What do you do again?

Bless my father''s south African farmer knowledge and the desire to understand the concept of "digital marketing".A true reminder of how early we "learn" and develop our own human character in life.

A few minutes ago my father called me from South Africa and as the conversation went on my father once again inquired about my career and job. My father asked "Lizelle, I know you sell services and that you are in sales.I know you are in the automotive business and it has something to do with cars, but could you please tell me again that word or thing to describe what your job is again?" Digital Marketing is a tough concept to explain to a farmer that hardly knows how to use a smart phone. My dad quickly commented on sales as a profession."Please tell me that you dont use those very strange comparisons and storytelling tactics I told you since a child!" "You do understand that it was all just made up in order to answer all your "BUT Why's". You do know I ran out of ideas very early on!". This off course created a nice little giggle!

I quickly responded to him with some humor and said to him " I thought all along that comparing people to trees is just a fact! it turns out I drove them nuts since I was very little!

My response off course needed a more dramatic kick to it "Dad, let me explain it to you this way"... "Every Monday I go to my first grade concert , every Monday we need to sell tickets, people cannot miss this great event! They cannot miss this once in a life time opportunity! If they only knew how great it is going to be! Every Monday I get in my zebra costume , sing and dance !It's show time Daddy and I am going to give them an amazing show! IM A ZEBRA daddy! Oh man, I have surely have lost my mind and sense of reality!!

We laughed so much we had to get of the phone and laughed at myself for a while. The things I say and do has yet to be shaken out of me.I have tried it all! Its just a part of my blood that cannot flow another way.

My dad said"Lizelle, I hate to admit this and strangely enough. I know completely understand and get it. Thank you for answering my question"

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Comment by Lizelle Landino on April 20, 2012 at 9:26pm: Haaa - you are good sports:-) Afrikaans!

Comment by Ralph Paglia on April 20, 2012 at 6:10pm: Lizelle - Not at all, and it is probably one of the reasons you do so well working with car dealers... Maybe it's the South African Afrikkaner accent!

Comment by Lizelle Landino on April 20, 2012 at 5:31pm: To share another follow up story on all the bizarreness :-) My good old friend Mr. Ralph Paglia made a funny statement which is NOW my MOST favorite compliment EVER! I I will always remember ! Good thing I know him well enough..... :-)

Ralph said to me the other day " Lizelle, I don't know what it is about you..I can't figure it out..but whenever I talk to you you are stuck in my head for like 3 days" That is great! I assume I executed well:-)

Ralph, I hope you don't mind me sharing b

Comment by Lizelle Landino on April 20, 2012 at 5:11pm: Bobby, funny how these silly things makes the strangest sense to us at times. Goes back to really show
that successful sales and negotiations all require 90 percent of story telling. Telling a story a way that only you
know another person could possibly understand. I surely wish I was lucky enough to live in the same
continent as my dad.

The last few years I have realized what changes and different unique ways he has taught me ,to no longer do the job but deliver with 20x the effort and passion. I wish I knew this 10 years ago, maybe I would have been on a better road earlier in life.

Bobby, the most important aspect to keeping your head screwed on right is to never forget where you came from in order to allow that humble hunger and desire to make positive changes and impact on lives.

Regardless of your profession or your title in a company, if you take on those tasks to make positive changes and influence people in that manner...your career and life path has a fruitful and prosperous future.

And Stan, you are so smart! I am cute :-) Lol

Comment by Lizelle Landino on April 20, 2012 at 12:58am: Lol thanks for sharing in my silly Ironic Giggles:-)