Vladislav Lifšits: “Earning five figures a month at just 20?!”

What was your previous work experience, and had you worked in sales before? Roughly how much were you earning on average?

Before Upsell, alongside university, I mostly did ordinary jobs: customer service, courier work, or working as a specialist at a cleaning company. My earnings were around the Estonian average, and in some places even below it. I mostly worked part-time, so the pay was very modest. My earlier work experience simply can’t be compared with sales.

How did you find your way to Upsell, and what were your first months in active sales like?

I first noticed Upsell on social media, when their ad kept popping up on my Facebook. Back then I was still doing odd jobs in different places, and the pay was around €7 an hour on average, which was obviously not much. I was open to opportunities and looking for the right outlet. I saw the Upsell ad, and the €500 a day it offered seemed unrealistically good. I decided to apply, because I had nothing to lose and everything to gain.

After I was invited to an interview, everything moved quickly, because both sides acted fast, and just a week later I was at my trial day. I remember that call well, when Upsell’s head of operations, Tiina, rang me after the trial day and said they were giving me the “green light”. From then on, it was all in my hands. Honestly, at that moment I couldn’t even imagine what lay ahead!

The first months were pretty modest. I needed time to get used to how the work is done, and everything was new and different. The first “no” and the first “yes”, the working hours, the sales training, staying motivated, putting feedback into practice: it all took some getting used to. Of course, my progress was also slowed down by the fact that in my second month I decided to go travelling instead of focusing on work. The project manager was quite sceptical about me, because there were hardly any results yet, and I was already getting comfortable so early on.

For the first couple of months I earned less than €1000, but step by step I moved forward. Now I can safely say that I earn about as much as the President of Estonia. The sums have five figures! My younger self would never have believed it. Upsell gives me everything I wanted: it really is the best place to learn sales, develop your mindset and earn properly.

How did you feel when you earned your first five-figure pay? Did you reward yourself, and how?

It’s hard to put into words how happy I was: I had never seen such big sums in my account. I was proud to have achieved it, and at such a young age. 110% the best decision of my life, because where else would I have had the chance to earn a five-figure pay at 20? After all, I started from absolutely zero.

Of course I rewarded myself. After an achievement like that, I decided to take a trip to Greece, and by the pool I straight away put part of my pay into an investment account.

Describe your lifestyle before Upsell and what it’s like now. What do you like to do in your free time? Do you travel a lot?

Before Upsell I lived a very modest life. I went to university and did ordinary jobs on the side. We partied with friends, did a bit of sport and lived a normal student life. In my free time I liked to read up on investing and everything to do with it. That interest is still strong, but the rest of my lifestyle has become many times richer.

I remember very well the day I applied for a loan to buy my first car. It was a 15-year-old Mazda 3, nothing special, but it did the job and let me do courier work. Like many young guys, I dreamt of buying a newer BMW with all the bells and whistles. At Upsell I managed to make that dream come true.

I also used to travel much less often, and I had to save up for months just to go to Turkey for a week. Now I can travel every weekend if I want to. This year I’ve already been on five trips and I’m planning two more.

On top of that, through Upsell I found a great hobby: kickboxing, which is a real game changer for my daily routine! It takes the stress off and keeps me in shape, both physically and mentally.

All in all, Upsell has given me the chance to see more of the world, grow as a person, work on my investments and take up a sport I’d wanted to start for ages. I can honestly say I’m enjoying life to the full!

Tell us a bit more about your investments. If it’s not a secret, where and in what do you mainly put your money to grow?

I’ve been interested in investing since secondary school, and that’s when I bought my first shares. Today about half of my investments are in shares, and at some point I decided to take on more risk by putting part of my income into crypto. In the near future I plan to expand my investment portfolio with property too.

What are your next goals, at work and in your personal life? How do you see your future at Upsell?

My goal is to reach full financial freedom as quickly as possible. I want both me and my loved ones to be able to live the life of our dreams: travel, enjoy luxury, spend quality time whenever and wherever we want. I give it everything to be the best version of myself and use my full potential, both at work and in my private life. There’s no doubt I’ll keep using everything I’ve learned in sales for the rest of my life.

Thanks to my position as Team Leader, I can also pass my knowledge on to others and help them reach their goals faster. There are plenty of opportunities: you just have to put in the effort yourself!

What do you say to those who fear that active sales is hard and doesn’t pay? What’s your advice for someone starting out in sales?

As the saying goes: no risk, no champagne! If you want more from life, you can’t just sit and wait for someone to bring it to you on a silver platter. You have to put in the work yourself and grab the opportunities! You have nothing to lose.