Jacob Thomas
Columbia,#2UPDATE EX-employee responds
Sun, February 24, 2008
Give me a break people. You went for an interview and it wasn't for you, big deal. I have been on plenty of interviews and knew within minutes that it wasn't for me, but I gave it my honest effort while I was there anyway, if nothing else for the experience. Truth is that I went to work for Lauren at L.E. Concepts back in February 2007 after finishing my MBA at Mizzou the previous December. I didn't quite know what I was getting myself into but honestly I didn't know what I wanted to do with my career either. What I did know was that everyone was mostly my age, came to work clean cut, and most of all seemed genuinly happy to be there. Obviously I was not too keen on working for straight commissions either, but I figured it was time to actually test my grain a little, in the REAL world. I still had an apartment in Columbia and could not afford another place in KC so the guy that recruited me and took me out my first day actually offered me to stay at their place until I got settled. Sleeping on someones couch for a month wasn't exactly the great life after college start I had in mind but these people REALLY CARED about helping me out. So as you already know you start out as a trainee so to speak. You go out with an experienced salesman(woman) and you market whatever products you have been given. How the system works is that you are paid straight out of the pocket of your trainer. It is in their best interests to make you successful! If you totally suck and it is not for you then you would not be asked back anyway! Chances are that you really sucked, had a crappy attitude, and would have never made it out in the real world. Therefore, you would not have been asked back and they were glad your boyfriend came to pick you up so that your negative energy did not take away from the great interactions they had with people that day. After a week or two of going out day to day with various people in the office and getting a good feel for how everyone else does things you start to see how the system works. It really is very simple: have a great attitude, and have fun for the love of God. You are too young to be worried about the corporate ladder and money and all that other crap that will never make you happy. Not that walking in 200 doors a day is always a walk in the park, you will probably get 150 no's right off the bat, even if you don't suck. I had people slam doors in my face, people yelled at me, I almost was stabbed with a #2 pencil, and then I had people that listened to what I had to say, sometimes I would talk to one person and suddenly I was surrounded by people all wanting to see what the deal was about. I had people call their sons and nephews and neighbors and pastors and everyone else to see if they could all go out to see a ball game together. On my way out the door they thanked me for taking the time to walk through their door, ask them as a total stranger if they or anyone they knew liked baseball, and give them an opportunity to get the whole family out together. I met all kinds of people, people that you will never meet in your life because you were scared, scared to reach out of your comfort zone, to try something new, something you never thought you would or could do. I learned more about myself and the people that share this world with me than I could have learned in a lifetime sitting at a desk. I should know, thats what I do now. I worked for Lauren for only a few months, but I will never forget that time. It was the scariest experience of my life because that was as close to the REAL world as I ever got. I did the daily grind, and I did it well. I learned about people, and different ways of doing things, and I learned that sometimes you just have to sneak in the back door.. whats the worst that can happen? I left L.E. Concepts and Kansas City completely and moved back to NY. I lived at home for a while and searched CareerBuilder and finally got an interview with Bear Stearns. I got the job that week, without a single day of industry experience. When I sat down with the company COO in my interview I looked him straight in the eye and told him that I know what it takes and I am prepared to make that committment. I told him this is where I want to be and I am absolutely ready to work my a*s off because I know that is what will put me ahead of the crowd. He saw truthfulness in my confidence and I attribute that to my time at L.E. concepts when I was able to figure myself out. I was only slangin' coups, but it was so much more than that. It is not for everyone, but I would never discourage anyone from the experience. It may not make you rich, although if you are the right kind of person it most certainly can.. However I promise if you put yourself out like that, out of your comfort zone, and figure out a way to make it work you will be better for it for the rest of your life. I promise you that the people who make it at L.E. Concepts or any other shop of that nature are the most socially developed people you will ever meet. It was worth it for me, I learned a lot and now I work for one of the most well respected banks on Wall Street, with L.E. Concepts as the only other line on my resume. It may have worked for you as well, given you a better perspective on life, changed your attitude, but you were scared. It is ok though, because you suck and probably always will. Jacob
Bill
Overland Park,#3Consumer Comment
Tue, November 06, 2007
Thanks for the info on LE Concepts. I answered their vague ad late last week. Since that time they've called me twice and sent me two emails for setting up a job interview. I was a little weary about this since they seemed a little too desperate to see me. I have a great resume but not THAT great. I have an interview set up with them for tomorrow morning but I certainly will cancel now. Thanks again for the heads up on this company.
Megan
Overland Park,#4Author of original report
Tue, July 03, 2007
I forgot to add, the door to sales position is COMMISSION ONLY. I asked them if it was commission or hourly or salary, and they said it was salary plus commission...NOT TRUE. Once again, LIARS