Earlier this year I was approached by our fearless leader, Brian Kempisty, to discuss a move from Director of Operations for PXL to V.P. of Sales.
Without hesitation I quickly agreed to the role switch. It was time to move on from the trenches of operations to the grinding road of sales.
While I am someone who tends to over-analyze and will draw out decisions, I had been thinking of making a move from Ops into Sales for some time. I felt that I had helped to lead and grow our operations to a good spot. Operations had been running seamlessly for some time and our next generation of leadership was coming into their own and making my day-to-day duties far and few between.
Simply, it was time to let the new generation take helm and face a new challenge.
What I did not truly anticipate is the enormity of the challenge.
Leading the sales team or better yet as we call ourselves, the Brand Ambassadors, has been the easy part. We have a great group that is knowledgeable, hungry and relentless. While we can be selfishly competitive, we have the want and desire to work collaboratively together, knowing it will only help to rise all tides.
The challenging part though has been going from being a “farmer” to a “hunter”.
Operationally, the freight was given to us. Our primary goal was to provide the “Gold Standard” in service and work to grow and maintain the existing customer relationships.
One of my colleagues, Adam Cunningham always said that sales existed to simply “find the door, knock on it and get it opened and our feet in”, the rest was up to Ops.
As I hunt for those “doors” to open though, the reality of this current market has been quite sobering.
While we have a great process in place that we follow each day; while I prepare and plan more than ever to face each day and attack it with energy and strategy, it’s been HARD.
I don’t need to describe the current situation; we are all facing it and living it each day.
What I can describe though is what my mentality and motto has quickly become.
“If it were easy, everyone would do it.”
At Port X Logistics we always speak of our culture. Our culture of fun, of collaboration and of treating people right, it’s built on a foundation of GRIT and Determination. It’s rooted in the understanding that in order to tell the stories, to share in the fun and provide life-changing opportunities for people that first and foremost we have to hammer away, we have to row through the waves. To quote Jordan Fenske, we have to “grind for our families.”
In keeping this perspective, while the challenge remains mighty, I know that the summits I can reach will be worth the efforts.
If Jill Rice can drink water from mud on a grueling hike and Tim Breier can complete that same hike on one good leg and ankle, then I can do this.
It’s all about perspective and determination, and at the X we don’t lack in either. We’ll act with intention and know that if we’ve done it before, we can do it again!
“It’s Day 1, We’ve Got This!”
