Making of a salesman
No one wants to become a salesman by choice. People who fail elsewhere opt to become one. I too became one by default. Having missed my calling of becoming a medical doctor, destiny perhaps chuckled while it made me a medical representative, to sell medicines, in my case cosmetics too.
My fate was sealed on a hot, dusty summer afternoon when I cycled down to the Parsi holy temple of Jamnagar where my first interview for a salesman's job was held.
A tall and immaculately dressed Parsi gentleman interviewed me twice for the job that I desperately wanted. The interview changed the course of my life that summer afternoon and lit a spark that propelled me into the world beyond my realm.
Mr. Dastur agreed to give me the job provided I improve my spoken English, become more presentable, and learn manners. He asked me to become a gentleman salesman.
I was sent to Mumbai–then Bombay circa 1973–for training and brushing off the dust and grime from my very raw persona. The biggest thrill was that I had started earning money. I met new people and learned new things that all young lads of 22 ought to be doing.
Training completed, I was posted on my home turf of Jamnagar in charge of four other districts across the region. This meant traveling 25 days a month, nearly one town every day. I traveled by dilapidated buses and smelly meter gauge trains to the remote towns of the area.
I lived in ramshackle hotels and dak bungalows built by the Britishers with a small allowance I was entitled to. I ate in roadside dhabas and hired a bicycle for 2 annas an hour for the local transportation. Riding cycle was still a gentlemanly act back then.
I met 200 doctors, and 300 chemists every month. I hated traveling because it took me away from a lonely girlfriend and two of my closest friends for those 25 days. But money was good, I needed it and frankly, at 22, whoever fought his destiny!
Being a salesman was rewarding all the way. I learned to be gracious and well mannered; I taught myself how to dress well and be well-groomed, how to make small talk in a civilized way, how to wait patiently for hours; a quality ought to be possessed by a good spy and a salesman.
Above all, I learned to put my best foot forward, project myself, project product I sold, and my company in the best light possible.
I remained salesman for the rest of my life; one kind of another, selling this and that.
The lessons I learned have lasted me for a lifetime.
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