Many years had passed since the carefree days of the Orange Room. I'd been in college, quit school and played in a rock band, went back to school, married, had two children, divorced and remarried. When the smoke cleared, I found myself managing a small bank branch located in a Kroger grocery story. My office was quite small and it was made up of a desk, computer and two chairs. Teller transactions were done is a separate area through a glass door and looking out over the Kroger check out lanes. It was very small.
My duties as a Branch manager included, employee scheduling, attending meetings and conference calls, setting and achieving sales goals, meeting and greeting Kroger customers in the aisles, writing and performing PA announcements that went throughout the store, teller transitions, cross sales, writing, closing and servicing home equity loans and lines, opening checking, savings and CD accounts, handle customer complaints and finally, selling investment products and annuities. I wore many hats.
Sales goals were always my top priority since my manager and district managers were always riding us about our numbers. That's just the environment of a sales based organization. My life would become stressful if we were behind in our sales numbers so I was adamant that we make goal. Some months were better than others, but I always strived to be a top producer.
One Friday afternoon, an elderly couple met me at my desk to discuss some maturing CDs of theirs. After about 20 minutes of going over CD rates, I asked them if they'd like to hear about another option. I began explaining how a fixed annuity may be a good fit for them since they really didn't need their funds for several years. They seemed to be willing to listen and I began my presentation. They asked many questions and they both decided that it sounded like a solid recommendation. The husband was sitting to my left and his wife to my right across the desk. After a minute of silence, they agreed to start the paperwork that would need to go through underwriting.
Out of the blue, the husband, to my left, blurted out that he had just a couple more questions and I turned to face him. Out of my peripheral vision to my right, I noticed the wife rolling her eyes and then slumping in her chair. For a split second, I just thought she was kidding and comically responding to her husband new set of questions!!! I began talking to the husband....when all of a sudden, the wife slid out of her chair!!!! HOLY SHIT!!! SHE WASN'T KIDDING!!!! There was something seriously wrong!!!
The husband began to panic and started shouting, "DO SOMETHING!!! MY WIFE IS HAVING A STROKE"!!! I quickly picked up the phone and called 911 and within 5-7 minute, every paramedic, fire department and policeman in Peoria county were in my little office that could probably only hold 5 people. The wife was on the floor and the paramedics worked to revive her. Soon she was alert and back from the clutches of death!!! There must have been 25 people in the tight little office as well as another 25 Kroger customers looking through the teller window and glass door.
After the wife was safely put on the gurney to begin her ride to the hospital, my sales instincts kicked in and I realized that this was the last Friday of the month and I was about to take an annuity application that would help me with my branch investment goal. I knew it was a long shot and probably in poor taste.... but I had to ask the husband who was standing next to me the obvious question....."so, would you want to go ahead and finish signing that annuity paper work before you leave"?
I didn't get that annuity sale that day...but it wasn't because I didn't try!!!!
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