Unlock the secrets to thriving in medical sales with our latest episode featuring Sheila Mallon, a standout graduate of the Medical Sales Career Builder program. Sheila shares her transformational journey from job-seeker to successful territory manager, offering firsthand insights into navigating an uncharted territory near Middletown, New York. Learn how she effectively balances a demanding career with family life while promoting opioid alternatives to a diverse range of medical professionals.
Discover how determination and structured support can dismantle the barriers of ageism and lack of experience. Sheila and other professionals highlight the critical role of precise networking, tailored resumes, and the power of mock interviews in securing desirable roles swiftly. You’ll hear about the financial benefits and career growth opportunities in transitioning from physical therapy to medical sales, and the importance of a supportive community and mentorship.
Get inspired by Sheila’s anecdotes about her favorite TV show, “The Feud,” and her best dining experience at Cosmos in Central Valley, New York. This episode is a rich blend of professional guidance, personal stories, and practical tips to help you break into and excel in the competitive medical technology industry. Don’t miss out on learning how to turn setbacks into stepping stones, regardless of your background or age. Tune in to transform your career aspirations into reality!
Meet the guest:
Sheila has built a successful career in physical therapy, dedicated to helping people restore function, independence, and overall well-being. After years of commitment to her patients, she expanded her expertise by earning an MBA, blending her healthcare knowledge with strong business acumen. This combination fueled Sheila’s desire for continuous growth and the exploration of new avenues.
Her journey eventually led her to the EYS program, where she connected with mentors and collaborated with peers who helped her refine her skills and build a robust professional network. Through this experience, Sheila discovered a passion for medical device sales—a field where her healthcare background could make a significant impact. By honing her networking and interview skills and crafting a professional profile, she was soon offered a role in medical device sales that perfectly aligns with her talents.
Now, Sheila is making a real impact in her community, ensuring that cutting-edge medical devices reach those who need them most. Whether she’s finding new ways to help others or embracing fresh challenges, Sheila remains dedicated to making a meaningful difference.
Best Food/Restaurant – Clams with Linguine at Cosimo’s, Central Valley, NY
Best TV Show – Feud on Hulu
Connect with her: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sheilamallondpt-mba/
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Episode Transcript
00:07 – 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 across the entire world. It doesn’t matter what medical sales industry from medical device to pharmaceutical, to genetic testing and diagnostic lab you name it. You will learn how to either break into the industry, be a top 10% 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 opinion about this amazing industry and how it can change your life.
00:59
Hello and welcome to the Medical Sales Podcast. I’m your host, Samuel, and today we have with us another special guest and she goes by the name of Sheila Mallon. But this is really a special guest because Sheila Mallon is one of our very own medical sales career builder graduate. She went through this program. She wants to get into medical sales, could not get a position, couldn’t even get interviews, and if she got an interview she wasn’t able to get that offer. She joined our program and we’re happy to say that she is a medical sales professional today, but there’s something specific about Sheila that I want to bring to everyone’s attention.
01:37
Sheila is in a very specific demographic that oftentimes is demographic that oftentimes is prejudiced against, oftentimes does not get into this industry and oftentimes thinks that there’s no opportunity for it, but I am not going to give that away. If you want to find out what that is, you need to listen to this episode. Every week, we are bringing you guests that are doing things differently in the medical sales space. Again, this is one of our very own, one of our graduates. You’re going to learn so much in this episode, regardless who you are, and I really do hope you enjoy this interview. Hey, Sheila, how are we doing today?
02:16 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
Hey Samuel, how are you? I am fantastic.
02:19 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
I’m excited because you know you’re one of our graduates from the Medical Sales Career Builder. It’s always exciting to have a graduate on a podcast, so I’m truly excited. But before we get into all the good stuff and your experience in the program, people want to know what do you do now. So tell us what is the medical sales you know, what type of company do you work for and what is your role.
02:40 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
Okay, well, you know that I have a background in physical therapy. It’s not necessary to have the role that I am, that I’ve recently accepted as territory manager for a wonderful company company, and my main objective is, in pain relieving solutions and my company’s making great strides, fighting the opiate battle in this country, which has just become horrible, horrible, and so my personal mission in my territory is to get the word out to the patients by building relationships with their doctors and physical therapists about all of our amazing products. And it’s going great. I love it.
03:33 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
Fantastic, so okay. So, if you’re just a little bit more, you know what type of doctor, what type of products are we talking about here. What type of doctors are you seeing?
03:42 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
I visit pain management, physical therapy, orthopedics, primary care. Anyone that might be referring patients for opioids or a doctor that might refer patients for physical therapy could be neurologist orthopedist Also. Patients are using our products before surgery, after surgery, that kind of thing.
04:11 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
Got it, got it. And how’s the setup? Is it you by yourself and you have a territory? Is it you have a bunch of teammates? You have one teammate. What does it look like?
04:21 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
So I live up near Middletown, new York, and it was uncharted territory. Some of the people in my company are working in territories that were already established, and so it’s a really nice opportunity for me to introduce myself and also the company, and it’s very exciting because, as people learn about the products and they feel comfortable with me, I’ve been able to make an impact.
04:49 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
Okay, but you don’t have any teammates, though for your territory You’re the only one.
04:53 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
That’s right. I’m the only one. I have neighboring managers that I collaborate with and we bounce off ideas. I have a wonderful manager that gives me guidance. I feel a lot of support in the company. It’s a really great culture. I have a wonderful manager that gives me guidance. I feel a lot of support in the company. It’s a really great culture. I’m super excited, super excited. It’s just amazing.
05:15 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
That’s awesome. You know well, give us the day to day. You know you wake up at what time you’re going where, like walk us through your day all the way to getting off of work.
05:25 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
Well, there’s always challenges with the family and managing work and everything, but this job has given me a better work-life balance for sure. But on an ideal day I’ll wake up, be ready to roll 8 o’clock. Sometimes we’ll have a meeting once or twice a week with the team. I check my emails and then usually sometimes I’ll have a breakfast. The other morning had a beautiful breakfast planned for a clinic and I did an in-service on our products and scheduled some follow-up with the patients in the future to help with their patients and in between, hosting breakfasts and lunches that I have scheduled, I’ll visit other offices. Sometimes I’ll have to pick up some documents to support whatever they faxed in. Sometimes they’ve forgotten to check off a box on our prescription or I’ll need some clinic notes. They, they, they trust me and it’s. It’s really great.
06:30 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
Yeah, no, that sounds awesome. What time does the day normally end?
06:35 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
Once the business offices have closed, there won’t I don’t have you know. You know there’s once I cannot get into an office, then that doesn’t necessarily end my day because I might want to take some time to document about, like keep track of my services. I have a budget for the lunches I have. There’s always emails I could send out. I could check the status of my patients that have been referred to make sure that I’ve done everything I need to do to make sure that they’ve got the equipment that’s ordered for them. So there are lots of responsibilities that I can manage out of nine to five hours that I can fit in when it’s convenient for me.
07:23 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
Sure, and you don’t work weekends.
07:26 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
I don’t work weekends, no, not generally. Like I said, I can always work on those extra office things putting pamphlets together and things like that when it’s not nine to five hours.
07:42 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
Sure, sure. Well, this is amazing, Sheila. I mean, you’re literally living the dream for a well-known company in a durable medical equipment position as a territory manager your own territory, I mean, come on, but let’s you know. I want to talk about how you got here. So let’s take it back to before you met us, before the medical sales career builder. You know what was going on, what was going on in your life. Give us the little history behind, behind everything.
08:07 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
Okay, so I am a physical therapist for 32 years. Wow, I know people often find that hard to believe because you know I’m only 29,. Right, I’m joking, you know I’m 55. Wow, wow, I’m 55. Yeah. So, anyway, a couple years ago when COVID hit, I completed my MBA, wasn’t quite sure what I was going to do. During the pandemic, while I was going through the MBA program, I was reassigned as a physical therapist I was a home care physical therapist to the hospital where I worked. I was doing inpatient work. They needed someone in the hospital in New York during the pandemic to run the iPads around the building connecting patients with their loved ones. Many of the patients were dying. I had to make relationships with the families. I was performing the remote visitation. Many of the calls were end of life calls. Sometimes I was following these families for weeks and during that time I learned a lot about myself and my relationship building skills. At the same time, I was taking the MBA program.
09:23 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
So what, what? So, okay, hold on. So you were gosh 32 years. I did not know you were. That’s, that’s you. You have so much experience in that space. Okay, so you know, talk to us a little bit about the details. So 32 years and then an MBA, and then the experience you’re describing now, or 30 years, and then you got an MBA. And why did you decide to get the MBA? You know, give us a little bit detail around the logistics here.
09:47 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
Well, I’ve been a licensed physical therapist for 32 years. Okay, so up until May I was practicing as a physical therapist. I’ll continue to maintain my license. I think that’s an important asset for me in the field that I’m in. But I was longing for a change. Going back, oh, it was quite a while ago. I started studying for my MBA and I um had to drop for personal reasons, but during COVID, uh, I ended up transferring some of my my credits into another school and I completed a general MBA program. I thought that would be a game changer for me, as I wanted to try to do something differently. But I started applying for lots of different roles, not realizing that many of the things that I was applying for were very competitive, and it took two years for me to realize that, after many interviews and disappointing experiences, that I needed to shift gears, and that’s how I came upon your program.
10:50 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
Wow, okay, wait before we get there. So you know, were you going for only medical sales positions or were you just going for? You know everything. You know what were you actually interviewing for? Talk to us a little bit about that.
11:04 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
Right after I completed my I don’t. I did not go about things in a traditional manner. I would I have no regrets, but I wouldn’t recommend anyone going about it that way. I think it’s always better to have your ideal job in mind before you start completing your studies. But um, I I just I just felt that there were.
11:28
I had no idea what I was doing. Like I, I’m just started looking at companies. Oh, you know, strikers, a great company. Phillips is a great company. I have all this experience. I should be a shoe in here Just applying randomly, but then I started to notice, for all these companies, sometimes on LinkedIn you would see there were hundreds of applicants, hundreds upon hundreds of applicants, and I did not understand what I understand now and that for my resume, while it was good, it wasn’t specific enough for the jobs I was going for. Oftentimes you have to reconstruct things based on the role you’re applying for, because the computer programs won’t even pick you up if you don’t have certain words that match your job, and so it took a long time for me to realize that I needed some more training to really help me get a specific type of job.
12:28 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
Got it, got it, okay, okay. So you were going for medical sales roles two years not working out what happened, you know, did you? Did you get on LinkedIn and see a post, did you?
12:40 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
listen to a.
12:41 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
Google search. You know how did you find us?
12:42 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
To be quite honest and I’m not sure if I answered your question I do ramble sometimes. I was applying for customer success roles and looking a lot into technology roles Because in the beginning I did not see myself as a medical salesperson.
13:02 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
Sure sure.
13:04 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
And other people did not. It was a process of me realizing that I was already a very highly skilled salesperson. As a physical therapist we were. I was providing a high um uh, uh. I was providing a service that seeks reimbursement and if you don’t document and meet the goals, you’re not going to get paid Right. So it took me a long time to realize that and the hardest person to convince was myself. And in the end, if I walked out of an interview because I had several I remember one disappointing experience where they said because at the point that I realized I need to get into sales, the person said well, we hired somebody with over 20 years of sales experience. And I think to myself now I didn’t convince that person that I am already a highly skilled salesperson but honestly, I hadn’t convinced skilled salesperson, yeah, but honestly I hadn’t convinced myself enough yet.
14:08 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
Sure.
14:09 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
So that was the process.
14:10 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
Okay. So then how’d you find us? Okay? Give us the moment, if you can remember, like what exactly was it? Okay.
14:19 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
Okay, it was on LinkedIn. The non clinical PT posted something about evolve and sales. I made a decision that I was going to stop applying for customer success roles and other things, that I was going to focus on sales medical device sales specifically, Medical device sales specifically and so I had an interview with like a recruiter for your program and a really nice interview and I felt it was a perfect fit for me. Got it, Got it and that’s where we started.
14:58 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
Got it, got it Okay. So you know a couple of things. We’re going to jump now back to your current job. You’ve gone through the program. We’ll get into your experience in the program, but I want to go back to your current job. Give us some of the things right now that, as you got closer to knowing you, want to do what you’re doing today durable medical equipment.
15:26 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
medical sales rep. What are some of the biggest surprises that you are experiencing now in the job? If any Biggest surprises, I mean I’m just, I’m, I’m not, I mean I’m, I am so happy I’m so happy I.
15:52
I really like I knew I was going to be happy, but I’m just loving my job, yeah, so I really love it and and it’s just I, I I’m good at it, like it’s just. It’s just like I’m great at forming relationships. And so I to say I’m surprised, it isn’t I’m just beyond surprised, like I mean, I was really nervous to start, you know something new, but but I it just works, it just fits, it’s just like, yeah, so that’s, that’s it, it’s just yeah, okay, so take us into the program.
16:28 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
You know, when you first got into the program, what were your thoughts, what was going on?
16:34 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
When I first got into the program I was like, okay, let’s go. And I started running through the modules and there were some open office hours and things like that. And then, boom, my daughter broke her leg and it was. It was just a rough time. She fractured her tibia. You know, it was just I had to take some time off from work. I mean, every time she rolled over in the bed I had to help her move her leg. It was like going to the doctors and, um, then physical therapy and you know, even though I’m a PT, she still had to have her own Right, right, um, yeah, so that was rough and that that was hard for me to stay on track. You know, life is what happens when you’re busy making plans, right.
17:18 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
Right, right Couldn’t say that better, yep.
17:21 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
And then I think, um think toward the end of the year. I think I logged on in the fall. We were getting close to the holidays. Sure, you called me and you were like, ok, we’re going to hit the ground running in the new year. And then we did so.
17:40
Then I started attending classes. We had a weekly class. I also did the modules on my own when I could, but it was when the classes were offered. It was very helpful to me to get in that class and I had the support of my classmates and I was lucky enough to have you there at times.
18:00
And I remember you saying if you do this program 25%, you know what we found is that you know you’re not going to get the results you want. You do it 50%, you’re not going to get the results you want. But if you really commit and you do this program the way that it’s designed, you’re going to get results. And that really sank in for me and that’s when I really got cooking and it’s a numbers game. I started networking very specifically learning about different companies, getting to know the different teams from different companies that I was interested in being on, companies that I was interested in being on and met so many amazing people that inspired me, that were very supportive of what I was trying to achieve in my career. And finally, on Easter Sunday, I reached out to my, my director of the East Coast here and I was hired by that Thursday here and I was hired by that Thursday and it was just. It just was amazing.
19:12 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
I love that. You know, in our program we, one of the biggest things that we think is the most important is finding the right kind of field. You know, one thing that people don’t talk about is how people get into a medical sales position, and because it’s not really for them or they don’t really like that kind of medical sales work, they quit five, six months down the line and everybody’s left with their hat in their hand. So in our program we want to spend a lot of time showing you all these different types of positions, all these different types of medical sales careers, identifying what makes sense for you and then, of course, like you said, hit the ground running. And we do that with the coaches, the mentors and our trainers all together and, like you said, in our classes. So if you could nail maybe three things that you remember, that just you experienced in our program that were invaluable, what would you say they were?
20:02 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
three things that were invaluable Okay, um, the, the learning to network, but to, to be very specific, how to network. Okay, revising my resume so that it was targeting the roles that I was looking for very specifically. The office hours and all everything that we did and the classes that were live that I was able to participate with, either one-on-one or in a group, and sometimes that and it’s more than three, but there were the mock interviews. The mock interviews were huge. So I give you many things, more than three, but, yeah, the mock interviews were very important how to network.
21:23 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
Everybody talks about network, network, network, but no one really talks about what that means and how it should go. And what do you say? Talk to us a little bit about what that experience like was for you, from whatever you thought networking was and then what you kind of discovered in the program regarding networking.
21:37 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
Okay, so I have a perfect example. So I have a perfect example. So, Sheila, before Evolve would send a message to someone, and I think I remember sending a message to someone in Striker looking for a job, sent my resume, blah, blah, blah. There was one time that I got a call from a recruiter, from something like that Sure, usually nothing. Well, 99 percent of the time you got nothing.
22:07
From that what I learned was that people like to talk about themselves. So keep it short and sweet. Send a request and say and be genuine, that’s important. Hey, I see that. I think I sent to my, my new um director. I think I said oh, I see you majored in such and such and now you’re have a successful career in in sales. How do you like working for blank company? Um, I just applied for a role that was posted over a month ago, just kind of threw it out there and but you know, thinking that it wasn’t even open anymore but just wanted to open to a quick chat chat. It was more concise than that, but yeah, and then I did help me. He did say during our interview later that week, he said that that message is what you know you called me.
23:03 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
you called me. You were like Samuel, it works. It works, yeah, no, it’s true. You know, as you learned getting these positions, it really is. There’s a specific way to do it that’s going to be absolutely effective and get someone in the line that’s going to want to help you, and that’s what we spend a lot of time trying to train you how to do so you can be effective and clearly you know when you put into action it worked, okay.
23:29
So I want to talk about you know, earlier in this, in our talk right now, you said that you were 55. And I think that’s important to address because there’s a lot of misconceptions about the barriers to get into medical sales. You know there’s misconceptions about I have to have a sales background. There’s misconceptions about I have to have a medical background. There’s misconceptions I have to be under, you know, 25 or 30 and I have to be and I have to look like this. You know there’s all these misconceptions and the nature of our success. There’s all these misconceptions and the nature of Arva success is we break all those misconceptions. We take them for whatever they might be and we face them and a lot of times we knock them out, knock them down right. They don’t get in our way, and that’s what happened with you. But talk to us, though. You know. What were you hearing when you’d be in interviews, or was it ever brought up or like? What kind of things were you experiencing that made you start to think I’m 55, this is going to be tough for me.
24:29
I hope you’re enjoying today’s episode and I want to let you know our programs cover the entire career of a medical sales professional, from getting into the medical sales industry to training on how to be a top performer in the medical sales industry to masterfully navigating your career to executive level leadership. These programs are personalized and customized for your specific career and background and trained by over 50 experts, including surgeons. Our results speak for ourselves and we’re landing positions for our candidates in less than 120 days in top medical technology companies like striker, medtronic, merck, abbott you name it. Would you run an iron man race without training in a strategy? You wouldn’t. So why are you trying to do the same with the medical sales position? You need training, you need a strategy and you need to visit evolveyoursuccesscom, fill out the application schedule some time with one of our account executives and let’s get you into the position that you’ve always dreamed of it’s been a.
25:26 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
It was a long road, um, like I said, I completed my mba in 2022, I guess. So I had several interviews sometimes interviews and got passed over, and it is really hard to stay positive and stay hopeful. And there was seeing people that in the roles that I wanted that look like Barbie, they were brilliant, they look like Barbie and Ken too, um, and so that was like, oh, there were times where you know you’re just too old for this, you’re just too old. All those negative voices that I had to just fight out Um, you’re too old. Um, you know, you, you should have went into sales earlier. Um, all kinds of negative things. Age was a big one. Age was a big one.
26:32
But when I got focused, you know, once I decided to join the program and after we had our discussion at the beginning of 2024, um, me and you, I, no matter what happened, I just knew I’m going to get a job. This is a numbers game the some of the skills that we were doing with the networking and the follow-up and everything, or the skills that I need, now that I’ve honed, um, and refined through doing the program that I need, now that I’ve honed and refined through doing the program that I was committing. It was a numbers game. I was reaching out to 10 people a day, as much as humanly possible, sometimes more, if I couldn’t only do five on a certain day.
27:15
It was time consuming, it was a job, but I knew, you know, and some of the people I spoke with, many of them were like, listen, you’re doing exactly what you should be doing. This is how you’re going to get something. Stay focused, you know, keep doing what you’re doing. There are no opportunities in our group right now, but I’m telling you, keep doing what you’re doing and it’s going to happen. And many of those conversations kept my head above the water because it was hard staying positive. It was difficult, but I just got to a point where I needed the program to get me real focused and to stay positive and it worked.
28:02 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
Go ahead. No say what were you going to say?
28:04 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
No, I changed my life. I did Amen, amen, yeah, and that’s just what I wanted it just took me. It was a journey.
28:11 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
Yeah, yeah, I think people undermine how important it is to have support and consistent reinforcement that this can happen for you and have your back, support and and consistent reinforcement that you’re, that this can happen for you, and like, have your back and and and, of course, the resources and the training and how to do this and what, what positions and all that. But I also think that just having a community that is there, doing it with you every step of the way and picking you up whenever you feel down is is critical, because a lot of people go for these positions on their own. They experience what you experienced and, of course, because they’re not in a program, no one is telling them to get back up, no one is encouraging, no one’s reinforcing why they can get what they want and they just kind of tap out. You know, when you think about that, you know and you think about some some let’s talk about somebody listening to this right now. That’s by themselves and they’ve been trying. It’s just not working out.
29:08
Listen to this episode. What would you tell that person?
29:12 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
uh, in regards to what I just said about the value of the support, Uh, there are a lot of people doing exactly or trying to do exactly what you want to do and you’re fully capable of achieving the same thing that I have and changing your life.
29:34
If you’re willing to put in some work, that’s great. But there might be times, I mean you might get lucky, but, um, oftentimes it’s. It’s a little bit of a process and for me it was very helpful having um other peers that were trying to also transition Um and we had, uh, the guidance of um, the people in Evolve, in my case um, and many people I networked with to support me and I don’t know how I would have gotten through um and many people I networked with to support me and I don’t know how I would have gotten through Um. I needed that to keep me afloat because it was a constant um, it was constant battle of those negative thoughts, like maybe I should stop. Maybe I should just stop because here we are over two years, but if I started with this two years ago, hey, never late than ever.
30:34 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
So it’s all good. You’re here now and you’re in the position. People ask about the money, believe it or not, and we try to explain to everyone that it depends on where you are financially before you start and what you want to do and what you want to choose when you get into a field. You know, without giving us too many details, Sheila, what would you say? How has your lifestyle improved since going from physical therapy for 25 plus years to medical sales now?
31:08 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
Well, I’m only just getting started and the pay structure is different in sales because you have a base salary, um, but it’s it’s what’s. What’s really nice is that, um, that if I’m performing at a certain level which is not unachievable, my base salary can increase, and there’s also unlimited commission. So it’s just the sky’s the limit, this, the sky’s the limit, um, only just starting out, but I’m so far, um, so there was a little delay, like when you start getting your commission from when you very first start, because it takes a while you know, it has right.
31:54
So, um, I’m only just starting to get the commission, but it’s a it’s a little bit of an improvement from what I was doing before financially, and my benefits are wonderful. I don’t really have specific paid time off, but I was able to take some time off. When both of my kids graduated, I actually went to Florida for uh, I took a few days off on a little vacation. Um, as long as my numbers are good, I have support of my team to uh make sure I’m getting some R and R, and so it’s, it’s a good work life balance. I’m taking my son to college this month and I’ve already, they know I have to take off for a couple of days and yeah, so it’s, it’s, it’s great.
32:53 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
That’s amazing. That’s amazing Again. People are listening right now and they’re they’re thinking the same things you thought before you joined. You know, what would you tell for someone that’s listening to this and thinking, should I do this, should I invest in this, is it worth the time, is it worth the money, can I commit? What would you tell this person?
33:17 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
For me it was. It was an investment, yes, but it was also a tremendous learning experience. I built my network of supportive people tremendously. Here we are on this podcast, which I’m very excited and grateful to be doing, so I have no regrets. It’s it’s one of the greatest um groups that I’ve connected with. I’m so happy and thrilled to have the connections from the group and that I’ve learned what I’ve learned, and hear myself counseling other people that I know that are in different roles, all kinds of different things, that are eager to make a change of any kind, of any kind, and I hear myself saying some of the things. Well, you know, it might take a little bit of work. I mean, it seems like you’re in a competitive field, whatever it may be. But you know, why don’t you start reaching out to people? And you know, and I find myself sharing a lot. So I hope I answered your question.
34:32 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
You did Absolutely. You know sales. What I, what I love about the program is sales is something that most people do, that they don’t think they can do, and, and one thing we always try to focus on is it’s less about you have to have a sales background and it’s more about you need to showcase that you can sell yourself and you need to showcase that you can handle rejection and, no matter how rough things are getting, you’re going to get up and get after it every single day. Get after it every single day, would you say? That’s kind of what you’re seeing now that, because of your grit within the program, it’s allowed you to be that much better in your current position.
35:13 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
Definitely. I mean, I make a lot of calls, I do cold call and I don’t give up just from one stop. I’ll go back, um, but yeah, I, um, I and I just I’ve had really good luck. So I’m, I’m definitely likable, I care, I think that’s, I’m genuine. I have a kind of a personal mission in my. I think that’s important as you set out in your everyday and when you study big companies that have mission, that’s important to stick to your mission. And so I’ve like, just for an example, I’m a physical therapist and I’ve gone out to lots of therapy places and some, some of them receive things well and some of them have a lot more questions. That’s not a good example, but I almost need to teach.
36:27
Sometimes I feel like, you know, like during some of our products, I feel like I need to bring in some of my education skills too, my education skills too. And so I may go back and I’m like, well, gee, I didn’t make an impact during this in-service as much as I had wanted to, and it could happen in any practice. I didn’t get, I didn’t hear from them after that. But what could I have done better or what can I do more? Well, what value, can I add? Well, I’m an educator so I can hone in on certain things and teach them a little bit more about this, and so I’ll just have to change my strategy a little bit to get a different result. So I try not to get disappointed. I just try to look at things like gee, I’m a PT and I think this is awesome. How come not all PTs see it this way? Well, what could I do different? And then I just keep at it.
37:22 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
I love it.
37:23 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
Yeah.
37:24 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
One thing that we stress in the program is your personal story and how important it is to craft one that really lands. What was that like for you in the program?
37:34 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
Oh okay. Well, I made a portfolio and I showcased my, outlined my, I did the win the view and I did send that along after my interviews to or you could even send it ahead of time as sort of a guide. But I do think that taking time to outline personal accomplishments, even using, like, the skills from that specific job, like acting as if you already have the job into the portfolio, can really set you apart from other candidates because you’ve really taken the time to research the role and integrate yourself into it and showcase that in your portfolio. So I think having a personal story, sharing it on a WinTheView platform or something similar, really shows and sets you apart from other candidates.
38:48 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
Absolutely. I want to go back to the age right, to those that are 50 plus. What would you tell them? To those?
38:59 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
that are 50 plus. What would you tell them? I I feel like I talked to so many people because they asked me, like, what I’m up to, and then I get all like, oh wow, that’s amazing, you changed your life and it’s just happened so much. Now, like I wish I could do that. I wish I could do something like that, you know, but I’m too old, I’m like, but I’m too this or I’m too that. Um, I just don’t see it that way. I have a lot of energy. It really is. Age is not. It’s just an excuse. It’s just an excuse not to do it. So don’t let that happen, because 50 is young.
39:37
50 is young and if you’re not happy in your career, you don’t have to stay where you are. You don’t have to stay. Go for it. Make a long-term plan, make a change, start taking some steps toward a different future. Like I’m so happy I mean, I loved my career as a physical therapist for so many years. I loved it and I still love the field of physical therapy and I’m so happy I get to work with physical therapists all the time but I desperately needed a change and age. At times I thought was a block and I would get down. But no, I just you have. You just have to make your goal and don’t ever think you’re too old. As long as you’re motivated and you’re doing the work, you’re going to get results.
40:29
And the medical device tells if you’re likable and you’re committed and you’re going to get it.
40:38 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
Yeah, yeah yeah, you know. One last thing I want to go over. We do meet a lot of people that have been trying to get this position, some people as long as three years like you were saying two years, some people one year and we know that going through this program speeds it up Again. What would you say to that?
41:02 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
I think I said it earlier, but I wish I hooked up with you back as soon as I finished my MBA program.
41:10
But as far as sharing my story and the struggles, if it can help anyone, I’m glad. It happened then the way it did, because I can, I know, um, I learned so much but, um, the program, I really needed it because I had to refine the way that I think, the way that I, that I talk, so that I could really capture the skills that I already have and be able to verbalize them very well about how I’m already a salesperson, about how I’ve been a salesperson for 32 years. But I just didn’t know how to say it because I had a clinical head. There might be a different kind of head going out there. I had a clinical head. There might be a different kind of head going out there, maybe somebody that majored in I don’t know zoology or biology or criminal justice. I mean, we see all kinds of things in the backgrounds of people in medical device sales. If you’re smart, you’re likable and you really want to do it, you can do it.
42:20 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
Amen to that. Amen to that Because you’re a clinician, a physical therapist. A lot of your experience in the program was focused on the softer skills, the sales skills like we discussed your personal story, how to network effectively and how to be consistent and, of course, just what everybody goes through having that motivation and community to always lean on as you chase the goal and finally achieve it. Other things that we have in our program, like how we introduce you to all the different medical careers, some of the sales training, some of the sales workshops where experts from different fields come and talk about it. Did you spend much time with those types of experiences?
43:05 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
I spent some time. I think it’s important to take advantage of the podcasts there was. There were a list of books that I read that you recommended. I’m blanking right now. I won’t say I’m having a senior moment, but I think my brain’s on overload.
43:25 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
You’ve been in the job for a little while now. You know this was the past, but I understand. Go ahead.
43:31 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
Yeah, so I think that the resources of listening to people podcasts my company offers some inside of hours that I’ve been listening to that are just more specific to what I’m doing right now, but I remember I would be listening to books on tape when I was driving. I’m trying to just remember one the one about the story the big one. The big one, remember the big there was one about the story, the big one, the big one. Remember the big one, the one about the story, the, the.
44:05 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
It was almost like oh God, I can’t remember. No, maybe maybe you shouldn’t remember it, because for anybody listening right now that’s considering joining the program, let’s not spoil it for them. They’re going to find out. There’s a whole series of books they’re going to have to read anyway. But this is great, Sheila. One thing that I can’t stress enough is the beauty about getting into medical sales and really anything but especially medical sales is. It’s not some nebulous thing. You get lucky. It’s a process. There’s a way to do it now and in our program there’s literally a track to follow and as long as you follow it and complete it, like you said, 99.9% chance of getting what you want even if you’re 50 plus.
44:51
So, Sheila, we just love that you came out and talked with us today and gave your experience. Is there anything else you would love to tell the audience?
45:04 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
Yes, I think that there are more sales people out there than like that. People don’t like you were talking about sales. We, even as children, we start somebody. I was having a discussion with somebody about this the other day. Think about when you’re a child. You’re like mom if I clean my room, you think you can get me that new Xbox game or that new thing, or what if I do this? How about we? Can you know, we’re starting out as salesmen, salespeople, very, very young, and we all have capability to do that. I mean it to to get into sales. There’s so many people that um, that are cut out for sales, that don’t realize it. So I’m so grateful, so grateful that I um honed in on sales. I didn’t see it at first more than two years ago, but it took me a while and I was the hardest person to convince. But, believe me, you can change your life if you really want to, and it is. It can be a lot of work, but you won’t be sorry.
46:11 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
Love it, I love it. Sheila, where can people find you?
46:14 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
Where can people find me? Um, let’s see, I’m hiding out here now. I’m on LinkedIn, so that’s the best place to find me right now.
46:28 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
Excellent, excellent. We have one more thing to do before I let you go. Are you ready?
46:33 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
Yes, sir.
46:34 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
All right, this is called the lightning round. I’m asking four questions. You have less than 10 seconds to answer. Oh God, let’s begin, all right.
46:38 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
What is the?
46:38 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
best book round. I’m asking you four questions. You have less than 10 seconds to answer. Let us begin All right. What is the best book you’ve read in the last six months?
46:51 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
I don’t remember reading a book Cause something about my company. All I can think about is all the like drinking out of a fire hose, something with you know what?
46:59 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
that’s fair, that’s totally fair. Okay, yeah, best tv show or movie you’ve seen in the last six months oh, the feud about betty crawford and joe.
47:08 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
No, uh, betty davis and joan crawford, what is it? It’s the feud, you know. Uh, there’s one about the swan with it’s called the Feud. It’s on Hulu and it’s the Feud. But it’s not the one about the swans, it’s the one about Susan Sarandon. Plays Betty Davis and oh what’s what’s her name. Plays Joan Crawford. They had a famous feud.
47:36 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
Oh, wow.
47:37 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
I never even heard.
47:38 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
Is it like real Documentary or is it a movie?
47:42 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
If you ever watched Whatever Happened to Baby Jane. They were two divas that hated each other. They got older in their career and they didn’t they realized that, don’t spoil it.
47:57 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
Don’t spoil it. Hold on, okay, okay, but it’s called on Hulu, it’s called the Feud.
48:02 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
Right, but there are different feuds that are within.
48:05 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
Right, you like the one with Junk. Okay, okay, noted, All right. What is the best meal we want? The restaurant, the item and the location. The best meal you’ve had in the last six months.
48:20 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
The best meal you’ve had in the last six months. The best meal I’ve had in the last six months? Um was, oh, you know, it was somewhat local. It was at cosimo’s in um, I want to say central valley, where I had clams with linguine and I had broccoli rabe on the side and I put it in all together and mixed it up and it was good. Okay, so this is Cosmos, where what’s the city in Central Valley in New York?
48:50 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
You said Plainview Central Valley.
48:52 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
Central Valley, New York.
48:53 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
Central Valley, new York, and it’s called Cosmos.
48:56 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
Yep.
48:58 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
And it’s the clams.
48:59 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
The linguine with the white clam like the olive oil, and then I mix the broccoli ravioli.
49:05 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
Okay, that’s happening All right. And then last question, but not least what is the best experience you’ve had in the last six months?
49:14 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
The best experience I’ve had in the last six months was accepting the job that I am currently working at. Even more so than that was when I walked out with like six or seven orders from one new client, because it was like you know, wow, you know, this is, this is amazing. And even better than that is hearing from my coworkers and my manager you’re killing it. So I’m, you’re new, I’m nervous and I’m like about. You know that I’m just beginner’s luck, but I’m committed to my mission and to the company mission and I think that is going to just keep things moving along. I love everybody I’m meeting. Just opportunities are opening up. The relationships that I’ve just formed are blossoming. As they get to know me, they are asking me to do more to help with their patients, and I’m just I’m loving it.
50:36 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
It’s amazing, Sheila. Sheila thank you so much for the time with us on the Medical Sales Podcast. We can’t wait to see all the amazing things you’re going to continue to go out there and do in the medical sales world. And thank you again.
50:48 – Sheila Mallon (Guest)
Thank you.
50:49 – Samuel Adeyinka (Host)
And that was Sheila Mallon. Kind of surprising, right? You know? I think not. I think you know, let’s, let’s, let’s speak honestly Ageism is ageism a real thing?
51:04
I absolutely think it is. Ageism is a very real thing. But so is not having sales experience so is not have medical experience, so is not having been in this position, even though trying to get a position in medical sales it’s all real. At the end of the day, you got to ask yourself this Do you really want this? Do you have a good reason to go after this and are you willing to do what it takes to get there here at Evarva? Success? That is what we are here for. We know how to do it.
51:37
Whether you’re someone that has a barrier like ageism, or a barrier like no medical sales or, I’m sorry, no medicine, or barrier like no sales, or any other barrier for that matter, outside of not having a degree and having a clean record and ready to go out there and change patients’ lives, then what are you waiting for?
51:56
You know, I have these episodes with people like this to inspire you, to take action and to teach you what life can look like and, of course, educate all of you at the same time, in case this is something you want to be doing. As always, we do our best to bring you guests who are doing things differently in the medical space, so make sure you tune in next week for another episode of the Medical Sales Podcast. 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 at EvolvesSuccesscom by visiting our site, filling out an application schedule some time with one of our account executives and allowing us to get you where you need to be. Stay tuned for more awesome content with amazing interviews on the Medical Sales Podcast.
Medical Territory Manager!
I was a Regional Sales Representative for Long-Term Care pharmacy services. I had dreamed of getting into the med sales industry when I went into my career as a nurse, but the pharmacy sales job came to me, and I had just settled. Fortunately, I had a job shakeup that allowed me to determine that now was the time to pursue my original vision.
I absolutely would not have this position without Samuel and the Evolve Your Success community. A lot of people my age would just stop trying, but EYS believed in me.
EYS allowed me to break into the industry in 90-Days after I had been trying on my own for over two years! I had lots of recruiter screenings, and a few interviews with hiring managers, but I was never offered a position.
Before EYS, I didn’t realize I was doing the bare minimum to get hired. I was applying everywhere, hoping to get noticed and waiting. It just wasn’t working! I didn’t know that that was not enough to compete in an industry this sought after, and against people who knew what I didn’t know about the process.
Of course, I had to think hard before making a financial investment that’s reasonably substantial. But when I read the testimonials of real med sales reps on the site and learned that I wasn’t the only one taking a chance on my success, that EYS was sharing that risk also, I knew I had to do it. Though you might be able to cobble together some of the steps of getting a role in med sales from online research on your own, you just can’t know what you don’t know!
The process of going through EYS presents this insider knowledge to the student, as well as giving you a progression of difficulty as you obtain the information, and you begin to master it. Not only that, but they give you access to amazing mentors and instructors, allow you to practice your interview skills, and teach you how to market yourself through social media and your own website! I cannot stress enough that EYS was the factor that made the difference in my successfully landing my dream job! The support, structure, and knowledge gained was invaluable!
I would recommend this course to ANYONE looking to break into medical sales
Thank you so much, EYS! This journey has been life changing and has resulted in the successful culmination of my 18-Year ambition! 
Sports Medicine in Phoenix! I extend so much gratitude to the Evolve Your Success group as I land this role and get ready to pursue my dream job. I am a Physical Therapist who became a little stuck in the profession due to issues with reimbursement and the difficulty for continued growth upwards. I turned to EYS to assist me in learning about the medical sales industry and gain knowledgable mentors who were able to help coach me in this process. I am a strong believer in surrounding yourself with the best and good things will happen. I did work hard, but with the support of my mentors and other colleagues going through a career change, I felt a sense of community and it confirmed my drive to get into this industry. I have already learned so much through the interview process, and feel very blessed to have had the resources this group provided. I have made lifelong friends and I cannot wait to continue to follow others’ journeys to pursue this incredible field. I urge you to give Evolve Your Success a try to gain mentorship, guidance, and support through any career transition.
and am excited to make a difference in patients’ lives as a Pharmaceutical Sales Specialist.
! Though I truly enjoyed working as a physical therapist, I can’t wait to start my career in the sales world as a Clinical Account Executive.
. I owe this opportunity to Samuel, the program, and the incredible mentors at EYS.
