POSTED ON July 15, 2026

The Proven Path From Physical Therapy to Pharma Sales

In this episode of the Medical Sales Podcast, Samuel Adeyinka sits down with Meredith Gehl, a physical therapist and graduate of the Medical Sales Career Builder, to unpack how she transitioned from patient care into pharmaceutical sales in just five weeks. Meredith shares why she began questioning her long term future in physical therapy, how student debt, limited income growth, and a lack of career flexibility pushed her to explore new options, and why medical sales became the right next step. She also explains how mentorship, specialty matching, resume translation, networking, and interview preparation helped her turn years of clinical experience into a value proposition hiring managers could immediately understand. This episode is a must listen for physical therapists, clinicians, and career changers who want to break into medical sales, find the right specialty, and make the transition with more clarity, confidence, and direction.

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Transcription:

Meredith Gehl (Guest):
The value that I saw in joining a program was direction and having someone mentor me on how to speak the language and walk the walk.

It also helped me determine which specialty would genuinely fit my lifestyle, wants, needs, and goals.

Samuel Adeyinka (Host):
Hello and welcome to the Medical Sales Podcast.

I’m your host, Samuel, founder of a revolutionary medical sales training and mentorship program called the Medical Sales Career Builder.

And I’m also host of the Medical Sales Podcast.

In this podcast, I interview top medical sales reps and leading medical sales executives from around the world.

It doesn’t matter which area of medical sales interests you, from medical devices and pharmaceuticals to genetic testing and diagnostic laboratories.

You will learn how to break into the industry, become a top 10 percent performer within your role, or climb the corporate ladder.

Welcome to the Medical Sales Podcast.

And remember, I am a medical sales expert sharing my own opinions about this amazing industry and how it can change your life.

Hey, Meredith. How are we doing today?

Meredith Gehl (Guest):
I’m doing well, Samuel. How are you?

Samuel Adeyinka (Host):
I’m fantastic.

Why don’t you tell the audience who you are and what you do?

Meredith Gehl (Guest):
My name is Meredith.

I am a physical therapist. I graduated in 2018, and I am a graduate of Evolve Your Success.

Samuel Adeyinka (Host):
Yes, you are.

Meredith, this is exciting because I want to put something out there right off the bat.

You are one of our fastest graduates.

You joined the Medical Sales Career Builder Premium program and landed a position in five weeks.

That is one of the fastest transitions we have seen.

I want to talk about where you were before that happened.

We work with a lot of physical therapists and clinicians who are interested in getting into medical sales.

A lot of people in general want to make the transition, but especially clinicians.

When they find Evolve Your Success, they notice that we have a lot of experience working with clinicians who want to make that jump.

But I don’t think people always understand why they want to make the jump.

As a physical therapist, talk to us about what it means to be a PT, what your career was like, and why you decided it was time to make a change into something like medical sales.

Meredith Gehl (Guest):
When I decided I wanted to become a physical therapist, I had a very idealistic version of what the career would look like.

I thought I would work hard and sacrifice early in my twenties by spending years in school, but it would lead to a flexible and fulfilling career where I could make a difference and positively impact the people around me.

I loved going to school.

I loved being a physical therapist.

I invested seven years of my life and a significant amount of money to do it.

I believed I was going to make a good income, have the flexibility to work part time when I had young children, and be able to change settings whenever I felt like I needed something different.

Things just didn’t pan out the way I had hoped.

I found myself working as a physical therapist with a tremendous amount of student loan debt.

I’m talking about six figures.

When I took out those loans, I believed I was going to make enough money to pay them off within a realistic timeline and begin building wealth outside of simply paying off student debt.

But then life happens.

You start having children.

You have daycare bills, a mortgage, and all these other expenses.

My debt-to-income ratio just didn’t make sense.

I felt like I had been sold the idea that I was going to have all this autonomy in my career and the ability to build, grow, and choose how much I wanted to make.

That was not the reality I experienced.

I worked as a physical therapist for about eight years.

I was part time for a period while my children were very young.

When I was ready to take on more hours, I did.

That was when I started realizing I had hit my ceiling in terms of pay and responsibility.

I began feeling the urge to take the next step.

I was ready for more responsibility and a new challenge.

But what’s frustrating about physical therapy is that there often isn’t a financial incentive to do that.

You can continue pouring yourself into more education and refining your craft, but there isn’t necessarily a financial incentive or lifestyle change that comes with it.

I started feeling like it wasn’t working for me anymore.

I felt stuck.

The main options available to physical therapists are to open your own practice, which takes a lot of time and money initially, or become a rehab manager.

Management honestly did not interest me because it felt like the same problem wearing a different outfit.

I started looking at other options.

I had a lot of feelings surrounding the decision because I like caring for people.

I enjoy patient care.

I was afraid that if I stepped away from physical therapy, I might feel less fulfilled.

When I reflected on what I loved most about patient care and being a physical therapist, I realized it was the relationship-building component.

It wasn’t just working with patients during a six- or eight-week treatment period.

It was having patients return year after year whenever they needed a physical therapist because they thought of me.

I loved that.

That is what led me toward sales.

I decided to look into medical sales, and that is what ultimately brought me here.

Samuel Adeyinka (Host):
Let me spend a little bit of time on those eight years.

How early or late into those eight years did you start thinking, “This isn’t what I thought it would be”?

Meredith Gehl (Guest):
I remember having those thoughts about a year and a half or two years into my career.

It was around the time of COVID.

I had heard about somebody who went to my high school who was working in medical sales and making a significant amount of money.

I remember thinking, “He has a four-year degree, and I know I’m making significantly less than him.”

I went to school for seven years and had considerably more debt.

I was trying to calculate that in my head and thinking, “What have I done?”

But ultimately, leaving felt too risky.

It felt like physical therapy was where I belonged.

I had already invested so much time, effort, and money into becoming a PT.

I wondered how I could possibly leave.

At that time, it didn’t feel reasonable or practical.

Samuel Adeyinka (Host):
Two or three years into your career, you were already having second thoughts.

But because of all the energy, time, and money you had invested in becoming a PT, you decided to stick it out for another five or six years.

By that eighth year, how did you find out more about medical sales?

What made you finally say, “I have to do something now”?

Meredith Gehl (Guest):
I had a conversation with somebody who substituted for my recreational volleyball team one Sunday.

He was a physical therapist who had left the field.

I had a million questions for him.

Leaving physical therapy was already something I had been considering, but he became the tipping point that made me think, “I need to look into this. I can do this.”

He was very encouraging.

He said, “Of course you can. I did it. Other people are doing it.”

That conversation pushed me to seriously explore what my realistic options could be.

I went to ChatGPT, in full transparency.

I explained, “I’m a physical therapist. These are my frustrations with the career. These are the issues I’m facing. What are other physical therapists doing? What realistic options do I have?”

At first, I was completely overwhelmed.

I had no idea where I would fit.

That was when I became serious about determining what I genuinely loved about being a physical therapist.

As I mentioned earlier, it was the relationship-building aspect.

When I explained that to ChatGPT, it essentially said, “It sounds like you could be good at sales.”

I enjoyed interacting with people.

It wasn’t the patient interaction that I disliked about my job.

That made me lean further into the idea of sales.

Samuel Adeyinka (Host):
You’re talking to ChatGPT, and it introduces you to medical sales.

What happened next?

What did it say, and how did you eventually land on Evolve Your Success?

Meredith Gehl (Guest):
I literally did not have a LinkedIn profile before this.

At that time, I had never even been on LinkedIn.

There wasn’t much reason to use it in the clinical world, at least where I’m from.

ChatGPT essentially told me that I needed to start by creating a LinkedIn profile so I could establish a professional presence and allow people to find me.

That was where I started.

Then, of course, I began looking for medical sales professionals and following them.

I read that I needed to interact with people in the field and ask questions.

The first person I ended up making contact with was April, who is part of your team.

Very early after deciding that I wanted to explore medical sales, April and I were already in contact.

Samuel Adeyinka (Host):
She’s doing something right on LinkedIn.

I love it.

You talked to April and started realizing that this could become a reality.

What was the decision-making process between trying to do it on your own and hoping for the best or investing in a program?

Where was your head, and why did you make that decision?

Meredith Gehl (Guest):
I found myself completely overwhelmed by all my options.

There were so many specialties.

I didn’t understand how to network, who I should talk to, or how to find the right jobs.

The corporate world also has a completely different language from the clinical world.

I had to learn that language, and there was a very large learning curve.

I recognized that I didn’t know what I didn’t know.

When I found Evolve Your Success and saw the program you offered, you mentioned that people were landing positions within four months.

My husband and I discussed whether the investment would be worth it.

I wondered, “Could I do it on my own?”

Potentially.

But how long would it take?

Who knows?

Along with the likely increase in time, I would spend a lot of that time questioning myself.

“Is this something I would even enjoy?”

“Can I realistically do this?”

“How do I show up in these conversations?”

What it came down to was the value of having direction.

I wanted somebody to mentor me on how to speak the language and walk the walk.

I also needed help determining which specialty would actually fit my lifestyle, wants, needs, and desires.

Samuel Adeyinka (Host):
That’s beautiful.

We talk a lot about the fact that this is a huge focus of our program.

Not every specialty is the same.

Choosing a specialty is less about saying, “I just want this,” and more about understanding the lifestyle you want, the amount of money you want to make, and the kind of impact you want to have.

Those things help determine where you should actually be and where you will have the most traction based on who you are.

Let’s return to you and your husband discussing the investment.

What was the pivotal moment when you said, “I am investing in this. I’m doing it”?

Meredith Gehl (Guest):
I had a conversation with my sister.

We thought about what would happen if I didn’t invest in the program and then it took me eight months to land a job.

We compared the difference in income.

If I stayed at my current job for that much longer, I could potentially lose more money than I would spend by investing in the program and getting into a higher-paying job sooner.

The investment could help me land the position faster and begin making more money sooner.

Then that financial difference would continue to grow over time.

If I had taken the time to figure everything out by myself, who knows whether it would have happened or how long it would have taken?

What I valued most was getting it done sooner.

Once I decided I was making the switch, I felt restless.

I was ready.

I had a sense of urgency, and I knew that a program like this would help me get there faster.

Samuel Adeyinka (Host):
I love it.

We spent a lot of time matching you to the right specialty.

That is huge in our program.

Then, of course, we prepared you for every step, all the way through negotiating the offer.

Now that you’ve done it and landed in a specialty you love, what parts of the program stand out when you reflect on the experience?

For a physical therapist or any other clinician wondering whether they should invest, what would you tell them the program did for you?

Meredith Gehl (Guest):
The first thing that comes to mind is that pharmaceutical sales wasn’t even on my radar.

I was thinking much more about medical devices.

To be honest, I didn’t even really understand what pharmaceutical sales representatives did before joining the program.

I pictured myself working in medical devices, and that was where I was placing all my focus.

Then you laid out all the different specialties and identified pharma as one that could potentially make sense for me.

That piqued my interest.

I learned more about it, and you connected me with people in your program who had transitioned from being doctors of physical therapy into pharmaceutical sales.

I was able to have direct conversations with them.

I could ask, “What did this transition look like for you?”

“What is your lifestyle like now?”

“Do you like it better?”

“What do you like about pharmaceutical sales compared with being a physical therapist?”

That was invaluable insight that would have been very difficult to find outside of Evolve Your Success.

The first major benefit was helping me identify pharmaceutical sales as something that could work for me and my family.

The second was the resume support.

The way a medical sales resume looks compared with a clinical resume is literally apples to oranges.

They are completely different.

I needed to translate my skills, and I had no idea how to do that.

That was where I benefited from the mentorship of the people in your program.

Then there was the interview preparation.

I learned how to show up in an interview and present myself so that hiring managers could picture me, a clinician, succeeding in a sales role.

Those were the main things that set me apart from where I would have been without the program.

Samuel Adeyinka (Host):
I hope you’re enjoying today’s episode.

I want to let you know that our programs cover the entire career of a medical sales professional.

From getting into the medical sales industry, to learning how to become a top performer, to masterfully navigating your career into executive-level leadership.

These programs are personalized and customized for your specific career and background.

You are trained by more than 50 experts, including surgeons.

Our results speak for themselves.

We are helping candidates land positions in less than 120 days at leading medical technology companies like Stryker, Medtronic, Merck, Abbott, and many others.

Would you run an Ironman race without training and a strategy?

You wouldn’t.

So why are you trying to do the same thing with a medical sales position?

You need training.

You need a strategy.

Visit EvolveYourSuccess.com, fill out the application, schedule time with one of our account executives, and let’s get you into the position you’ve always dreamed of.

Now take us to the day you accepted your offer.

We want to be dramatic about this.

Take us there.

When did it become real?

What was going through your head?

Meredith Gehl (Guest):
I had heard that if you got to the final interview, your chances of receiving an offer were pretty high.

I didn’t know whether that was actually true.

When I say I heard that, I mean I had spoken with other people at the company who told me about the process.

But I still had so much doubt.

I wondered, “How could they actually choose me?”

Then HR called and said, “I want to let you know that this is your verbal offer. We’re writing up a formal offer, and we’ll send it to you tomorrow.”

To be honest, it didn’t feel real.

The interviews had all been virtual, and then I received a phone call.

I was just thinking, “What?”

It was surreal.

It didn’t feel real even after I received the written offer because I simply couldn’t believe it had happened.

Samuel Adeyinka (Host):
That’s amazing.

Let’s pretend you’re speaking directly to a physical therapist who is trying to make the same decision.

Based on your experience, why should they invest in Evolve Your Success?

Meredith Gehl (Guest):
Having that guidance gave me confidence in my next step.

I could read information on ChatGPT and understand some of the things I needed to do.

But what did those things actually look like in practice every day?

The program gave me a proven method for setting myself up for success and landing a job in this type of career.

There is confidence that comes from investing in somebody who has already done it and helped many other clinicians do it.

That was another major selling point for me.

You had helped so many other physical therapists specifically.

It gave me confidence to think, “They’ve done it. If those physical therapists can do it, I can do it.”

It was definitely worth the investment.

Samuel Adeyinka (Host):
I love it.

Let’s switch gears a little bit.

PT to pharma.

What have you learned that makes pharmaceutical sales a career physical therapists should consider?

Meredith Gehl (Guest):
The main draw for me was the relationship-building component.

Physical therapists gain significant relationship-building skills through patient care.

There are definitely transferable skills.

You also have the ability to relate to healthcare providers because you understand that they want what is best for the patient.

You can speak to that.

You understand where their minds are going.

The provider’s primary interest is what will benefit their patients.

They can recognize that you have that perspective and previous clinical experience to draw from.

Samuel Adeyinka (Host):
Amazing.

If people hear you today and have questions, where can they find you?

Can they reach out and talk to you?

Meredith Gehl (Guest):
Of course.

I’m on LinkedIn.

Samuel Adeyinka (Host):
We’ll include your LinkedIn profile in the show notes.

Meredith Gehl (Guest):
Definitely message me.

I’m happy to help.

I’m an open book.

I will probably tell you more than you ever wanted to know.

Samuel Adeyinka (Host):
I love it.

Just so people understand what your life really consists of, what is your family dynamic?

Meredith Gehl (Guest):
I am married.

We will have been married for seven years in September.

I have two young children.

I have a five-year-old son and a three-year-old son.

We are deeply in the little-kid and daycare stage of life.

That is another reason pharmaceutical sales was attractive to me.

It offered flexibility and autonomy in my schedule that I simply didn’t have before.

Samuel Adeyinka (Host):
I love it.

Meredith, it has been amazing having you on the show.

Your life has literally changed right before your eyes, and you’re living the dream now.

We are so blessed to have been part of your journey.

We have one more thing to do before we wrap up.

Meredith, are you ready?

Meredith Gehl (Guest):
Sure. Bring it on.

Samuel Adeyinka (Host):
This is the Lightning Round.

I’m going to ask you four questions, and you’ll have about 10 seconds to answer each one.

First question.

What is the best book you’ve read in the last six months?

Meredith Gehl (Guest):
It was actually the most recent book I finished.

I listen to audiobooks instead of physically reading them.

It was called Educated.

I’m very much a nonfiction person.

It is an amazing book that everyone should read.

Samuel Adeyinka (Host):
Really?

Tell me a little more.

What is it about?

Meredith Gehl (Guest):
It’s about a woman who grew up in Utah in a very unusual home and parenting environment.

She was supposedly homeschooled but wasn’t actually receiving a formal education.

She eventually went to college, Cambridge, and Harvard.

She discusses her experience of breaking away from her family, being exposed to new ideas, and receiving an education.

Samuel Adeyinka (Host):
I’ll check that out.

What is the best television show or movie you’ve seen in the last six months?

Meredith Gehl (Guest):
I’m a nonfiction person, so it would definitely be some kind of documentary.

I can’t remember the exact title.

It was something on Netflix, possibly about terrible neighbors.

It was basically about crazy neighbors who ended up killing each other.

It was good.

Samuel Adeyinka (Host):
Whenever people need to be entertained, there’s something there for all of us.

What is the best meal you’ve had in the last six months?

We want the restaurant, the location, and the actual item, if you remember it.

Meredith Gehl (Guest):
It was even better because someone else paid for it.

I went on a work trip with my husband in French Lick, Indiana.

We went to a steakhouse, and I ordered the sea bass.

It was phenomenal.

Samuel Adeyinka (Host):
Do you remember the name of the steakhouse?

Meredith Gehl (Guest):
It has a strange name.

It’s called Moo Moo’s.

It doesn’t sound like it would be fancy, but it was.

Samuel Adeyinka (Host):
We’ll include that in the show notes.

Last but not least, what is the best experience you’ve had in the last six months?

Meredith Gehl (Guest):
I recently went to Mexico with my family.

We took an all-inclusive vacation in Cancún with another couple and their two young children.

We made lifelong memories.

It was great.

I think everyone should have that kind of opportunity and experience.

Samuel Adeyinka (Host):
Meredith, this was fantastic.

We are incredibly proud of you.

We can’t wait to see you take off in your new pharmaceutical sales position.

We’ll have to do another episode in six months or a year so you can tell us what the career is actually like and how much you’re enjoying it.

Thank you for being on the Medical Sales Podcast.

We’re so proud of you.

Meredith Gehl (Guest):
Thank you so much, Samuel.

I feel lucky to be here.

Samuel Adeyinka (Host):
I hope you enjoyed today’s episode.

And remember, I have a customized and personalized program that gets you into the medical technology industry as a sales professional or any type of role, for that matter.

Become a top performer in your position and masterfully navigate your career to executive-level leadership.

Check out these programs and learn more by visiting our website.

Fill out an application, schedule some time with one of our account executives, and allow us to get you where you need to be.

Stay tuned for more awesome content and amazing interviews on the Medical Sales Podcast.