Searching Through Dustbins by Abed Tau

Author:Abed Tau
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Jonathan Ball Publishers
Published: 2019-07-25T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 20

LESSONS TO TEACH YOUR KIDS

Tebz and I don’t have kids yet, but I often wonder what kind of parents we’ll be and whether we’ll be good parenting partners. Tebz is worried that I’m going to be too nice, while she’s always going to be the bad cop. Admittedly, I can also see this happening. I can imagine Tebz yelling at the kids while I secretively wink at them and whisper under my breath, ‘Don’t worry, we’ll have ice cream later when mom is sleeping.’ But beyond ice cream and discipline, I wonder what I’ll teach them. What are the lessons that I would love them to know?

There are three life lessons that I hold dear, and which I would like to pass on to my kids: learn to sell; whatever career you choose, find a way to serve people; and be a nice human.

LEARN TO SELL

Let’s start with why I think it’s important to learn to sell. In fact, ‘important’ is an understatement; actually, I often tell Tebz that our kids will have to present a three-page slide show explaining why they should get first option to pick the juiciest chicken piece at dinner. Whichever child has the best presentation will be rewarded with that piece of chicken; the others will have to make do with rice and salad. Tebz thinks this is child abuse; I call it an education. Jokes aside, I have learned that the man who can sell has a passport out of poverty.

You see, we are always selling. You sell yourself to your teachers, to the girl at the club. You sell yourself in the job interview, promotion discussion, bonus appraisal. In life, you are always buying or selling something, and my goal is to sell sell sell.

If I were to ask a group of employees at a large organisation to identify the most important person in the company, I’m sure that 98 per cent of them would point to the chief executive officer, the chairperson, or maybe even the chief operating officer. Actually, none of these answers is correct. The most important person in any business is the best salesperson. It’s that person who keeps the rent and salaries paid; they’re the ones who keep the wheel turning. It’s a pity that no university or MBA programme has thought to highlight the fact that all businesses, even the non-profit ones, start their income statements with revenue, as I’ve said before.

When you teach your kids to sell, when you make them earn their tuck money by washing cars, gardening and helping with chores, you are teaching them a life skill that will set them apart from their peers. In our highly competitive world, your distinguishing factor isn’t your degree or the fact that you can code. Thousands of people have those qualifications or skills. But not all of them can sell.

SERVE OTHERS

If there is one thing that’s even more important than selling, it’s finding your purpose. That’s why I’ll tell my children to find a way to serve others, no matter what they do.

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