I am not a salesman.

My wife might beg to differ. I mean, how else did a guy like me land a woman like her?

But I've worked at large corporations for my entire career. Like a responsible Asian son, I followed the advice of my responsible Asian parents and took the responsible job so I could provide responsibly for the financial needs of my home.

So naturally, when my wife proposed I stop being a corporate drone and take an exciting commission-based job with her, I scoffed at the idea. I was not a salesman. For the last seven years, large corporations had conditioned me to be good at taking (and following) orders. Mostly about doing math.

Then again, I once had a role as a leader. In my first job out of school, I led and managed over 200 representatives who gave tours and front-line support for prospective students and families that were choosing a college.

It was kind of like sales.

Mostly, it involved meeting new people every day, working with the cool and popular kids, socializing, and leveraging my social network. Fun aside, it was also an involving, all-consuming, often emotionally-taxing job. For years, we ran a very tight ship. We worked hard, we played hard, and in many ways, we all grew up together. They called us a cult. 

Today still, I consider it the most rewarding experience of my life.


But there was more to the college admissions job than the culture and friendships that grew from it. We learned how to talk. We developed poise and solidarity. And through our collective charisma, we became extremely skilled at presenting our school and allowing people to buy from us. During my tenure, applications to our college (which, in the admissions game, is the equivalent of a sale) increased nearly 40%.  

Whether that was because of me or because of the rise of web-based applications is not really the point. I'm just trying to say that the exuberance and loyalty we felt for one another reflected upon the product we presented. We were passionate for each other and fiercely proud of the job that we did. Our product sold itself.

Everwell is a mobile platform that allows businesses to provide employee health benefits at zero cost.

What I'm doing now:

Usually when people hear sales and recruiting they think negative things. I immediately recall the episode of Family Guy where Stewie hires Brian, gives him a "compliment sandwich" and then tells him he has smelly dog farts.

I know most of you don't have smelly dog farts -- even if you know exactly which guy at which cubicle in your office does. But I also know the reason sales and recruiting gets a bad rap is because of the lack of integrity in the business. We don't want to be sold by a salesman, and we sure as hell don't want to be sold into taking a job that doesn't care about us. (For some reason, we believe that corporate jobs that pay a salary and benefits inherently do care about us, but I'd like to debunk that theory HERE.)

That's sad to me. Yet after enduring sales training, I can see why. There are a ton of weirdos that go into sales. There aren't nearly as many promising, educated, or virtuous individuals that want to work in this business. Most of our nation's best and brightest go right into working for a major corporation that we naively presume will be virtuous on our behalf. And I think we've all seen where that logic leads.

That's why sales recruiters hunt you, harass you, and send you unsolicited messages on LinkedIn. It's hard work to find trustworthy people that can also earn money for your company.

But what is sales? Cold-calling? Knocking door-to-door while carrying a vacuum? I'll admit that I don't know everything. But after earning an MBA and watching my father work nearly forty years as an independent businessman, I know that it's not about being dishonest or lacking integrity. In fact, it's the exact opposite.

Sales is about helping people. The mechanics involve learning a basic script, becoming well-versed on a product, and being willing to talk to just about anybody. But mostly, it's about educating people and helping them make a decision that meets their goals.

AN EXAMPLE: Everwell is our new small business platform. Using the latest technology, our mobile web-based system allows businesses to offer health benefits to their employees at zero cost via computer, phone or mobile tablet. In a challenging landscape of Health Care Reform, Everwell provides simple solutions to an ever-growing need. We're looking for brand ambassadors to launch this program following a start-up business model.

It's no different than college admissions.

In fact, it's no different from any job. I'm looking for good, energetic, ethical people. If I was hiring at SusieCakes, I'd want the same thing. I know SusieCakes isn't posting an ad on CareerBuilder going "I'm looking for sheisty muthaf*ckas to help bake me up some CUPCAKES." No, they want people who can smile. People who can show up on time, talk, and be gracious. And who won't mistreat a client.

WHAT I'M DOING: I am looking to help people start new careers. Connect with me on LinkedIn and we'll talk.
 

Aflac protects you

from gaps

where your insurance won't cover

and the loss of income 

when you can't work.

Why Aflac Now?

My wife and I traveled to Thailand for our honeymoon. Every morning, we'd wake early (because of the time change) and watch the sunrise from our hotel window. As I stood thirty stories above local business owners setting up their carts and shops for the morning bustle, I considered how they lived on just a fraction of what I earned every month.

Back home, I presumed I was safe from a hand-to-mouth existence because I had a steady paycheck and health benefits if I ever had a medical need. I was an American-born citizen, I had a good resume and a graduate-level education, even if I didn't physically look all that different from those six million Bangkok residents living hand-to-mouth.

But once I was twelve.

In 1990, my mom got cancer for the second time. My dad and sister didn't tell me much about it, probably because they thought I was too young.

At the time, my dad was the owner of a classic Mom-and-Pop shop. He had a staff of eight, including my mom and sister. Twelve-year-old me had just started learning how to help sweep and mop the floors, take out the trash and collapse cardboard boxes for the recycling bin. I don't know a lot of details about what happened during that time. But I do know that my dad had invested a lot of our money into the family store. Cancer wasn't part of the plan.

Don't worry. This isn't a sad story. My mom just turned 70 and is now as active as ever. Recently, she has been fulfilling her lifelong dream of seeing the world, and even traveled to Cambodia. By herself.

But I still can't help but think of the what-if. My dad was a small business owner with everything riding on his little store. My parents worked tirelessly so my sister and I could attend the best schools possible and perhaps have a better life than they'd had.

What if we couldn't pay for the out-of-pocket expenses our insurance didn't cover? What if my dad had to stop working to care for my mom, my sister and me?

In 2014, Health Care Reform changed medical insurance as we know it. Where ten years ago I might have paid three hundred dollars a year out-of-pocket through my employer-provided health coverage, now I might pay three thousand. In fact, many plans available through the Affordable Care Act include a $12,700 deductible. That's twelve thousand dollars out of your pocket before insurance pays a dime.

So consumer costs are rising. But that's not as scary as the fact that most people don't even know. So, in today's world, when the unimaginable happens -- cancer, heart attack, accident -- people don't just face a devastating health crisis, they face a catastrophic financial crisis as well. Recently, a Harvard research study found that 62% of bankruptcies in the U.S. were caused by medical expenses. Startlingly, over three-quarters of those filers actually had medical insurance.

I think about that twelve-year-old version of me. What if my mom's cancer had turned for the worse? What if my dad had been forced to choose between keeping my mom alive a few more months and keeping a roof over our heads? Maybe we would've been no different than those people at the Thai market living hand-to-mouth. I was young then, and I remember times were tough. But I never knew how close our family came to total financial devastation. I believe that my dad and sister had shielded me from those questions. And I wish they hadn't had to take on that burden alone.

This is why I'm choosing Aflac -- because when hurt or sick happens, it protects people from the financial gaps where insurance won't cover -- and helps cover the losses of income for when people can't work. My goal is to spread awareness so people understand this danger exists and that a solution is here to protect them.

I believe in it, because I know what can happen to a family without it. And with Health Care Reform, the time to make a difference is now.

Connect with me if you'd like to learn more about a part-time or full-time position with Aflac! Email your resume to russell_nakamura (at) us (dot) aflac (dot) com.

Check out what people have said about their experience at Aflac on this Youtube Video!

Russell Nakamura
Regional Sales Coordinator
Aflac Calabasas Region
CA Insurance License # 0I90439
818.857.1866
See My LinkedIn Profile