twelve dollars an hour

On Friday, a sales manager who works for the personal training company that operates out of the gym accosted me. I was a bit ticked off by her blatant disregard for the fact that I was in the middle of a set. I heard her out, but when I started talking about fast and slow twitch muscles, there was a blank look on her face. “Listen” I said, “I could probably work for you.” Then she asked me if I wanted a job. The regional sales manager, who does all of the hiring, was visiting for the day and gave me an interview on the spot. I passed with flying colors!

He told me that the hourly rate to start was twelve dollars. Then he went on to say that rate would increase with additional certifications and more experience. I said that twelve dollars an hour was fine and that I would be happy making that. I told him that I was able to live on about $10,000 a year. He was puzzled. “Ten thousand dollars? How do you live? I mean, what do you do?” He went on to add that when he made $50,000 a year, his next goal was to make $75,000 and then it was $100,000. He was always chasing. For him, success directly translated into how much money he made each year and obviously, it was never enough.

I have heard about people like this. I’ve talked, in theory, about people who are never satisfied. This was the first time that I actually got to interact with someone like this and to engage in a dialogue about it. There was an obvious disconnect when I informed him that my car was paid for, most of the things I enjoy doing (like being outside) are free and that my biggest monthly expense is my cell phone bill which is about $50. His tone and demeanor toward me were condescending. It was almost as if he couldn’t believe that I would choose to live this way and that he felt sorry for me. Little did he know, how sorry I felt for him.