Managing Your Career is Like Selling a Vintage Fiat

Selling a Vintage Fiat?

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When I was a young man in late 1970s, I wanted a convertible. I was also cheap! The first car I bought was a 1972 Triumph Spitfire from a woman I worked with at IBM. It needed a clutch and a throwout bearing.

I had just received my engineering degree from Northwestern University and I would use this car to teach myself auto mechanics. I fixed the Triumph, drove it around for six months and then sold it. I wanted a bigger challenge.

I bought a wrecked 1972 Fiat 124 Spyder. It was joked that Fiat stood for “Fix It Again Tony.” The car had been in a front end collision, but was still drivable. I spent the next 18 months replacing fenders, the hood, a bulkhead, pulled the heads and valves, and much more.

The challenge was when I went to sell it.

I put it in the paper for 3 consecutive weekends, but only had one prospective buyer came out to test drive the car. I still owned the car and was wondering what to do next.

I had the car priced very reasonably. The car was not perfect, but in pretty good condition. The problem was that very few people living in Central Texas in the late 1970s even knew what a Fiat was, much less wanted to buy one.

I put the car in the paper for a 4th consecutive week and someone came out to test drive the car. That person bought the car at my full asking price.

You Only Need One Buyer!

Only two people came out to test drive the car and one of them bought it. I later rebuilt several more Fiats and I rarely had more than two or three people test drive the cars, but one of them always bought it.

Applying for More Jobs is not Better

Do you apply for many jobs hoping to get an interview?

Or, do you carefully investigate each company by strategically networking to meet the right individuals? When a position becomes available, you find someone internal to the company to submit your resume. You submit your application when the time is right. You end up submitting very few applications.

This is called the Targeted Job Search.

What I learned from selling the Fiat is that it is not how many people who come out to test drive the car. If I prepared the car properly and priced it fairly, the car would sell. I only needed one buyer.

Similarly, when you are managing your career, you want to be selective. You want to be prepared. You want to approach a prospective employer when the time is right. You only need to apply and interview with one company to get that next gig.

Just like when I sold that Fiat—it was not quantity but quality. Only people who knew about Fiats and truly admired the Italian engineering would come out to look at the car. (By the way, Fiat was at least 10 years ahead of the rest of the industry with many features like four wheel disc brakes and dual overhead cam engines.)

Similarly, you can be selective. Do your homework. Pick the companies that are a good fit for you.

You only need one company to hire you for that next gig! More is not better!

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