It was my last semester in Business School and it was time to begin the hard work of looking for gainful employment. I needed to pay off those dreadful student loans that were ready to strangle me to death, so I had to be ready. (Remember when paying off your debts yourself was a thing?) On our campus at the University of Dayton, we had the benefit of having formal meetings set-up with Fortune 500 companies that were coming to specifically interview Business students like me for possible entry-level jobs.

I immediately signed up for ten different interviews hoping to land a great job before I finished my college career. To have a job right out of college was every student’s dream. I will never forget the first interview I scheduled, it was with IBM. At that time, back in the late 1980s, this company was a top leader in business innovation, it was a powerhouse flush with cash, so to have an interview with them left me both excited and terrified.

I put on my best suit, a red power tie – I learned that from Donald Trump’s ‘Art of the Deal’ (the orange man wasn’t hated back then) – shined my black penny-loafers and headed to the interview on campus. “Mr. Weeks, please take a seat.” A stern-looking man with wired framed glasses motioned for me to sit across from him. And before I was able to hand him my resume, or talk about my impressive 3.85 GPA in Marketing, the man simply slid a black BIC pen across the table and said, “Sell me that pen.”

I thought to myself, “This is strange. What does this have to do with anything of importance?” So I swallowed some courage and began my sales pitch, “If you are looking for a wonderful writing tool that will enhance your ability to close contracts, compose an elegant proposal for a top client, or just want to create a beautiful letter to encourage a loved one, this is the pen for you! With a classic medium ball-point roller and smooth black ink, this pen has set the industry standard for excellence.” I was really proud of myself. So I slid the pen back to the man and waited with a confident smirk.

Pulling off his glasses and putting them back in the inside pocket of his impeccable pinstripe jacket, he looked at me and said, “Thank you, Mr. Weeks, for coming in. But this is where our interview ends. You will not go further in our process. Have a good day.”

I was stunned. I thought I just rocked that sales presentation. I made a cheap BIC pen sound like a custom made Monte Blanc. So I asked him, “What did I do wrong?” He said, “You never asked me what I wanted in a pen. I would have told you that all I wanted was a black pen that was less than five dollars, and BIC pens are only a buck. If you would have hammered on the price, I would have bought it right away.”

He then leaned in and said something that changed my life, “The first thing you need to know above everything else in sales is “What does your customer want?” Once you know that, the close is the easy part. Learn your customer and you have them. You failed right from the bat to try to know me, all you wanted to do is impress.”

I shook his hand and left the failed interview with a heavy heart. But I was forever changed. In this one minute interview, I learned more than four years of Marketing and Business classes. I wish I never took out that loan.

That is where a new enterprise I am starting up comes in: I am beginning a weekly YouTube program called, “Reason for Real People.” I want to reach real people, men, and women who love their families, work hard, (which gives them virtually no time to go picketing at political rallies and fighting for the next fashionable outrage), and people who just want to faithfully love their God.

I want to speak reasonably to them.

I started writing a blog back in 2013 that has picked up a lot of traction, but I realized that taking the time to read a rather lengthy article for many takes more time and concentration than they have to give in the busyness of life. I wish people would read more, but I can’t fault them for that.

I have learned that more and more people these days, especially men, gain their information from podcasts and YouTube. It makes perfect sense. It is much easier to listen to an in-depth conversation when you are driving an hour to work or cutting the lawn. Reading often takes a quiet room and an uninterrupted hour of time. That is hard to come by these days.

So while I am still going to be writing my blogs (It is how I work the jumbled thoughts that are always tumbling around in my meandering mind), I also am going to share my thoughts via visual media to meet the “real people” where they are at. I’m selling the pen at price point.

My first online submission is an introduction to my video series called “Reason for Real People”, and it will give my reasoning for what the program is going to cover. I hope you find it stimulating, exasperating and controversial. As they say, “Controversy Sells!” But more than anything, I want you to know that there is someone out there that thinks the way you do, and you are not going crazy in a world that is!

The first message is called: An Open Invitation for Real People Who Want to Get Off the Crazy Train.

And by the way, if you want a cheap pen, I have many in my office. You can come to the thriving metropolis of Kent City, Michigan to visit me to get one!