“Joyce, I feel like I’ve been drop-kicked and hoodwinked. I was hired and fired and never paid a dime in between. I can’t ever afford it, but right now, a month after the holidays, well, this is as bad a time as it can get.”
I asked the caller to describe what happened, and here’s what he said:
“I’d been out of work for a long time, laid off from a company that paid pretty good wages. I was hanging as best I could, doing odd jobs, following up on every ad and opportunity I could find. Nothing was looking worthwhile.
Then at last, I thought I found the right thing. An advertisement for a sales management job and a chance to make a thousand dollars a week. I figured it was a good match because I knew I could sell and I’ve been told I’m a good manager. I called the telephone number provided and was a little concerned that the company rep wouldn’t tell me what I’d be selling or how many people I’d manage, but I figured they had reasons and I wouldn’t push the issue.
It took several interviews but I got the job. I was as excited as I was relieved. I called my family and told them that Christmas was going to be in January and I’d be playing Santa. You should’ve heard them shouting for joy!
When I showed up for work I learned that I wasn’t on the payroll until I could prove that I’d be a topnotch salesman. To get ready, they said I needed to spend a week with a training supervisor, learning how to sell the product. The best way to learn, they said, was to practice with my family and friends. I was hesitant to ask them, but relieved that everyone I called was so pleased I had found work they wanted to help anyway they could.
I gave the supervisor my list of “volunteers” and that’s when he told me I’d be a door to door salesman, and I wouldn’t be managing anybody. I needed the money so I went with the program.
I spent the next week scrubbing, cleaning, washing, and demonstrating what those super-charged pricey products had the capacity to do. My family and friends helped me by pretending to be customers and I cleaned for them while pretending to sell them products. It wasn’t long before I was ready to start earning some real money.
The last practice session of the week was with my mother, who’s in her late 80’s. She’s old, can’t hardly see or hear or move, but not so old that she couldn’t fall in love with those products. She wanted them and she said so. Well, that was fine, but she didn’t have the money to pay for them and I struggle to support her. I told her, ‘Mother, I know you want them, and they’re good products, real good, but you can’t afford them.’
The trainer heard me say that, and told me I was fired. I had turned down a sale and I wasn’t the right man for the job.
I said, “You told me this was practice. My mother doesn’t have any money, can’t move without a walker, and can’t see if her house is dirty or clean. I won’t sell her what she can’t pay for. ”
“Well, that’s not your problem,” he said. “Your job is to sell products. The collection agency’s job is to get the money.”
With that, I was on the street, poorer and more disheartened than I’ve been in a long time.”
What can you take from this cautionary tale?
When you’re out of work, you’re more likely to suspend judgment and reach for something that looks too good to be true. So here’s a friendly reminder: No matter how good the job might be for someone else, if what you’re asked to do or say goes against your values, or violates your standards, don’t do it or take it. It’s a mismatch that won’t improve with income, time, or experience. Cut your losses and learn from the experience.
