{Day 3} Selling Point

I grew up to be a quiet and quite a lady. I am an only child, usually independent and too hesitant to ask for help from others that I was used to do things by myself. Asking favors from others put me in an awkward light. Gawd, I hate doing those stuff that I made myself believe and swear that I am not going anywhere near the marketing industry. I would die of hunger if my work involves selling something. I think I’m going to make zero sales, one maybe the maximum when I ask my mother or one of my close friends to help me.

I managed to stick by that mentality and I ended up in the engineering industry. Yay, so I work on one project by myself, asking very very small help from others, giving in to others, making sure that I don’t make myself a burden to them like I do things quickly because others might be needing to use the equipment that I am using.

So this went on and on until a fellow Ultimate Frisbee player from work introduced me to financial freedom. He invited me to this talk where I have to listen how money works, why we need life insurance and how could I earn more. The first time I went there, I shrugged it off. I thought, oh, here goes another marketing scheme. But, I kind of didn’t take uhm Peter as a networking agent. Peter, let’s call him that. You know, the guy from work who invited me to this seminar.

That afternoon went straight into my boring weekend archives until he invited me to come listen to him again months after. This time, it was him who spoke about the same principles and the same concept. I didn’t know, but I suddenly got into it. I realized everything that he was talking about after a months of paying the healthcare of my mom. Apparently, all that money go to waste because, thankfully, my mom’s a healthy senior. But, I still buy her the short-term insurance that my company offer for its employees’ extended families. I then joined him in this group whose mission is to educate people of personal finance.

Picture us. Engineers who are happily exploring the world of insurances, life policies, credit, IPOs, mutual funds, stock markets and other thingamajigs. At first, I was dazed and confused and overwhelmed. There’s just too much to think about and to learn. But, then I slowly learned and through Peter, I began inviting people to come hear what we got to say.

One time, I swallowed my guts and think of the lives I can change just by inviting a few of my friends. I managed to invite a couple and they were ecstatic about the healthcare product that we suggest that they immediately asked for the forms to join our groups. And I was thinking that this could be the first sale of my life! And two at that! However, months passed (with our product, you have to decide fro months really) and the girl got pregnant and oh well, I failed to make a follow up. Peter was not around to encourage me to do it.

So I just let go first, slowly pulling back the thought that I am not really meant to be joining the marketing circle.

However, two MBA classes later, blogging offers and 2 payments into my healthcare premiums later, I noticed how influential I get when it comes to blogging and building passive income online. I talk about my blog all the time that my closest work mates created their own blogs and there was a time that we were all blogging our hearts out. I’ve also introduced some basic money making activities to them and they have earned a little somehow. Then, there was time when I went cube hopping and I chatted with a colleague about website building and there I go again, talking about my self-hosted website and the vision I have for it and the finance blog that I’ve put up with like-minded people. He got interested and told me he wanted to learn more about it and asked me if he could like earn money out of it. Of course, you would have predicted. I talked nonstop to him.

I may not have made my first sale in my entire existence, but I have managed to sell ideas to friends, myself (I remember marketing myself as a writer even though I am an engineer by profession) to this beauty company looking for a copywriter and my Motivation report in business school (Named as one of the two best reporters!).

Yes, so maybe I am changing. Maybe I am on the way towards my first sale of financial product that could help other people, not break their bank accounts. Maybe I just lack the confidence and passion on these things. Maybe, if I could bring the same energy that I have with blogging and writing, maybe I could help my fellow Filipinos in their finances. Maybe then I could find my niche. Maybe then I could people out. Maybe then I could teach them to earn more in order to give more.

To my future first sale, cheers.