I Used to Dread Sales
15 years in aviation taught me otherwise.
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If you had told a 22-year-old me that sales would be a big part of my career, I would have politely nodded, smiled, and said, “No chance.”
(In a nice way, of course. On brand.)
I used to think sales meant being pushy. Cringy tactics.
Having a “used car salesman” era.
Then I spent 15 years in aviation, and I learned something quite different.
One deal. Three conversations.
Several years into my airplane career, I was working on selling an engine to a lessor. Eight months, start to finish.
These deals are intense. Lots of moving parts:
The technical team wanted specs. Precise, detailed, no fluff.
The contracts and finance team wanted compliance and numbers.
Leadership just wanted to know it was getting done.
Same deal. Three completely different conversations.
And somewhere in those eight months, I realized selling is not cringy. At all.
What this means, even if you’re not in aviation
In reality, business development is about education.
Marketing educates at scale. Sales educates one-to-one.
Your job isn’t to convince anyone. It’s to help them understand their challenges, the opportunities they’re missing, what’s possible.
When you show up that way, consistently, you become a partner. You form a professional relationship. You solve problems and grow your business.
That’s what I help my clients build today. Create systems to share their expertise on scale and one-on-one. Capture leads, answer questions, nurture the best relationships.
All while they keep doing what they do best.
✈️ Carry On
with Pamela Wilton
Stay in touch, stay visible, stay helpful.
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