Everyone has to pay their dues, just make sure you enjoy the ride you are on.
I was raised a generation with parents who constantly told me that I was capable of whatever I set my mind to. So when I heard from one of my first employers, “I know you think you can do that, and you are probably right…but you have to pay your dues,” I have to admit I was really upset. What does that mean? Consider the generational differences; the Boomer generation, who generally make up most senior management-level positions , are the generation who have worked in the same job for basically their whole career. This is the generation in some cases bypassed college to enter the workforce and have earned their position and expertise through hours and years of hard-work. Enter the Millennial workforce. The Millenial’s grew up in a world where anything you would need to know can be found with a click of a button. This has created a virtual worm-hole where the years of experience and know-how can be summed up, blogged about and seen on You-Tube. I can search right now and learn “how-to” do just about anything. Who needs years of experience if I have Google?
That being said, I still feel that I use technology resources to help me leap frog the older generation, but recently I have come to realize the importance of paying your dues. I am a sales trainer and I work with sales producers, both young and old. I coach them on best-practices, consultative selling process/steps, share marketing ideas and provide counsel where I can. However, all of this is learned through my reading, anecdotes and living vicariously through those I coach. My boss, on the other hand, has carried the bag. He can boast a very successful 30 year career as a sales producer; he knows the heart-ache, the feeling of rejection and the rush of success—all of these feelings cannot be experienced by reading online. No matter how much I pick his brain or listen to the old “war stories” I still can’t say that I have done it. I have to pay my dues.
We, the Millennial Generation, have sometimes been labeled as impatient or that we want it
yesterday. While this may be true, we are wise to find ways to pay our dues. One of my life mentors described career development using this analogy: Your career is like being at a theme park. There are lots of cool roller coasters and you have just boarded one of them. As soon as you reach the top of the initial climb, you see another cooler roller coaster that you really want to get on. You have two choices, you can focus on how much you really want to be on the other roller coaster and spend all your efforts figuring out how to get off the ride you are on and get on the other one OR you can enjoy the ride you are on, and when it is done, you get off and head for the other one.Morale: If you are at the beginning of your career and are facing the “pay your dues” hurdle that is holding you back from being where you want to be; remember to enjoy the ride you are on.
Author:
Bret j Nelson is the All-Star Sales Recruiter and Super Hero Coach for one of the top commercial insurance brokerages called Leavitt Group, he always is on the lookout for All-Star Salespeople.
