I wasn’t born an addict, I, like most people became one over time. I would like to share a little of my history with you so you can see more than likely, we have several things in common. Hopefully, this will help you relate to my situation and in turn if you had or are having similar struggles, you will be inspired to take corrective action NOW and get on track to the success you have the ability to achieve.
I had a frame of mind like most people that the harder you work-the more you make. I think at one time, that was probably true. College is where you are supposed to go when you graduate from high school. I tried it and hated every minute of it. I barely made it through one year. I realized that traditional school wasn’t for me so why fight it. I decided to go with the “ harder you work-the more you make” route, so I got a job.
A friend of mine got me a job in a warehouse for a restaurant chain as a shipping clerk. It’s hard to believe now how excited I was about it, but then again, I knew I would get paid. That was my motivationmoney! The rule of work harder than anyone else to move up stood true. The harder I worked-the more I was given. I was the classic overachiever. Over the years, I worked my way up into equipment sales and then eventually over to the operations side (working in the restaurants). That’s where the really good money is made!
The reality is-the money was better, but the hours were much longer. If you figured out what I made per hour, I made less! At the time I didn’t see it that way. I was so wrapped up into what I was doing that I didn’t care. I actually enjoyed the experience at the time. I was living in Canada-even though it wasn’t that far from where I lived in the U.S., it was a very cool experience.
Over time though, it took its toll and I wanted to move back to the states. An opportunity came my way to take a job in warmer climate, so my wife and I packed our stuff and headed out. I was starting this crazy cycle again.
I worked harder than anyone else (or at least tried to), and got promotions along the way. I worked my way into a regional management position fairly quickly. Getting those little rewards kept me motivated to push myself every day.
I always enjoyed being acknowledged at awards ceremonies so you are recognized by your peers as the best. I was always worried about how others thought of me and always pushed myself to please everyone around me.
Even with all of the hours and turmoil at times in the restaurant industry, I always enjoyed what I did. I spent 20 years of my life doing it. The HUGE downside is the lack of balance in your life. You start to see that you aren’t doing what “normal” people are doing. You are always working when they aren’t. It isn’t a good lifestyle long term. I didn’t realize it until I quit and got out of the business. After being in the restaurant business I looked for a totally different career path to get into. I really enjoyed working with my hands and saw what looked to be a great business to start. It was a “niche” business in the concrete industry targeted towards homeowners. In early 2003, I started my own decorative concrete business. I didn’t know at the time how important “niche” was. Remember, at the time the internet was VERY NEW.
I started by making the right decisions and planning how I was going to get started. I had never worked with concrete before so I received the proper training. I had nearly instant success for starting a new company. I made money from day one.
Over the years, I became very good at financials and understanding the cause and effect when managed incorrectly. Even without traditional schooling on accounting, I have always been very good at reading the numbers. That is how you get paid in the restaurant business, the better the numbers, the more you make. You learn quickly how to be good at it, or you don’t get paid.
With the concrete business, I thought that my quality of life would improve since I owned it, I controlled my destiny. The reality was-my customers controlled my destiny! I promoted the business heavily and of course the calls came pouring in. I had to go write quotes to get the work. Then once I got the work, I had to do it. There was nothing automated which meant to make more-I had to work harder. It was the way I was taught.
I could see after two years of being in this new venture, I didn’t want to keep doing it this way. I either had to grow the business so I could step back (yeah right), or get out.
The company I purchased my concrete equipment from was within the city I lived. I had helped them along the way with training new owners, video shoots for TV, an infomercial, and some other marketing projects. With my management background, they felt I would be a perfect fit to run the company. I saw it as an opportunity to get out of the seasonal business I was in and have more stability as well as a chance to grow my income even quicker.
I was given shares as a signing bonus, so I had a vested interest in growing the company. Again, the harder I worked, the more I would make. At this time, it was 2005 and the economy was on a great upswing. We were growing like crazy and everyone was making money!
Well, most people know that by summer 2007, the mortgage crunch hit. Again, this had nothing to do with us directly at the time, but the real downturn didn’t hit until a year or so later.
I have a friend that worked in the mortgage lending business. He told me things that I am still in disbelief over. Let’s just say creative accounting is an understatement, to say the least. I have learned recently dwelling on these things has absolutely no positive outcome.
One thing I learned in business that has stuck with me to this day is…“Worry only about the 4 walls you are in and nothing else”.
As soon as you start looking at things outside the 4 walls, you have distractions that are counterproductive.
Banking restrictions started to heighten which made it more difficult for us to sell. Fortunately, we sold worldwide which gave us a better market to work with at least for the short term.
When things were slower, my pay was lower. In late 2007, I started looking at ways to make a little money on the side just to get me through the hump. I had a friend that was using Ebay for both buying and selling stuff. He showed me how it worked. I thought that was pretty cool. Now, I had an account on Ebay since 2003, but I never really thought about using it for selling. I decided I would learn how to do it right and find an expert out there to teach me.