Dillon Barr Southwestern Advantage

I won’t ever forget the call my sales manager, Maurice Howell, made to me while I was sitting in my college apartment doing nothing with my life. At the time I thought I was a mature, patient, well-rounded young man with the world at my fingertips. I could easily make my way through school with the talents I was given and I worked well with others and the thought of rejection wasn’t something I cared to comprehend.

“I had all of high school to deal with rejection,” I joked to Mo when we met for the first time. The thought of leaving the newly hate-filled-mindset of my hometown to the sweet plains of Minnesota just thrilled me more. I don’t think I even knew what I was going to be selling after the first info meeting and my bags were already packed. I was ready to take my hippie self to St. Paul Minnesota.

About two weeks into the internship I actually realized I was a pretty immature, impatient, and abnormally shaped human being. That, though, was the absolute best thing about this job. I actually got to see myself through the microscope, every advantage and flaw about myself. And I think that’s when someone can REALLY start shaping their life for the better. Not to mention the money I got to make in the process.

Weeks progressed and I literally felt myself growing as an individual. Growth has never meant more to me than the weeks I spent on the bookfield, as well as the weeks that followed the summer. It was an experience I could never have sitting at a desk or walking behind someone literally ‘shadowing’ them, when they really just want you out of their way. With Southwestern no one is ever better than someone else. The sales managers and DSM’s (especially my favorite Aaron Schafer) are always there to help you out and put their self in your shoes. Along with that I met other first, second and third year’s that I hope are in my life for a long time.

You don’t ever forget the memories you have with book kids. You can be as immature as you want and they’re right there to act like a kid with you. You can be as serious as you want and they’re right there to have that mature conversation. You can be patient and they’ll wait, you can be impatient and they will act now. I am finally shaping my life for the better and I know some of my best friends are going to be there every step of the way. A nice corny ending from a kid that makes his money selling books door to door and working with the best complete strangers this world has to offer.

Growing up, I looked up to people like Peter Benenson and Margaret Mead in awe. I wanted my life to emulate theirs in some way—I had no idea what I wanted to do, I just knew I wanted to make a difference in the lives of others somehow. But sometime during high school I somehow forgot how to talk to and connect with my peers. Confidence depleted and still questioning my future, I entered my freshman year at the University of Missouri-Columbia timidly and slightly lost.

When I heard about Southwestern Advantage, I was a little anxious. I could barely talk people at school, how could I possibly talk to over thirty new people, everyday? I was determined to change my own life, though, so I packed my bags and headed to out to sell books.  At first, I cried a lot. And missed my comfort zone like crazy. But I very soon realized there is really no need to be nervous when your mind is on service. Every time I knocked on a new door and met a new family, I had the opportunity to impact their lives for the better. And that opportunity is what I desired all my life.

Day by day, my life slowly started changing. I was developing the confidence and self-esteem I lacked for too long. Thanks to my summer selling book, I discovered the person I could someday be. And by continuing to work with The Southwestern Advantage, I have no doubt in my mind that is the person I will become.

It’s something that not everybody wants to do? It’s going to be a challenge? It’s going to help me grow as a person? Sign me up. I’ve always been the one in a group of friends to enjoy the awkward moments or go up to a complete stranger and tell him my friend thinks he’s cute. After being called over to an info by my student manager, Caleb Rich, I knew Southwestern was something I was going to be a part of.  Little did I know it would make a huge difference in the trajectory my life was going.

As a freshman, originally from Texas attending the University of Missouri, I was exposed to this foreign concept called winter. It is not something I enjoyed in the least bit. I was used to having one snow day a year, school being shut down, and then the weather returning to 50 degrees the following day.  I was homesick from the warm and friendly demeanor of everyone who is a Texan, I was not enjoying the sorority I had joined, and my Political Science classes that I was taking to one day go to law school were boring me. I had pretty much had it with school in the Midwest and was ready to transfer back to a school in Texas.

I came to school in Missouri to get away from all I had ever known, but as soon as I hit a bump in the road, I was ready to throw in the towel and go running back to what was comfortable. At my first follow-up interview with Caleb, I remember asking him if this was something I could do if I transferred schools. He told me that it was, but that after being a part of the Missouri group I probably wouldn’t want to transfer. I knew I wanted to be a part of Southwestern and I knew I wanted to go back home to Texas. When I was selected I knew I would finish the summer out and then go back to the University of Texas, where I was waiting to be accepted as a transfer student.

It was about four weeks into the summer, working in Saratoga Springs, New York when I realized I was absolutely loving my roommate and the people I had met and were getting to know in my organization. I decided I would be staying at the University of Missouri. Then, a few weeks later I realized I loved my job and what I did. I loved sitting down with families all day, every day, getting to know them, helping them with their children’s education, and just seeing how other people live. Southwestern was the right choice for me.

Every day was a challenge, I cried a lot, but it was exactly what I needed to tell me where I was suppose to be at that point in my life. Committing to the summer taught me to love where I am at, not just where I went to school but wherever I am in life. It taught me to appreciate my family and friends much more than I ever had before and realize that the hardest things for us are the ones that will bring us the biggest rewards. The success principles I have learned with this company are more valuable than the money I gained and will gain in future summers.

I didn’t finish my first summer as a top first year. I actually just barely made it on the Sizzler trip. I left the summer wishing I had worked a little bit harder, but knowing that I had worked a lot harder than I would have if I had done anything else with my summer. I gained a lot of knowledge and experience from my first summer and look forward to the following summers I will work with this company.  I look forward to pushing myself, getting uncomfortable and growing as a person. I now know that “throwing in the towel” is never the answer, moving forward no matter what, will be the better option. Southwestern has provided me with friends that are goal-oriented and motivated to do something big in life, that I probably would not have met otherwise. It has aided me in better realizing what I want out of my future and the kind of people I want to share it with. Southwestern put into perspective that everything I do in life now is affecting the person I will someday be.

“The person you are going to be, you are now becoming.”

Miguel Joaquin - Michigan State University

My name is Miguel Joaquin. I am a senior at Michigan State University majoring in Medical Technology, and I applying to Medical School in the next month. This is my Southwestern story.

I remember my girlfriend telling me about a possible internship opportunity she had heard about and was interested in doing. She did not know much about it and went to an informational meeting. I had never heard of the company but knew that she was very smart, having a 3.9 in the Honors College, so I had a feeling that whatever she was going to investigate was surely only something that would be worth her time.  The day of her informational meeting she came back and told me it was a sales position and something that she would never do in a million years. The idea of going door to door was a practice she would never entertain. I didn’t think much of it and we went on with our lives.

Ironically, two days after, I bumped into an old friend from High School, Matthew Lomas. We played soccer for a couple of years and had a cordial friendship, but I had not heard from him in a while, occasionally bumping into him on campus.  He seemed like he was in a hurry and told me on the spot that he had a friend he wanted me to meet. I didn’t know where I was going but being a premedical student and a resident advisor, spare time is not an ever-present luxury. I did not really want to meet with some random guy that a High School buddy wanted me to talk to on the spot.  He said it would only take “five minutes”, and I am not one to say no to requests so I grudgingly obliged.

Little did I know that the man I was meeting would be the main reason for me leaving my family and friends for three months that summer, and also why I would achieve an enormous amount of personal growth. Initially, I did not want to hear what he wanted to say because I realized this was the same internship my girlfriend had told me she would never do.  I politely answered his questions, all the while knowing in the back of my mind that it was a waste of time. After spending more time with Aaron Schafer and meeting with him, I started to realize that Southwestern was a great opportunity.  I had always done well in school without much effort but was on a decline. I had gone from a 3.8GPA to a 3.5 and I knew I had to do something to change my habits. I saw that Southwestern would give me the opportunity to do something I felt I had not really done up to that point in my life, which was to consistently work hard. I needed it to be a catalyst for encouraging me to consistently work hard so I could achieve my ultimate goal of becoming a physician. Not only would it give me the challenge I was looking for, it would help me stand out in my medical school application. I needed this because although my GPA was within the acceptable range, it was not the best it could be and medical schools are becoming more and more competitive each year.

I did have some doubts heading into the summer before leaving for sales school in Nashville. I really did not want to leave my girlfriend behind. We were incredibly close and leaving for the entire summer was not the ideal situation for a relationship. I also was not too sure about my ’89 Toyota Camry with close to 200,000 miles on it. I had a few doubts but my want to succeed and to fail and to be tested while overcoming adversity was greater than any doubts that may have crept into my mind. I knew this internship would work if I just put in the time and effort and that is what happened.

I had an average start, a terrible middle, and a comparably great finish to my summer. I worked the hours from day one and I made the money they said I would if I did just that, but Southwestern was not about the money I had made.  It was about being able to fail consistently. The best thing about the summer was the rejection you face every single day. One of the hardest things in life is to continue persevering through rejection after rejection. It is a tough thing to maintain a positive attitude and believe that what you are doing will work out for the best. To be able to deal with the amount of rejection you face during the summer is to be able to handle anything life throws your way. Persisting through the rejection and finding the acceptance is what counts. The people who succeed most in life are those willing to endure the most.

“People in their handlings of affairs often fail when they are about to succeed. If one remains as careful at the end as he was at the beginning, there will be no failure.”  - Lao Tzu

Follow your summer out to the end. If you work hard and believe, you will succeed.

Nicole Thiessen Southwestern Advantage

I am a sophomore at the University of Bridgeport in the USA, studying International Political economy and diplomacy. Growing up in a German Mennonite Colony in South America, Paraguay I soon learned the importance of seeing things from different perspectives and being open to new ideas. It was my curiosity and the enthusiasm of my student manager (Greta Anderson) that made this crazy job look like something that I would want to do during my summer. We met a couple of times and I had the required interviews, but my mind was already set on this idea. It was in Nashville at sales school that reality first hit me and I started to realize what I had gotten myself into J. Waking up at 6am every day and…what? No snooze button? The day was packed with running around in the sun and practicing the sales talk with some breaks to listen to lectures. When we got out of the bus everyone started to RUN!!! Yes, RUN, in the burning sunshine to get to the lecture room first. I was a little taken aback and all this was a little more intense than I had expected.

But the summer was only starting and I was not thinking of giving up. Very soon the enthusiasm of the managers and the inspiring lectures started rubbing off on me and slowly I started to enjoy this routine.

Even though I was a complete stranger to everyone, including the Managers (I was recruited in the US but sold in Canada), I soon felt part of the group and now I consider the people that were complete strangers half a year ago, my “summer-family” J.

The summer was just like sales school, very hard in the beginning, but once you decide to jump in and just do it, it’s awesome! Also my host family was very nice and welcoming and my roommates became my best friends.

If I had to give an advise it would be to JUMP ALL IN…if you are not completely into it, you will find endless reasons to give up and just do something else..but if you decide to be coachable and do all the crazy things (like singing all day) that you are told to do, you will be able to convert your tears into laughter and just smile at whatever situation you find yourself in.  If you decide to do it..then JUST DO IT! Find something that works for you, that inspires you and have fun! I had very hard days and very awesome days, and that’s why this job is all about building good work habits and training your attitude to be constant.

This job is something for extraordinary, courageous people, up for a new challenge. This “job” will teach you lessons that you can learn nowhere else! All you need is good humor and determination.

Throughout high school and my first few years in University, I didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life. I was drifting around like a lost balloon in the wind, went wherever was safe and settled for whatever was convenient. I joined clubs but rarely showed up, I got good marks in school but it wasn’t the best. I wasn’t achieving much in life, but the worst part was that I recognized this and didn’t try to make a difference. One day, my father brought something to my attention which became my first wakeup call: I was scared of success. I didn’t want to take on the responsibility and the work that is required with success. It was strange, but I realized it was true. This idea was incepted into my mind and I became overwhelmed with regrets.

One day, a friend of mine told me he applied for a summer internship. As he described the internship using his poor enthusiasm and lack of knowledge, all I took away were: sales, encyclopedias, and door-to-door. I thought to myself: I dislike sales. I think I am more of a finance person (or so I thought). Who the heck uses encyclopedias anymore? Door-to-door? Are you kidding me? So I said to my friend ‘LOL. Good luck with that. Tell me how it goes.’ A week went by and while we were hanging out, he followed up with me about this Southwestern Advantage Internship. This time, I took a few more things out of the discussion: experience and challenges. Like the idea that was implanted into my mind by my dad half a year ago, these two words slowly crept their way to the back of my mind. The two pieces of information merged and became a humongous light bulb. I then made the decision to sign up for the Southwestern Advantage Internship. Little did I know, this decision was going to change my life.
The unique thing about the Southwestern experience is that it is different for everyone. Each person will face their own challenges and each person will come up with their own solutions. However, regardless of how many challenges one faced, every single book boy or book girl will grow and learn so much by the end of each summer. Going into my first summer, I had no idea what I was in for. When I arrived at sales school in Nashville, I was completely blown away. Besides looking like a dork with my polos and shorts, one thing really bugged me. Why is everyone so gosh darn happy all the time? It was to my knowledge that university and college students be miserable about life. This should be especially true when it comes to waking up in the morning. Yet, everywhere around me people were popping out of bed, dancing, cheering and smiling like crazy people. A little after, I learned about the importance of positive attitude and how it is entirely controllable. The week of sales school flew by so fast, the next thing I realized, I was sitting in the auditorium listening to my last key note speaker. Up until then, I thought I had already seen the best speakers, boy was I wrong. It was then, I realized two things: Whatever this person has that is giving him the ability to captivate the audience, I want it. Second, the only way for me to gain this ability is through this Southwestern Advantage internship.

In my two summers running my personal business with Southwestern Advantage, I have learned more than I have had in my two years of University prior to the internship. I realized the importance in maintaining a positive attitude and how to set high goals but tackling it piece by piece. As well, I discovered how to deal with rejections and discovered the beauty of the sales cycle. Each summer I come away feeling wiser and smarter. It’s true when the managers say the summer is like a condensed roller coaster version of your life along with all its problems. You will feel your highest highs and most definitely your lowest lows. There will be tears of happiness as well as tears of loneliness. But the greatest feeling is knowing that your presence and action changed a family’s life.

One day, while I was in between doors and psyching myself up with flashbacks of sale school, I had a realization: Regardless of what I do in life, I want to make a difference and change lives. As a result, I became a manager and returned for a second summer. Coming back as a manager I was given more responsibility but at the same time, more rewards. It feels amazing watching someone grow and realize their goals. In the end, being thanked for helping them through their struggles is the most awesome feeling.

This feeling of significance is definitely a great perk of the Southwestern Advantage internship, but I believe the greatest gem is the people in the business. Upon admission into the internship, I was exposed to students who are thrilled about life and are motivated to succeed. Instead of making a mockery out of my goals and dreams, they helped me believe I can achieve anything. It was a breath of fresh air. Hanging around with book boys and book girls makes me want to become a better person. If I had made no money in my past two summers, I am glad I made these lifelong friendships. I forgot where I heard this from, but the difference between who you are now and who you are in 50 years, are the people you meet and the books you read. I never thought I would be the kind of person who reads self-help and motivation books, but after my two summers, I can’t imagine going through life with-out it.

We are all given one chance to live this one life as this one person. Regardless of religious belief, everyone gets only one chance to make what they want with the life they get. There are no second chances. It’s a scary truth and it may be difficult to accept. Through countless hours talking to families and myself (yes, talking to myself) during my Southwestern Advantage experience, I have realized this truth. From someone scared of success and living life with regrets, I now want to become an inspiration for others and help others achieve their goals. Whether or not you decide to sell books, do something this summer not just for the money but for reasons that transcends it. Do something that will help you become a better person and grow, because in the end, you will not regret it.

The Porter Family Southwestern Internship Experience

As parents of a college freshman daughter, we were obviously concerned when Channing came home talking about selling books door-to-door over the summer in the Southwestern Advantage  sales program. We researched the company and learned of the reputable alumni (former governors, successful business owners and executives), spoke with her Student Manager, (who drove 3 hours to meet us in person to answer all of our questions and concerns), and most importantly talked with Channing as to why she wanted to take on such a challenging and hard working summer job; then we gave her our full support. That support truly does help the students on those difficult days.

We are so grateful for the maturity and growth she has experienced working for four summers, and now recruiting for Southwestern. Channing has learned so much about self- discipline and motivation, relationships and leadership through her Southwestern Advantage experience than she ever would have in a traditional summer internship. She knows how to run her own business. The sales, leadership, and management training is outstanding.

Southwestern is an amazing company and experience for students that want to push themselves, and grow and develop while being surrounded by managers that truly lead and teach students to be successful in business and in life. Now our second daughter is getting ready to be a “book kid” and she can’t wait for summer.

My name is Anna Hoang and I graduated from British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT) with a diploma in Financial Management. Like most students at BCIT, my time at BCIT was filled with sleep deprived and over worked days. Taking seven to eight courses per semester with midterms and finals crammed consecutively in one week was definitely a challenge. I thought BCIT was the hardest thing I had experienced until I did Southwestern.

Three years ago my best childhood friend, Liz Tran, had just finished her first summer with Southwestern. She didn’t say much about it other than the fact that she sold educational resources door to door. She went on to tell me how much she had learned and grown as a person. It was evident that she was a different person after the internship. She suggested I should give it a try. However, being the skeptical and cautious person I am, I thought she was crazy for selling books door to door, not to mention wanting to do it again the next summer. I did not tell her she was crazy but I am pretty sure she was able to read my body language (something us “book kids” learn a whole lot about during the summer).  My excuse at the time was that I was busy with school. I had already made plans for the summer and that it wasn’t for me. I was uninterested and as my best friend she knew I was hardheaded and never mentioned it to me again.

I didn’t start to take notice of the Southwestern internship until after Liz’s second summer. I began to notice all the people she was meeting; along with all the traveling she was given the opportunity to do. It was evident she was evolving as a person. One night, Liz mentioned that she wished I had the chance to experience what she was experiencing.  So then and there I decided to give it a try. Liz was in complete shock and she kept on telling me that it was going to be hard work. Not to mention I only had a month before we were leaving for sale school to prepare for the thirteen weeks of selling.  With that in mind I was totally committed, ready for a challenge and wanted to step out of my comfort zone and experience change.

My Southwestern experience stripped me of everything I thought I knew about myself and it allowed me to really break out of my comfort zone. Southwestern exposed me to my fears of change (doing something unfamiliar), being rejected, failing and taking risks. Success didn’t come easy (and it came with a lot of tears) until I realized that I had to start making my own decisions instead of allowing my fears to make my decisions. This made my job more amusing and less difficult.  I learned to accept change as it happened and to keep a positive attitude. In addition, learning not to worry about the things that are out of my control was exhilarating.  As the weeks of selling went by I learned that my results were a direct result of exactly what I decided to put into it. The hours I put in, the number of families I saw and my attitude truly correlated to my success.

I completed my first summer of running my own business as one of the top first years and made a gross profit of $19,000. Ironically, I feel the rewards and skills I gained totally outweigh the money I made. I learned important lessons about perseverance, working hard, and being positive regardless of the circumstances. The one on one communication skills I developed while helping over a hundred families was the true positive lesson from this experience.

One of the biggest lessons I learned during the summer is that I had to be comfortable being uncomfortable. It’s funny how we allow ourselves to develop fears or habits that hold us back. This internship helped me understand that once we learn to make our own decisions there is no telling the levels of success and happiness we can reach!

“Be willing to be uncomfortable. Be comfortable being uncomfortable. It may get tough, but it's a small price to pay for living a dream.” - Peter McWilliams

Year: Graduated

Major: Accounting

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Profile: I was born and raised in the beautiful city of Vancouver, British Columbia. I love everything about fashion, music and good eats.

2012 Goals: I would like to have a five person team. Would love to help organization and first years do well. As for a personal goal, I’d love to double my units from my first summer.

Why Southwestern: I first heard about Southwestern through my bestfriend Liz Tran. I decided to do Southwestern because I needed a challenge and wanted to step out of my comfort zone and boy was I challenged. In addition, it’s such an amazing feeling knowing that we book kids get to help families and really provide a service to them about education.

Biggest Challenge: My biggest challenge was learning to control my emotions and to be more selfless. Another challenge during my first summer was learning to keep the same positive momentum throughout the day while working. In order to improve, I believe having a clear goal in mind and just to always work hard regardless of the circumstances.

Biggest Benefits: I learned that thoughts are just thoughts, and that I can do anything I put my mind to. It feels great to step out of my comfort zone and really being comfortable being uncomfortable

Interesting Fact: I LOVE YOUTUBE VIDEOS!! I tend to find some really hilarious ones that make my friends ROFL (rolling on floor laughing) haha!!

Jenny Ly Southwestern Advantage Internship

Everything I have done up to last summer has been a great effort with an awesome start but I have never been able to follow through with the same effort on anything.  I am sure I am not the only one to have admitted finishing strong isn’t top on my list of achievements.  Two events still sting.  High school – does this need further explaining?   Grades 8-9-ish started out fantastic with reports full of A’s and sprinkled with B’s.  The years that actually counted grades 11 and 12 I had barely survived our school’s clean sweep of students who were scraping the bucket; dumping them into alternatives schools.  Thankful for being a quick learner; with barely an attendance to my classes and no prep for exams I had always managed to pull an average score.  My second sting was the Seniors Girls Killarney Wresting team – random.  For those that don’t know me, they would find it odd I was on a sports team not to mention a darn wrestling team but I was.  My coach, Mr. G always said I had the most potential but I had no confidence in myself (positive thinking was far from my thoughts).  I made it to provincials but lost because I couldn’t take the pressure.  Mr. G had pulled me aside and stated,” You fear losing so much that you rather lose on purpose than to try.”  Those words are still branded into my head.

I chose to make a change.  After two years of graduating from Killarney Secondary I swallowed my fear of BCIT’s intense program.  I applied and got in.  To prep myself for school in the fall I applied to North America’s most intense internship running for 140 years; the Southwestern Company.  It’s a 3 month program that consisted of me attending sales school in Nashville, relocating to Edmonton to work, and intensely managing 6 days a week for 75 plus hours.  I was taught to run my own business, booking keeping and all.  I had sold educational materials to families door to door; struck with homesickness and admittedly crying almost every day biking to my turf.  During the 4rounds of intensive interviews I couldn’t understand why they were prepping me on physical and emotional strengths; as I biked to work every morning I had finally understood why.   This internship was my final test after all those years of constantly letting myself down.  This was it.  I needed to complete this from starting to end, strong all the way through.  I gave myself no other option; this was going to be my final test.  If I didn’t past this there wasn’t going to be a chance for me at BCIT or… life in general.  The last few weeks were the hardest strain on my emotions.  I was fighting my best fight to overcome the familiar urge of letting myself slip when things got too hard.  I was holding the status of best first year dealer in Canada, with the chance of being first in all of North America or even worldwide.  Every morning chewing my breakfast was like swallowing down everyone’s expectations of me; one giant gulp at a time.  Excuses would pour into my head as I went from door to door to bail; it was mentally exhausting.  During delivery week I watched excited moms and kids rip open there books and CD’s.  Seeing I was helping provide families with useful and better educational tools for their kids gave me a purpose, it drove me to work harder. I pushed to finish strong for the first time in my life.  It was unnerving - knowing I was giving it my all and accepting the fact I still might…fail.

Summer 2011 was a blur.  When my thoughts drift towards those 3moths all I feel is a ball of mixed emotions, crammed inside my chest ready to burst.  I am so relieved it’s over, and in disbelief I agreed to do it again next summer.  I had done it! I had broken the chains and finished strong, giving the internship my best.  And yes I did end up being the number 1 first year dealer in all of North America, with $28 000 in gross profits – a HUGE sigh of relief.  This was the hardest thing I have ever done and the best I have ever felt.  I overcame my fear of losing – “You don’t know how close you are to success until you try.”