Knock knock, me again! Here's why perseverance is golden when job seeking

Does persistence pay when it comes to job seeking?

It did for Adam Miller , who is currently spearheading Australian startup Mr Yum ’s roll out in the UK.

Co-founder and CEO Kim Teo tells LinkedIn , “In June 2020, in the midst of early covid days, this 19 year old reached out to us on four social platforms, asking to work for free.

“We were a tiny company of 15. He saw something he liked and he hunted it down.”

Miller, who grew up wanting to be a zoologist or a wrestler, found a groove in sales, learning from his entrepreneurial parents and roles in market and retail environments. A friend tagged him in a post from Teo saying they were looking for a sales manager. Miller got in touch that day.

“At the time I was kind of in no man's land. I’d just dropped out of university, and had also just moved on from my first startup which I’d been involved in for two or three years. I was doing freelance food photography to tie myself over. I had a well-defined interest in tech startups, specifically within hospitality as that’s where my experience lay. So when I saw Kim’s post, my eyes lit up. It seemed perfect.”

If he was not persistent, the story may have ended there, but when Kim did not reply right away, he tried contacting her another way, and another way, and another way.

“I’d like to think that a trait of a good salesperson is perseverance, so that’s all I did! I persevered.”

He was given a four-week trial and in Teo’s words, he “smashed it” and now, two years later, she couldn’t imagine the company without him. He says he still remembers that initial offer.

“I had a phone interview with Kim on a Saturday, and at the end of the call, she asked if I could start Monday. This is obviously quite unique. It’s not like this anymore of course.?

“I recall getting off that call, going downstairs to my mum and telling her that it all sounded way too good to be true. Spoiler: it wasn’t.”

After going out on a limb to secure a job, what does day one look like? For Miller, it was simply about being true to who he was.

“Honestly I just wanted to present my most authentic self.

“I didn’t quite appreciate the beginning of my journey at Mr Yum as much as I could’ve. We were mostly unknown at that point, and whilst I was excited to be given a go at the company, there was a lot to be proven.?

"That said, it felt great working with some truly amazing people. From day one, it felt like a special group.

“In terms of how I added value, I just worked my arse off. To start, I had the task of cold calling cafes around Melbourne. I remember having to explain what a QR code was before being able to even talk about Mr Yum.

I made hundreds of calls a week. I demonstrated my desire to do whatever it took to ensure our growth, our success and the success of our customers.”

Have you ever secured a job through sheer persistence? Or have you been on the receiving end of a keen bean looking for a role? Share your experiences in the comments below.

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