Want to know why some people really get ahead in life and many people don’t? Well here’s an example.
Kyle has been a very successful aeronautical engineer who made it in sales a number of years ago and has made a whole lot of money. He has had to change jobs for some very good reasons and it’s clear that he has been successful in just about every place that he’s ever been.
I call one of my clients Thursday morning and she says, “Well, the best I could do would be to be able to see him this afternoon right after lunch, because I’m absolutely covered up for later today and all of tomorrow.” I called Kyle and he says, “I’ll make it happen.”
Now the vast majority of candidates that I work with would have given me all kinds of excuses as to why they couldn’t make a 1 PM interview when I called them at 9:30 AM. “You just can’t expect somebody to be able to make an interview that fast… Besides I’m really busy… Tell me all about it first and then I’ll decide if I want to go… Blah, blah, blah.” Kyle didn’t even ask much about the job or the opportunity. He just said that he would figure out a way to get there.
One PM passes and at about 1:30 PM my client calls and says, “Kyle isn’t here… What’s up?” I called Kyle and it goes to voicemail. It doesn’t seem to be like him, but I call my client and explain to her that I’m at a loss. About 2:45 PM, the client calls and says, “Well, he made it for only about a half-hour, but get this. He was in a car wreck and had his son come pick him up and get him here for the interview. He was a half-hour late, but he made it. He left his cell phone in his car and that’s why you couldn’t reach him. He’s now going back to his car to get a tow truck and get the car off to get it fixed. I want to hire this guy. In all the years that I’ve interviewed, I’ve never had anyone that committed to showing up to an interview. He made no dramatic excuses. He didn’t whine and moan, he just stated that he had unfortunately been in the car wreck but he made it! His track record is stellar, and I can see why”
I don’t know if I ever remember a candidate going the extra mile like that. Most of the time I would’ve gotten a call from the candidate (sometimes in a whiny voice) saying, “I can’t make it to the interview because I was just in a car wreck (woe is me!)”
Kyle makes a whole lot of money and has for most of his career. I mean, lots of money. He’s extremely successful and will continue to be.
It’s pretty clear why. I’ve gotten him to other interviews and everybody else has felt exactly the same way.
