Sales Edge Stories: Embracing Grit and Nontraditional Paths with Riley Blaisdell

Celeste Berke [00:00:00]:

Hello. Hello. It is Celeste here on the Sales Edge podcast. I am with Riley. I'm so excited for him to share his story. I will say he has a storied past that he just shared with me. Connect with him if you wanna hear all the details. He started hustling at the in the 4th grade. Right, Riley? 4th grade? Yeah. Hustling and learning Sales before he even knew that's what he was doing. So I'll let Riley introduce himself, and we'll get into it.

Riley Blaisdell [00:00:33]:

Well, my name is Riley Blaisdell. On this platform, I am known as a chubby unicorn, which is the emoji of a rhino, and it was a nickname that my friend's daughter gave me When she was, like, 3 years old, and I'm really excited to be here. When Celeste asked, I said yes. So when Celeste asked, say yes.

Celeste Berke [00:00:55]:

Awesome. Yeah. So Riley and I met on LinkedIn. I see them all over the place. Right? Commenting, sharing, adding insights. So we get to meet in person next week at Saster, and I'm excited for that. I know a couple of my team members have mentioned your name as well. So you're clearly doing something to make a name for yourself, sharing information, education, and value. And I wanna I know we'll get a little bit into your story, but tell us a little bit about your foray into sales before we ask you about your sales edge.

Riley Blaisdell [00:01:28]:

So, like, my introduction to sales is what you wanna know about? Oh my goodness. I'm the youngest of 8. I come from a very low income family Where we didn't have money to provide for certain things, so a lot of the stuff I was getting was hand me downs. And so when I was a kid, I found out, you know, like, Everybody wants candy at school. And so I started buying candy and bringing it to school, and I started selling it out of my backpack. And then I built a relationship, Ship, and I found who the wholesaler was in our area, and I would walk 3 miles to go do this. And I'd bring the candy back home, and I pack it, and I take it into School, and I would sell it. Not only was I selling candy, but I was also selling my friendship at that time to other kids in our school, Which sounds pretty darn awful, but, you know, I I built a business off of it. I learned a lot from doing it.

Celeste Berke [00:02:18]:

I'm sure. Probably others were thinking this is a budding entrepreneur we have here or budding salesperson. And so you're with Paycor currently. Mhmm. What is your role there?

Riley Blaisdell [00:02:32]:

I am a MMSE at Paycor, so I sell They'll payroll an HR software. So if you need to make sure you're paying the most important asset of your business, which are your employees, Talk to us. But not only do you wanna pay them, but you wanna help develop and grow them. Because at the end of the day, we all need great leadership. So how do you do that? How do you improve your 1 on ones? There's a lot of stuff that we bring to the table That other providers are not, so our tagline is we empower leaders because that's where it starts. And I can I can say fullheartedly that I know that I have a great leader that I'm underneath right now, and it is one of the biggest reasons why I chose coming to here? And this is not a easy industry or market to really learn, but because I have a leader that believes in me, because I have a leader that supports me, When I get distracted by the sign shiny object, like, oh my goodness. What about this? He's able to help reel me in And give me guidance. And a great leader is not somebody that demands from you, but somebody that mentors, supports, and helps you Tap into your full potential.

Celeste Berke [00:03:45]:

Absolutely. And so it sounds like when we talked earlier about your east your sales edge, right, like, what makes you unique, that you are doing the exact same thing, paying it forward, going back, helping other people. Tell us about what sets you apart. What's that sales edge, that you exhibit daily.

Riley Blaisdell [00:04:06]:

So my sales edge is going to change now. My sales edge is the fact that I don't believe good enough exist, perfect exists. And what I mean by that, I'll actually share a story so we can understand. The last company that I worked for for 9 years, when I first applied, I did 3 phone interviews. They were, like, 30 to 40 minutes long. Then I finally got the phone call to come in and do a in person interview. Went into the office. I met with the cell the training manager then, then met with the sales manager, then met with the VP of sales, our VP of the organization. And they said, great. We'll get back to you. We'll let you know by Monday what direction we're gonna go. I mean, I spent, like, 4 hours there at this office. And I left for the weekend, and I was like, man, I'm pumped. I know I'm gonna get this offer. Email comes in on Monday, and My heart broke because they said they wanted to go a different direction. And I was so disappointed. So I reached out. I said, I reached out to the training manager, to the sales manager, to the VP of the company asking for clarification, and I pinned them down. Like, I was very persistent. And I got the sales manager on the phone, and he was like, look. Here's why we passed on you. You took a year off work. We don't have anybody that could do that. I said, well, I worked in the collections industry. It wasn't something that Is very healthy. It really kinda ruined who I was as a person, and I needed time to heal to find myself again. Now I'm looking for a career. And they go, okay. Great. And I said, I guarantee you, if you give me the opportunity, I will be what Russell Wilson is to Seattle. Now keep in mind, the company that I'm going to work for or trying to get a job offer from Is a Seattle based company. He's a big Seahawks fan. This is 2013, so this is when Russell Wilson was doing really well. And I said, if you guys give me the chance, I will be with Russell Wilson. It's to Seattle. And that was one of the things that he really loved. He also loved my persistence. And they ended up extending an offer after a while going back and forth, and I ended up getting my chance to work there. And I find it very funny that the year that Russell Wilson is no longer with Seattle is the year that I'm no longer there, and I got laid off from this organization.

Celeste Berke [00:06:38]:

But you were there 9 years. Right?

Riley Blaisdell [00:06:40]:

Yeah. I was there for 9 years, and I had a large book of business. I was one of the top 2, 3 producers there within the organization. What I remember in my interview, He painted out what he wanted us to accomplish within 5 years. I accomplished what they wanted in 5 years and two. Right. So even the 1st year when they ended up hiring me on, they had 2 other people there. My book of business was 6 times greater than their book of business combined. Wow. And it's because of that chip on my shoulder that Mhmm. One, I'm never gonna be good enough. Right? I gotta earn it Every freaking day, and I'm not gonna let up off the gas pedal. And even when I get to that point of, like, oh, this is what success is, Success is not that. Success just moved. That bar continues to get raised. So I think this is where This is my secret to what makes me makes me me.

Celeste Berke [00:07:40]:

Yeah. Well, definitely, you know, that upbringing and having to look at how do I help provide for the family at a young age and probably learn skills and have an education way beyond Any formal education at such a young age helps shape you into this consistent drive, right, to accomplish, It's this consistent drive. And it probably goes back to being a competitor as well in sports. Like, it's the job's never done. Right? A win is just a win, but it's like, what's next? What's next? What's next? And sometimes I find it's hard to relish in the moment, like, in the present because we're secretly thinking, like, for what's, like, the next thing and the next thing, and that goalpost keeps moving. But it also is I think you and I were talking about this Dedication to being a lifelong learner and giving back to others as well. Because as we talked about off camera, there everybody has imposter Syndrome. Everybody's thinking, like, what if I don't fit in? What if I don't belong? Like, what if this isn't good good enough? Like, we're a perfectionist. If it's not perfect, I'm not gonna do it. And you mentioned that you come in and tell people, like, okay. Let's take a step back. Like, why does this matter? Why does this matter?

Riley Blaisdell [00:08:55]:

Yeah. I mean, here's the thing, like, we're always gonna have that feeling like we don't belong or we're not good enough. We are our own worst critics. And when we look in the mirror, sometimes we're gonna look in it, and we're not gonna be happy with what's there. But the story that we tell ourself Is what really matters. Just because you don't feel like you're good enough, doesn't mean you don't deserve to learn. Just because, like, you feel like you didn't get a Traditional education doesn't mean you didn't deserve a spot at the table because you have to prove yourself day in, day out, And that piece of paper only matters so much. And I'm a big believer in educate. I just didn't get one the traditional way. But I can thank Brian Tracy for this because I was listening to the Psychology of Selling 12, 13 years ago, and he's talking about DriveTime University. And so I ended up taking the time that I spend in my car by myself, And I changed it to audibles and podcasts that helped me develop and grow. Now I think at the time, He shares us a a statistic that says most people spend, like, 40 hours In in a vehicle. Right? And I think it was, like, a month. Think about all that time that you have to learn. Think about that great use of time. Like, most people are listening to music. Mhmm. So, like, for me, a treat to listen to music is when other people are in the vehicle with me. But for me, an opportunity to learn is when I'm by myself. And, heck, even when I was laid off, And, like, this is why I'm a huge fan of Jen Allen. My daughter's bath time routine was Like, I would give her a bath in the scene when she was that small.

Celeste Berke [00:10:48]:

Mhmm.

Riley Blaisdell [00:10:49]:

And Jen Allen's podcast, winning the challenger cell was there. She would have phenomenal guests That would talk about things. And it would get my wheels to turn where I'm like, oh, yeah. I agree with that. Or, oh, shoot. Like, it would challenge the way I was thinking to be like, oh, wow. There's a different way to go about it. And so I would end up having that time with my daughter, and she's listening to this Phenomenal listener. That's brilliant. Beyond belief. That is really giving me the power to heal because I'm learning. And so I give her her bottle. She would fall asleep. That podcast would be going. I'd put her down. You know? I'd go take my shower. I'd be putting that in the background. You know, like, I was just so eager to learn to get better, especially because My goal was to transition into tech. And at the time, I was getting rejections where people were like, hey. Sorry you don't have a degree. Sorry you don't have a SAS background. I'm like, dude, like, I spent the last 9 years doing b to b wholesale, and I sold a c suite level. I sold the owners. I also end up knowing how to be a full cycle sales rep because I would hunt and prospect for new business nonstop, but I'd be relentless about that. So even when I had something that happened, like, I lost a $500,000 annual account around Christmas, and normally that would end Breaking your paycheck, but because I kept filling the pipeline, kept filling that funnel with constant new opportunities because people are gonna leave you. Even if you do everything a 110% right, they're gonna leave you. So I didn't feel that blow because I was constantly filling my pipeline in my funnel. And then there's times where I took clients that bought they started out at a $517 spend annually, And they turned into a 4 and a half $1,000,000 account

Celeste Berke [00:12:42]:

Wow.

Riley Blaisdell [00:12:43]:

After years years years of growing it from 500, Growing it to 12, growing it to 36, growing it to 72,000, 378,000, then a 4 a half 1000000 jump. It doesn't happen Overnight. It's just like when we're kids, we don't start walking right away. We fall Flat on her face. Like, my daughter falls flat on her face constantly and cries and then gets up. And so this is what's the big difference is, like, how many times are you gonna getting up after you fall flat on your face. Are you going to give up because it hurts? And I think failing hurts more. Why not be persistent?

Celeste Berke [00:13:27]:

I love that. Yeah. And the kid analogy as you know. I'm right there with you. Right? Those kids are relentless. They have a goal. Like, nothing's stopping them. They will keep trying and keep trying and keep trying. We can all channel that. So thank you so much for talking about your sales edge. Tell us you've been in sales for a long time. The number 1 sales myth that you wanna bust right now. What would that be?

Riley Blaisdell [00:13:52]:

Education. Right? You can get a degree, And I'm not against education. It doesn't have to be traditional like I have proven to you, Like others have taught, there's other ways to challenge channel information. Look at LinkedIn. Every post Can probably bring, like, some sort of nugget to you where you're like, oh, I never thought of it this way. Right? You wanna learn how to sell with your buyers? Nate, phenomenal. Right? You wanna learn how to end up improving your communication? Look at, like, Samantha McKenna. Right? There's so many people out there on this platform that are showing there's more than one way to sell, and there's more than one way to get a education. I mean, look at like, Julia Carter uses a lot of humor. Very fun. Very relatable. Right? There's so many great people on this platform that we can learn from and get better and improve this profession. And it doesn't have to be from a traditional degree. Right. And so I think what we need to do is find people that are willing to overcome adversity, That have that grit, have that resiliency, and that desire to learn, and that desire to not allow failure to be something that defines them But helps them grow. And I think you're gonna get the winning piece of something that is gonna be missing because you can teach somebody How to do their job. But if you have somebody that is scared of failure, they're gonna fail at doing their job. And, again, like, I'm in a industry where I'm failing constantly. Heck, the other day, I posted about a cold call where I used an acronym on the phone With somebody, and they were like, hey. I don't

Celeste Berke [00:15:46]:

I don't even I saw your post. Right? And then you and then you asked another one, and they were still like, I don't know what you're talking about.

Riley Blaisdell [00:15:53]:

Yeah. And and it's because I believe like, I thought that was, like Sure. Common sense. Right? But it's because I'm from out of industry, and I'm learning this stuff. And it was something where I was like, you know, when I sold disposable gloves, I never called somebody up and was like, Hey. Do you got the Gwan, which was like an orange club? Like, nobody knew what that was. Right? Like, that's not how I Both. Okay. And so it was a it was a an awakening for me. And I actually sent an email back to this lady, and I said, hey. Like, I cold called you. I said this, this, and this. You told me this. I wanted to really thank you for giving me that, like, perspective Of, like, that awakening, that moment of, like, use Use common language, and I say this all the time to people. I'm like, explain it to me like I'm 5 because I love that Michael Scott gift. It's like one of my favorite gifts. Wait to me, like, I have 5. You know? And that's what that's what we need to do. We need to get rid of these buzzwords. Right? Like, Truthfully, like, it makes us sound smart when I'm like, oh, yeah. Seamless integration.

Celeste Berke [00:17:03]:

Right.

Riley Blaisdell [00:17:04]:

Man, There was a time, and my manager even told me this. He was like when I when I first when we finished our 1st fiscal, He was like, dude, there was a time you couldn't even spell HCM, and he wasn't wrong. Like, I'm still drinking from a fire hose, and I'm still trying to tread water, and I'm still learning. The difference is that, like, I'm not gonna give up. Failure is not an option. The only option is success, and so I'm going to find ways to continue develop, Continue to learn. And there's people that I'm gonna engage with and ask for time on their calendar to help give me a review or oversight on how to continue to get better in this space, and I'm gonna do the basics really well. Right? I'm gonna seek to understand. I'm gonna learn to What the real true problem is, and I'm gonna understand. Is it is it the right time for them to make this move? Or Am I just trying to sell because I have a quota to hit? Yeah. And if I'm trying to sell because I have a quota to hit and you get that commission breath, I'm doing it wrong.

Celeste Berke [00:18:11]:

Commission breath.

Riley Blaisdell [00:18:13]:

Right? Like Yeah. I think Yeah. What we need to do is focus on being of service. Right? Where we need to focus on, Can I really help you solve that problem and other problems are gonna occur because your business is at this size? And, eventually, when you get to this next step in that business, you're gonna approach this hurdle, this hurdle, this hurdle. But if you get it put in place now, By the time you get there, you're gonna bypass all that stuff. You're gonna allow more growth to happen. So understanding how you can be of service by Taking the time to listen to others on the other end and what they really need and being confident enough To point him in a different direction of something. Great example right now is I had somebody that was Asking about our options that we have, and they've said that they wanted to come off a competitor of ours, which offers a PEO model. So I interpreted it that they wanted to get a benefits provider. So I made an introduction, and the response was, like, hey. Thanks for the introduction. You know, really appreciate it. But we're not looking at going from a PEO model. We really want that. So Not only did I own my mistake for missing that, I also asked For clarification on it, but I know that I have somebody that I have in my network that does this for a living. Great. The business wants a PEO, so why am I not gonna point them in the right direction? So I already reached out to my friend, And I'm going to make that introduction for them because that's what they want.

Celeste Berke [00:20:00]:

Yep.

Riley Blaisdell [00:20:01]:

And that's my job.

Celeste Berke [00:20:03]:

Being of service and being of value. And I loved how, you know, you talk about I think there is this myth out there that Salespeople or you know, you're in the tech industry, you have to have this, and we are we are evolving. If anything, TikTok, Influencer marketing. Anything has shown us people can come out of the woodworks and have specific set of skills or have the will and desire to learn, and they don't have That formal background or benchmark that most companies are looking for people to be within this box. Once we start spanning that box. I was a great example of it. My first position, as a director, managing people. I'd never managed anybody before. I hadn't worked in the industry. Couldn't tell you anything about it. And I got a job managing 5 people. And they said this was the first time that our company has gone outside of our box, which is you Had to come from within the industry, and you already have had to have, you know, been a manager before. And here I was in a director level, and I think it paved the way for them to open up their eyes to see great people don't come from the box that we have arbitrarily set. So I love that you shared that about, you know, nontraditional paths that people come across. I interviewed Alex Christian last week. He was a freaking commercial pilot. Right? And he is now an account executive. Like, it It there are so many parallels, but he had to paint the picture just like you are having to do you know, you had to do with that 1st job in also helping others to do the same. So I truly appreciate you sharing your story. I like to keep this brief because I know people don't have all day to sit and listen to a podcast, but I loved what you shared. I hope others will reach out to you and hear, like, your behind the scenes story. Right? That grit. Keep following you. You're dropping amazing real life Content about the day in the life of sales clubs. Right? What it's like to be in the sales seat, but also Really, truly being this lifelong learner and passing it forward to others. I truly appreciate your time, and I can't wait to meet you in person at Saster.

Riley Blaisdell [00:22:04]:

Me too. I'm looking forward to it.