So the Monday after Christmas I had a private coaching call scheduled with one of my Wholesaler Mastermind participants. I was looking forward to this call as “Hal” (not their real name) is a newer wholesaler (less than three years experience) and has worked at a firm that has had senior level management shake-ups and dubious local management support. I knew from our group calls that there was a great deal to discuss and felt confident that I could make a difference.
As we got past the holiday niceties and into the purpose of the call, Hal takes a sharp left turn and explains that he had received a call just prior to Christmas and was no longer with the firm. In addition he explained that a huge weight felt like it had been removed from his shoulder and that he was done with wholesaling.
As a devotee of our profession I felt a bit deflated and disappointed.
Hal explained that after trying to get airtime with brokers for a less well known company, enduring three strategy shifts at the firm courtesy of multiple C-suite changes, and dealing with a Divisional Manager who, in his opinion, was clueless, he was done with the whole financial services wholesaling thing.
And then I started thinking about the fact that it is true enough that not everyone is cut out for this line of work. After all, the hours are longer than long, the role we play in brokers lives’ ranges from teacher to minister to psudo friend and the job is flat out hard.
Unfortunately Hal had those other headwinds that made it even harder.
Working for a boss that adds no value to your career evolution is certainly frustrating. Wholesalers should have a manager that makes their jobs easier and helps propel their careers.
Watching the guy in the first chair at the firm change multiple times in only five years is indeed frustrating. Getting on board with a new set of directives, strategies and tactics can be tiring.
Hawking a product that few are familiar with has great challenges. And yet not every wholesaler gets to show a name brand product – and that name brand product may not even be the best solution.
Hal did try. I have to give him that. He reached out and sought coaching – and paid for it out of pocket. That alone speaks volumes to me.
Yet I can’t help but believe that Hal made a mistake.
I know it’s his career to manage but won’t the challenges be the same in Pharmaceutical sales as an example?
It’s another highly regulated industry with razor thin margins.
Sales managers in that industry are, after all, still sales managers.
Your drug vs. the other firms’ drug.
Great doctors to call on and doctors and you would like to report for malpractice.
Wholesaling is one of the truly great professions. While not for everyone, it has a great combination of ‘assisted entrepreneurialism’, extraordinary earning opportunity, and the ability to make a difference in the lives of those that use our products.
Did Hal make a mistake by leaving our business?
That’s Hal’s question to answer.
As for me, I’m now motivated to start a 3rd Mastermind group that is geared only towards wholesalers with less than three years of experience.
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