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Warning, this will be a substantially long post.
I am a commercial sales consultant for an architectural finishing hardware supplier. In other words, I sell doorknobs. That's the joke anyway, but I'm not finding it very amusing lately. What I actually do, is take architectural drawings and specifications, and do a take-off (estimate) on supplying finishing hardware, hollow metal doors, and frames, wood doors, and washroom accessories. Finishing hardware includes such items as hinges, locksets, door closers, exit devices (commonly referred to incorrectly as panic bars), kickplates, weatherstripping, etc.
I basically quote on large jobs such as schools, hospitals, industrial buildings, and hotels. I quote the job, and if we are awarded the job, I coordinate the entire job from start to finish.
These projects are often quite complicated, and stressful, often involving many hours on the phone, some of them getting yelled at by general contractors who want their product tomorrow, product that takes 3-5 weeks to get.
I have a lot of freedom in my job, and pretty much come and go as I please. I have a brand new company vehicle and a gas card. Sounds great right?
Well I hate it! First of all, I have far too much work on my plate, and with so much work, mistakes get made, and that creates more work. Each salesman is supposed to have a coordinator, whose job is supposed to be to take the job's I have been awarded, and basically take care of them from that point, allowing me to get out and see architects and contractors more. Unfortunately, over the past few years, I haven't had a steady coordinator at all. We would hire someone, I would spend months training them, and just as I was getting to the point where I could trust them with my projects, they quit. We have a new guy now who is picking up on things pretty fast, but here's the kicker: even though he is supposed to be MY coordinator, the department manager, and the general manager have him busy doing their shit 7 hours out of every day. A decent monthly sales number for a salesman WITH a coordinator is $100,000. Well last month I did $122,000 by myself, WITHOUT a coordinator.
If I had a coordinator to myself who I could trust, I could pull $150,000 months easily, with less stress, and less bullshit.
So, my point is, I don't see things changing around here, and I'm really not enjoying my job at all. I need a change drastically before I lose my mind. I hate coming home from work being grouchy, and snapping at my wife and son.
My dilemna is that I have no idea whatsoever what to do. Even though I am good with math, and numbers, and whatnot, I actually prefer working with my hands. I never used to be a people person at all, but being a sales consultant has improved my attitude in that respect a lot. I really don't want a sales job, and I don't want a shitty, dirty, heavy manual labour type job either.
If anyone has a suggestion, please, please speak up, regardless of how outlandish it might be. I need some ideas people.
I am a commercial sales consultant for an architectural finishing hardware supplier. In other words, I sell doorknobs. That's the joke anyway, but I'm not finding it very amusing lately. What I actually do, is take architectural drawings and specifications, and do a take-off (estimate) on supplying finishing hardware, hollow metal doors, and frames, wood doors, and washroom accessories. Finishing hardware includes such items as hinges, locksets, door closers, exit devices (commonly referred to incorrectly as panic bars), kickplates, weatherstripping, etc.
I basically quote on large jobs such as schools, hospitals, industrial buildings, and hotels. I quote the job, and if we are awarded the job, I coordinate the entire job from start to finish.
These projects are often quite complicated, and stressful, often involving many hours on the phone, some of them getting yelled at by general contractors who want their product tomorrow, product that takes 3-5 weeks to get.
I have a lot of freedom in my job, and pretty much come and go as I please. I have a brand new company vehicle and a gas card. Sounds great right?
Well I hate it! First of all, I have far too much work on my plate, and with so much work, mistakes get made, and that creates more work. Each salesman is supposed to have a coordinator, whose job is supposed to be to take the job's I have been awarded, and basically take care of them from that point, allowing me to get out and see architects and contractors more. Unfortunately, over the past few years, I haven't had a steady coordinator at all. We would hire someone, I would spend months training them, and just as I was getting to the point where I could trust them with my projects, they quit. We have a new guy now who is picking up on things pretty fast, but here's the kicker: even though he is supposed to be MY coordinator, the department manager, and the general manager have him busy doing their shit 7 hours out of every day. A decent monthly sales number for a salesman WITH a coordinator is $100,000. Well last month I did $122,000 by myself, WITHOUT a coordinator.
If I had a coordinator to myself who I could trust, I could pull $150,000 months easily, with less stress, and less bullshit.
So, my point is, I don't see things changing around here, and I'm really not enjoying my job at all. I need a change drastically before I lose my mind. I hate coming home from work being grouchy, and snapping at my wife and son.
My dilemna is that I have no idea whatsoever what to do. Even though I am good with math, and numbers, and whatnot, I actually prefer working with my hands. I never used to be a people person at all, but being a sales consultant has improved my attitude in that respect a lot. I really don't want a sales job, and I don't want a shitty, dirty, heavy manual labour type job either.
If anyone has a suggestion, please, please speak up, regardless of how outlandish it might be. I need some ideas people.
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