The Bobby Bones Show - Episode 1: When Sales Is A Calling

Episode Date: May 4, 2021

How do you tap into your inner salesperson? For Chris Lundy, a late-bloomer and raconteur who takes pleasure in knowing that the medication he sells can change lives, it's all a matter of attitude. And after a stint in the PR department for the Philadelphia Eagles, his segue into pharma sales has provided him with plenty of championship moments. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed Human. Make every day feel epic in the all-new Hyundai Palisade hybrid. The Palisade hybrid is packed full of features, cutting-edge tech, and up to an EPA estimated 619 miles of range on select trims and class-leading interior space. Seating configurations for 7-8 passengers,

available H-track all-wheel drive, so you can be ready to go anywhere in style. Learn more about the Hyundai Palisade at HyundaiUSA.com. Call 562-314-4.4.4. 4603 for complete details. All right, if you have ever dealt with a traditional home security company, you know the drill. Expensive monthly fees, contracts that lock you in for years, and waiting around for a technician to set everything up. It's a lot.

Well, now they're Simply Safe. They have completely changed the game. Simply Safe has no long-term contracts, no hidden fees, no being trapped. They earn your business by actually keeping you safe, not by locking you in. Setting up is so easy. You customize your system at SimplySafe.com. It ships to your door in a few days. And with the app guided setup, you can have everything installed and armed in under an hour. No technician needed. And it's not just a camera. It's a full ecosystem of sensors, cameras for inside and outside and 24-7 professional monitoring. If there's ever a break-in, a fire, or a flood, SimpleSaf's agents are on it immediately. They were also named America's best customer service by newsweek, which honestly tracks. Right now, you can get 50% off your new system by visiting simplysafe.com slash bones.

That's half off at simplysafe.com slash bones. There's no safe like SimplySafe. Service opens doors. And at American military university, it can open doors for the whole family. If you have a loved one who served in the military, you may qualify for reduced tuition. AMU offers flexible online programs designed to fit your schedule. so you can keep moving forward wherever life takes you. Learn more at amu.

APUS.edu slash military. Open doors to the future for you and your family with the help of American Military University. That's AMU. APUS.org slash military. You're listening to a podcast. So maybe you're doing something else too, like maybe scrolling home listings on Redfin,

saving places you like without thinking you'll even get them. Because that's what has. house hunting has become. But Redfin isn't built for endless browsing. It's built to help you find and own a home. Redfin agents close twice as many deals as other agents, which means when you find a place you love, you've got a real shot at getting it. Redfin helps turn saved listings into real addresses. Get started at Redfin.com. Own the dream. Welcome to Season 5 of On the Job, a podcast about finding your life's work. On The Job is brought to you by Express Employment Professionals, leading staffing provider that employs nearly 600,000 people annually across more than 830 franchise

locations in the U.S., Canada, South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand. Our vision is to help as many people as possible find good jobs by helping as many clients as possible find good people. Whether you're looking for your first job or you're seeking a new challenge in your career, Express Employment professionals will be with you every step of the way. We understand what it takes to land a new position at a top employer in today's job market. Plus, we never charge a fee to find you a job. And, just like finding a job, finding the best people to fill open positions in your company requires more than sorting through applications. It takes real people, real interviews, discovering the skills you need. At Express, we find people for jobs and companies of all sizes and industries,

from the production floor to the front office to the C-suite. Express knows jobs. Get to know. Express. This is On the Job, a podcast about finding your life's work. On the Job is brought to you by Express Employment Professionals. This season, we're bringing you stories of folks following their passion to carve their own career path. To start off this season, I wanted to focus on a kind of overlooked occupation, a job that if you're good at it, people might not know that you're doing it. All right, I'm recording. Working in sales. So for this episode, I talked to a guy in named Chris in Baltimore. Chris Lundy,

42 years old. Wow. Sheesh. He is a clinical oncology specialist. Which basically is a fancy term for I sell cancer drugs. Chris has worn a lot of hats besides being a pharmaceutical rep in his career.

But he says that no matter what it was, he was born to sell. And so were you. We've all been selling. We just didn't know it. If you've ever dated, you've sold. You know?

Maybe not successfully. Absolutely. Maybe not successfully. But think about that, right? You got a lot of times, you got to go to someone who's a perfect stranger, and you have to bring that person along a continuum

that makes this perfect stranger kiss you. It's all about relationships. It's all about relationships, man. Thank you. That's the point. The dating game aside, he's right. We do all sell each other on ideas.

is constantly. We convince people to think about us differently by how we dress, by what our social media looks like. And Chris's approach to sales is that people really can tell when someone's not being real. I think that everybody has like authenticity radar. I really do. And I think that if people sense that like, wait a second, this guy's not, something's fishy about him. I think they start to close up, you know. He says that's what sets him apart. There are a lot of salespeople who will treat their clients like a walking dollar sign and say anything to sell their product. To me, I just, I can't do any of that stuff. You got to be authentic because again, you're trying to convince someone to think differently. You're trying to convince someone to

behave differently. It's not, hey, here's a pen that I want you to buy. Give me money. I'll give you this pen. I'm trying to change your behavior. I'm trying to get it to the point where every time a patient comes in with disease X, you think, about me and you think about my product. That's a behavior, man. The Chris you're hearing now, that's the Chris whose job it is to be likable, to constantly be talking to people

and generally be pretty extroverted. But growing up, just outside of D.C. as a kid, he was a lot different. I kind of was like a little loner geek kind of kid. I loved comic books. I remember my mother used to talk about that, how I could be in my room. And if it weren't for having to eat,

eat food. I could be in my room for like eight, nine hours. I didn't pay a lot of attention to the real world. My mind was always, always daydreaming, always, all the time. That was his life for a while, in his own world. His favorite comic book hero was Adam Warlock. He kept to himself right up until about the 10th grade. I remember writing an essay. I don't even remember what it was about. The teacher was Mr. Howard, it looked like he wasn't even sure that I actually wrote it. Like, he may have suspected plagiarism or something like that. And so, and I was like, he took you, like, he made you like stay after class or something because he thought you didn't write it.

Well, it's not that he was being accusatory. It was more like disbelief, you know, like where I'm from, man. Like, I'm kind of from like the hood, man, you know? So you don't get a whole bunch of, like, writing, talent. So I think that it just really stood out for him. And he pauses and looks at me, he goes, you're a really good writer. Do you know that? The proof was there.

He had won essay and speech contest before, but he didn't figure it was because he was good. I thought other people sucked. You know? So it took a while to realize like, wait a second, wait a second. Maybe it's not that everybody else runs slow. Maybe I am actually fast. I don't know. It just kind of took off.

I just started talking more, sharing the thoughts I had. had instead of suppressing them. And people, people, you know, liked it. It worked. This late blooming moment really set him on the trajectory to where he is now. I don't know. It just changed overnight, it seemed. And all of a sudden I was like

Mr. Social, extrovert, you know, A-type personality, Homecoming King, Captain of the Football Team. It was, yeah, it was, it was not gradual. After high school, he went up to college and got an English degree, where he was also acting in plays, and had his own radio show on campus.

I started to really hone my skills in terms of communicating and sharing ideas. The first big job he got out of school before Farma was working with the Philadelphia Eagles in the PR department. Media relations. So everything from setting up interviews, let's say ESPN wanted to talk to our quarterback or something, you know, I would facilitate that. He was basically the liaison between players and the public. So his skill set would kick in during moments where, say, he and some players might stop at a Wendy's while on the road and inevitably get crowded by fans asking for autographs.

My job, one of the things I had to do, I had to be the no guy. Because you can't have a superstar player, you know, shutting people down telling them no, they look bad. So I had to be the bad guy. Having lived in Philly myself for a couple years, I can say that they're not fans that like being told no. Exactly. And I guess, like, what is the biggest thing you learned from that job?

Win. Like, win. Like, nobody wants to hear this, that, or that. Like, you got to win. At the end of the day, what's your record? I've got an NFC championship ring. When I pull it out, people think it's a Super Bowl ring because it's big and it's full of diamonds and stuff. It's not a Super Bowl ring.

Like, we weren't that proud of that ring. It's an NFC championship ring, which means there was a ring that was bigger than that. And that's the ring we wanted. We'll get back. to the story in a second. First, a word from Express Employment Professionals. A strong work ethic takes pride in a job well done. This is you. But to get an honest day's work, you need a callback. You need a job. Express employment professionals can help. We'll connect you to the right company. We're committed to your success and never charge a fee to find you a job.

Express knows jobs. Get to know Express. Find your location at expresspros.com or on the express jobs app. Now, back to On the Job. After the NFL, he wanted to make the leap to pharmaceutical sales. So we went for a job at Merck, a huge company. And they basically said, you were in media relations. You don't have any experience in sales. And I tried to, I had to explain to them.

Listen, every day, I have to convince young millionaires, egotistical millionaires, to do things that they don't want to do. do. And if you don't think that's sales, then I don't know what to tell you. And so that that line actually got me in the door. So he could obviously talk to talk. But the job isn't selling a product to the general public. It's selling life-saving drugs to medical professionals. And they don't know you. So the trust isn't there. You know, you're trying to convince a doctor to practice a certain way. And this guy knows that he's got more education than you. He's got more expertise than you, but he's supposed to listen to what you're telling him to do? Like, that's insane. The marketing

department would train reps to go in with fancy graphs and selling points, but Chris did the exact opposite, meeting with doctors for multiple appointments without mentioning his product at all. And so I started by asking questions, like, what's important to you? What do you not care about? Tell me about your patients. What are your needs? What can you? keeps you up at night, those kinds of things. I'm saying, tell me about you. And then once the relationship is set and once that rapport is there, now we can talk about what I have to offer and what I can do and, you know, provide for you and your patience. In an old-fashioned industry, full of reps just trying to sell, sell, sell, Chris's authenticity started to really shine through.

Yeah, and once I saw like my numbers start to reflect what I was actually doing, I was like, how about that. I wanted to get Mr. Howard on the line and tell him, look, man. He cut his teeth selling around New York City, where the competition was fierce. And there was one experience early on in his career that really stuck with him. So there was this doctor. He was huge. He had an office in like a nice area in New York. I don't remember where this was, but it was nice, fancy, nice pretty office. You couldn't see this doc. You go in. There's other reps from other companies all over the place. You'd wait for two hours. and still barely even get, you know, 10 seconds with this guy.

Chris and the other reps noticed that this doctor was never there on Tuesdays. They all assumed it was his day off. But after some digging, Chris found out those weren't his off days. Tuesdays were his Pitkin Avenue days. Pitkin Avenue is the avenue in Brooklyn that you do not want to go to, right? Like, you go to picking Avenue, you're getting robbed, you're getting mug, something's going wrong. It's a dangerous part of town. Turns out, that doctor was from a pretty rough neighborhood.

Those were his days to give back to the community at a small clinic. So Chris decided that's where he'd go. I understand that I'll probably get my wheels and rims stolen from my car, but I'm going to pick it Avenue. And I went in and I told the receptionist that, you know, I was a pharmaceutical rep. And she looked at me like I was an alien. Like, what? Like, we're actually getting a pharmaceutical rep here? Like, are you sure you want to be here?

After about an hour, he got to see the doctor. was so happy. First he was shocked because no one went there. And he was happy that he was actually getting attention at this location, at Pickin Avenue, for his patients on Picking Freaking Avenue. And then the doctor started to criticize Farmer reps he'd interacted with because they'll always go to the fancy office, but never there. Because there's not a lot of money in it, right? You got a lot of patients on like state care or governmental care. It's not a nice, fun, easy place to go. And that's how Chris started building a relationship with this doctor.

To the point where at the plush office, I was able to walk in and reps were like, mad, like, what are you doing going back? How's he getting back there? But that's what it was. I went to Pickan Avenue. I served him where he needed to be served. I carry that everywhere I go. What do you need?

I mean, think about it, right? And sales, you go to a use car lot. That car salesman isn't. thinking about what you need. He's thinking about how can I get what I want out of you? Right? And so if you're a salesperson, but your lead foot is what do you need? Man, you just differentiated yourself right there. Right off the break. You're not like the others. So that really gets on the point of like when I think a lot of people think of sales as a occupation, they probably think of like they use car guy. But to go back to your comic book days,

do you think you use your powers for good? I do. I do. I see and also work with people who don't. And when we're talking about the pharmaceutical industry, we're talking about a lot of money. So yeah, there's a lot of negative stigma, you know, that comes with it. And it's unfortunate because the people who do do it the right way,

they really are like changing people's lives. Chris started off in primary care, generic drugs. And now that he works with cancer drugs, it's different. He'll go into an appointment talking about a drug that could help a particular patient. And the next appointment, that patient's no longer with us. You know, like we can't even pick up on the conversation because the patient has gone. It's a much more urgent world over here. There are real stakes involved.

This isn't just pollen allergy meds. Yeah. Yeah, this is life or death over here. Was there ever a moment in your career where you thought this is why I do what I do? A couple of years back, we were at a sales conference, and they brought in an elderly woman who had stage four lung cancer. That's usually, you know, like, all right, see you, see it later. Get your affairs in order kind of thing. The woman told a story about how her grandson was trying to be.

trying to lift her spirits and made her promise to go skydiving with him later that year. Now, her, she was convinced that she wasn't, you know, going to be around long. So, sure, skydiving, no problem. It didn't matter what he said. He could say, we're going to go to Mars. She'd be like, yep. And she was telling us this story. And then behind her, they pull up the picture of her jumping out of the plane.

She lived because of our drug. and she kept her promise that she never thought she would have to with her grandson. They both jumped out of a plane together. To hear that story and to see that image, it's like, damn, like, yo, we really are helping save people's actual lives. Just throwing a scenario your way, you sold the drug to her doctor that saved her life and allowed her to have this moment.

And she never knows your name. How do you feel about that? That's all right. That's all right. Yeah, that's okay. Because we won. We went to the playoffs. We got the big ring, you know?

So, yeah, it doesn't matter. The job got done. For On the Job, I'm Otis Gray. Thanks for listening to On The Job. Brought to you by Express Employment Professionals. This season of On The Job is produced by Audiation. The episodes were written and produced by me, Otis Gray. Our executive producer is Sandy Smallins.

The show is mixed by Matt Noble for Audiation Studios at the loft in Bronxville, New York. Music by Blue Dot Sessions. Find us on IHeart Radio and Apple Podcasts. If you liked what you heard, please consider rating and reviewing the show on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen. We'll see you next time for more inspiring stories about discovering your life's work. All right, if you have ever dealt with a traditional home security company, you know the drill. Expensive monthly fees, contracts that lock you in for years, and waiting around for a technician to set everything up. It's a lot.

Well, now they're Simply Safe. They have completely changed the game. Simply Safe has no long-term contracts, no hidden fees, no being trapped. They earn your business by actually keeping you safe, not by locking you in. Setting up is so easy. You customize your system at SimplySafe. safe.com. It ships to your door in a few days. And with the app guided setup, you can have everything installed and armed and under an hour. No technician needed. And it's not just a camera. It's a full

ecosystem of sensors, cameras for inside and outside, and 24-7 professional monitoring. If there's ever a break-in, a fire, or a flood, simply safes agents are on it immediately. They were also named America's Best Customer Service by Newsweek, which honestly tracks. Right now, you can get 50% sent off your new system by visiting simplysafe.com slash bones. That's half off at simplysafe.com slash bones. There's no safe like SimplySafe. Service opens doors.

And at American Military University, it can open doors for the whole family. If you have a loved one who served in the military, you may qualify for reduced tuition. AMU offers flexible online programs designed to fit your schedule so you can keep moving forward wherever life takes you. Learn more at AMU. APUS. Dot APUS.edu slash military. Open doors to the future for you and your family with the help of American Military University.

That's AMU. APUS. Dot E.D.U. With Air Tasker, your weekends are a lot less busy. I need someone to fix the wobbly office chair, screen print teas for my kid's metal band. And I definitely don't have time to wait in line for my family. favorite everything bagel. What does Air Tasker have in common with your go-to bagel spot?

We do everything too. Just post your task, set your budget, and one of our local taskers is on the case. Go to Airtasker.com or download the app. Air Tasker, get anything done? What if your soda actually did something for you? Introducing Skypop protein soda with 10 grams of complete protein, zero sugar and 45 calories, Skypop protein soda offers four delicious flavors with big taste and real benefits. Light, refreshing, and ready for wherever your day takes you.

It's anytime protein that helps you reach higher. Skypop protein soda, reach for the sky. Get your skypop protein soda now at Target or Ralph's. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.