#271: The Cliffs Notes version of Sales 101
This is a whale of a story, yes Moby Dick is one of the characters!
As the end of the year was drawing near, I looked back at the most stressful semester in college. I had taken full course schedules in the Winter, Spring, and Summer, and now this, a 21-credit load that pushed me to my limits. Yet, by going all out this entire calendar year, I would be able to graduate a year early.
Note: I was honored to be interviewed on the “Entrepreneur MBA Podcast” and the Episode launched over the weekend CLICK TO LISTEN
Why was I in a hurry to graduate? It was a cost-benefit analysis, and I am cheap! I didn’t want to waste another year of room and board expenses. Tuition was less than 1/3rd the cost of education. I quickly did the math and figured let’s cram it all in! For a short time, my philosophy was C’s get Degrees.
Keep in mind that this was also the holiday season, and I worked full-time at Sears in Ann Arbor. Do you remember when shopping malls were packed? If you were foolish enough to work retail, you were expected to work as many hours as possible. From November 1st through Christmas Eve, I averaged over 50 hours per week. That time frame also coincided with Mid-term and Final Exams.
I needed to take some shortcuts, and that is when I found Cliffs Notes for my American Lit course. Unfortunately, my grade going into the final was an uncomfortable C-. Without a C+ or better on the Final, I would have to retake this course for credit.
I had just gotten off work on Christmas Eve, and headed back to my empty apartment. All my roommates had left a week or so earlier. Checking the mail as I entered the building, I found my transcripts in the stack of junk mail; Pun, not intended.
Tearing open the envelope, I quickly scanned the grades. All but one of my grades were okay. However, a D- was sitting in the grade column for American Lit. I’ll have to stay an additional semester, spend more money, and put my career plans on hold.
My Father had always taught me to do something right if I was going to do it at all. The final exam was on Moby Dick, and I hadn’t even bought the book. I had briefly read over Cliff’s Notes before the Final (literally 30 minutes before) and thought I’d wing it. I deserved the grade I got.
But I couldn’t let it sit there. There was simply too much riding on getting this fixed somehow!
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