In college, I always had two or three jobs while taking classes full time in order to pay the bills.
During my sophomore year, I was offered a job with an HVAC company in town. Someone in my class had been working for them on the side and they were trying to find someone to take their place once they graduated. He told me that all he had to do was find people to hire this HVAC company for their heat and air needs. That was all. Once he found a homeowner that agreed to work with the HVAC company, he’d give them the information, wait for them to follow through, and then he’d received a decent commission for bringing in the client. It seemed easy enough, so I accepted! I didn’t realize how hard it would be to find homeowners who needed HVAC work done. I spent several weeks cold calling random people and practically begging them to have their furnace or air conditioner serviced. One afternoon, while I was in the lobby of my dormitory, I overheard some construction workers talking about the air conditioner not working. Once I heard this, I pitched to them the idea of working with my recommended HVAC company. To my surprise, they used the information I gave them and agreed to hire the HVAC company for a commercial air conditioner replacement for not one, but four university buildings! My boss told me that it was the biggest sale they’ve ever seen from a college student.