Confessions of a Therapist - Part 3


Confessions of a Therapist - Part 3

November apparently has become ‘self-confession month’ here at Intentional Therapist! This edition’s confession:

My name is Melissa and I once was a travelling knife salesperson.

For a brief time in the summer between my first and second year of university, I sold Cutco knives. The company uses a direct sales model, and while I didn’t have to go door-to-door, I did have to make cold calls to people who were friends, or friends of friends, asking if they would let me meet with them to do my sales pitch. And then after most of them politely declined to buy anything (although thankfully a few did buy), I had to ask them for referrals of other people I could reach out (to not sell more knives).

Let me be clear - this job sucked!

As an introvert, the last thing I wanted to be doing was calling people out of the blue or selling them expensive knives (that were really good quality but nonetheless A LOT of money). I also didn’t have a car, so I did all of my schlepping around the city with a bag full of knives by bus. How I lasted 2 months in the job I don’t know!

And yet…

Some of my best life lessons also came from this experience. I learned to get a lot more comfortable doing presentations. I learned that I could navigate my way around a new city. I learned that I could connect with new people. And I learned the immense value of good quality tools.

Nearly 25 years later, I still have my original knives that I used for my sales pitches. (Yep, that’s them in the photo!) They have been used in my kitchen nearly every single day since that time. The quality of the knives has endured and I have no doubt this will continue.

As a student, I never would have been able to afford to buy the knives outright. I am consequently so grateful for my short stint in that incredibly challenging job because it gave me access to an item that has made the daily task of food preparation a little easier. (And please know, I have no affiliation and this is not an advertisement for Cutco knives!)

But this is an advertisement for investing in good tools, that can make our daily lives a little simpler and smoother. Even more so, this is an advertisement for investing in ourselves, especially since as mental health professionals we ARE the tools of our trade.

What have been your best ways of investing in yourself? How can you best invest in yourself this season?

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