Sales Development Rep
SDRs open the conversations that everything else in sales depends on.
Don't just read it — play it
Clock in at 9am and make the calls a Sales Development Rep makes all day. Six decisions, real consequences, a score at 5pm.
What this role really is
SDR is the most accessible high-upside first job in business. You research accounts, reach out cold, and book qualified meetings for account executives. The work is repetitive and rejection-heavy, but it teaches resilience and business fluency faster than almost anything — and it promotes into AE roles in 12 to 24 months.
- Research target accounts
- Send cold emails and make cold calls
- Qualify inbound interest
- Book meetings for AEs
- Log everything in the CRM
What it pays
- Entry level
- $55k–$75k OTE $70k–$95k
- Mid career
- $110k–$160k OTE
- Senior
- $200k+ OTE
Typically 8:30–5:30
Majors that get you here
Entry roles: SDR · BDR · Inside Sales Associate · Sales Intern
Your 9-to-5, hour by hour
A realistic ordinary day — not the highlight reel.
8:30 AM
Account research
You build a list of 30 accounts with a reason to care this quarter.
9:30 AM
Call block
Forty dials, six conversations, one meeting booked.
11:30 AM
Email sequencing
You rewrite the first line of your template to reference their actual hiring page.
2:00 PM
Coaching
Your manager listens to a recorded call and fixes how you open.
4:00 PM
Pipeline review
CRM updated, tomorrow's list built, follow-ups scheduled.
Great for you if
- You're competitive and coachable
- You can hear no forty times and dial again
- You want pay tied to performance early
Probably not for you if
- You need calm, quiet work
- Quotas would stress you out constantly