Life Is a Trasaction

My career is sales & marketing. I have been in the field for almost 10 years now (wow). I never would have imagined being a sales person as I am not always the most assertive or aggressive individual. I tend to lean towards the catering & caregiver type. As the economy slowed down my account management position turned into a cold calling sales roll, not by choice and I didn't like it at all. I regularly felt rejected and a sales failure. The sales position striped away my confidence, therefore, I decided to step back, stop resisting the change and learn the trade so that I could succeed at the job at hand. What I came to learn and realize is that sales is in everyone’s life, everyday in some capacity. Individuals that claim they are a "Sales Rep" are not the only ones practicing the action of sales. Each one of us, everyday, exercise the skill.

• We go to the market and we make a transaction - that’s Sales.
• We disagree with our phone bill provider and need to negotiation - that's a sale.
• We want to go on a trip and our partner / friend isn’t interested, so we sell them on why it will be fun and rewarding and ultimately get the trip.

Sales are taking place everywhere, as I believe life is a transaction. We are all exchanging something we find of value for something in return. Sales isn’t always about financial gain.


So as you carry on with your daily life, stop and think about it. Think about the transactions you make. Sometimes it’s simple and other times the transaction is more difficult. No matter what the transaction is - it takes the same steps as a career in sales: passion, persistence, research, knowledge and relationships.

Enjoy your day,

Cara

World and Local Travelers

I am so excited I am flying to Maui for FREE. I have been traveling for years. I have also tried to remain loyal to a few airlines being United & Jet Blue. In my recent days I gave the thought of Frequent Flyer miles up. I was frustrated because I had flown to and from and all around Europe twice on United. I have been to Miami, San Francisco, Tahoe and several other locations all on United, thinking, "YES, a FREE flight must be coming up soon". Heck, I even spent extra to fly United to earn additional miles. I thought for sure I would be traveling somewhere cool for FREE - not because of the savings, simply to show myself I am a world traveler. Too bad any time I tried to book the travel (on my own) I was alerted "not enough" miles.

....Until today and the help of my fiancé. I am so excited he was able to book our upcoming trip to Maui for FREE! Yippee....so the lesson I am sharing with everyone is one get someone to help you because if you have flown as much as you think you have I am sure you have a Free flight. And secondly, the reason I have a free flight is the way Tim booked our travels. We didn’t actually have enough miles to book a round trip ticket (not sure why it makes a difference). What we had was enough miles to book one way tickets for each of us. The results are the same to and from Maui for FREE...I am so excited!!!

We are visiting Maui the first week of May to scout out and finalize our 2011 Wedding. I am so excited.
Cheers,

Cara

Freebies

Wow, it has been awhile since I've published a new post and I have certainly come across some great finds. I should've been blogging this whole time as my nose has been buried in books, magazines, blogs, asking friends and friends of friends questions about planning a wedding. Even though my focus has been on planning a wedding I of course get distracted and off course and find other great Tid Bits.

In honor of "Tax Day" there are articles plastered across the news regarding freebies and great deals. The search engine "Bing" comes up with over 2 million links, with all very similar information (no I did not read them all or even a fraction of them. Page 1 will do).

A few of the "freebies" I have come across are listed below:

Today Only ....15% off all in house and take out dining orders at all participating PF Changs! You can view the ad in more detail by visiting http://www.pfchangs.com/ .

Starbucks also has a Freebie...not sure if it's really for Tax Day...it's promoting their philanthropicall project "The Big Picture...A Green Porject". Anyone who visits a Starbucks, today April 15th, with a re-usable mug will receive a FREE cup up freshly brewed coffee. Check it out at www.starbucks.com/thebigpicture

Cinnabon is offering FREE Cupcake Bites from 6 - 8pm while supplies last.  You can check out the details by visiting their website at www.cinnabon.com/home.html .

           

McCormick & Schmick's is offering a $10.40 dinner special tonight April 15th for all Tax Payers. Tomorrow all prepares receive their meal for $10.40. Check it out on their website at http://www.mccormickandschmicks.com/featured-promotion/TaxReliefCelebration.aspx  

According to ABC, Whole Foods is picking up the sales tax for all shoppers in Tennessee, Alabama, North & South Carolina. Too bad we live in California (or maybe not I love being a California Girl)! I could not locate the promo on the Whole Food website, however, you can read about it on ABC by visiting their website abcnews.go.com/Business/tapped-tax-day-food-freebies-cheer/story?id=10378531

Staples & Office Depot will copy your tax forms for FREE according to www.frugal-freebies.com/2010/04/tax-day-freebies-reminder.html. I was unable to locate this freebie on the company website. 

In reading about all the various freebies I came across an everday site offering coupon codes and daily freebies called The Bargainista. The website is http://www.bargainist.com/ and I encourage you to bookmark it. It looks comparable to http://www.retailmenot.com/ or http://www.couponcabin.com/ , however, it has a tab specifically for freebies. Most all of us (especially blog readers) spend plenty of time online. Taking a few minutes to view websites such as the ones listed above will save you money. Just think of Free Shipping - it can sometimes cost upwards of $20 and over - saving on shipping can get you a new shirt. 10% off a $200 piece of furniture can get you a new picture frame. Or how about Christmas season, every company has some kind of deal or discount, that can help you purchase a more quality gift or possibly even get you 2 gifts for the price of one and the receivers would never know. Just think what a few minutes can bring to your pocket.

Happy Thursday & Happy Tax Day. As much as we all hate paying taxes don't forget what, at least a percentage, goes towards: quality roads, education, freedom. The world around us may be structured differently, however, we are all Americans for a reason.

Cheers,

Cara