PC Mall Diary - End of Week Three
End of week three! Whoopee! Only 153 weeks to go on my three years plan.
My reflection is on how sometimes, first impression can be utterly wrong.
So – this week we had sales training, given to us by A. , whom we had met briefly in a random shotgun pattern over the previous two training weeks. (No, not the same A as before. A different A. Heck – 400 employees here and only 26 letters, we WILL have some duplication by the time 153 weeks go by!)
And to be honest, I must admit that during that time I had taken a profound dislike to A. To me eyes, she came cross as abrupt and profoundly patronizing. And, here it comes – mea culpa: I was utterly wrong.
1/16th of a second. That’s what studies say is the average time we take to form a first impression and decide if we want to have anything to do with someone new. The rest of that first encounter is spent unconsciously justifying the decision. Probably so fast because any of our ancestors that took longer pondering “Gee – do I want to have a conversation with this sabre-tooth tiger?” didn’t live long enough to pass down his or her genes…
But I digress: I came to discover A. under new lights this week and learned that she is a deeply intelligent person, respectful, quick of mind and bright of wit. Did I say she also comes across as fiercely loyal? All rare qualities I truly respect.
Perhaps then the previous actions were nothing but a foil. I have no illusion about what is going on in this training session: Part of it is indeed training. However, another aspect of it is that we are all being evaluated and judged, by every member of the training staff we meet, and will in time be accountable for how we behave ourselves.
I am glad that with age came a certain amount of wisdom, especially in the art of shutting my big mouth. Works – well, works most of the time.
In any case: You will understand that I had a certain amount of apprehension in spending a week with A, as trainer. Good that another thing I picked up is only worrying about bridges as I cross them.
Sure glad now, since while others in our class will possibly disagree, this has been some of the best and most productive training so far.
You see, A, truly shines when she talks about sales. Unlike so many so called “trainers” in the field, she displays a rare mastery, founded on solid facts and painfully acquired knowledge. She EARNED what she knows, though hard work, through attention to details, through analysis of gathered data. None of this came easy to her, I am sure.
And yet… And YET she still has such a burning fire for it. She loves it, or at least talks about it as if she does, which in the end has the same effect.
I know that a large part of what others students see as spontaneous is actually calculated, but I don’t mind: If the wine is sweet, damn the vintage. I am not so corrupted by pseudo-intellectualism as not to simply enjoy the moment.
She puts on a great show. And that I am also learning an extremely efficient sales methodology proven to work in this industry is icing on the cake.
The hardest part so far is forgetting all the stuff I know, or thought I knew, because it should not simply be discarded en vrac – after all part of the reason I was hired is my industry expertise. But even that is going fairly well, since with age, and wisdom, also comes a sometimes involuntary ability to forget a bit easier.
So – anyway. I think I’ve picked up a serious case of the like for A. And I can only wish it to be somewhat contagious…
Now – Looking back on why I first disliked her: Sales remains an intensely male field of endeavour, though that is changing. And the same applies to technology. Also, I also encountered some pretty outrageous behaviour by women in business, who were forced into them simply to be able to gain credibility, be taken seriously in a chauvinistic environment.
Obviously A. is extremely successful in this business. So now I am wondering about this: What can of mask, what kind of protective behaviour would a bright and talented young woman be forced to adopt to simply be allowed to compete on a level playing field in an industry where males would still have an inherent advantage otherwise?
Just a thought. A pretty sad one at that, in 2007…