Please welcome Christopher Godsoe, Sales Leader, Storyteller, and Innovator as the inaugural guest contributor to the Sales Homie newsletter!

“I got your pack.”

Several years ago, I had a life-changing experience during my training days as a United States Marine. After boot camp, the next step was Marine Combat Training. For about a month, we hiked around the desert mountains in California, learning basic infantry skills while practicing being at war.

Growing up, I was always a little smaller than everyone, so I quickly adopted a tough guy persona. I was overly cocky and self-confident and wouldn’t back down from anyone. No challenge was too big, and I always tried to prove myself. Boy, was I in for a surprise! What we dreaded the most during training was called a “hump.” It’s not how it sounds. The Marines have ridiculous names for things. A pen is an “ink stick,” shoes are “go-fasters,” and a “hump” was a forced march.

We were in full uniform, with a flak jacket, helmet, heavy boots, rifles, and a 60-pound pack. The pack was the worst part. Just getting it on was a feat of amazing strength. There was a special technique where you laid the pack upside down on the ground in front of you, and with all the strength you could muster, you would fling it over your back and hope the straps catch on your shoulders. If the straps missed your shoulders, the guy behind you would be surprised by a pack flying into his face. After adjusting the straps, everyone grabbed their rifle, and we were off! 

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Weeble-Wobble.

This “hike” was madness! We were required to stay in formation- two single-file lines on each side of the road. We went up and down those mountains faster than the pace of most joggers I know. Walking around with all that weight made me feel like one of those little weeble-wobble toys babies play with. One wrong step, and I could fly off the mountain's side.

I remembered how hot it was on one of the many infamous humps. We had already spent our energy from days of sleep deprivation. We were there pretending to be in battle, and the dry California mountains had declared war on us. Its first wave of attack was turning our helmets into convection ovens, and as it rose higher into the sky, so did the intensity of its warfare. No matter what we did, we could not escape the heat. Because I had my tough guy persona to uphold, I kept hiking and didn’t let on about how miserable I was.

Paying attention was extremely important because our path was an unpaved dirt road with loose gravel and medium-sized rocks that were perfect little tripping hazards. Besides giant spiders and poisonous snakes, many of the trails were on the edges of a cliff. One careless step and you could fall to your death.

“Forget this, I quit!”

As the day progressed and the temperature climbed, we continued to hike. The trail just ahead of us was the steepest one of the day. My good friend Joe was walking an arm’s length behind me. To distract ourselves, we would tell jokes and stories about home. After a long silence, I heard Joe say, “Forget this. I quit!” Surprised, I turned and saw anger and defeat in his eyes. I don’t remember exactly what I said, but it was something like, “Come on, Sweetheart, you’re fine. Suck it up”. I teased Joe for a few minutes until I realized he was serious. Blinded by frustration, Joe couldn’t move on. I then tried to encourage him, but he was done. I didn’t understand this. We had already made it so far. Finally, I told him, “Joe, hold on to my pack. I got you, man.”

Joe grabbed the back of my pack, and I helped him up the mountain. His extra weight made it more difficult, but I was determined to help my friend. After what seemed like hours, we finally made it to the top. On the way down, he was fine, but pulling Joe used every last bit of my strength. Dehydration and fatigue set in, and I was done. “I can’t go on anymore, Joe.” With a soft and understanding voice, Joe said, “Don’t worry. I got your pack. I’ll keep you from falling.” His hand never left my pack as he tightly gripped it down that mountain. We repeated this for miles. Joe needed my help getting up, and I needed his help getting down. We had each other’s packs.

We shouldn’t do it alone.

The lesson I learned from that day with Joe has stuck with me. It was a great example of camaraderie, but deeper lessons were learned from this experience. Our careers are like a hump. For those of us in SALES, we can experience the turbulence of victory and defeat, multiple times in a single day! There will always be steep mountains ahead, stumbling blocks in our paths, and dangers lurking everywhere. And as SALES professionals, although we may not be training for combat, we can adapt and learn from this same mentality; We shouldn’t do it alone. We need to hike with someone who can keep us from falling, and in turn, we can help them up their mountain, too.

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The moral of the story? Are there people you work with who need a pack to hold onto during a tough time? Who in your network, or on your SALES team, can you help up the mountain?

Being a SALES leader, I genuinely care and give my best efforts to help those selling on my team. We all need someone’s pack to grab, including me.

Whoever that person is, tell them, “I got your pack.”

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