Campus Series: Mark Michalisin – From the Boardroom to the Classroom
With the many misconceptions about the sales profession, it can be easy to paint an inaccurate picture of what the career looks like. For this reason, Mark Michalisin takes the time to debunk these, while also unpacking the skills that have been of importance throughout his career.
In this episode of the Campus Series podcast, Mark, an Associate Professor of Practice in Sales, shares personal anecdotes from his journey through sales and also introduces his book which aims to inspire and motivate readers across various professions.
Guest-At-A-Glance
💡 Name: Mark Michalisin
💡What they do: Associate Professor of Practice – Sales
💡Company: Virginia Tech
💡Noteworthy: Transitioned from sales to academia, author of “In the Arena: From the Boardroom to the Classroom“
💡 Where to find them: LinkedIn
💡 Where to buy Mark’s Book: Amazon
Key Insights
Breaking Sales Stereotypes
Mark Michalisin addresses common misconceptions about the sales profession. He emphasizes that sales isn’t just a male-dominated field, debunking the stereotype. Through personal anecdotes, Mark highlights the importance of building relationships in sales, suggesting that anyone can sell a product based on price, but the real skill lies in cultivating meaningful connections. He also underscores the significance of mentors in his journey, showcasing how they shaped his understanding and approach to sales.
The Structure and Purpose of Mark’s Book
Mark introduces his book, designed to inspire a broad audience, from students to business professionals. The book is divided into three sections: the first revolves around eight goals he sets for his students, the second focuses on impactful quotes from notable figures, and the third delves into essential soft skills. These elements serve as guiding principles for readers, aiming to instill confidence, motivation, and a pathway to excellence.
The Importance of Soft Skills in Sales
Mark emphasizes the significance of soft skills in the sales profession. He discusses how these skills, such as confidently walking into a room, shaking hands, maintaining eye contact, and engaging in meaningful conversations, aren’t traditionally taught but are crucial for success. To ensure his students grasp these skills, Mark conducts practical exercises, like making them enter a classroom as if they’re attending a job fair, highlighting the real-world applicability of these skills.
Episode Highlights
The Significance of the Virginia Tech Sales Lab
Chris Corcoran and Mark Michalisin discuss the new Virginia Tech sales lab, where the episode is being recorded. This lab represents a significant milestone for the institution and the sales education community. Chris expresses his admiration for the facility and reflects on how beneficial it would have been during his time as a student.
“Hello everybody. This is Chris Corcoran. I’m thrilled to be on the campus of Virginia Tech […] We’re recording today from the new Virginia Tech sales lab. This is probably the first official meeting.”
Mark’s Transition to Academia
Mark Michalisin talks about his current role as the Professor of Practice – Sales at Virginia Tech. He expresses immense satisfaction with his job, highlighting the joy he feels in teaching and the fulfillment it brings him.
“Yeah, so like I said, I’m Mark Michalisin. As of right now, my career is a Professor of Practice here at Virginia Tech, and I gotta be honest with you, it’s the best job I’ve ever had. I get up every morning; I can’t wait to get to work.”
Challenges of Writing a Book
Mark delves into the intricacies of writing his book. He discusses the challenges he faced, especially with citations and ensuring everything was correctly referenced. He also shares a personal anecdote about needing to get permission to quote a song about his hometown.
“[…] the worst part of it was, Chris, is the citations, because it had to be in a certain way, and you had to go and find the source of everything. You couldn’t even, like, I quoted a song about my hometown, and they said you can’t unless you get written permission […]”
The Role of Mentors in Mark’s Journey
Mark reflects on the significant influence of mentors in his life. He recalls various individuals, from a friend’s dad to his own father, who provided guidance, motivation, and mentorship throughout his journey. These mentors imparted invaluable life lessons, shaping Mark’s perspective and approach to sales and life.
“[…] you just find somebody and then my best friend’s dad growing up, sitting at the dining room table, listening to his stories […] And my dad and I, we talk about this all the time that he’s doing all this stuff and you didn’t realize what he was actually doing until now you sit back and you’re like, ‘Oh yeah, that’s what he’s doing.’”
Transcript:
Chris Corcoran: I actually, Chris, make my students Go out in the hallway and come into the classroom as if they’re walking into a job fair. So you’re at the sales industry today and I make sure and I tell my students you’re walking in there and you’re going to go to memory blue and you’re going to go up to them.
Mark Michalisin: And I want you to walk with a purpose. I want you to have confidence. I want them to see you coming over and say, this is going to be good for us. And I want you to give them your resume and I want you to shake your hand, introduce yourself. And then I want you to just ooze confidence that you were meant to be there.
This is your time
[00:01:00]
Chris Corcoran: Hello everybody. This is Chris Corcoran. I’m, thrilled to be on the campus of Virginia Tech, my alma mater, with Mark Michalisin, professor of practice. Yes. Yep. At Virginia Tech in advance of the release of his new upcoming book. In the arena, from the boardroom to the classroom.
We’re recording today from the new Virginia Tech sales lab. This is probably the first
Mark Michalisin: official meeting. Chris, this is the first official event happening in the sales
Chris Corcoran: lab. So this is would have been amazing to have been here 25 years ago when I was in [00:02:00] school, but it’s amazing to see it. And I’m super excited to be here and I want to dive into this with the listeners.
Talk about your journey. Talk about the book. You’re a quotes guy. I love quotes, too. So we’re gonna have some good times. So maybe if you could introduce yourself to the listeners, talk a little bit about your background.
Mark Michalisin: Yeah, so like I said, I’m Mark Michalisin. As of right now, my career is a professor of practice here at Virginia Tech and I gotta be honest with you.
It’s the best job I’ve ever had. I get up every morning. I can’t wait to get to work and I can’t believe that they actually pay me to do this, right? It’s amazing to have that impact on students, but I grew up north of Boston, a little town called Gloucester, Mass, home to the perfect storm.
The movie, if anybody’s ever seen the movie, that’s your hometown. went to Union College, played football for years, got my undergrad in political science. And, my dad had been in sales for his entire life. So I grew up around it and I knew it and I didn’t want to do it. I wanted to do something else.
And, but I was [00:03:00] getting married six months after graduation. So I graduate June 11th. I think it was actually, this is you and I remember this, Chris. it was the day they found Nicole Brown, Simpson, Rod Goldman. Oh, wow. I graduated that morning.
Chris Corcoran: that was a, incredible day.
I think there was a World Cup game that day and then ticker tape parade the Rangers and
Mark Michalisin: the following. Yeah. Wow. And then the following Friday, the infamous Bronco Chase, I was driving home from Utica, New York from a job interview listening to it on the radio. Wow. so that’s the sidebar. But I was getting married.
And I needed a job. And, I walked into the Career Center a week before graduation and there was a thing from Encore Paper in South Plains Falls for a sales trainee. And I’m like, what the hell? I threw my resume in there, didn’t think anything of it, didn’t hear anything. Got a job selling men’s suits in a mall just to bide my time.
And I was actually a week away from [00:04:00] going back to school to get my history degree, history master’s and go into teaching and go coach football at a local high school. So that’s what I was gonna do. Okay. Got the phone call. I got an interview over the phone. They, I drove down to Secaucus, New Jersey, and I’ll never forget the Marriott having my interview.
And then they brought me up to Southland Falls, had my final interview, met the owners of the company, got the off of the job. And the Monday, that Labor Day, I was on my way down to Parsifian, New Jersey to start my career in sales. Wow. Yeah. And It was the fire hose was on full blast.
Chris Corcoran: Okay For sure.
Did you what your father what did he sell? My
Mark Michalisin: dad was a manufacturer’s rep So he owned his own company, but he did a lot of plastics perforated metal. He did a lot of work with Raytheon and the defense department in the 80s. No, no interests none, he actually When I got my job in sales, he said To go [00:05:00] get, make your own career, make, get your experience.
Then if you want to come into business with me, you can now luck has it now. he’s 78 retired and I’m 51, but now he has a consulting company. So he’s like, you want to help me out? And I’m like, sure. So we’re technically working together.
Chris Corcoran: So it’s pretty cool. It’s wild how that all kind of comes back together.
Full circle. Very good. So did you end up moving from Massachusetts down to New Jersey?
Mark Michalisin: I moved from Massachusetts to Parsippany, New Jersey, right, 9 Rutgers Lane, right off Route 46. And I started my career and it was like full jump into the deep end selling toilet paper. And selling in the five boroughs in Northern New Jersey, which is the, you know, the belly of the beast.
If you want to learn sales, New York City, you go there.
Chris Corcoran: There. so you were selling, I want the listeners to really visualize what you were selling, you had a geographic territory, New York City and Northern New Jersey. Yep. And who were you selling these paper? The toilet paper. Paper
Mark Michalisin: towels. So we sold [00:06:00] our products ’cause it was away from home.
We sold ’em through distribution. Okay. And then distribution ended up selling ’em. To end users like a Virginia Tech or we would sell through Cisco and they would sell through restaurants
Chris Corcoran: So you would sell to Cisco? Yes. Okay, and then Cisco would sell to the restaurants. So how many did you have? A bunch of different accounts when I
Mark Michalisin: first started I was a trainee.
So I basically shadowed my Joe Russo was my division manager So I shadowed him for three and a half months and then luck would have it for me The gentleman in upstate New York was like, Oh, okay. And they offered me the territory three months out of. You know, being on the job. So I was running on the New York territory, which is about three million dollars at the time I took it over from New Jersey, and I didn’t move back to upstate New York till after the First of the year I moved back there.
Okay, and then So I had maybe a [00:07:00] handful of accounts in upstate New York, and it was like two to three million dollars. That was the most it ever did. Wow. When I
Chris Corcoran: took it over. Wow. Okay. Very good. It must have been hard. how do you differentiate? The toilet
Mark Michalisin: paper? Yeah. Easy, feel it. If it’s like sandpaper, I’ll do it, I’ll loosen it.
The toilet paper you use in a restaurant or on a college campus is not charming. Right. It’s not soft. it’s industrial grade. Yeah. And they’ll claim to be soft, but So that’s the biggest difference is you would never use this toilet
Chris Corcoran: paper at home. Yeah. Okay. So you, you would just go to your, distributors and
Mark Michalisin: samples.
Yeah. And it would be like, I would, I’d walk in and they knew right away what I was selling because you can’t hide a roll of toilet paper. Right. And here’s my product. There’s your product in toilet paper. Honestly, Chris, it’s a, it’s a me too item. Sure. Everybody’s the same. It’s one ply or two ply.
And so you had to differentiate yourself. In order for them to buy your product, anybody could sell on price. And I [00:08:00] tell my students now a rhesus monkey could sell a product, right? A rhesus monkey could sell on price. It’s about building a relationship. So I had to build a relationship with everybody within that, that distributed from the, receptionist to the warehouse manager, to the sales manager, to the, everybody in the sales force, the purchasing agent, to the finance department, all the way up to the CEO.
And I made it a point that they knew what I was doing to help generate business. So that was kind of the differentiator. That’s why I buy my product as opposed to my competition, because my competition doesn’t do X, Y, or Z like I do.
Chris Corcoran: Right. And so how long did you do that?
Mark Michalisin: I sold towel tissue and napkins for 25 years.
Chris Corcoran: 25 years? Three
Mark Michalisin: different companies. yeah. Three different companies for about 25 years. Wow. I loved it. I mean, I learned a lot. I had great mentors along the way and they, They took me under their wing and it was great. And I learned a lot, learned about sales, one of our building relationships got [00:09:00] to, see different parts of, the globe and the country and Canada, through sales, but made really great lag long lasting friends, not only the people I work with.
But some of my distributors, my buyers, who were the hardest buyers to convince, we’re like best friends now. Oh, that’s great. And it’s amazing
Chris Corcoran: how that all worked. that’s great. What was the biggest, misconception you had about sales?
Mark Michalisin: Honestly, and I think this is everybody’s, picture, mental picture is, is sales is a huge car salesman and there’s no knock on, on car salesman, but that’s just the, image or you’re a hustler and you have no ethics and you’re only out to make a buck.
and to me, that wasn’t, you know, I learned very quickly that’s totally false. I think the other misconception in this course, for you, all the students listening, and I say this to my students is. The biggest myth is sales is a male dominated field. And that’s absolutely positively not true.
Some of my best sales people I ever [00:10:00] worked with. Some of my best managers, they managed to by were female. So I tell all my students, especially the guys, Hey, at some point you’re going to be mailed by managed by a female. So you better pay attention to it because you may learn something. Right, right, right.
No, the used car salesmen that they’re the shady deal, and that’s, that was the biggest myth that was. Cause I saw my dad and I’m like, I know that’s something like my dad didn’t do that. Right. And I think just one very quickly that it’s, it’s building a relationship and that’s the only way people are going to buy from you.
Chris Corcoran: Right. I want to talk about that. So what would you do to build a relationship?
Mark Michalisin: I would just get to know them. I would go, I would build rapport. and honestly, I would just, I’d let them get to know me and build a rapport and ask them all the questions. Right. and I would. basically say, what are you looking for?
What are your issues? What are your holes in the floor? What keeps you up at night? What are your wants? What are your needs? and how can I help you? The more information you give me, the better solution I can provide for you. But if they called me [00:11:00] at eight o’clock at night, I called them back.
And the biggest, easiest thing to do, Chris, honestly, is how I built my relationships is I was responsive. They sent me an email. I got back from that day. They called me and this was, they left me a voicemail because we didn’t have internet when I first started. We didn’t have cell phones. We had to stop at pay phones and I would call them back right away and just say, Hey, I don’t, I’m just returning your call.
I’m returning your email. I don’t have your answer. Give me 24 hours and I’ll get the answer for you. That’s to me is the easiest thing to do in sales. Is respond to a customer yet half the salespeople, if not more, don’t do that. Right. I
Chris Corcoran: just, I don’t get it.
Mark Michalisin: Sets the bar low. Yeah. That’s what I think set me apart is I just, I was responsive and I was willing to work with them.
And my motto was, if you’re successful, I’m
Chris Corcoran: successful. Right. Very good. Very good. How much did your experience playing college football help you? [00:12:00] In sales,
Mark Michalisin: I mean, from a confident side, honestly, because where I went to school union college in upstate New York, we, my four years there, we went 34 and six.
So we didn’t lose a lot of games. Right. and it was just a confidence. It was a feeling we had when we stepped on the field, especially at home. We weren’t going to lose. Right. And so what I did, and I still to this day, Okay. is the confidence I had on the football field. I used to bring it into the sales room, the sales presentation.
I bring it into the classroom and I approach every lecture. I approached every sales call as if it was a game and prepared for it. And put the time and effort and and that’s what really gave me that confidence is playing football and and going through that and you mentioned a quote. One of my favorite quotes is everybody has the will to win, but very few people have the will to prepare to win.
And that was us. We [00:13:00] knew what it had to take and we didn’t mind. All the workout sessions, we remind that double sessions in the heat, we didn’t mind putting the time and effort in because we knew we were prepared and there was no way people are going to beat us if we were prepared. So that’s what I did in work and now as a teacher is I prepare so that I deliver exactly what my
Chris Corcoran: customers and students deserve.
Right. Wow. Okay. It sounds like you out hustled the
Mark Michalisin: competition. Pretty much, yeah. I mean, I, and that was like me even going into high school from being recruited. I wasn’t the most talented football player, but there was no way you were going to outwork me in the off season or during the
Chris Corcoran: season. You got some winning formula for life.
Yeah,
Mark Michalisin: that’s what it really I mean sales is let’s be honest sales is life
Chris Corcoran: Yeah, for sure. Very good.
[00:14:00]
Chris Corcoran: So you did you were selling paper price for 25 years and then talk to us about so You ended up [00:15:00] leaving the business. Yeah, and
Mark Michalisin: I write this in my board I took a family trip down to DC because I love DC.
I love history I love the monuments and there’s right around when the Martin Luther King monument was open and we got there and I’m looking up at this guy and I’m like, I mean, that’s just powerful. And then I’m, I’m reading the quotes on the wall and I came to one and it was the ultimate measure of a man.
And the ultimate measure of a man is not what he does in times of comfort and convenience, but what he does in times of crisis and conflict. And at that second, Chris, it was like a lightning bolt just smacked me upside the head and it was my, whoa, there’s gotta be more to life than this, right?
there’s gotta be something I’m meant to do something more. I’m meant to do something that’s going to have a positive impact on people. When I’m gone, they can say that’s the impact he left. So I just started thinking. Started thinking and then a couple of years down the road. it was my last [00:16:00] year in sales and it was like, I knew I was new and I was, I wasn’t having fun.
It wasn’t, it was a drag. I hated getting up in the morning to go to work. I hated the travel. And I just said, you know, enough’s enough. I got to find something else to do. And it was a Sunday morning. I’ll never forget. I was reading just the newspaper the want ads. And I saw professional practice. No, it was sales professional in residence, the College of St.
Rose in Albany, starting a new sales program. You were going to run the sales program and you were going to teach up to two classes. I’m like, all right, I apply, submit my resume, right? I’m on vacation over Christmas with my family. I’m on the beach and I’m, I’m looking at my emails from back home. And I see this email from college of St.
Rose would like to interview me. Next Tuesday, I said to my wife, I’m like, what job did I apply for at St. Louis? She goes, how the hell do I know? So I look it up and I’m [00:17:00] like, this is it. And I literally said out loud, this is the job that I want and I’m not going to be denied. And it just, and I went into basically full blown, you know, back in college, preparing double session, preparing for this interview.
And, and I went through three phone interviews. And I had to go in and teach a class and I’d never done this before. Right. And I went in and, but I, I was ready and I knew it. And, and, when they called and offered me the job, I,jumped off. I said, I’m in. Wow. And it was like the best decision I ever made.
Wow. Yeah. I mean, it set me down this path.
Chris Corcoran: this is, it’s a
Mark Michalisin: calling. It really, and I even say it to this day, I was meant to be here at Virginia Tech at this time. That’s how I feel. It’s just a great feeling to have, but that’s how, that’s how it all came to be was just.
I wanted to change. I was ready for change and I saw it and I’m like, this is it. This is what I was meant
Chris Corcoran: to do. And so you built the sales program [00:18:00] from
Mark Michalisin: scratch. Yeah, it was, we had nothing.
Chris Corcoran: So talk about that. Cause I know that some of our listeners are considering putting together
Mark Michalisin: their own sale program.
And so, John Dion. He was the the marketing professor who hired me. He’s the guy that had the idea of bringing a sales sales program to St. Rose, so he hired me and he says listen, this is you have a blank slate This is what you need to do this and it was like you need to create a sales team Okay, I mean we want you to go to competitions.
Now you need to go out and solicit Business partners. Okay. So it was like I was selling, I was selling the college. I was selling the program. I was selling the relationship, getting, you know, businesses coming in much like this here at Virginia tech. And, but it was just me. And, we started off with zero and we grew our, I think we raised, 12, 000 from businesses, which was great.
Yeah. They weren’t, they [00:19:00] supported us and, and I ended up taking students to a sales competition that first semester. Oh, really? And we had our sales club at one. It was, I think five people at one point. And when I left. It was 46 or 47 students. Wow. And we grew it and we did, we had our own internal competitions.
We took them to competitions. We had our business partners come in and, do different lessons. We did, reach out. We did charity events once, once a month. We, we did a pasta drive every Thanksgiving. And I think we raised the last time we did it, we raised. We collected 5, 250 pounds of pasta.
Wow. Two and a half tons of pasta. We donated to four charities across Albany, but that’s, it was like, and then when I came here, it was the same concept on steroids, if you will. Right. And it’s been great, but getting to this job is an even funnier story. Yeah,
Chris Corcoran: well, let’s [00:20:00] then Chris
Mark Michalisin: Chris Luccarelli is a management professor and the two of them took me under their wing and basically taught me how to teach and taught me how to develop the plan and, help me navigate it through, to higher ed and, and I didn’t want to leave St. Louis cause my, youngest son, he’s now a senior there.
So he got accepted my second year there, he got accepted to go there and it was great because I would see him, you know, every now and then or when I had food from home, I’d bring it into him and I didn’t want to leave. But the dean at the time, you just don’t get along with people, right?
It’s oil and water. I just had enough. I couldn’t deal with it. And, so one day I was, Salisbury university sales competition and, one of the, you know, the sales professors are very tight knit and, you know, gentleman I met, he called me up. He says, Hey.[00:21:00] you need to connect with Brian Collins or Virginia Tech.
I’m like, why? He goes, Tech is hiring a, professor of practice and I just got off the phone with Collins and I was pumping you up and he’s actually at the competition. So I, Oh, wow. I got on LinkedIn Friday night. In my hotel room, I got on LinkedIn. I sent Brian LinkedIn message to, Hey, you know, Tim Butler told me, I’d love to, connect, can we talk?
And Brian got back to me. He goes, yeah, how about 10 o’clock tomorrow morning? So Brian and I met for over an hour on Saturday morning and we’re just talking and I told him what my vision was and how, what I’ve been doing Tuesday. Uh, I sent my resume Monday, the Wednesday before Easter, I think it was like a week later.
I interviewed. And then the Tuesday after Easter, they called and offered me the job. I, moved to, I accepted the job without once ever stepping foot on campus. Wow. I, the only thing I knew about Virginia Tech was the football program and the [00:22:00] torque bridge because I just saw pictures. That, I’m nothing, I knew nothing else in Virginia Tech.
Wow. I knew I drew a wide Blacksburg exit. Yep. Going 81 where my parents lived in North Carolina. We would drive down. And I’m like, Oh yeah, that’s what Virginia Tech is. Not thinking that that’s going to be home.
Chris Corcoran: Amazing. Amazing. So when you were starting the program from scratch, what was the bigger problem?
Was it getting corporate sponsors or was it getting students interested
Mark Michalisin: in pursuing? It was getting students interested because they didn’t know. They didn’t know. So what I would do is. I taught one class and but I would go to other classes and talk about the sales program And I would say and I still do this to this day in my in the first day of class.
I say Sales is built on four pillars. It’s personal selling Negotiation, conflict resolution, and leadership. And I said, those sales skills are really life skills. Completely. I said, you use those every [00:23:00] single day. And I said, and it all comes with confidence. It comes with being outgoing. It comes with public speaking.
And I’m like, those are all things that you need to be successful. And I said, so when you think of sales as this. It’s not what you think it is. It’s those four pillars plus this plus this and Then slowly it was word of mouth. I had students take me the first time Then the next semester, my class is filled up within a day.
And then it was just, by the time I was leaving, it was like, and John, he’s always giving me a hard time because you are now the most popular one in the, in the marketing department. I can’t have that, right. But that it was just a word of mouth because. I would stand up there and say, I’m not an academic.
I don’t have a PhD, nor do I ever claim to have a PhD. I learned everything on the streets. So I’m going to take 25 years of sales experience and bring it into the classroom to make the lectures come [00:24:00] alive so you can relate to them, that it’s not just the theory. You’re going to be able to take the theory and actually put it in action.
and that’s, it was just me. And I said to my students, what you see is what you get. There’s no, no act. This is me all the time. And I’ll, you know, I’ll tell you exactly what
Chris Corcoran: it is. Wow. And so you’ve left a legacy at that school where you, you, if not, but for you, that program wouldn’t be what it is now.
No,
Mark Michalisin: it’s, how does that feel? it’s great. Cause I, and thing is like a lot of my students, my former students. from St. Rose will email me and say thank you for professor for what you did. You know, I had one student, at united rental and she competition. I took her tto.
you always believed of me even when I didn’t believe in myself and I wouldn’t be here without you and it was to me. It’s like, you know, that that’s what I’m [00:25:00] like. That’s why I do this right to get that to see my students succeed. You see them get that job. That’s why I do it.
Chris Corcoran: Very good. And then if you fast forward to the Virginia Tech sales program, is the bigger challenge getting the corporate sponsors or is it the bigger challenge getting students interested? I think
Mark Michalisin: it’s not an issue getting students interested in taking a sales class.
Okay. It’s getting them to take the second class and then the third class. I see. To continue on and to understand why you need this. Mm hmm. And you know, yeah, the intro principles of sales is great. It gives you the foundation. But if you want to go, you need the management sales management class in the advanced selling.
So you can put it all together. That’s the biggest challenge for us with the, you know, corporate sponsors. It’s like someone like with you, Chris, memory blue. It’s like you get it and we don’t want to water it down. it’s we value our partnership. So we don’t go after everybody [00:26:00] and we make sure that it’s very.
segment specific, if you will.
Chris Corcoran: Very good. Very good. So, what would you say to a student who was considering taking a sales class or was on the fence of it, or was considering maybe minoring in sales? Wasn’t really sure
Mark Michalisin: what would you say? Just give it a shot. Take, give it a shot because you will leave here.
If nothing else, and I say this to my students, if nothing else, when you’re done taking my class, you will leave here more confident in your ability and believing in yourself. on the last day than you were on the first day. Okay. And you will learn life skills. You will learn sales skills. I said, my job is to prepare you for sales.
But my job is also to prepare you for whatever life throws at you. Mm hmm. So you’re gonna get the best of both worlds. So that’s why I say just take the class. And I said, once you take it, you’re gonna get hooked on it. Because you will, I guarantee you, you’re gonna leave here more confident. And you’re gonna believe in yourself and your [00:27:00] ability.
And if you’re going to be like, wow, why didn’t I do this?
Chris Corcoran: right. Very good. Okay. And so, You have a book coming out. Yes. Yeah, I do. What another phenomenal legacy. There’s got to be a story. How did this thing
Mark Michalisin: come about? So, it actually is almost one year to this day of this week. And I remember walking across campus.
and back up to the very first day I walked into my office in St. Rose, right? I walked in and it’s empty, but it’s got whiteboards all over the place. So I’m like, I took off the mark and I just started writing goals for students. And I just started listing the goals.
Be confident, enhance teamwork, be goal driven. achieve self worth, never quit. And I just wrote these things. this is my mantra. This is what always drove me. And so I wrote those up and then I started, then, then the quotes came, right? And then I wrote down the Martin Luther King quote, then I wrote down.
The Teddy Roosevelt [00:28:00] man in the arena quote, and then, and I just started my office, the whiteboards are just filled with the goals and all these quotes. And, life has three choices, give up, give in, or give it your all. Right? And so it’s like, and I had all these and I would, and I’m, talking to my wife about it and she’s just like, why don’t you just put them all down on paper?
Right? You got all these stories and you got, yeah. These things and inspiration and motivational things. And I’m like, okay, yeah. All right. So let’s do this. Right. And I just, I called up my buddy, my, the guy who hired me from Encore Joe Russo, his youngest son, Donovan had written a book. So I emailed Donovan and I said, how did you get started?
And he says, he put me in touch with the people that he did. And then I talked to them. I told him what my idea was. And by the time I talked to them, I had already started writing the book. I literally would sit in my office and just start writing. And it was like, literally Chris, it was like, [00:29:00] I’m hearing me lecture as I’m typing.
I’m just talking as I type. And so then it just started. And then they said, okay, then I just, and I worked with, the beginning editor, a structural editor, revision editor, a marketing editor it. And it was a journey I’m glad I took, but I will never take it again.
It’s just ups and downs, twists and turns, dark nights of the soul is one of the authors actually, she coined that phrase. And it’s just like, there were days that I’m like, I can’t do this, I’m never going to finish this, I can’t. And then my wife would say, well if you quit then what are you going to tell your students?
Because you tell them, you don’t care how hard it is, you can’t quit. And she goes, you told your son when he was in boot camp. I don’t care how hard it is. You can’t quit. So what does that make you? I’m like, you’re right. and I sat down to write it. I said, I’m writing this book for my students.
My [00:30:00] students motivated me and inspired me to write this book. This is my way of saying thank you. And, so that’s how it all came to be. And, the title, I took it right from my favorite quote, Teddy Roosevelt, man in the arena. And I took it from the quote and, yeah. You know, to see it now and I’m looking across the table and I see the cover and, It’s just, and then I got Nikki Stone to give me a quote and she’s a gold medalist and someone said, how the hell did you do that?
And I’m like, oh, I forgot to tell you that I actually went to college with Nikki and I was a friend, you know, she and I were friends in college. Wow. I said, so that’s how I got Nikki to do it. That’s
Chris Corcoran: great. That’s great. So what were the biggest challenges in writing the book? Is it writer’s block or is it back
Mark Michalisin: and never writer’s block for me.
Okay. I never had that issue. It was just finding the time and blocking out the time to do it. So I would do it, every Sunday I would walk up a couple hours to write and I would write in between classes. the hardest thing is [00:31:00] listening and having somebody say, that’s not good, or critiquing it, or no, you need to get rid of that, and you repeat that too much, and that just kills you, that’s soul crushing, it’s just like, oh, because you think it’s gold, right, and that’s like, no, you’re just going to scrap this whole thing, so it’s like, okay, and it’s just perseverance, and it’s an amazing thing that you had all these, all these people supporting me and, and they’re like, this is good.
Who knew you
Chris Corcoran: were
Mark Michalisin: writing a book? Well, my wife and my, I mean, I told her actually when I finally decided to do it, I actually put it on Facebook and I’m a very, I’m a very private person. Like the only thing you’ll ever see on Facebook and LinkedIn is if I post something about my students in class.
But doing something or my book, other than that, you’ll never see me do anything about my kids or my, I just, that’s just not me. And [00:32:00] I just said, Hey, I just want everybody to know that this is what I’m doing. And it was the outpouring of support was phenomenal. All this is going to be great. I can’t wait.
And they’re like, Oh, I want to get it for Christmas. And I’m like, no, I actually have to write the book first. I’m just telling you, I’m, starting this process. And then, I just kept them up to date on, on milestones. Like, if I did something, I said, Oh, I submitted my first draft here. Or, I select, my cover design is this.
This is what I’m designing on. And, I haven’t told anybody it’s gone to print yet. Cause I actually just did the video last night. Cause I would do videos. I did videos on what my favorite quotes were or what the goals were or, you know, why I did this. And so it’s like. To keep people in an audience and then I had to, and then Chris, I had to sell myself again.
I had to ask people to pre order the book without them even knowing how good it is. Right. I had to get them to pre order the book. Wow. and it did. So I got 299 [00:33:00] copies pre ordered. So I was like, okay, that’s good. That’s amazing. I had to set a goal and I did. And I’m like, okay, so now it’s like, what’s next?
But so yeah, it was a struggle. It was, tough. The ups and downs. There was a lot of, lot of days that I was just like, I didn’t want to work on it. Well, I would, I remember one night I finished my draft, my first draft and I submitted it in. And I was so happy. Right? And my wife and I went up to Philly to see our youngest son play lacrosse last, this past winter, February, I think, and I’m sitting in the hotel room and I got the email that the structural editor read it and she’s got her critique and I start reading it and I got punch and it was just like, I was down for the count and I’m like, I said to my wife, I’m like, yeah, I suck.
I can’t write. And she’s and I’m like, No! And, and, thank God she was there because she read, she took it and she read it. [00:34:00] And she’s like, you’re taking this the wrong way. She, and, so okay, but then then I step back and then I’m like, okay, then after, okay, and then I’m like, okay, so Now I know what she’s telling me to do, so that I would do that, and then, so you get to that, then it goes to a revision editor, and this guy, I mean, he was great, he taught me to be a better writer, but he was tough, I mean, it would be like, and he introduced me to something I never thought of in English.
Class an em dash and I didn’t know what the hell an em dash was I could to me It just looked like a little hyphen. Mm hmm. So he would say insert em dash here And so I would just stop putting hyphens in and so finally he’s like you don’t know what an em dash is do you? I’m like no, and he goes from now on just cut copy and paste this for my thing and But that was it was it was an up and down too.
It was a lot of And what I will say the worst part of it [00:35:00] was, Chris, is the citations, because it had to be in a certain way, and you had to go and find the source of everything. You couldn’t even, like, I quoted a song about my hometown, and they said you can’t unless you get written permission from the…
So I had to track down Earl Foote. I had to track Earl down. I had never met Earl, but we’re both from the same town. But we have a mutual friend, so I reached out to him. He talked to Earl. I called her and we’re like, we were like, after two minutes, we were best friends. And he’s just like, absolutely. What do you need from him?
Like, I need you to send me an email, giving me permission. He goes. It’s on its way. So that was the toughest part is just doing it and sitting down and dedicating and setting that goal that I’m going to write this book and come hell or high water, I’m going to write this book because I’d love to see my name on a book.
Yeah. What a legacy. Yeah.
Chris Corcoran: And I think one of the, I don’t know if you did this intentionally or not, but what I love about it is you [00:36:00] shared with Your wife and others that you were doing it before you started kind of put yourself on
Mark Michalisin: the hook. Oh, no There’s no question in that and honestly, that’s why I told everybody like facebook and linkedin because I wanted to put that pressure on myself Yeah, right because I never want to be that individual to say Couldn’t do it right like so again, it goes back to one of my goals Be goal driven.
Set a goal, achieve a goal. So I set the goal and I’m a few weeks away from actually achieving that goal when I get it. I don’t believe in it until I’m actually holding the book in hand, but yeah, so that’s why I put myself out there. That’s
Chris Corcoran: great. That’s great. And so talk to the listeners a little bit about, I know it’s written for your students.
Talk a little bit about, about, about the book. So
Mark Michalisin: the book, it’s actually, it’s, I look at it this way. It’s for students, educators, business professionals, Actually, anybody, Chris, that’s looking for that, that inner confidence that we all have, that inner passion that wants to be inspired [00:37:00] or motivated, just needs that little extra oomph, and that maybe they’re not having it that day, that they just need a little push.
that’s what I’m trying to do. Okay. It’s for that. And. The, it’s, it, the book is written in, I’d say three sections. The first section is, is based on the eight goals I set for my students. So the first eight chapters, each chapter is a goal. Okay. Why I chose the goal, what it means, what’s your takeaway, what’s the reader’s takeaway, how they can do that.
The second section is my favorite section. That’s the quotes. Okay. And I picked, let me see, 1, 2, 3, 4, I think 5 quotes, so there’s Martin Luther King, Teddy Roosevelt, there’s 2 quotes that are attributed to Vince Lombardi, but only 1 of them he said, he took it from somebody else, and then I took a quote that everybody had attributed to Aristotle, But it was actually someone who was, [00:38:00] he wrote about Aristotle and he summarized what Aristotle meant and that’s, it’s excellence is, we are what we repeatedly do.
Excellence, therefore, is not an act, but a habit. I saw that quote. I was in Hunts Point in New York City and I was going to see my new my customer and it was like three o’clock on a Wednesday afternoon and I was driving back home. So I wasn’t getting out of there till four o’clock and trying to get back out of New York City out of the Bronx at four o’clock in the afternoon.
You know, just it’s suicide. I was exhausted. I’m tired, but I had to go up because I had to talk to him about these new products and I look up. And I must have been walked by this quote a hundred times and there it is and I sat there and I read it and I’m like, and I took a picture with my phone because I’m like, I love that quote.
And so that’s what I use it. and every goal in the book builds [00:39:00] upon each one. And then every quote, it’s like you look within from the Martin Luther King quoted measure of a man to in the arena that’s looking within and then it’s the excellence. It’s repeating something over and over then Vince Lombardi.
Everybody has a will to win, but very few people have a will to prepare to win. And the only place. Success comes before work is in the dictionary. That’s my, and they all lead up to each, they all lead into one. And that’s my favorite one because, and I talk about why I chose the quotes. It’s great. Who would meet, and what is your takeaway from it?
Then, the last section is, I talk about soft skills. Okay. You know, how do you walk into a room? How do you shake somebody’s hand? How do you look them in the eye? How do you maintain, you know, conversations? Because those are skills that aren’t taught. And I made it a point from day one in teaching that that was a lesson that I would teach.
And I actually, Chris, make my students Go out in the [00:40:00] hallway and come into the classroom as if they’re walking into a job fair. So you’re at the sales industry today and I make sure and I tell my students you’re walking in there and you’re going to go to memory blue and you’re going to go up to them.
And I want you to walk with a purpose. I want you to have confidence. I want them to see you coming over and say, this is going to be good for us. And I want you to give them your resume and I want you to shake your hand, introduce yourself. And then I want you to just ooze confidence that you were meant to be there.
This is your time because they’re going to write on that resume, confidence and, you know, great eye contact, great handshake. So when they’re sitting in their hotel room that night, going through all these resumes They’re going to come to that and they’re going to see those notes and they’re going to say that’s the yes pile for an interview.
That’s how you differentiate yourself, right? And then I talked about mentors. Okay. The importance of being a mentor. Mm-hmm. and also [00:41:00] having mentors. And I talk about my, the two people that you know, Joe Russo, Joe’s the Recruiter who hired me, mentors from work. I talked about my best friend’s dad growing up, who was a mentor to me.
And then I talk about my, the important mentor, my dad and what my dad meant to me in that chapter. And then my favorite chapter in the entire book. is from the student’s perspective. Okay. I have, I think, eight students. Four from St. Rose that I used to teach. Okay. And four from Virginia Tech. And I said, I would like you to tell me about your favorite quote that I did or your favorite goal that I set.
And I want it to be in your words because this book is all about you. Mm hmm. And I wrote that in there and I said, this is a chapter for you all to read to take something away that you can have the same impact on these on students or anybody you work with or associate with just by being you. And then I just wrap it up by thanking everybody.[00:42:00]
Chris Corcoran: That’s great. That’s great. So talk about well, there’s two things. Let’s just focus on on the mentors. So, people have asked me about that before, about, Chris, how do you get a mentor? What I
Mark Michalisin: did, honestly, I, Joe, when Joe Russo hired me, I was like literally attached to his hip for the first six months, and then we just grew into a friendship.
And over 20 plus years, 25 years now, it’s 29, 29 years. He’s still there and I can still call him. And, it’s just been, I was a sponge and I would listen to what he said. And, and then Joe who was Joe’s boss, who signed off on Joe hiring me, he became a mentor and basically taught me how to work on the business and how to uncover the holes in the floor.
And then to, you know, his favorite quote from Stephen Covey was. to understand and he taught me to ask questions and to listen. And it was just like, and you just find somebody and then my best friend’s [00:43:00] dad growing up, sitting at the dining room table, listening to tell stories.
Or him, you know, sprinkling magic dust on our baseball bat to make the bat go further or to eat, to eat spaghettios before the hockey game so he could score goals or to yell to me when I was playing hockey with his sons, keep digging like an old steam shovel. You don’t realize it, but he’s mentoring you and motivating you.
And And my Chris and I, we talk about this all the time that he’s doing all this stuff and you didn’t realize what he was actually doing until now you sit back and you’re like, Oh yeah, that’s who he’s doing. Right. And then my dad, I mean, he’s, you know, my biggest fan. He’s my hero.I like, I tell him I, he’s forgotten more about sales than I’ll ever know.
And it’s just great though. He’s so in it, but he was never. He was the dad that go into sporting events. You never heard from him. Never, never cheered, never yelled, never [00:44:00] yelled at the coach or the refs. Never just kept, kept quiet except once he did get my peewee football team, a penalty for calling the ref an a hole.
I actually put that story in the book, but he never, never, because as he said, he goes, That’s your time son. That’s I had my time and I was the same way with my boys I would just sit and watch as a proud dad win or lose. It was like good game. That was it,
Chris Corcoran: right? So the listeners can can feel your energy.
It’s infectious. Where does that come
Mark Michalisin: from? I I don’t know Honestly, just it’s who I am I I think it’s I I was always a confident individual when I played sports And I just think it just carries over and it’s like that line that I said earlier about when we’re at Union There was that fine line between confidence and arrogance and it’s all confidence and it’s just, I want them to feel if they can see how passionate I am about my job.
Then they’re going to get passionate about the class. They’re going to get [00:45:00] passionate about their job. And they’re going to want to go out and inspire and have a positive impact on somebody. So if they can see that, then I’m good. I see.
Chris Corcoran: And then you have a very optimistic attitude. Yeah. Right. And so where does that come from?
And can that, are you born with that?
Mark Michalisin: That’s my parents, the way they brought me up. And my grandfather, honestly, my dad’s dad, he was great. Because He grew up during the depression, so he would tell stories, and it was never about money, it was about family, and it was about being proud, and, his favorite story is how he got a job during the depression, and I remember telling my dad that, and my dad’s like, that’s his favorite story of all time, he loved that, how he got a job during the glass is half full, and I go around,
and I ask my students that, and they all say it’s half empty, and I’m like, why? Why is it half empty? Thank you. You gotta be optimistic. It’s like, listen, you gotta want to succeed. You got to get up every morning and love what you do. And if you love what you do, you’ll never work a [00:46:00] day in your life.
Chris Corcoran: Yeah, for sure. And it sounds like you’re truly loving what you’re
Mark Michalisin: doing now. It’s just that there’s honestly, there’s, this is. I said to my parents, besides growing up in Gloucester, living in Christiansburg, Blacksburg down here is the best place I’ve ever lived. And
Chris Corcoran: I’ve only been here a year. That’s great.
Very good. Well, the listeners can find the book on
Mark Michalisin: Amazon. There’s one thing I want to talk to you about. I want to tell you about the cover, because they’re going to see the cover. Yeah, talk to me about the cover. It’s very, I actually, my childhood friend, Keith Bertoni. He designed that cover for me.
He is an amazing artist. He actually, he helped me pass eighth grade Art because he did all my artwork. Right. And I keep telling him that all the time. So I reached out to him and I said, Keith, I’m writing this book and I would be honored if you design the cover. Okay. And he says, what do you have in mind? So the way the cover’s laid out, it’s in a stadium setting, and there’s a man at the wheel statue.
Mm-hmm. . And that’s [00:47:00] the famous statue in our hometown. Okay. And I put that there for a reason. So I would never forget where I came from. That’s great. Because you can’t. And so then, I have a football player. that depicts my athletic career from high school all the way through college. Then I have the guy in the suit and tie.
That’s my career in sales. Then I have the professor and that’s my career path now. And then the most important thing is the Cardinal that you see, because my mother in law was my biggest fan and she passed away. It’ll be two years almost to the day when this book is finally printed and published. And she always said she wants to come back as a Cardinal.
Oh wow. So now. Virginia, we didn’t realize this, the state board is the cardinal. We didn’t realize that until we moved. But I would be writing this book and I would see the cardinals everywhere. So I wanted to honor my mother in law by having that bird on the cover. That’s amazing. That’s amazing. and so he, designed it and it came out phenomenal.
But I’m, glad that I [00:48:00] kept the, I’m rooted and grounded from where I came from and I’ll never forget. You know, going up in Gloucester and what it did for me. That’s
Chris Corcoran: great. That’s great. So the listeners can buy the book on Amazon. Yes,
Mark Michalisin: it should be, I would say by October 1st. It’ll be available.
And then, if you want, you can go to my website. We’re building it right now, but it’s www.markMichalisin.com a r k. M I C H A L I S I N, all one word, dot com, and you can get all the information on the book, some videos, and, some, I guess there’s a blooper video coming, too. Ah,
Chris Corcoran: that’s great. So, it’s in the arena from the boardroom to the classroom.
You’ll learn about goals, quotes, soft skills, and hear, students share their stories with you. And it should be a
Mark Michalisin: motivating read for sure. Looking forward to it. I got to get some sales up. So help me out people.
Chris Corcoran: Very good. Well, thank, thank you, Mark. I really appreciate all the wisdom today and everything that you’re doing for the
Mark Michalisin: profession.
[00:49:00] I really appreciate the opportunity to support Chris. Thanks a
Chris Corcoran: lot. Thank you.
[00:50:00]