterday left you a message, grab your coffee mug and go into the kitchen to get your morning buzz on, and then return back to your desk and begin your day.
Dial... introduce yourself... make an appointment.
Dial..introduce yourself... answer questions.
Dial.... no answer.
You may think after a while this can become redundant... lets be honest here. Yes, at times it certainly is.
The one thing that is interesting about this job is the conversation you get to have with people on a daily basis. A good sales person cares about what their potential client has to say-not just trying to make a sale.
I try to be relatable. When I talk to wineries I tell them about Josh over in New Z, when I talk to a lot of business owners I ask where they are from to see if they have moved too, and if I can't relate at all, I at least like to make them laugh at something I say. A good salesperson to me means that even if they don't want to buy this product, they are going to because gosh darn it they like me.
The standard are the metrics I stated above. Even if you are a good sales person sometimes you have to put in the extra effort. Doing these metrics should put you at about 3 hours on the phone each day. When you look at an 8-9 hour day that doesn't seem so bad right? 3 hours on the phone should be pretty easy... let me tell you sometimes it is tough. How many coffee breaks do you take each day. How long do you go to lunch? How long to you look at facebook in between calls or chat with someone online at work? How many 3 second phone conversation do you have with people and then they hang up on you? All this can cut into your day and make those metrics harder to reach.
To me.. I don't want to be standard. I want to be excellent. So lets say that instead of making 80 calls a day, I make 90. Instead of spending 3 hours on the phone I spend 4. What would that do? I tested that out this week.
Over the last week I have made 80-100 calls a day and spent over 4 and a half hours on the phone each day. Yesterday I made 7 appointments and was on the phone for 5 hours. I have worked harder this month that I think I ever had in my whole life.
Yeah college was hard.. but lets face it. Real life work experience is a little different.
What was the outcome of all my hard work and determination this month? How about hitting my quota and then some. I also have been on the top 10 list for calls in the entire SF sales team! Me a "rookie."
The real reason I am writing this post this week: I am writing this week is to encourage anyone who reads this to challenge themselves. Choose something that you do in your life every day and tomorrow do it better. Challenge yourself to not do the standard. If you are taking a walk to get in shape walk an extra half mile. If you find yourself doing something the same at your job every day, tomorrow do something different and do it better. Even if it is something small, I challenge you to try something new for a week and see what success it brings you.
Instead of being normal.. this week put in the extra effort. I guarantee you you will see fruits of your labor. Whether it be a pat on the back, a hug from your child, or your own personal gratification. This is something I tried and it felt amazing to see the results.
My manager tells me that my hard work will flow into next month and if I keep it up he expects big things from me.
Just think if you turn being excellent into being normal.. then what would being excellent get you?
Me.. Callie Christine O'Brien
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Just another day in SF..
Well I have learned more things about California. First of all it is an amazing city with so much to do and so much to see.. but trying to get around here legally in a car to do/ see it all.. almost next to IMPOSSIBLE.. Insert here the California DMV:
So on Tuesday last week the dreaded day came that I had to go back to the DMV. Yes i said back being that this was my second trip b/c the first time after my parents had sent me my title.. the DMV decided that it wasn't good enough. (long story). Anyway, yes here I was back at the DMV and determined not to take another day off work and determined to get both my car and my California license in hand, and I was not leaving till i did so.
My appointment was at 9:30. After standing in line for my ahemmm "Appointment" I finally got to the lady and she said "what are you here for" where I replied "to renew my car and get my car registered in California"... easy right?? WRONG! I then proceeded to hand her every piece of paper I had on me.. passport, social security card, old drivers license, smog test, car insurance... the list goes on and on. On top of the 3 different papers I needed to fill out to even apply! I was armed and dangerous and full of uppercuts!! I then got a number awesome. service right away!!
Again WRONG! I waited in line for about another 30 min to get to someone that would actually start the process. My number was called and I was like please give me the nicest person possible and i can get out of California purgatory! I had an eye exam... where I cheated because I couldn't even see the first line (I think that is a sign i need glasses). Passed that great! Then I started to give her all my paperwork as she looked at me like I was crazy. She said lets get your car registered first.
So we started with that and she was like ummm excuse me for what you want to do I dont have a signature here so you will have to come back on a different day when this is signed by your dad. I almost cried. I insisted that the last time i was here i made the guy highlight in red what my dad needed to sign on the title.. guess what He in now way made my dad sign what he needed to. I am guessing this is why the DMV has like a 2 star rating on Yelp, because they suck! I was so mad, so what i had to end up doing after her calling my mom and talking to her because I was in no way taking off another day at work to get this fixed was that I had to get a California title, instead of trying to keep my Missouri one. Awesome.. California take more of my money in taxes... Anyway that was out of the way and then I had to go stand in another line (who knew.. another line.... awesome...)
So here I was standing in another line waiting to get my plates. The woman next to me couldn't speak a lick of English and I think she was having an easier time than me! About 2 hours in at this point.. and roughing it out. I kept telling myself.. you can do this you can do this. I just kept looking at the line increase outside in the parking lot going inside, so it made myself feeling somehow better that "hey at least I am not in that line"
So finally I got my plates. I was hoping to get some cool numbers or letters that spelled out something.. but no luck there. So then I went to the Drivers license line. I was thinking great this line is so small. Then when i realized I was actually standing in the line to the bathroom, the line next to the drivers license line, it didnt seem so great. Back into the correct line I went.
I stood in line to get my photo taken, thinking that hey at least out of all of this i get to get rid of the horrid chipmunk face I was making in my Missouri license! I ot my photo taken and then had to chose whether I was going to take the Chinese written test or the English one. Hmm hard choice there..
Now the tests that i took online were all pretty much common sense, What is this sign, and how many feet do you have to signal before you make a right hand turn. Online I could pretty much narrow down the choices. After taking 6 online quizzes I felt I was going to ace this test. As I went to my little cubicle I turned over the test and I looked down 45 QUESTIONS!!!! WTF!! What the hell is this I whispered to myself! I went up to the desk "Mam I think you gave me the wong test.." as she looked at me like I was a retard "Um no that is your test and you can only miss 3, if you have more questions stand in line" -I was not going to stand in line so back to my cubicle I went..
45 questions later and a piece of paper full of drawings with x's that equaled my car and arrows pointing to where i was turning, I finished. These damn questions were NOTHING like the online test. I mean what happened to 12 questions.. what happened to narrowing it down! These questions were so confusing I drew stick diagrams! Anyway I said a quick prayer and stood in line once more. Crossing my fingers I passed I watched the people go before me. A Chinese woman failed, the 80 year old woman passed with flying colors (She only had to do the front page?!?) and then it was me...
I watched her as she graded my test. Her arm kept moving as she skimmed my answers. Then she looked up at me and said "YOU FAILED"... crap. I then said "well that is awesome, so when can i take the test again." she replied "Stand in line and I will give you another one" which in my head i was thinking "stand in line of course why didn't I think of that, it is the DMV's answer to everything!"
So as i was standing in line I noticed a Korean man and an older black guy sharing answers. I thought this was hilarious! The woman at the counter caught them and then yelled at all of us. I noticed the little Chinese woman standing in line in back of me too.. she was looking at my test. hers was in Chinese, how did she even know what it said? that cheater!
I got my next test and thank God some of the questions were repeated. I know I got those right. For another half hour I pondered whether it was legal to smoke in a car with someone who was under 18, and whether or not you could drive in a bicycle lane when making a right hand turn, and if so how many feet was I allowed before I could enter. I kept drawing pictures and finally just said screw it and circled one. I missed one more one the last test than I could of, so at least I had to do one question better.
I stood in line just praying, please God just let me pass. I mean I went to college, I have been driving since I was 16, I have only got one ticket and I paid for it, on time, I don't litter, I am a pretty good kid, I don't smoke, I drink but come one every 24 year old does.. but I dont drink and drive.... I mean I was throwing it all out there... PLEASE THROW ME A BONE HERE!
I got to the counter and I tried making her laugh this time. "Man these test are a lot different in Missouri.. I mean we worry about cattle and roadkill.. you guys worry about bikers and pedestrians.. haha" She looked up and glared at me and said "roadkill and people are hardly the same miss.." I counted that joke as a failure and put my head down and waited for my score...
Thank the Lord baby Jesus... I passed!
I think I took the paper so quick out of her hand just in case she miscounted wrong that she looked up at me in awe. I was out of there!! I was FREE.
My drivers license and new Missouri title is coming in the mail and I have successfully put on my new plates!
Moral of the story: $400.00 and many premature gray hairs & blisters from standing in line...Califonia DMV..you deserve your 2 star rating on Yelp.
So on Tuesday last week the dreaded day came that I had to go back to the DMV. Yes i said back being that this was my second trip b/c the first time after my parents had sent me my title.. the DMV decided that it wasn't good enough. (long story). Anyway, yes here I was back at the DMV and determined not to take another day off work and determined to get both my car and my California license in hand, and I was not leaving till i did so.
My appointment was at 9:30. After standing in line for my ahemmm "Appointment" I finally got to the lady and she said "what are you here for" where I replied "to renew my car and get my car registered in California"... easy right?? WRONG! I then proceeded to hand her every piece of paper I had on me.. passport, social security card, old drivers license, smog test, car insurance... the list goes on and on. On top of the 3 different papers I needed to fill out to even apply! I was armed and dangerous and full of uppercuts!! I then got a number awesome. service right away!!
Again WRONG! I waited in line for about another 30 min to get to someone that would actually start the process. My number was called and I was like please give me the nicest person possible and i can get out of California purgatory! I had an eye exam... where I cheated because I couldn't even see the first line (I think that is a sign i need glasses). Passed that great! Then I started to give her all my paperwork as she looked at me like I was crazy. She said lets get your car registered first.
So we started with that and she was like ummm excuse me for what you want to do I dont have a signature here so you will have to come back on a different day when this is signed by your dad. I almost cried. I insisted that the last time i was here i made the guy highlight in red what my dad needed to sign on the title.. guess what He in now way made my dad sign what he needed to. I am guessing this is why the DMV has like a 2 star rating on Yelp, because they suck! I was so mad, so what i had to end up doing after her calling my mom and talking to her because I was in no way taking off another day at work to get this fixed was that I had to get a California title, instead of trying to keep my Missouri one. Awesome.. California take more of my money in taxes... Anyway that was out of the way and then I had to go stand in another line (who knew.. another line.... awesome...)
So here I was standing in another line waiting to get my plates. The woman next to me couldn't speak a lick of English and I think she was having an easier time than me! About 2 hours in at this point.. and roughing it out. I kept telling myself.. you can do this you can do this. I just kept looking at the line increase outside in the parking lot going inside, so it made myself feeling somehow better that "hey at least I am not in that line"
So finally I got my plates. I was hoping to get some cool numbers or letters that spelled out something.. but no luck there. So then I went to the Drivers license line. I was thinking great this line is so small. Then when i realized I was actually standing in the line to the bathroom, the line next to the drivers license line, it didnt seem so great. Back into the correct line I went.
I stood in line to get my photo taken, thinking that hey at least out of all of this i get to get rid of the horrid chipmunk face I was making in my Missouri license! I ot my photo taken and then had to chose whether I was going to take the Chinese written test or the English one. Hmm hard choice there..
Now the tests that i took online were all pretty much common sense, What is this sign, and how many feet do you have to signal before you make a right hand turn. Online I could pretty much narrow down the choices. After taking 6 online quizzes I felt I was going to ace this test. As I went to my little cubicle I turned over the test and I looked down 45 QUESTIONS!!!! WTF!! What the hell is this I whispered to myself! I went up to the desk "Mam I think you gave me the wong test.." as she looked at me like I was a retard "Um no that is your test and you can only miss 3, if you have more questions stand in line" -I was not going to stand in line so back to my cubicle I went..
45 questions later and a piece of paper full of drawings with x's that equaled my car and arrows pointing to where i was turning, I finished. These damn questions were NOTHING like the online test. I mean what happened to 12 questions.. what happened to narrowing it down! These questions were so confusing I drew stick diagrams! Anyway I said a quick prayer and stood in line once more. Crossing my fingers I passed I watched the people go before me. A Chinese woman failed, the 80 year old woman passed with flying colors (She only had to do the front page?!?) and then it was me...
I watched her as she graded my test. Her arm kept moving as she skimmed my answers. Then she looked up at me and said "YOU FAILED"... crap. I then said "well that is awesome, so when can i take the test again." she replied "Stand in line and I will give you another one" which in my head i was thinking "stand in line of course why didn't I think of that, it is the DMV's answer to everything!"
So as i was standing in line I noticed a Korean man and an older black guy sharing answers. I thought this was hilarious! The woman at the counter caught them and then yelled at all of us. I noticed the little Chinese woman standing in line in back of me too.. she was looking at my test. hers was in Chinese, how did she even know what it said? that cheater!
I got my next test and thank God some of the questions were repeated. I know I got those right. For another half hour I pondered whether it was legal to smoke in a car with someone who was under 18, and whether or not you could drive in a bicycle lane when making a right hand turn, and if so how many feet was I allowed before I could enter. I kept drawing pictures and finally just said screw it and circled one. I missed one more one the last test than I could of, so at least I had to do one question better.
I stood in line just praying, please God just let me pass. I mean I went to college, I have been driving since I was 16, I have only got one ticket and I paid for it, on time, I don't litter, I am a pretty good kid, I don't smoke, I drink but come one every 24 year old does.. but I dont drink and drive.... I mean I was throwing it all out there... PLEASE THROW ME A BONE HERE!
I got to the counter and I tried making her laugh this time. "Man these test are a lot different in Missouri.. I mean we worry about cattle and roadkill.. you guys worry about bikers and pedestrians.. haha" She looked up and glared at me and said "roadkill and people are hardly the same miss.." I counted that joke as a failure and put my head down and waited for my score...
Thank the Lord baby Jesus... I passed!
I think I took the paper so quick out of her hand just in case she miscounted wrong that she looked up at me in awe. I was out of there!! I was FREE.
My drivers license and new Missouri title is coming in the mail and I have successfully put on my new plates!
Moral of the story: $400.00 and many premature gray hairs & blisters from standing in line...Califonia DMV..you deserve your 2 star rating on Yelp.
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Hey All..
To answer a few of my moms questions that she had here ya all go:
1) How close are you to the beach?
I am pretty close it is a 1.4 mile walk to the beach. So Laura and I have been walking down to the beach when it is a nice day out. It is a dark sand beach and when I went walking the other week there were about a billion sand dollars!
2) Commute to work:
I take the express bus to work and it takes about 20 min to get into the city. Sometimes it is awesome and sometimes it feels like I am in a can of sardines.
3)How is Josh doing?
He is in New Z now and is working 12 hours days! He says it beautiful there and he said his life is going to be hell for the next couple of months because his days are going to be so long. I haven't gotten to talk to him too much b/c he doesn't have internet yet..(sound familiar?) The winery he works at is huuugge and they are very "go green" instead of having workers work on the grapes picking the leaves.. they use baby goats. I am job prospecting for him with all the wineries I call daily haha!
More to come soon!
1) How close are you to the beach?
I am pretty close it is a 1.4 mile walk to the beach. So Laura and I have been walking down to the beach when it is a nice day out. It is a dark sand beach and when I went walking the other week there were about a billion sand dollars!
2) Commute to work:
I take the express bus to work and it takes about 20 min to get into the city. Sometimes it is awesome and sometimes it feels like I am in a can of sardines.
3)How is Josh doing?
He is in New Z now and is working 12 hours days! He says it beautiful there and he said his life is going to be hell for the next couple of months because his days are going to be so long. I haven't gotten to talk to him too much b/c he doesn't have internet yet..(sound familiar?) The winery he works at is huuugge and they are very "go green" instead of having workers work on the grapes picking the leaves.. they use baby goats. I am job prospecting for him with all the wineries I call daily haha!
More to come soon!
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
My first Post
Calllie in Cali.. I made it!
Here is something to catch ya’all up on life in California. In the words of Uncle John.. Yes all the nuts did roll to California! (90 percent of them living in San Fran) Needless to say… I feel right at home.
The 37 Hour Drive-
Coming out to California was quite the trip. It took a whole 4 days to get out here many starbucks coffee (which now I cannot afford) and about a dozen tanks of gas, Josh and I had a blast driving out here and even managed to find the world largest dream catcher to take a photo opp. The first night we stayed in New Mexico and it wasn’t too exciting.. so I’ll just skip to the night in Vegas. We drove around the strip for about an hour until we could figure out how to get to our hotel and by the time we did we were pooped and didn’t see a damn thing! Sooo our solution: Stay in vegas another night! So that we did.
We went sight seeing the next day. Wasn’t as drunk or successful at gambling as we would have liked but we had fun. Turns out in Vegas you have to actually know how to gamble in order to win anything. (who knew?) So I just played the game where I put chips down and she spun the wheel and I prayed it landed on my number.. easy enough. Lost 20 dollars and was over that. Then a day later we drove into San Fran and viola gas prices were high and I knew this was my new home! Sorry to be vague here… but it was 2 months ago.
Yelp Training:
So on my first day of training the first girl I met was named Suzanne and she was only the coolest girl in the world.. not only did she have the cutest shoes ever.. she was a Delta Gamma. So I knew I liked her. I met the rest of the “rookie” class and we all instantly bonded. Terrified of the first day, and eager to learn more about this thing called Yelp. Most of the first month they had classes set up for us to learn the product in and out. If I told you all of this… well then I would have to kill you.. No I am kidding… but it was a ton of information. Pretty much we all felt like our brains were melting and I had no idea how I was going to remember this all. I got really lucky and had a great group of people I was training with. All unique in their own way.
Here are some of my favorites: Jenna- Loud and Blunt, pretty much tells you what she thinks of you right off the bat. McKenzie-from Petaluma California, she is super nice and makes fun of Dennis constantly. Dennis- a guy from Vegas who I absolutely love and adore and has the best laugh you have ever heard, it is infectious. He worked at Yelp as a Lead Gen (sets appointments for the Senior Execs) and now is training in Sales. Courtney- A ex sales rep for go-daddy.com who lived in New York, Alex- A beauty queen/tom boy from Sacramento who I bonded with instantly and has invited me to her house for Easter. (there are more but those are my favs)
Anyway where was I.. oh yes training. So pretty much they fill your head with tuns of information the first month and then second months they put you to work on the phones. This is your reality check and you realize the fake conversations you have been practicing with your buddy are not necessarily the way things really go when you are talking to an owner.
Needless to say I have formed some thick skin and am now a human lie detector. If you are a worker who is screening your calls for the owner standing right behind you.. I know. If you are the owner that is pretending to not be the owner… I know. If you are trying to act like you cannot speak English…I know. And last but not least, If you are a person pretending to be a worker, who is actually the owner and you act like you can’t speak English…. Yes I know.
I made my first deal to a Korean Gym owner that had no idea what Yelp was, had no traffic on his page.. or any reviews. Pretty much the hardest thing you can sell when someone has no idea who you are, so I felt pretty good about that. I only sold him for a 6 month deal, but he said if he saw results then he would upgrade and add on his other location. So I have been watching his page ever since hoping he loves Yelp.. he will I know it.
At end of this month we are being put onto a real sales team! So instead of having a 5 k quota now I will have a 10 k quota. So seeing as I only sold 2.925 of my 5K quota, this shall be interesting. It wasn’t about the number this month, but I have a feeling next month it will be. I can do it, not going to be a problem. (more to come of this when I write the next one)
1420 Taraval
Now onto the living situation. I love the house I live in! It is beautiful and to have a backyard in San Fran is unheard of. I love my room it decorated it in Light turquoise and brown. I do sleep on an air mattress but I am not going to lie it is pretty damn comfortable. I made sure to buy a nice down comforter so I would trick myself into having a nicer bed. I have nice closet space and actually have two closets. One for shoes of course! I have the smallest room in the house, but it is perfect just for me. As for the rest of the house having 1 bathroom hasn’t been a problem b/c everyone else showers at night! This rocks my socks off b/c I am the only one in there in the morning.
Christie loves Zebra and animal print and her room is awesome. HUUGE walk in closets. Laura works with me and she loves to read and goes out a lot on the weekends. She reminds me a lot of the girls I hung out in college. Her room is simple a lot of decorations of when she went to Japan and taught English there. Diona is our new roommate and she is a student. She isn’t here much b/c she is at school and at work as a waitress, but she is outgoing and artistic and plays her keyboard up stairs. She is in the same circle of friends as Christie so it ended working out great.
As far as the rest of the house we have had some issues with the door. Our house is old built in 1906 or something crazy like that so a lot of things about the house are unique. One of the things I am not so crazy about it how the doors lock automatically when you shut them. I have gotten locked out about 2 times now. I have learned what businesses around our house have ladders to climb on the roof and gain access through the bathroom window, and to not ask the SF cops for help because they just laugh at you are only good for giving you parking tickets. I haven’t decided yet if our house is haunted, but seeing as it was built that long ago chances are pretty good.
We found all of our furniture on Craigslist and got some pretty amazing stuff. Our couches match even though they are not from the same person. One is suede and I am pretty sure it was brand new. We bought a kitchen table from lesbian couple and they hauled it for us. So that was a win for us. Haha. We decorated most of the house with zebra and black and white in the living room. We hustled a TV from Christie’s friend and her mom sent us all our kitchen appliances. So as far as the house goes we pretty much have everything we need. Thanks to craigslist our house now looks like a home.
Experiences in SF (so far)
Well SF is deff different from good ole STL. It is dirtier in some parts, there are more homeless people lurking about, and the chances of you getting high by just walking around are probable… and somehow I love it. (Not for those reasons)
I love SF there is so mush life here and you never know what you are going to run into. I love walking to the subway everyday because there is always some new street performer. It could be someone you may see on the next American Idol. The shopping is FANTASTIC, not that I would know because I can’t afford it, but they have the best window shopping around. The 1st time I went into the 3 story forever 21, I thought I died and went to heaven. The mall here is insane and 9 stories tall and has everything from Dolce & Gabbana to Prada. One day… I will be able to afford them!
What else is good here…
OMG how could I forget to mention the FOOD! I swear if wasn’t living off soup and rice then I would gain like 100 lbs. The smell of the food on the streets is crazy. So many delicious places to eat! I had the most amazing clam chowder down at the marina one time. It was the BOMB! Also so many great mom and pop restaurants… ohh and the sushi.. sushi sushi everywhere! It is great!
Luckily Yelp has a full kitchen and they have breakfast and lunch for us so I really save money on food. But every once and a while I like to treat myself and get something new!
As for tonight.. it is now my bedtime. Full day tomorrow..
More to Come...
Here is something to catch ya’all up on life in California. In the words of Uncle John.. Yes all the nuts did roll to California! (90 percent of them living in San Fran) Needless to say… I feel right at home.
The 37 Hour Drive-
Coming out to California was quite the trip. It took a whole 4 days to get out here many starbucks coffee (which now I cannot afford) and about a dozen tanks of gas, Josh and I had a blast driving out here and even managed to find the world largest dream catcher to take a photo opp. The first night we stayed in New Mexico and it wasn’t too exciting.. so I’ll just skip to the night in Vegas. We drove around the strip for about an hour until we could figure out how to get to our hotel and by the time we did we were pooped and didn’t see a damn thing! Sooo our solution: Stay in vegas another night! So that we did.
We went sight seeing the next day. Wasn’t as drunk or successful at gambling as we would have liked but we had fun. Turns out in Vegas you have to actually know how to gamble in order to win anything. (who knew?) So I just played the game where I put chips down and she spun the wheel and I prayed it landed on my number.. easy enough. Lost 20 dollars and was over that. Then a day later we drove into San Fran and viola gas prices were high and I knew this was my new home! Sorry to be vague here… but it was 2 months ago.
Yelp Training:
So on my first day of training the first girl I met was named Suzanne and she was only the coolest girl in the world.. not only did she have the cutest shoes ever.. she was a Delta Gamma. So I knew I liked her. I met the rest of the “rookie” class and we all instantly bonded. Terrified of the first day, and eager to learn more about this thing called Yelp. Most of the first month they had classes set up for us to learn the product in and out. If I told you all of this… well then I would have to kill you.. No I am kidding… but it was a ton of information. Pretty much we all felt like our brains were melting and I had no idea how I was going to remember this all. I got really lucky and had a great group of people I was training with. All unique in their own way.
Here are some of my favorites: Jenna- Loud and Blunt, pretty much tells you what she thinks of you right off the bat. McKenzie-from Petaluma California, she is super nice and makes fun of Dennis constantly. Dennis- a guy from Vegas who I absolutely love and adore and has the best laugh you have ever heard, it is infectious. He worked at Yelp as a Lead Gen (sets appointments for the Senior Execs) and now is training in Sales. Courtney- A ex sales rep for go-daddy.com who lived in New York, Alex- A beauty queen/tom boy from Sacramento who I bonded with instantly and has invited me to her house for Easter. (there are more but those are my favs)
Anyway where was I.. oh yes training. So pretty much they fill your head with tuns of information the first month and then second months they put you to work on the phones. This is your reality check and you realize the fake conversations you have been practicing with your buddy are not necessarily the way things really go when you are talking to an owner.
Needless to say I have formed some thick skin and am now a human lie detector. If you are a worker who is screening your calls for the owner standing right behind you.. I know. If you are the owner that is pretending to not be the owner… I know. If you are trying to act like you cannot speak English…I know. And last but not least, If you are a person pretending to be a worker, who is actually the owner and you act like you can’t speak English…. Yes I know.
I made my first deal to a Korean Gym owner that had no idea what Yelp was, had no traffic on his page.. or any reviews. Pretty much the hardest thing you can sell when someone has no idea who you are, so I felt pretty good about that. I only sold him for a 6 month deal, but he said if he saw results then he would upgrade and add on his other location. So I have been watching his page ever since hoping he loves Yelp.. he will I know it.
At end of this month we are being put onto a real sales team! So instead of having a 5 k quota now I will have a 10 k quota. So seeing as I only sold 2.925 of my 5K quota, this shall be interesting. It wasn’t about the number this month, but I have a feeling next month it will be. I can do it, not going to be a problem. (more to come of this when I write the next one)
1420 Taraval
Now onto the living situation. I love the house I live in! It is beautiful and to have a backyard in San Fran is unheard of. I love my room it decorated it in Light turquoise and brown. I do sleep on an air mattress but I am not going to lie it is pretty damn comfortable. I made sure to buy a nice down comforter so I would trick myself into having a nicer bed. I have nice closet space and actually have two closets. One for shoes of course! I have the smallest room in the house, but it is perfect just for me. As for the rest of the house having 1 bathroom hasn’t been a problem b/c everyone else showers at night! This rocks my socks off b/c I am the only one in there in the morning.
Christie loves Zebra and animal print and her room is awesome. HUUGE walk in closets. Laura works with me and she loves to read and goes out a lot on the weekends. She reminds me a lot of the girls I hung out in college. Her room is simple a lot of decorations of when she went to Japan and taught English there. Diona is our new roommate and she is a student. She isn’t here much b/c she is at school and at work as a waitress, but she is outgoing and artistic and plays her keyboard up stairs. She is in the same circle of friends as Christie so it ended working out great.
As far as the rest of the house we have had some issues with the door. Our house is old built in 1906 or something crazy like that so a lot of things about the house are unique. One of the things I am not so crazy about it how the doors lock automatically when you shut them. I have gotten locked out about 2 times now. I have learned what businesses around our house have ladders to climb on the roof and gain access through the bathroom window, and to not ask the SF cops for help because they just laugh at you are only good for giving you parking tickets. I haven’t decided yet if our house is haunted, but seeing as it was built that long ago chances are pretty good.
We found all of our furniture on Craigslist and got some pretty amazing stuff. Our couches match even though they are not from the same person. One is suede and I am pretty sure it was brand new. We bought a kitchen table from lesbian couple and they hauled it for us. So that was a win for us. Haha. We decorated most of the house with zebra and black and white in the living room. We hustled a TV from Christie’s friend and her mom sent us all our kitchen appliances. So as far as the house goes we pretty much have everything we need. Thanks to craigslist our house now looks like a home.
Experiences in SF (so far)
Well SF is deff different from good ole STL. It is dirtier in some parts, there are more homeless people lurking about, and the chances of you getting high by just walking around are probable… and somehow I love it. (Not for those reasons)
I love SF there is so mush life here and you never know what you are going to run into. I love walking to the subway everyday because there is always some new street performer. It could be someone you may see on the next American Idol. The shopping is FANTASTIC, not that I would know because I can’t afford it, but they have the best window shopping around. The 1st time I went into the 3 story forever 21, I thought I died and went to heaven. The mall here is insane and 9 stories tall and has everything from Dolce & Gabbana to Prada. One day… I will be able to afford them!
What else is good here…
OMG how could I forget to mention the FOOD! I swear if wasn’t living off soup and rice then I would gain like 100 lbs. The smell of the food on the streets is crazy. So many delicious places to eat! I had the most amazing clam chowder down at the marina one time. It was the BOMB! Also so many great mom and pop restaurants… ohh and the sushi.. sushi sushi everywhere! It is great!
Luckily Yelp has a full kitchen and they have breakfast and lunch for us so I really save money on food. But every once and a while I like to treat myself and get something new!
As for tonight.. it is now my bedtime. Full day tomorrow..
More to Come...
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