Why I do this work
When I was four, my father started a business.
While I was young he was building that business. It took everything he would give it. With five kids, he had little choice but to succeed. Of course, it all came at a cost.
After college, and some time travelling and in real estate, I negotiated to buy my father’s business. He was burned out. I was 24 years old, younger than most of the employees, but I was committed to earning my money before I had a family.
I ran that business up, via organic and M&A growth, to $5 million in revenues, doubling revenue while doubling productivity all while Office Depot and Staples spent hundreds of millions trying to put us, and others, out of business. I sold that business in 2000, the year before our first child was born.
Before I sold it, I bought a small marketing firm, and started a software company… my lily pads.
Now, I’ve closed the software firm (not every venture succeeds, but every ventures teaches!) and I’ve sold the marketing side of Sloan Creative Group to my key employee.
Now, I do what I love.
I help small business (and NGO) leaders live the lives and have the businesses they desire. I know the hopes, the sacrifices, the worries, and the rewards. I’ve learned the skills required for success.
Why I work on an hourly basis:
- It keeps things affordable, controlled, and flexible for my clients
- It lets me control my schedule and commitments
- It lets me move quickly through projects, the way I work best; intensely on, intensely off.
As I write this, in my little office shed out in the yard (my jobba hut), I hear our children playing in the yard. I see the sun shining over the Grand Forest and the Brothers. It’s a long way from my days zooming down freeways multi-tasking.
I’ve arrived, but I know that there are fellow travelers, like you, who could use a hand here and there from someone who’s been down the road before.
Contact me if there’s anyway I can help, or if you’d just like to chat.
