Garry McLinn- Librettos to Leads: Composing Success in Sales

10 Lessons Learned

About Garry McLinn

Garry McLinn is an emerging Sales Leader for the leader in Experience Based Learning, Education First. His career is somewhat non-traditional, having spent 10 years as an opera singer, performing all across North America, specifically Montreal and Boston. During that time, Garry developed a passion for team-based collaboration, steering him towards a pivot into sales where he grew his career towards leadership as quickly as possible.

Garry joined EF in February of 2019, as an entry level sales consultant in their international travel for students division. Over a turbulent 5 years, marked by COVID, Garry was able to find a voice for himself to help his professional community navigate the challenges of operating as a travel organization amid a global pandemic. As the world started to emerge from COVID, Garry was ready for his next step into leadership, but was sidetracked by a new journey – overcoming a diagnosis of High-Grade B-Cell Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. Throughout treatment, Garry cultivated an attitude of unwavering positivity, leaned into his work to the extent his health would allow, and emerged from a 6-month treatment plan victorious in both professional and medical pursuits.

Shortly after his tangle with Cancer, Garry was elevated into a leadership position where he would be the steward of the newest hires within a specific product under the EF Umbrella. In that time, he managed 28 direct reports at once, graduated them on to sales teams one by one, onboarded a co-manager and built a shared leadership model that has since been replicated in other departments, and fundamentally changed the nature of the new hire’s day-day responsibilities. After a year of one success after another, Garry was asked to step into the directorship of a regional sales team, a role he occupies today.

Throughout everything, Garry has been a champion of inclusivity, vulnerability, and candor.

Episode notes

Lesson 1: Listen first 04:17
Lesson 2: Lead with Vulnerability 06:26
Lesson 3: Give feedback generously, candidly, often, and with care at the core. 10:43
Lesson 4: Embrace Adversity as the Gauntlet of 14:08
Lesson 5: Keep inclusivity at the heart of everything you do 18:33
Lesson 6: Just be real, don't try to know everything 21:56
Lesson 7: Strive for authenticity in all of your relationships, in and outside of work 23:53
Lesson 8: Don't build a network, cultivate mentors and teammates. 26:57
Lesson 9: Cultivate Curiosity. 30:11
Lesson 10: Respecting all of the above, trust your gut and be willing to stand in your convictions. 32:09