Take 5

I have worn myself down to barely nothing. I am literally so tired there are body parts and muscles beginning to hurt from stress that I didn't even know I had. No matter how many vitamins I take, or coffee I drink I still feel tired and physically ill. My father, who is an entrepreneur, used to take vacations often. I don't mean the kind you drag your entire family on to see the worlds largest frying pan, but the kind where you leave everyone and everybody at home and at the office and take a few days to decompress. I didn't get it then, but he seemed to always be at the top of his game. If a contract was too stressful, or a client too demanding, he would take an early sabbatical. He has been telling me for years the importance of taking care of my physical and emotional state. Until now, I never really saw how it connected to business. In my opinion, I always thought it took away from business because you utilized funds and resources that could be reinvested back into the business to create further production. 

As an entrepreneur, I'm certain you are having the same challenges we all have in the beginning, how do I duplicate myself so that I can further the vision of the company? Well while you are still searching for your dopple ganger, you should take the very best care of the only one version of you. I have been away from the office for nearly 3 weeks now with trying to prepare for this move. I find myself sitting in the middle of madness that once was my family room, trying to figure out what to pack next. It would all be so much easier if I were taking everything with me, but half my belongings are going into storage, and only half are coming with me. While packing I have to make a decision of what can I live without for 6 months. I would like to take a week off once the move is complete and we are finally settled in our new temporary home, however because of the time I've already taken off from my business I can't afford to do so. I am not at my best, nor am I effective when I'm this tired, so what do I do? 

Really, what do I do? I haven't figured out all the answers yet. Part of me says to take the week off and come back with more energy and even stronger than before, while the other part of me says to hit it hard now, and play longer later. There are no guaranties in life and especially business. I find myself starting from scratch with my leeds, and combing the newspapers trying to locate a company that can't afford not to hire me. There's so much to do, but I'm still learning that it doesn't all have to get done right now. "Calgon, take me away"..... but-bring-me back-in-time-to-call-my-potential-clients-so-I-can-get-a-contract. 

Help! What do I do? I have $500 in a reserve account. I need new business cards and brochures which will cost me $150. A 3 day mini vacation will cost me $395 or I could wait until the end of September when it will cost me $150 to stay at Camp Pendleton's beach front cottages for 4 days. Or I can work hard now, get a couple of contracts within 90 days, and take a 7 day cruise at the end of 90 days. 

It's Me, Not You

If you've ever been in a relationship that wasn't quite going the way you planned it, and the person was great, but just not what you wanted or needed, you may have had to utter that dreadful line, "It's me, not you." Everyone knows what is next, but you try to salvage some type of friendship from the whole ordeal because you just don't want to crush that person. I've recently experienced this in business. I met with a potential client, spent 2 hours (on which was supposed to be an hour visit) discussing some of the areas they wanted to grow in. I made certain to choose my words wisely, because I love what I do I sometimes offer unpaid advice. I informed them during my initial phone conversation how the process worked. I would visit them once to have an initial one hour conversation, and then return at a later date to offer them a proposal of areas of improvement. I reiterated the process once more before I left their office and headed out the door feeling very positive about the prospect of working with this non-profit organization. I spent exactly one week on their proposal, so that I could get it back to them as soon as possible, and before the week was out I called to schedule our next appointment. There was no answer, as well as no return phone call. I felt like I had been stood up for my senior prom. Instead of driving by the clients office and egging their building (like a stood up high school girl would do), I instead used this opportunity as a time to reflect on what could have possibly gone wrong. 

1. Did I devalue my time?

2. Did I not address every concern?

It is possible to show someone you are not valuable because you do not stick to your own time line. If the appointment was for an hour, then I should have shut it down after an hour. Staying for an additional hour lets the client know that you either don't have any other appointments, or if you do you are so desperate to get their business that you are not concerned with other appointments. If you are not concerned with your time and other appointments, then perhaps you will show this same lack of care regarding handling their organization. So now what? Well, this lesson just cost me a weeks worth of work, but the cost could have been greater. Lesson learned, next time I will monitor my time more carefully. This too must be handled with great care. It is in poor taste to keep looking at one's watch during a meeting, but there are other ways to manage this. I will just put that smart phone I purchased to use.

There were several questions asked during the course of our meeting, that touched into some of the items I include in the initial proposal. While I wanted to address every concern, the person seemed to have no regard for my livelihood. If I gave him everything up front, there would be no substance left to include in the proposal, he wouldn't need me and he would attempt to complete all the tasks I charge a fee for. I'm all for having a discussion regarding your business, and offering free advice and perhaps building a networking relationship with our businesses, however there is a difference between taking advantage and just shooting the breeze. I politely touched on some concerns, and then reminded the person why I was there. To gather information and come up with solutions to their problems. He seemed entirely pleased with my answers, and I don't believe myself to be a poor judge of character. My years spent at Cal Poly Pomona struggling to get a degree in communications (before getting smart and heading off to a private university) provided me with some knowledge of how to read people. If it were a game of poker I would have lost. My bruised ego would not allow for me to call another time, but I did anyway, still my call went unanswered. Sometimes I can't wait until camp season again, so I can refocus on Orangeview Family Services youth camps for teenagers with behavioral challenges. Working with the teenagers over the past summer, may have been easier than working with adults that are business and organization leaders. 

Moving On

I hate hate hate, no loathe moving!!! Last week I had to assist with the relocation of the organization for which I am the Chief Administration Officer, and in two weeks I must move from my current residence as well as move my home office. Let's start with the home first.

George and I were leasing to purchase a home. The first home we attempted to do this with, the owner (who was a real estate investor) purchased the home through a 1031 exchange. She released this information to me 1 year into our 2 year contract, not knowing I knew what she was talking about. I then let her know she would have to pay the penalties of selling the property early. Unwilling to pay the penalties, and us unwilling to extend our contract another 3 years, we decided to move into another home. 

They new owner seemed desperate for anyone to rent, purchase, or just take the property from him. We negotiated to purchase the house from him, and he agreed to use a portion of our monthly payments towards the purchase. Somewhere around month 4, he stopped paying the bank the mortgage but he continued to take our monthly payments. So once the notice came that the property was in default we spoke to him about it. George being a man of his word, wanted to continue paying the owner the $2,000/month we originally agreed to pay him. We did for two months, but then we got a notice the house was being sold in an auction. The owner became furious (of course, who wants to lose their $2,000/month spending change) once we stopped paying. He paid us an unannounced visit, to which George made it very clear he no longer owned the property. The bank informed us we would have to move in order to purchase the property from them like the rest of the public. So here we are to date, packing and searching for another place to move. All the while still having the responsibility of school, businesses and community obligations. Which is a great segue into having to move the ministry in which I am the Chief Administrative Officer.

Prior to my having become a part of the organization, they entered into an annual contractual agreement with a school district to rent an auditorium at one of their elementary schools. The contract had problems from the beginning. First off, it was an hourly contract, and without anyone to monitor the actual usage the cost began to vary as the school district faced financial woes. After advising the head of the organization to move their operations they decided to find a permanent home. During the negotiation process of the permanent location, the school district began to apply pressure for the organization to pay an increased monthly amount. The school district threatened not to allow access into the building if the organization did not bring in a check to their offices for $7,600. The non profit ministry, being unable to pay the amount decided they would have to pull together their resources to relocate with less than 48 hour notice. We not only pulled it together, but we turned the day into a celebration, and worked aggressively to make sure all of the members and associates knew of the new location. The relocation was not only successful, but the members and associates were excited about the new location and the organization was able to save more than $2,000 per month while waiting on their permanent location.

While moving is a pain, there is definitely a way to make certain the process is a smooth transition for those involved. If the ministry survived the move with less than 48 hour notice, I'm certain I'll survive the relocation of my residence.

Passion Requires NO Motivation

So I heard it say, that if you have passion for something, you don't need to be motivated to do it. Okay this is very poetic, but extremely unrealistic. Passion takes you on a great ride for the first 6 months or so, then reality swats you back down from out of the clouds, and you begin to realize the business you once had passion for has now become just another job. I've met people who claim to love their job, and don't get me wrong, I still love my businesses also but let's keep it real! Just as in any love relationship, you get frustrated, irritated, have moments of pure elation and moments where you want to throw in the towel and call it quits. So how do I get back to being passionate about my businesses? Just as I do in my marriage, I talk about it. 

My husband and I are often too busy to be bothered with one another, and the only time we are in the same room these days is when we go to sleep at night. We recognize when we are loosing passion for one another, because we are not concerned about one another's needs. It's during these times we set aside all distractions and focus on one another....for about an hour or two. LOL You'd be amazed how that small period of time helps us to reconnect and make certain each other knows how important the other is to us. That seems like an easier fix than the relationship we have with our businesses. How do we schedule a two hour date with our business to rekindle that spark that drove us to start it in the first place? I usually start by taking the day off. Yes, I said take the day off, you can do it! You spend only a portion of the day reflecting on why you started the business to begin with. Who were your target clients? Did you meet your goals? If not, how close are you and how do you get there? After you've answered these questions, you will be able to begin patching the holes in your plan, and growing towards sparking the flame that excited you about your business in the beginning. 

Surround yourself with other entrepreneurs and build business relationships with others to strengthen your support base. Not everyone can understand what entrepreneurs go through on a daily basis (sometimes not even your spouse may understand). Just remember, your customers/clients and potential customers/clients rely on your business for a much needed service/product and if you don't fulfill your business potential due to lack of motivation you will be doing a disservice to them, and more importantly to yourself.

Chivalry, Customer Service and Other Dead Things

I'm sure you've had to call some professional office, whether it's your bank or doctor's office, and you get the dreaded menu of what number to press to get to where you might be able to get to a shorter menu that might be able to get you to a live person. I never wanted to operate one of those types of businesses. I would rather be placed on hold for a minute or less listening to great hold music, than to have to attentively listen to a menu that may not be helpful. 

My husband has very different views of customer service. He is from a small town in Mississippi where your word is your contract. If you say you are going to do it, then you get it done. They have no regard for the process in which they complete the task, nor the time in which they complete it, but they will get it done. My husband owns and operates an auto mechanic shop, as well as a computer tech company, all while maintaining his duty to our country as a US Marine Corps Master Sargent. While he is currently off orders, he had a customer solicit his mechanic shop for a major repair. My husband exhibits traits of adult ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder) and often multi tasks to the point of non productivity. He has difficulties staying focused on the task at hand. While he was committed to completing the vehicle, there were major breakdowns in his methods. As his wife it doesn't matter that I may know something about business, at the end of the day he does what most husbands do....totally ignores the somewhat business rantings of his wife. He ordered parts for the vehicle (after having it parked outside his shop for 4 days which he told the customer was a 4 day job to complete) and they did not all come in. Rather than finding another supplier, he dealt with the same parts supplier. He then realized he needed additional tools, so he purchased them as he went along (instead of altogether when he determined he would need more tools). While working on this vehicle, he also begin working on items he needed to complete for the military, as well as worked on his personal network. Meanwhile the client is riding around in a rental car at the rate of $25/day. My husbands southern work ethics, drove him to push to complete the vehicle without considering breaks and mealtimes for himself. Due to low blood sugar, he began dropping tools and bolts under the hood of the vehicle. One tool fell and ruptured a hose that led to the vehicles air conditioning unit and leaked freon all over the ground. As you can probably determine, you can't just replace the hose, you have to replace the entire unit, which was $200. He then had to purchase another piece of equipment to replace the freon. This added an additional 3 days onto the time of the completion of the vehicle. It was now 20 days total that he had the vehicle, and there was no end in sight. The client remaining calm (even at having to pay the cost of $25/day for a rental car) but was losing his patience. I then had to step in and take the vehicle to another shop who had the manpower and time to complete the vehicle, as my husband had a meeting and it would have cost the client an additional day. It cost an additional $200 to have another shop complete the repairs. So now my husband is out $400 on the cost to repair the vehicle, and the $200 I threw in to get the vehicle back to the client. 

There is no way this will be profitable!!! So after discussing with those in my social and business network, they've all suggested one thing....take over his customer service for him! Customer service, operations, business etiquette-how to do business in the California market, the list goes on and on. It's very difficult to offer help to someone who doesn't feel there needs to be a change. So for now, I simply focus on school, my businesses, and paying clients. 

Doing the Things That Work

While it may seem a bit backwards to begin at the beginning of your business, it helps put things in perspective. Remember the first two weeks of opening the doors of your business, and you were so excited you told everyone about your vision and you make $12,000 in sales? Okay, that may not be your story, but it holds true for me. My husband was more excited then about my success than I've ever seen him. He was willing to get on all fours and help me scrub the floors if necessary. So what happened?

After the initial excitement of business, we often get caught up in the daily operations that don't necessarily produce anything, they just make our business life a little easier. I spent lots of hours developing an employee handbook, that included all the necessary bells and whistles from paid family and medical leave to fraternization policies. I created the perfect vision statement, forms for new employees to fill out, etc. It took me well over 6 months to create these items, as some I wasn't aware I would need them until I crossed that bridge. The problem is, for six months I failed to market my business, some calls went unanswered during the months my assistant returned to college, and all the arduous form creating work had killed the original passion I once had for my business so I wasn't telling anyone about what I did. 

I had to find the middle ground, and quickly. While the forms are necessary (and every entrepreneur can relate) it takes time away from GROW-ing the business. I designed my own websites, brochures and business cards. I handled my own marketing, and when my business did produce income it always went on making payroll and bills so there was never a reinvestment into the business to facilitate growth. I was digging myself into a deeper whole and beginning to forget why I went into business to begin with. 

As a consultant, I know exactly what is necessary to further develop my business, but am often too close to see what needs to happen. Business owners hire me to help them with areas they may be lacking in, or simply so they can take a step back and continue to grow their business. It is easy to get caught up in believing that hired help is just another bill, but they are often just the support we needed. If you cannot duplicate yourself in your business to hire someone to do exactly what you do so you can continue the vision of the business, then hire someone to support your role. Volunteers and interns can also be useful. Whatever you do, do it soon so that you can get back to the passion that drove you in your business and produced results.