Are you working in the SLOWLANE specifically to gain FASTLANE skills?

[Blue Lion]

Jobs are slowlane, we all know that. However, some jobs CAN be really beneficial to give you the necessary experience/contacts/industry knowledge to start a fastlane business of your own.

For me, personally, after working in Finance for a couple of years, I am now trying to improve my skill-set and knowledge by moving to a sales job in large ecommerce company, that is opening a new office in my city.

My thinking is, that this type of role will be greatly beneficial to improve my sales skills and understand the ecommerce business model, as I plan to eventually launch my own ecommerce business in the future.

I'm interested to see if any of you out there are doing something similar, by working slowlane jobs in order to gain necessary skills, contacts and market knowledge in order to start up your own ventures in the future.

Also, for you members who are currently in the fastlane already, if you had to go back, and work for someone else, what type of job would you do?

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[BrianPM]

I specifically took a slow-lane job outside b2b sales job for some basic securities (base+commission+bonus / benefits etc) with the intention of learning the selling skills and apply the principles to my own entrepreneurial mindset and passions. I'm week 3 in and already hate the corporate mentality, but I'm being paid to develop in the mean time. I need to stay focused to manage my time to allocate quality time to my true drives and passions (learning, business, and control of my day). The corporate life is so depressing. I have no clue how anyone can do this for months, years, or their entire career.

 

[road_runner]

I would say in the very beginning you better learn at the expense of somebody else. I mean you don't want to learn the business you are going to be in from scratch after you have started it, do you?

 

[johnp]

I'm in the slow lane but not to gain fast lane skills. I'm in the slow lane to work on my project.

I purposely took a job that I'm under qualified for. I sit at a desk 8 hours per day. I'm a help desk or something.

In the 2.5 years that I have been here I have: Launched a startup, made connections in my industry, pushed myself outside of my comfort zone, made sales, managed a sales person from my cubical, learned all about marketing, learned about sales through reading and some experience, learned css and html, connected with investors and the list goes on.

Back in the summer I would sneak down into the parking garage at work and cold call people in my industry from my cell. Then I would run back up to work and pretend like I was sitting there the whole time. I'll be starting that again soon.

Don't get me wrong, I HATE every minute of the slow lane and I can't wait until I get my freedom. But I'm trying to take advantage of it while I'm here.

If I were to take another job, then it would be in something where I could learn more skills. maybe something in sales.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[Blue Lion]

I'm in the slow lane but not to gain fast lane skills. I'm in the slow lane to work on my project.

I purposely took a job that I'm under qualified for. I sit at a desk 8 hours per day. I'm a help desk or something.

In the 2.5 years that I have been here I have: Launched a startup, made connections in my industry, pushed myself outside of my comfort zone, made sales, managed a sales person from my cubical, learned all about marketing, learned about sales through reading and some experience, learned css and html, connected with investors and the list goes on.

Back in the summer I would sneak down into the parking garage at work and cold call people in my industry from my cell. Then I would run back up to work and pretend like I was sitting there the whole time. I'll be starting that again soon.

Don't get me wrong, I HATE every minute of the slow lane and I can't wait until I get my freedom. But I'm trying to take advantage of it while I'm here.

If I were to take another job, then it would be in something where I could learn more skills. maybe something in sales.

That's an interesting strategy working at an easy job while you grow your business on the side.

However, for me personally, since I haven't got any solid ideas in place, I think the best idea strategy would be to improve my sales skills and expand my network, until I have an idea which I can focus my efforts on, outside of work.

Then, when I find the idea, I'll look at getting an "easier" and less time demanding job, so that I can balance my day between work and business, whilst also having stable income to support myself until by business can.

 

[Deleted21704]

Ha! I thought I was crazy, but yes I'm doing this. Glad to know I'm not the only one.

I have a background in finance and web design, but upon realizing I'm a lousy salesman, I got a job in sales. More specifically, it's in B2B consulting/research-type sales.

Due partly to the nature of the company (terrible culture), selling practices (aggressive, professional pursuit is one thing, while being borderline rude is another), and work nature (entry-level, strictly numbers-driven, no privacy), the job has turned into something of a nightmare after just 3 months.

Sales is a skill every fastlaner needs. Getting over the fear of cold-calling was invaluable.

But let me tell you something--there isn't much to learn. Business development is 90% grit and 10% creativity. Sales is 50% common sense and 50% confidence to ask the right questions at the right time.

I'm trying to get the hell out of here now, but I'm not sure where to go. What's a good place to go where I can do my work, mind my own business, and go home to work on my own stuff? Everyone offers a consume-your-life 'career' these days...johnp what are you doing? I need a job like yours!

 

[Nadia]

Did this and it is effective to a point. When I lost my first company, I took up a management job and it taught me how NOT to run a company. Shabby communication and dis organised to the max. I saw how companies fail from the inside. Eventually, you MUST let the job go to run a Fastlane, full time.

Fortunately, I got fired in 60 days lol, and I run my consulting company full time now.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[BrianPM]

Good knowledge, and appreciative of all the perspectives that are being posted. I think for anything to properly happen, you have to be 100% invested. I thought I was further along in my fast lane movement, but having a sales job is forcing me to get out of the introvert mindset and face discouragement, which I know I need.

So far its been up-and-down. A mental grind where I feel lost just because of a lack of direction and instruction. Some good days sprinkled in as well, but all-in-all I know its going to force me to grow in some areas, and I'll have to make a decision of when its time to move past the even 50-50 split of slow lane and fast lane time commitment. If I had to assess myself at roughly month 1 into the slow lane experiment I'm probably only at 2-5% fast lane investment. An important 2-5% because without a start nothing else can happen. That's not to say it can't gain momentum quick and build to 25% or 30% quickly and become something real. However, I'm realizing the ground I need to cover is a lot larger than I originally thought coming back to validation - secure those first 3 paying customers and you might be on to something.

 

[OdorcicD]

I think it can be really beneficial if you're with the right company. I joined a (then) startup 3 years ago and have learned so much from really bright folks. The network I built from working here will help me tremendously in the future as well. If the job pushes you out of your comfort zone to learn new things, I don't think it's as bad as some people make it out to be.

 

[SteveO]

It is also a good way to build capital in order to get started.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[Andrew C]

Actually, this is a great way to get some skills under your belt, ESPECIALLY when fresh out of school or going through a transition.

Especially with sales.

To get really good at sales, you obviously have to talk to enough people to overcome that fear of rejection everyone has.

I would honestly recommend selling OTHER PEOPLE'S PRODUCTS by having a sales job, especially if you are looking to build a business in the same industry.

That way, the word "no" isn't something that scares you, because you didn't develop the product yourself, you don't have any emotional investment in it.

It allows you to be able to "step outside yourself" and be objective about the product.

If you wait until you have YOUR "perfect" product to sell, you may be too personally invested in the success of the product to be able to take the "no" responses correctly.

You could become overly sensitive RATHER THAN taking it as feedback from the market so you can make improvements to your product.

I worked several sales jobs, and after a while selling just becomes a normal thing through the repetition.

So then, when you are experimenting with product/service ideas to introduce into the marketplace, you can rapidly sell, get feedback, make changes, then get out there and sell again... rinse and repeat!

Dealing with corporate bullshit and politics can try your patience though... stay the course, and continued success!

 

[Nadia]

Andrew is right. Rejection MUST become a normal thing to you with someone else's product. I did that in numerous jobs. Whenever a spa owner/manager doesn't want my consulting, I am thankful because they weren't a right fit for the service of maximizing their revenue through marketing strategies, I provide.

Entrepreneurs learn to build the plane, mid-air. Scared money makes none. I have winged it so many times however I have always succeeded because I trusted God to provide and He DID

 

[smartmoney]

Once I graduate college in a couple months, I'm working with for a fastlaner on his tech start-up. Using it as an opportunity to learn a lot. I'm hired officially as a software engineer, but he's basically taking me on as an apprentice.

Anyone else done this, specifically in the software start-up business?

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[jeremye]

Did this and it is effective to a point. When I lost my first company, I took up a management job and it taught me how NOT to run a company. Shabby communication and dis organised to the max. I saw how companies fail from the inside. Eventually, you MUST let the job go to run a Fastlane, full time.

Fortunately, I got fired in 60 days lol, and I run my consulting company full time now.

I'm doing this now. Some of the things I'm learning, is how to handle marketing with a much larger budget than I've ever used before, and manage a larger group of higher paid individuals.

One of the biggest things I have to constantly remind myself of, is that this is part of my learning from my previous failures vs. being stuck in a current fail.