A Salesman!: Reflections on My Life Story

By Larry Dickman

Larry Dickmans story began on a small farm outside of Hammond, Minnesota, where he was born in 1934. When the family moved to Oregon, Larrys mother grew tired of her husbands nonstop drinking. She gave her son a choice: Come with her and his sister or stay with his father.

He made the wrong choice by staying with his dad, but things brightened up at a church social when he met Elaine Rogers, the girl hed marry after serving a few years in the U.S. Navy.

Becoming a family man meant paying bills, and he stumbled into selling cookware. At first, he made $50 for every set of cookware he sold, and he felt rich. From there, it was on to selling sewing machines and cars before he joined Saladmaster. In this memoir, he shares critical lessons for sales professionals, including how to:

qualify referrals in tactful ways; get follow-up appointments; and embrace change even when you like the status quo.

Fifty years in direct sales has given Larry exciting lessons to share for professionals in all fields. Get ready to be delighted by the adventures of A Salesman!

There are a few special people in the world who have lifted themselves up from modest beginnings to special, rewarding lives based on faith, integrity, and happiness. This book shares life lessons and wisdom from one of those special people who has, in fact, changed lives.

--Keith Peterson, president, Saladmaster

• Language: English
• Publisher: Archway Publishing
• Release date: Apr 18, 2016
• ISBN: 9781480830455

Larry Dickman

Larry Dickman began his career in direct sales in the 1950s. He became a Saladmaster Cookware dealer in 1965 and was also a part-time pastor. He remains active in Saladmaster as a trainer and motivational speaker with a Grand Master/Elite dealership. He is also the author of A Salesman! Reflections on My Life Story. He is married with three sons.

Book preview

Copyright © 2016 Larry H Dickman.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

Archway Publishing

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403

www.archwaypublishing.com

1 [phone]

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Cover Illustration by Karla Beck.

ISBN: 978-1-4808-3044-8 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4808-3045-5 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2016906180

Archway Publishing rev. date: 04/12/2016

Contents

Introduction

1   The Early Years

2   Life with Father

3   On the Big Ranch

4   Joining the Navy

5   From Fear to Faith

6   First Steps into a New Career

7   A Perfect Fit

8   Unforgettable Experiences

9   Back from the Edge

10 A Memorable Milestone

Conclusion A Few Lessons Along the Way

Afterword Valued Team Members

With over fifty years in Saladmaster experience, Larry Dickman has been a magnificent life-changer for the company—and for sure he will continue to change more lives. He has impacted people not only around him, but around the global world of Saladmaster.

—Pidoy and Ting Pacis

Vice Presidents, Global Filipino Market

"There are a few special people in the world who have lifted themselves up from modest beginnings to special, rewarding lives based on faith, integrity, and happiness. This book shares life lessons and wisdom from one of those special people who has, in fact, changed lives.

—Keith Peterson

President, Saladmaster

This is a fast-paced read filled with real-life stories that will encourage and inspire every reader, regardless of where you are in life’s journey. Most importantly, you will soon realize that God’s love will sustain you because, no matter your beliefs, God does have you in His hand.

—C. Richard Weylman

Author of the bestseller The Power of Why: Breaking Out in a Competitive Marketplace

Dedication

To my direct selling family. Without you, our sales world would be meaningless.

To my wife Elaine, who has been so supportive over the years. I dedicate this book to you.

To my Estherbrook family, including my general manager Vickie and her team.

To all my friends in the UK, Pidoy Pacis, and all my Filipino friends.

To Larry Libby, my newfound friend. Without your help, this book would not have been finished.

To John Moreno, the artist who spent endless hours hand-drawing the illustration for this book.

And most of all, to my loving Father and Lord Jesus Christ. Even though at times I have not been as I should have been, Jesus has never left my side.

Introduction

In the pages that follow, you will catch a glimpse or two of history, encounter some scenes that seem funny now (but maybe didn’t then), hear a little about some colorful characters and customers I’ve met through the years, and dip into the life story of a boy born in the middle of the Depression who had to learn too many lessons the hard way.

It isn’t a very long book. In fact, you can easily breeze through it in one sitting. But if you take the time to read it, you’ll hear about two encounters with angels and how I found my way into life as a part-time pastor and evangelist and full-time direct sales representative for a marvelous company.

When I first started collecting some of my thoughts and experiences on paper, I had imagined it would take a few days. But now a year has gone by. Am I finished? Yes, with this little book, but as long as God gives me breath, the storyline keeps moving along.

Of course there is so much more that I could have said and so many more stories I could have told. You really can’t condense a lifetime of experiences into a few short pages. But if I’d kept on writing, then you would be looking at a big book instead of a little book you can stick in your pocket or purse and read on a plane—or sitting out on the back patio after supper.

I’m simply grateful for the opportunity to tell a little of my story. Opportunities in life don’t show up every day, but when they do, when the door swings open, you have to get up on your feet and walk right into them.

Thanks, my friend, for stepping through this door with me.

Larry Dickman

Kennewick, Washington

—1—

The Early Years

M y story began in 1934, when I was born to a German father and a French-Canadian mother on a small farm outside of Hammond, Minnesota.

These were the years of the Great Depression, and as many as fifteen million people in our nation were out of work. Soup lines were everywhere, and poverty across America—and much of the rest of the world—was greater than anyone could remember. Those who were lucky enough to get any work at all had to get by on long hours and low pay.

My father worked on rebuilding roads for twenty-five cents an hour and was very glad for the job—but it was hardly enough money to put a roof over our heads and food on the table. Dad was a farmer of sorts but also something of a salesman.

We didn’t have much, but it seemed like he was always selling something.

We raised cucumbers on our little farm, and my mother turned them into German dill pickles that we could sell in town. In the winter, my father would catch fish through the ice, smoke them, and sell those too. Most of the time, his buyers would be people from the big city who had a little money to spend.

I don’t recall much of my younger life until I was around six years old. One thing I do remember is the round washtub where we bathed—and my mother insisted I take a bath regularly. The water had to be heated in the kitchen on the woodstove. By the time the first kettleful was in the tub and the next one was ready on the stove, the water in the tub was already cool. It was quite an ordeal, so we only bathed once a week.

I started school at six but never took much interest in it. The horses on the farm were much more interesting to me—and I still have a scar over my right eye to prove it. My mother, however, had plans for me to become something more than a dirt-poor farmer like my father, his father, and his brothers. She wanted me