<p>I don't want to do sales forever (nor do I really like it), but they're the only positions offering me interviews. How is it viewed if I work in the field for a year or so while waiting for the economy to stablize? I don't want to pidgeonhole myself in sales positions forever.</p>
<p>I'd also like to be attending a good B-school for an MBA a couple years down the road.</p>
<p>Most businesses begin and end with sales. It is the driving force that makes a business go and every business has to sell either products or itself. Being able to sell well is a great business skill.</p>
<p>A close friend ended up takings a sales job right out of college selling financial securities. It seemed like the most miserable job you could possibly have, horrible hours (like 9am-9pm for a while), paid completely on commission… BUT he did get some experience and ultimately got a job at Cisco about a year later. It certainly beats doing nothing.</p>
<p>Selling what and what is your real job goal?</p>
<p>I don’t really know what my job goal is right now. I’ve become less stressed about finding a job… I can only take rejection so much. I was previously interested in Finance, then was so stressed about finding a job in Finance, started hating it, now I love it again. Consulting also seems like a very interesting career.</p>
<p>Otherwise I don’t really know what I want to do. Getting a good MBA would probably help open some more doors for me, but I need to get decent job experience to get there. It seems like only sales positions are open to me right now, and although its not what I want to do, I need to start making money. But I rarely hear of Sales jobs leading to a top MBA…</p>
<p>If you could hone and perfect your sales skills, it may prove to be THE most important skill you use on a daily basis at any job. It may not be fun, but I promise, if you are good at it, it will be invaluable and translate into success in a great many fields.</p>
<p>It would depend on what you’re selling and what opportunities there are for growth in the job for the next five years or so. Many sales jobs would yield experience top MBA programs would like. As others have said, strong sales experience and the ability to lead a sales force are key skills in many jobs you may want after the MBA.</p>
<p>My two cents is that, however useful a sales background might be, if you really don’t like it, it’s going to fit on you like a bad suit and will be apparent to both your supervisors and prospective clients. If you proceed, I’d try to make sure that it’s a product or service that you completely believe in. I myself would be pretty indifferent to selling widgets just so that WidgetCorp. could make more money.</p>