Four Things My Small Business Has Taught Me

1. If you work on something every day, it will grow.

And I mean, every day. Little by little and day by day is better than nothing at all. Every day I do something to help build or improve my business. Some days I put in 15 minutes and other days I put in 20 hours but it’s every day. Nothing worth having or doing comes without effort, difficulty or even pain. Personally, I’ve never envied anyone who had or took the easy road.

2. Word of mouth is everything – sort of.

Clients will naturally rave about you if they have a positive experience. They are much more trusting and quick to work with you if you’re referred from a trusted family member, friend or colleague. The only goal is to build positive relationships with quality repeat clients who see and respect your value. With that said, don’t be afraid to fire a client who does not treat you with mutual kindness and respect… Not all business is good business and you don’t need those referrals! Professionally firing a client is actually easy… And chances are, if you fire a client and they bad mouth you, their audience is probably thinking, “Oh, of course you were fired… Makes sense!”

3. The definition of success is not scaling. Bigger isn’t better. Freedom is better.

Big business means big overhead. My dream isn’t to have a 10,000 sqft warehouse and do 4 installs and 4 pick-ups a day... I’ve already lived that life and it taught me as you grow, it’s more challenging and near impossible to offer quality work consistently, including good customer service and communication. I also didn’t start a business so I can work endlessly to cover overhead and make payroll… My dream is to do 1 install and 1 pick-up a day (give or take) then lay by the pool, enjoy my weekends with friends and family and take Winters off to travel. It’s that work hard/play hard mentality. We’re not all here just to pay bills and die. By having work/life balance, I’m able to stay both excited and inspired when it is time to work. It’s true: Working hard for something we don’t care about is called stress; working hard for something we love is called passion.

4. Time is money. Agreements and deposits are quired to book time.

No agreement? No deposit? Then you’re not on the calendar. If you’re not on the calendar, then your project is not on my mind. Time is money. People are much more committed to the process when they are invested. A deposit ensures time is being used effectively.