Why Consider A Career In Sales

Certainly if you make the decision to shift into sales it can be a highly rewarding and satisfying career, both from a financial perspective as well as from a personal point of view. To help you make the decision for yourself, five common reasons for making a career shift into sales are discussed.

Financial Rewards

Sales usually earns you more than most other jobs. Successful sales people are rewarded generously, for example, through commission.

Companies value and reward good sales staff, because the more that they sell, the more money their company makes.

Personal Control

Generally, there is the flexibility to control your own time when you work in sales. There is a lot of autonomy – you make your own appointments and run your day the way you see fit.

You can usually control your own income stream. Many sales jobs are commission-related, so the more time and effort you put into it, the more you sell, and the more money you can earn.

Job Security

Companies are reluctant to make successful sales people redundant because they are so essential to securing the company’s income stream.

However if you do lose your job, or choose to leave it, it is usually easy to secure another job, especially if you can demonstrate a ‘track record’ of success in sales. Successful sales people should always be able to get a job and make a living.

Career Progression

Many senior managers either started their careers, or have spent some time during their careers, in sales. This is because it has given them an appreciation of what happens at the customer interface.

Almost all types of jobs in the corporate world requires you to sell ideas to your boss, your colleagues, your juniors, your suppliers or customers. Sales trains you and prepares you to communicate effectively, and can help you to progress further in your career.

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If you have ever had any thoughts about starting your own business then having a good understanding of the sales process is essential. The reason most businesses fail is because they can’t sell their products or services.

It is easy to come up with great ideas!

Fun & Personally Rewarding

A big part of sales is about developing relationships between business people. It involves helping others achieve their goals, and solving their problems by introducing your company’s products or services. Sales is NOT about forcing people to buy things they don’t want. Its about understanding your customers’ needs and working hard to provide a suitable solution.

When done properly, solving your customers’ problems in this way will earn you their gratitude – and you get a genuine feeling of being useful to people!

Career Change after 50

Making a career change after 50 years of age presents its own advantages and disadvantages. There is often good reason for looking at a career change after 50.
Many workers find years of hard physical labor leave their body aching and injury too can debilitate a workers ability to perform in the workplace. Even stressful jobs can take their toll on workers in the white collar section of our society. These workers can look for more relaxed jobs and sometimes choose a more outdoor type of work environment as they scale down their workload towards retirement.
Making a career change after 50 years of age means that the worker will bring a wonderful variety of experiences to the workplace. They should take care to list and describe all aspects of their work history in resumes and cvs, so that prospective employers can take advantage of useful skills already learned.
Even though a worker may not think they have relevant skills for a new career, any one who considers a career change after 50 will have a plethora of skills they may not recognize.
From years of driving, keeping accounts, arriving punctually, working as a team member, communicating with client and staff, understanding banking, taxation or social security, a worker develops a skill base that can transfer from one career to another. Making a career change after 50 may mean taking on more training.
The older worker should not be put off by the thought of retraining. A career change after 50 could be the perfect opportunity to peruse an interest that has been put aside for many years. Even a hobby can become a new career if training, enthusiasm and a niche in the industry allow. The more mature worker may find their dream job waiting just around the retraining corner.
Maturity can be a bonus to some employers. Finding someone who has chosen a career change after 50 years of age, provides them with a stable, experienced and dependable worker who has shown themselves capable of success through a lifetime of work. Although more mature the benefits of experience and training can be valuable to the employer. The older worker needs to see their years of training and practiced skills as a valuable asset to present to likely employers. Even in a new field, so many skills are transferable. With a career change after 50 years, the worker will be able to demonstrate, even if in a volunteer capacity to start with, the advantage of their expertise and experience.
Age should not limit the scope of the career change after 50, the more mature worker still has a great deal to offer any employer.