The Southwestern Company Internship Difference Blog
When asked about my proudest accomplishment or my most valuable experience… at the top of my list, no doubt about it, is “selling books door-to-door with the Southwestern Company”.
There is no better way to catapult oneself into emotional and mental maturity than through going door-to-door.
While going door-to-door, you inevitably meet thousands of people, from different backgrounds, cultures, and norms. It is the most comprehensive non-traditional educational experience I can imagine. You talk to people about the things that they believe in, how they think, and what they place value on. You are able to see how they treat their spouse and their children, how they treat strangers, and how they keep their living room.
Door-to-door sales will give a person an entirely new perspective – on themselves, on society, and on life. The experience helps you define who you are, who you want to be, and how you can become that version of you.
I am now almost four years out of college and I work in Global Advertising Sales for Microsoft. I am also a writer, illustrator, and entrepreneur. In every sphere of my life, I apply the lessons that I learned from Southwestern Company every single day. I am more confident, more empathetic, more organized, more decisive, more disciplined, and more poised than I would be without that experience. To this day, I carry a copy of the check that I earned selling books in my wallet. Not so I can go around bragging about the amount of money I made, but as a tangible reminder of the summer job which gave me the gut, the tenacity, the work ethic, and the strength of character I have today.
Going door-to-door with Southwestern Company taught me the power a positive attitude and the importance of goal-setting. I learned sales skills, self-motivation skills, and ultimately how to run my own business. I recognize that although we cannot always control our circumstances, we certainly can control how we react to them. Southwestern Company has made me a more valuable employee, a more compassionate friend, and a more dependable person.
Selling door-to-door is an experience unlike any other. It takes hard work and perseverance to develop character; and going door-to-door is a place to do just that.
Good reminder, Haley, of “why we do what we do.” At this point in the recruiting season, when student managers are feeling a bit fatigued with info sessions and follow ups, your thoughts are well-timed. Thanks.