Timing and Opportunity

Hello Fellow Thinker!

Whenever I think about the future I try to imagine that something great is on the horizon and there will be opportunities in front of me that I can take advantage of to improve my life for myself and my family. This optimism comes from a personal experience from earlier in my life, when it was a different time, but the future was just as uncertain.

Right Place, Right Time

So I was hired into my first sales job as an account executive, assigned to work on a newly acquired three-year contract with the City of New York. It was right around the time of the financial crash in 2008, and companies were still recovering. The account had potential, but no one really knew what to expect—the sales rep who had secured the contract had retired, and my company wasn’t overly optimistic about its future. The city was a massive bureaucracy, full of red tape, and success was hard to predict.

To add to the challenge, I joined a team of high-performing salespeople, many of whom already had thriving territories. My starting point was a blank slate, split between me and another new hire. We each took 50 city agencies and were left to figure things out. I could feel the doubt in the air—no one was expecting us to do huge things in those accounts.

But here’s the thing: I wasn’t worried about the long-term. I wasn’t thinking about becoming the top salesperson or launching a long career. I just knew one thing—I wanted to work as hard as possible and make as much money as I could. I wanted to prove to myself that I was capable of achieving something great.

What no one saw coming—including me—was that the timing was about to shift in my favor. A new mayor had just taken office: Michael Bloomberg. A divisive figure in New York, he had his critics, but one of the most impactful things he did was bring in private-sector IT professionals from the financial industry and invest heavily in modernizing the city’s technology infrastructure. Suddenly, there was money being poured into IT projects, and decision-makers who were used to moving slowly were now looking for IT staff.

This was my window, and I didn’t hesitate. While others saw city contracts as too convoluted, I saw an open lane. I dug in, built relationships, figured out the complex procurement processes, and positioned myself as the go-to person for IT solutions.

The work paid off. The deals started closing. What began as an unpredictable, overlooked account became a major driver of revenue—not just for me, but for the company.

And before I knew it, I wasn’t just doing well—I was the #1 sales rep!

Looking back, I realize how easy it would have been to hesitate. To assume the city account would go nowhere, to wait for someone else to figure it out, or to let the doubt of others shape my expectations.

But I didn’t wait. I worked. I stayed focused. And when the moment came, I executed.

Success in sales—and in life—is about a lot of things, but at its core, it comes down to this:

• Being prepared so that when the right opportunity appears, you’re ready.

• Having the courage to act when others hesitate.

• Staying hungry, even when the outcome isn’t guaranteed.

• Action without any expectation of any results.

I didn’t know that job would launch my career. I didn’t know I’d go on to build a long, fulfilling path in sales.

But I did know I wasn’t going to sit back and wait for things to happen.

And that made all the difference.

Keep thinking my friend!

Amir.