First day on the job.

While this is very vulnerable for me, I'll talk about this because I think it's important. Especially right now.

My job depends on business transactions. The less transactions, the less pay - it's really that simple. Commission-based jobs aren't for the faint of heart, and they surely have their high risks and high rewards. Those who are good at it have a repertoire of sales tools which have been tested over time and sharpened to excellence. As long as you keep bringing those sales weapons to the right battle, you will have success.

However, what do you do if the enemy is different? Unexpected? When many of the elements that were within your control suddenly become unavailable? I praise and virtually high-five all of the sellers in any industry who are seeing success right now because it's harder than ever before to meet those same pre-quarantine achievements. I also want to remind everyone who has a job right now to take 30 seconds and reflect on the gratitude of being employed because many are in much more difficult situations than we are.

These questions have been on many of our minds - what can I do, how should I adapt, what new strategy should I try, what has been missing from my toolbox that I need to work on, in order to find success again. Trust me - it's what keeps me up to 4:30 AM at night.

And while I look for those answers, try new technologies, learn about new techniques, find ways to improve what I've done before, adjust to managing remote employees, make investments into self-development and training, and more... I find myself facing a significant drop in income. There - I said it. I won't deny it, not everything is perfect in my little world either.

My father has taught me to be fiscally responsible all my life. Except I didn't listen until I was much older - surprise, surprise! In college, I made some bad financial decisions which taught me some back-breaking lessons when it came to what was going on in my bank accounts - perhaps a story for another day. While attending school full time, I was working full time as a delivery driver for Jimmy John's in Blacksburg, VA. By the time I was graduating, I had built up a work ethic that set me apart because I knew working hard is what I needed to do to get ahead in life.

Most of my career at CDW, I sported a second job. Some of those bad decisions left me in debts that I had to pay off for many years. After six-seven years, I got to a good enough spot where I could give myself some more time back where I could focus on more leisurely activities, such as rock climbing, dancing, hiking, running, and all the outdoorsy stuff all of you know I love!

Today was my first day at work at my side gig - delivery driver for Domino's. By no means is this going to close the gap, however it will significantly lessen the impact and stretch my savings. We don't know how long this will last and if there's someone willing to pay me to work right now, I'll do it.

There are many positive, unintended benefits of taking on another job in the present - in addition to more money in my pocket:

• As much as I love my beautiful fiance, she cannot be everything that I need in life (that, my friends, is an unrealistic expectation - for anyone who needs to hear it), especially in the department of human interaction. Getting to chat with new customers, make new acquaintances, and simply being exposed to other people right now is doing my soul some good. I'm a Gemini - I feed off that new energy!
• I'm getting outside more and being more active. After my first shift, I am sore! I forgot how active delivery driving is! Up stairs, long walkways, running back to the car to get to the next house. I wish I remembered to wear my GPS watch to track my steps. Tomorrow! Also reminds me how sedentary I've been the last few months... Wake-up call!
• It's challenging my mind. New point-of-sale systems, new processes, new things to remember and learn. Sometimes a diverse environment can be that jolt to your system that you need to start looking at things differently. I've already learned new things from my new manager around the food service industry that I thought I was well-versed in, from my own four years working for many different restaurants and franchises.
• I forgot what it's like being "new" at something. I'm one of the older employees and I'm futzing around with the POS system like a complete rookie. It's humbling. Gives me more compassion and empathy for my own new sellers... And their stumbling around in our proprietary CRM tool. :)

And the last point I'll make is I definitely need to stop watching so much Netflix. It is so easy to get complacent. To do the comfortable thing. Less time in my day because I'm working 70+ hours a week means I have to be more intentional with the time I have for leisure. Enough with the cellphone, the news, the social media, the repetitive memes, and everything else that melts my brain... How about dedicating an hour to do my creative writing, or work on some art. Practice a new skill, or get in that workout because you simply won't have the opportunity to do it later...

In high school, my GPA turned around drastically when I started working part-time at Hallmark. Less time after school meant less video games and actually focused time on homework. It was amazing how that helped me do better in my academics. By giving yourself a smaller window to make better decisions, it forces you to be selective and accomplish the things you truly want to get done. It makes you more selfish with your precious time.

So I'm looking forward to seeing how my stay-at-home experience will change now that I have some time outside of the house, and much less time to spend on "empty mental calories." I think I like that... all of the non-enriching activities for your brain are like calories from beer: little nutrition, makes you feel good in the moment, and then you regret it later on.

We will all cope and adapt in different ways. This is mine - not right, not wrong. Working is how I've learned to get my needs met in life, it's how I maintain control. How are you adapting? How are you learning to survive right now?