A New Approach to Sales Training

During the application process at Acquirent, one of the qualities about myself that I deemed worth mentioning was my skills in improvisational comedy.  I stated that with my improv experience, I was able to hone in on my listening and leadership abilities with teambuilding exercises.

When I was hired by Acquirent, there were a lot of adjustments I had to make.  It was my first “adult” job, and I was excited to have some sort of stable routine in my life. If there was anything to expect with this job, it was that I’d be dealing with the monotony of making a bazillion calls a day, putting the phone down, and going home.  A lot of people I know who have already done the “9 to 5” warned me that I’d miss college, and wish that I’d have more stimulation.  I was pleasantly surprised when I discovered that the culture of Acquirent was anything but monotonous and that I NEVER missed college (whoever does is a “weirdo”).

A couple of months into the job, I pitched the Improv Improves Workshop to David Chase, Jon Elhardt, and Nate Blackburn.  Each of them were beyond supportive and excited to bring this workshop into the sales culture, and that’s when I knew that all of those people who once told me that my first job in sales would be without stimulation or creativity were wrong. Here at Acquirent, they take our strengths and give them an outlet to breathe and grow stronger.

Every workshop I’ve done so far with my coworkers has had nothing but positive results, and there have been so many great moments that came from the Improv Improves Workshop.  I was able to watch our very own CEO, Joe Flanagan, throw an imaginary hawk named Frederick to members of our management team.  I also had the pleasure of witnessing our Vice President of Sales, Nate Blackburn, pretend to be a little child jumping around at an amusement park.  Stepping outside of our comfort zones, like we do in these moments, helps us gain confidence in our ability as salespeople to push forward.  Because Acquirent gives us the freedom to explore our creativity through improvisational exercises, we as employees and managers can work with a more positive attitude that will carry out to our clientele.  I thank Acquirent for this opportunity and look forward to seeing where the Improv Improves Workshop will take our company’s sales training.