No money, no contacts and no experience.

That was the situation in 2003 when I started my company.

Not exactly a recipe for success, truth be told the company did not succeed.

We muddled along for about 4 years, we generated some revenue, paid our bills, but we never really created a business.

My partner and I created a couple of jobs for ourselves.

We were the product and we created no way to scale.

Bummer right?

Thing is, the few times I have interviewed in my life that’s the experience people want to talk about.

When I am in a sales situation with an executive, that’s the experience I draw from.

Our experiences shape who we are and how we sell.

Starting and running a business (even an unsuccessful one) is an experience which shapes how I sell.

Cashflow, balance sheets, P&L, sales, marketing, partnerships… running, even a small business, is a crash course in all of the things.

Not every experience is going to workout, but they all have value.

What experiences have shaped your sales career? Join the Conversation on LinkedIn