ByJeanette Acevedo

…….there is a certain kind of crazy that comes from being a business owner

Copyright © 2014 by Jeanette Acevedo

All rights reserved worldwide.

No part of this eBook may be copied or sold without permission from the author. You can reach Jeanette Acevedo by telephone at

813-384-9122.

DedicationThis book is dedicated to everyone who has the fire of an entrepreneur

inside of them.

Let your fire shine brightly. Let your gifts and talents bring joy to your world. Be successful – it’s the only way.

DISCLAIMER:

The information in this ebook is written for the purpose of sharing with the reader what my business days are like. I have written about what I have learned during the thirty days outlined as I go through the business of doing business. The suggestions I offer that may be of value to the reader are just suggestions. You have at your disposal many forms of assistance including attorneys, business coaches, business mentors, classes, agencies, books, products and services that can assist you throughout your business journey.

The following information is not intended to replace legal counsel. Legal matters require an attorney and it is recommended that you seek legal counsel when necessary.

In purchasing this ebook and applying any of the information herein the reader agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the writer of this ebook for any reason whatsoever before, during or after their attempt to use the information provided in this book in an attempt to improving their business in any way.

Acknowledgments:

No endeavor happens without the assistance and support of key people.

First I want to thank my father, who instilled in me the key ingredients of success. If you want to read my tribute to him my ebook “Huggs & Kisses, Letters From Dad” will be available very soon. There was no one like him and I miss him very much. I know that if he were alive he would be my biggest fan.

I want to thank my friend Map who helped me start my business. He may not have had 100% faith in me, he may have thought that I would have failed by now but he did provide financial support, his spin on business and assistance like no other person ever in my life. He has been a good friend and I appreciate every effort he has extended my way.

It is important to mention that I would not have learned one thing about business without the resources available to me. SBIC has been the place that provided free classes on information which helped me learn about business. I am grateful and I offer them many, many thanks.

I am appreciative of all of the networking groups I attended as well as those groups I have had the opportunity of being a part of. In these venues I met some awesome business people and I learned a great deal. In their very own way every group and every business owner I met contributed to my business growth. Thank you.

I also want to thank my clients for trusting me to assist them in the areas where I am a nerd. Thank you, thank you.

I cannot count how many hours have gone into this project. It was as if I was in the “zone” - that place where people lose themselves and time has no meaning. I believe that I have been blessed with many, many things and I am thankful to God for every good thing He has provided me with and being in the zone, putting pen to paper is one of them. Thank you.

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Who is Jeanette Acevedo?

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I am a rock collector, gardener and amateur photographer. I love nature and I enjoy being one with all that is. Don’t get me wrong, I like spending time with people but spending time alone and in nature helps me to think in great and expansive ways. Everyone has their medicine – that’s mine. When I am not working you will usually find me focusing on projects that may not mean a lot to the world at large but make me happy.

I am the owner of a small consulting business which as of this writing (3/2014) has been in business for five years. It has grown from a company that only provided one type of consulting service into a company that provides the services that my clients need in order to be successful in a variety of areas.

In spite of all of the growth, I am still a one man shop and I am trying to find the key to bring me to the next level: revenue that can support the business, a decent salary, and employees. Sometimes I feel that I am almost there and then the feeling evaporates leaving me questioning my role, my growth and my sanity.

Professionally, I have found that many of my clients need real advice related to their issues. They need education. They need to bounce their life and their ideas off of someone who will not judge them and who will provide them with the best advice possible – real time advice, advice they can use and apply in the now. Sometimes they come to me for one thing – like their credit and then another issue develops – like their personal or business goals which they are striving to meet but are stuck in some sort of limbo. I am their non-judgmental and confidential sounding board, helping them get to the core of their situation and develop a plan of action.

I often meet with business owners for 1:2:1’s. During these meetings we share our business goals and challenges. It seems that more and more of these meetings become a venue where I put on my hat as coach and mentor and I help them to clarify goals, set up a plan of action and or just give them the kick in the butt they need.

I am pretty good at networking and I have found that I am a very good business advisor, coach and mentor. There is a lot to be said for a person with real life business experience.

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Over the past year I have found that my business model is changing. I have been slowly growing my business in several areas. By default the areas of business coaching and business mentoring has also grown. I feel that it is time for me to monetize this opportunity. Since I find these areas fascinating and rewarding, I am compelled to move in that direction.

You should know that while I am working on this book I am also working on several other projects that I am hoping will bring in additional revenue. Personally, I never stop learning or growing and I don’t care what others think.

That last sentence is very important because a business owner cannot be tied too tightly to what others think. You should do your research, take action, observe, tweak, research, take action, observe and tweak again. That’s the cycle.

Even with all of the research I do sometimes I am wrong. Inevitably, failure knocks me down but I get up again and again and again.

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Introduction

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Saturday, March 29, 2014

I had a thought this morning to write a book that shares an entire month which details my life as a business owner. My small (really nano) business will be the source of this documentary. This will be a kind of journal about my business where I will share my ups, downs, struggles and successes all in the name of business knowledge.

What makes me want to write this? I meet so many business owners who think that starting a business is easy. Even business owners who buy a franchise think it will be easy. They are so wrong. Being a business owner is one of the most difficult and emotionally wrenching things a person will ever undertake. It will be especially difficult if you are boot strapping it. It will still be difficult if you have investors that you are responsible to. It will make your stomach turn if you are maxing out all of your credit cards in the hopes that your business will be successful. It will make you throw up if you find yourself with zero dollars in your pocket, every bill is due yesterday and there is no sight of money anywhere.

You will exhaust every resource. You will tap into every source of cash. You will sell everything – except your soul to keep your business alive

It seems that most people think starting a business will be easy but this endeavor will test you again and again. You will define and redefine yourself and in the end you will have either become jaded, deflated and lose your confidence forever or you will have expanded, become proactive and a beacon of light and a mentor for business owners everywhere.

You will definitely find out what you are made of – either putty or tough stuff.

I’m tough stuff.

*******

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If someone would have told me five years ago that this would be my life I would have been better prepared for the adventure. I certainly would have been all in. The only difference would have been that early on in my adventure as business owner I would have known where to focus my efforts.

I now know first-hand that there is a certain kind of crazy that comes from being a business owner and anyone that is brave enough to become a business owner is in for a wild ride.

Here is a sample of a recent ride:

Facebook has recently implemented changes to business pages. These changes have caused my business page to look wacky. Last night and this morning I was fighting with it. The fight lasted so long that my eye balls hurt and my entire body felt wound up tighter than cable on a spool. It was painful and frustrating to say the least.

Now, if this was my employer I would easily have said something like “oh well” but a business owner does not have that option. We cannot turn our eyes away from something that is an extension of our very being. We must face it and we must fix it.

Facebook temporarily defeated me. That was yesterday. Today, I woke up feeling refreshed and in far less pain so even though it is Saturday (many business owners work Saturday, Sunday, holidays, their birthday, etc. – get used to it if you plan to become a business owner) I went to the office. I looked at my business Facebook page and it was still wacky. Luckily for me I recently hired a “social media” person for my business Facebook page.

As it turns out, as I was looking at all of the crazy stuff happening on my business page she was also looking at it. Unlike me, it made her happy because she knew that Facebook had rolled out changes that were due to happen to business pages and none of her clients had shown any change but now my page was her playground. I told you I was lucky, right?

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For her it was exciting that I was her first client with the new Facebook business page look and feel. We instant messaged each other while we were both on Facebook and of course we had different agendas for mutual gain. I wanted my business Facebook page to stop suggesting my visitors check out my competition, I wanted my cover picture to be fully visible and not under my profile picture (which is my logo) and I wanted what looked like white writing repeating my business name to disappear. She wanted to find all the bells and whistles of the new Facebook business page so that she could use her knowledge not only to solve my problems but to educate herself for what was sure to happen to her other business clients.

It is not easy for me to stay mentally present on a task that I am not very good at. It was annoying. I am one of those people who wants what I want – this may be a common personality trait of business owners. In this case, I wanted to get in, get out and be done. Now, I am not unreasonable but I do know my strengths and weaknesses. This is a definite weakness: when I can’t work something out that should be one, two, three and I’m done. I get frustrated and it took all of my strength not to growl at her.

What finally happened was that I had to completely change my cover picture and I could not do anything about the white writing which is supposed to look good on mobile apps. I don’t know – that’s what I was told.

I was relieved that my social media person figured out how to remove the competition from my page because who wants their competition on their page? That is crazy! In the end, the situation was resolved – it wasn’t perfect but it was resolved. Big note: Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. Sometimes you compromise.

Oh, it didn’t stop there, there’s more…..….

My old web designer moved on to bigger jobs so the e-magazine I started for business owners took a hit. I had no choice but to share my information with a new person who claimed to be a web designer however she doesn’t work on Saturdays. To my displeasure I have to wait until next week to deal with this issue.

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One of my websites is a mess because it started out as one thing and has evolved into something else. I really must address this because I am not representing myself in the best light. I am hoping that when I connect with this new person she will be able to help me.

You should know that as a business owner, sometimes you put things out there that are not complete – not even in your head. Opportunity waits for no one so having projects started and incomplete comes with this ride. Get used to this too. At this moment (you will learn that sometimes, you will become obsessed with completing something “at this moment”), I strongly feel that this website has to reflect the business changes I am implementing (I am moving towards being a business coach/mentor). I also have to move my blog from where it’s hosted to this new website and make it presentable. Yeah, that did not happen, read on….

I worked on this for hours but a thunder storm helped that project move slower than molasses going uphill on a cold day. I did as much as I could. I stopped when I noticed that it was 2:00 p.m., pitch black outside, and the rain looked more like my office building was sitting in the middle of a waterfall. It was very discouraging but I had to add this to my to-do list.

I was thinking (and trying to figure out in my mind) how I could sell my e-books online. Should I sell them at every one of my websites? Should I create a separate website for each e-book? Should I do it myself? Do I know a reasonably priced web designer who can help me with this?

This project seemed like a monster and luckily the storm prevented me from working on it. I know that eventually I’ll have to figure it out but for now I just added it to the list of things I have to do.

At the moment I have to plan the upcoming week. I already have a plan for the second quarter of the year which reads:

1. Work on open files

2. Close out old files

3. Network, network, network

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As my future goals loom in the horizon I am aware that I cannot leave any project or client files behind. I must eliminate them, complete them or perfect them.

Tying up loose ends is a never ending process.

Business owners cannot use the excuse of not having enough time. We all have the same 24 hours and we want to squeeze the life out of them. My days are typically spent bringing my business to the next level or playing in dirt (gardening, mowing and metal detecting). I find that playing in dirt is very relaxing for me and it helps me to clear my head.

As I said earlier, there definitely is a certain kind of crazy that comes from being a business owner but being a business owner is only one aspect of my life. I have two dogs, a house that I never seem to have time to work on, exercise I should be doing, I would love to have a special someone in my life, I love taking pictures but I always forget my camera somewhere and I have to eat and sleep. While I mention eating, there is never any food in my house because I never have enough time to shop.

My life is not perfect. I am very busy and I am missing out on great opportunities and experiences. For me the final goal is to make more than enough money so that I can do the things I enjoy – I enjoy working and I enjoy playing – I would just like a little more playing and a little less working. I would like to be financially successful so that I do not have to worry about paying the bills. I would also like to invest money back into my business. It’s a fact that money allows you the opportunity to do what you want to do when you want to do it. Money brings freedom and freedom is a wonderful thing but I know I will never stop working because I enjoy what I do for a living.

At this point I just want to grow my business to the point where money is not an issue.

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Prelude to the 30 day Challenge

Beginning on

April 1, 2014

Prelude to the 30 Day Challenge

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Saturday, March 29, 2014

As I sit here on the bed thinking about how bored I am I can feel the heat of my dog’s eyes on me. I know she is thinking that I should be playing with her or feeding her and what I really would like is a nap. Unfortunately, there is no time to nap so I have to get that thought out of my head.

I remember that I have not done my taxes and April 15th will be here soon. I know that my accountant put in for an extension on my business taxes, I remember sending her that email. I am going to send her a request to put in for an extension on my personal taxes too. I really don’t know if I am satisfied with her or not. I think that I want an accountant who can coach me in areas where I can grow my business. Although my business has grown from year to year I feel that there is one small change that will set my business on fire (in a good way) but I just don’t know what that change is.

The thought of having to change accountants gives me a headache especially because my business doesn’t make a ton of money. Yet, on the other hand maybe if I had an accountant that was helping me to grow my business maybe I would be making more money.

As I think back over the past four plus years of trying to grow my business I know that my life has been full of hurdles that most people are totally unaware of. I think that they think that I am so together and meanwhile my personal life fell apart. I broke up with my fiancé, my sister died of complications related to gastric bypass surgery and my father – the hero of my life died. I felt as if I had no one and nothing and I was emotionally hurting. No one knew the extent of my pain and suffering. If it wasn’t for my dogs – well, who knows how I would have handled these hurdles. Thank heavens for man’s best friend.

As a business owner your job is not to harp on your problems no matter how big or small they are but to focus on the business task at hand, period.

As my dog moves away from my line of vision I can hear her nails tapping on the floor as she heads towards the kitchen signaling me to open the back door. She turns back around and peeks at me with one

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eye. It’s funny how she sends me telepathic messages – I better take her outside.

*******

Thirty days. For 30 days beginning April 1, 2014 I will share what my days are like and what I am thinking about. I am certain that the line between what is personal and what is business will be like brackish waters. I just hope that this written dialog will bring you clarity and show you what life is really like when you are a business owner….well at least this business owner.

What do I expect to gain from this journal? I am not sure. Insight? Evidence of the weakness and greatness that is me? The concrete, the abstract, the joy and horror of being a business owner? Possibly, all of the above.

Sunday, March 30, 2014

Every day I have things to do but there is something about a Sunday that gives me permission to do whatever I want.

My day started late because the dogs had pity on me and let me sleep until 8:00 a.m. I don’t even know what time I went to bed last night but I do know that I did not go to bed working. Lately I have been winding down before bed by playing Mahjong Titans which is quite boring so it has become a great way for me to get ready for sleep.

On this particular Sunday I think I want to get some laundry done, mow the front lawn, and get my personal schedule ready for a separate 30 day challenge: I want to get back in shape.

Sundays always find me doing low-key thinking and planning. Sundays always come with a hearty breakfast too. Yeah, I love Sundays.

Unlike many people who spend Sunday at church, with family or friends my Sundays are spent unplugged and moving along at a slow speed doing what I want. What I want can be anything, anything at all, it’s awesome!

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Sunday, March 30, 2014 8:56 pm

My Sunday worked out just the way I like it. I napped, I did a couple loads of laundry, I read a book in the back yard, I straightened up a bit, and I lounged around and just enjoyed the day. I didn’t do one thing that was related to work.

When I look back at successful days I can count this day as a success. Recharging is success in action.

Monday, March 31, 2014

It’s shortly before 9:00 a.m. and I am already aware that people are moving slowly. This morning I woke up from a dream where I was talking to someone about my new pricing which is strange because I didn’t think I was thinking about my pricing when I went to bed last night. Based on that information, effective tomorrow my prices are increasing.

I also want to get one of my e-books online and rather than go around in circles I had the idea to call my web hosting company and ask them if they provide this service. The answer: big fat no so, that tells me that I need to work on a plan B if I want to be successful in fulfilling this goal.

I check on a Facebook friend whom I have never met in person but her business is web design. Her online presence seems approachable – you can’t go wrong with that combination, right? I send her a message requesting that she call me to discuss my web/design/e-book problem.

I remember that someone else I know is learning web design and I send her a text asking if it’s too early to call…..no response. I guess it is too early.

My mind is racing with all of the things I want to do and then I remember that I want to mow the front lawn before I leave the house this morning. I have myself scheduled for that task at 10:00a.m. A quick look at the clock on the microwave and I see a note that reads “Clean Me”. That’s my reminder that I better clean that sucker because it’s looking like a science experiment. That and the note

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reminding me to do another load of laundry can wait until I come home from work.

Based on my dream, I’ve written out my new pricing and I have included a fee for Business Mentoring. Hey, if I am headed in that direction I might as well start now, right? After all, I have been providing this service for free and time is money so I might as well make money as I am spending time advising people about their business.

I contemplate the name of my Facebook friends business. It ends with the word “Group”. I like it. I play with the name “The Wagner Group”, “The Wagner Business Consulting Group”, “Wagner Group Services”, “Wagner Group”. I always wanted the name “The Wagner Project” but someone already has it and I don’t even think they are using it. I have often wondered if it was someone I told that I wanted that name and then they purchased the name just to trip me up. I am a New Yorker so sometimes I am suspicious by nature. Forgive me.

A quick check reveals that the fictitious name “The Wagner Project” is owned until December 31, 2014. I can wait. I will wait. Things change, right? I put that thought in the back burner for now.

I check online and I find that “Wagner Business Services” is available. “The Wagner Group” expired on December 31, 2005 so I can use it if I want it. I think about how that name might have been used and I decide against it because if they got bad press I don’t want it to follow the name – thus follow me.

Yeah, this is part of the crazy of being a business owner. You get an idea in your head and you want to figure it out. However, it is now after 9:00 a.m. and there is no time to waste so I let it go.

As I finish my now cold cup of black coffee I decide that I am going to stop here, eat a bowl of cereal, mow the front lawn, shower, get dressed, walk the dogs, go to the Post Office and get myself to the office before noon. I didn’t bring my calendar home (yes, I am old-school, I still use a written planner) but I know I have a call at noon and a consultation at 1:00 p.m., beyond that my schedule is a mystery.

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A quick check of the phone reveals that my social media person answered my Facebook post of “Is it too early to call people?” with the answer “Nope.” That’s pretty funny.

****

It is now a little after 7:00 p.m. and I am exhausted. The morning started with a cold cup of coffee, attempts to reach out to a colleague who may be partnering with me to produce my e-magazine and a connection to a Facebook friend who is web designer requesting her assistance.

When I finally connect with my Facebook friend/possible new web designer she knew what I was talking about. She offered to send me a proposal this evening - progress, finally some progress!

My chore of mowing the front lawn was important to me because it looked like a jungle out front so I get to it. I go to the garage to get the push mower out and there is a 3 foot long black racer hugging the garage door. Great. I have to stop what I am doing and try to get him out of the garage. Luckily I am not afraid of snakes and black racers are fast but I don’t think they are poisonous. After about 15 minutes I got him to twirl around an old shower curtain rod and I placed him in his new home: my neighbor’s yard. If someone had been recording how I got him out it would have been a great you-tube video.

Back to mowing the task at hand: mowing the front lawn (fyi, business owners are very task oriented).

After I mowed the lawn I had to get presentable for my day so I shower, take the dogs out again (just in case), make sure I turned everything off (I have come back home because I thought I left the stove on), I check that I have everything I need and I head out the door. In my mind I am going through my day and I check them off my list as I do them: I go to the Post Office to check for mail, I go to the office and check my mail box there and then I finally make it to the office. At this point it’s about 11:30 a.m.

My office is located in a large brick building that many businesses call home. I know some of the business owners and some have become my friends. Today, as I was going to pay the rent for the office I ran

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into a colleague in the hallway who loves coffee. I have a Keurig in my office so I invite him over for a cup of coffee. Keep in mind that everything before now was not really starting my day it was the warm up to my day.

After that I had to find two people to witness my signature on my month to month lease. I visited accountant in my building who is a monthly contributor to my e-magazine and he witnesses my signature. Then I visit another business owner and he also witnessed my signature. We chat for a moment and we promise to connect some time during the week.

A check of the time showed that it’s after 12 noon. I had a call that I had to make and I was running late. Once I connect with the person it turned out that she could not give me time because she was unpacking because she had just moved.

My one o’clock appointment arrived late but we got back on track. Before she left she took a contract and said that she would return it with her payment during the week.

I had a call to return for a client and that game of phone tag lasted until almost 5:00 p.m. I should mention here that even though this event was a long process which started earlier this month my client saved a lot of money by hiring me. When you are a business owner who works alone and you reach a goal you celebrate – I posted this on my business Facebook page.

I had another call to attend to from a guy who had been calling me for weeks because he wants me to train him. He is in a different county and I am not going to visit him so I called him and set up a phone conversation for Friday at 10:00 a.m. I explained to him that it was the end of the month and I had projects that I needed to complete but I appreciated his strong desire to connect with me. He was happy to have my attention. I am wondering if there is a possibility that I can professionally profit from this endeavor - maybe I should be teaching this stuff. This is definitely a project for another time.

Another client calls me to let me know that he worked out a deal that he was happy with and thanked me for my input.

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I called to thank a referral partner who provided me with a referral and let her know that I would be providing her with a referral fee once I got paid.

I visited a local business owner and she remembered that I had paid for an event ticket for her. She took this opportunity to reimburse me. I am now $12 richer!

I return a call to my local competition and he talked about us joining forces however I am not sure I want to grow in that area. This is another guy who came to me for advice a couple of years ago and now he is up and running. I like to think I had a hand in his success.

I only sent one email today – connecting two referral sources - that’s it.

The above is only a small portion of what went on during my day. There was more – many more calls, many more project pieces were put together but I want you to note that I didn’t make one cent. My day as a business owner was spent working, connecting people and making deals but not one cent was made.

By the end of all of the texts and phone calls I am beat. Do you think I want to call my friends or family? The answer is a big fat “No”. Once I am done with my day I don’t want to solve problems, I don’t want to get on the phone, I don’t want to do anything that is going to require too much brain power. Other than running with the dogs and having a quick bite to eat do you know what I am going to do? I am going to clean the microwave and do a load of laundry, that’s what I’m going to do. Mindless stuff.

My point here is that every day is not a big money day. Some days are a no money day. After it is all said and done, at the end of the day you have to find something to help you disconnect because “no money days” can knock the wind out of your sails.

******* Tomorrow I will continue with the ups and downs of my world in business. I will try to make sure that you feel as if you have walked in my shoes. I will attempt to teach you and guide you. I want you to

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have the full experience of being a small business owner. When you are done reading this e-book you will probably have a good idea if you can handle the heat of this particular kitchen. If so, kudos. If not, don’t beat yourself up. Every business needs great employees and great employees are hard to come by.

Let the ride begin….

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WHEN IT COMES TO BUSINESS THERE ARE SOME THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW

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The beginning of any good business structure must start with just that: a good business structure.

Hopefully you have thought about what would be the most profitable business venture for you. Ideally, this venture would be one where the business will turn a profit - in a relatively short amount of time.

I am sure you have carefully considered and researched the following:

• The name of your business. You certainly do not want to use the name of another business nor do you want to use the name of a business that went bankrupt or shut down due to misappropriation of funds. This negative reputation may follow you and when it comes to building business credit you certainly do not want to start with a negative.

• Calculated how much money you have to invest into your business and where this money is coming from. I would never advise someone to get into debt to fund their business.

• You probably have an idea of how you are going to run your business. I’m talking systems and procedures.

• Finally, but more importantly you have probably decided if you will be a sole proprietor, an LLC or a Corporation and the reason you chose your particular business structure.

This book is not to give you suggestions or advice on the above topics. This book is to enlighten you on the day to day aspects of a business. I am using my business as the subject matter but the challenges and celebrations are similar for many businesses and business owners.

If you are considering starting a business this book will give you clues about what to do as well as what not to do. Heaven knows I still make mistakes.

My business grows and evolves and I allow it to express itself in the manner that fits the needs of my client base.

*******

Business is not systematic. You do not have a list that reads do this first, then this second, this third and so on. You may read about these lists however every business owner I know has had a map that is similar

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to abstract art or a child’s scribble. I started with a list and I could not do number one on the list because I really needed to figure out number three on the list. I’m sure you get the idea.

After one year of learning about my particular business, it took time to raise some money to start it. Luckily, a wealthy friend who believed in me provided me with additional seed capital in the form of a loan.

Once I opened up for business I thought that every person who needed my services would immediately reach out to me. That was a rude awakening. It took some time before I got my first client.

I thought that I would have the support of my family and friends, I found that most of them thought that I was a dreamer. I became the source of their gossip and ridicule. Some of them wanted services for free, some wanted jobs but didn’t want to work and some wanted to beat me down mentally. It was not easy but I prevailed. Then I had clients who never paid me for the services I provided. That was a big fat kick in the pants. This will happen to you too. I suggest you have a procedure in place before you have to figure out what to do if checks bounce or people skip out on you.

As a newbie you may also tend to be kind and will do favors for a referral source because they sell you a dream. Then they disappear off of the face of the earth leaving you wondering what happened. Do they care? No, they don’t so don’t believe the hype – toughen up because people will talk about “givers gain” but not everyone lives by the golden rule. If you are going to provide services for someone for free do it as a courtesy and consider it pro-bono. Don’t even think that they will reciprocate, send you business or even a thank you card. That is the harsh truth – you’ve been warned.

You will also meet people who want to pick your brain, learn about your business so that they can help their clients and line their pockets. These types of people exist. It happens every day. They have no conscience nor do they care that they are taking money out of your pocket. It’s disheartening but it happens so wake up.

If you have come this far and you already have a business good for you, you know what I’m talking about.

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Are you wondering how to bring in more customers? How to reduce expenses? How to stop those people who smile in your face and have their hand in your pocket? Every business owner has had these same challenges. We tend to develop a sort of radar where we size people up and pre-determine whether it is a relationship or partnership that will be productive.

Finally, make sure that you are watching your business cycles, its growth and challenges. If you are watching them like a good sailor you know to adjust your sails and change course when it’s appropriate and necessary.

Do I wish I had done anything different? Certainly. However, I didn’t know any successful business owners. My learning experience has been wide and deep and I still have a lot to learn. I am not dissatisfied – I only wish that I had the chance to speak with someone in the know, maybe I could have made my business grow faster.

This book will probably help me so much when I re-read it. I can’t wait!

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Pay water bill, pay office cell phone bill, pay office

Verizon bill

9:30 a.m. – Check for confirmation on client

tracking number

11:00 a.m. – Call new mortgage broker

(rescheduled from yesterday)

11:30 a.m. – Chamber luncheon

Tuesday, April 1, 2014

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My day starts out with the sound of one of my dogs puking in her cage. It’s still dark outside so it is before 7:00 a.m. I turn on the lights and set them free from their cages only to find that one of my dogs won’t come out because she is eating whatever it was she puked up. Gross.

Slowly, she comes out of her cage and pukes again and I can’t get to her fast enough so she eats it. Super gross! She finally sits still and I can tell from her face and body that she is feeling crappy. Well duh, you can’t eat puke and expect to feel great.

I rush them outside to see if she does anything but nothing. I feed her a small amount just to see if she keeps it down and she is hungry for more. I guess she wasn’t that sick, so I give her some more.

Typically, my morning follows a standard routine: get up, wash up, get the dogs out, come back, feed them, make coffee, check my phone, make breakfast, shower, dress up, take the dogs out and then go to the office. This routine may have slight changes but that is pretty much it.

When I was new in business I didn’t have a schedule. That was a bad move. I was doing things that were not promoting my business. This was a huge waste because time is one of those things that you cannot recoup. Once it’s gone, it’s gone. As a business owner you must become structured with your time so that when it’s time to play, you play and when it’s time to work, you work. Trust me, you will work and you will work hard because this business is yours. Win, lose or draw you are the key – you are the only one responsible for making things happen so have a schedule and stick to it as much and as often as you can.

When I leave the house there is another routine: check the Post Office and then go to the office. I follow this routine because I am one of those people who hates running around – the back and forth of errands annoys me so I plan my day accordingly so that I can get the most done in the least amount of time. I usually have a sheet of paper that sits on the passenger side of my car that lists my route (this route is planned out the morning of or the night before). Using this small tool I save time, gas and I don’t forget too many things.

On this particular morning I wanted to take some time before I headed to the office to walk on the tread mill. I have been feeling very tired lately and more than half of the clothing in my closet does not fit me. Yes, it’s time to reel myself in from my indulgences.

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Since my first appointment is not until 11:30 a.m. I am taking this opportunity to get a quick workout in. This is one of the wonderful things about being a business owner – you have the ability of arranging your schedule in a way that can reap you the most rewards. Exercising should really not be a chore and although at the moment I am a slug I certainly know the benefits of investing 30 minutes a day. I am hoping to feel the benefits of my workout within a few short days.

When I check my messages I find that one of my referral sources called me to find out if I would be at the 11:30 a.m. meeting. I call him back and let him know that I will be there with another contact. He shares that he will be there with two of his coworkers. We make a plan to have a table all to ourselves so that we can sit together and connect our guests.

After my morning routine I head to the office. I was supposed to complete a job I began yesterday however my client had yet to provide me with the information I needed and for some reason the internet was down.

I check the time and see that I can reach out to the new mortgage broker that I’ve been trying to connect with for a few days. I get her on the phone and I hear her baby crying in the background so we plan to talk in the afternoon.

I check the time and decide to leave to my meeting. On the way there I stop at the store to pick up some soil and I see a hula-hoop. I think that this would be great item to have in the office so I buy it.

Although I made a stop, I arrived early to the meeting so I sit outside and make follow-up calls. As I work I watch the participants of the event arriving. After completing my calls I run into several local business owners and we stop to catch up. This happens until our meeting starts where I am a captive audience until 1:30 p.m.

*******

Networking meetings are great opportunities to meet new people. At this event I work the room and meet a staff member from a local community college who wants to connect with me. He wants me to provide a free workshop for the adult students. I am excited about the connection and promise to call him to set something up.

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My friend arrives with his Operations Manager who had an investor problem.

After our discussion I gave her some ideas on how to overcome her challenges. She quickly decides that she wanted to work with me based on my understanding and knowledge of the subject matter.

I wanted to congratulate another person I knew on her new job and she introduced me to her boss. He shared with me that he needs my services and requested my card so that we could connect.

Someone else came to me and asked me to like their Facebook business page. I promised that I would and that I would ask my friends to like it as well.

I took time to bring business owners I knew over to my table so that they could meet my table mates because you just never know who can help whom.

Once that meeting was over I head back to the office where I run into a business owner who wants to discuss a business idea with me.

As a business owner sometimes opportunities present themselves that seem beneficial. We all want to help each other but the lesson here is don’t play yourself out of pocket. If it is going to cost you money to help someone and no real return on your investment you may want to revisit the plan at another time. If you have a business coach or mentor this is a great time to give them a call and discuss your options but make sure that you have done your pro/cons list first.

After our discussion I head off to complete the project I was working on yesterday. As I finalize the deal the power in the building goes out and at the very same moment the door bell rings. The lights and the system went down for just a split second but long enough for me to have lost my connection. I wonder if the power outage caused the door bell to ring but when I check the door my friend who works down the hall standing there. She has great timing….she always comes when I am neck deep in a project. It’s difficult to get her attention as she is chattering away about her recent accomplishments. Meanwhile I am trying to get back to work but I don’t want to be rude. After she tells me everything that is going on in her life, she leaves.

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As a business owner you have to expect interruptions. The interruption might be good – like a new client with cash in hand – or it might be bad - like a power outage. Your job is to roll with the punches and get as much done as you can and try to do it without getting stressed out.

When I reach back out to my contact she screams “you hung up on me!” Very funny….after our transaction is complete (which took over a month) we thank each other for a win/win situation.

It is always a pleasure for me to work in partnership with someone on behalf of my clients. At the end of the day, we are all working to make money and to support ourselves and our families. As a business owner the pressure is higher to succeed because success means business and future referrals. The important thing to remember here is that every relationship is a partnership. Every relationship brings something to your business – either something good or something not so good.

It is a perfect time for me to return calls so after checking my office voice mail and my cell phone I start returning calls. Most calls lead to a game of phone tag so I know I have to return to this game tomorrow.

I remember the hula hoop I got as a gag and I decide to give it a whirl (no pun intended). It’s a good thing I work alone.

*******

A local business owner comes over to share with me the results of a recent meeting he had. He shares with me his contact name and I stop in my tracks -- remember when I said every relationship brings something? Years ago I worked in an office with someone that was not a match for me. We operated under different professional ethics. I knew at that time that I could not do business with this person nor could I trust her or her team. Trust is important to me. Fast forward seven years later and here is a business owner sharing this person’s name with me so that I could connect with them. I hand the business card back to him and I tell him I will not do business with that person.

Based on past experience I know that I will prevent future problems by avoiding this person. Remember every relationship brings something. The “something” in this case is that I learned my lesson the first time. I refuse to believe this person has changed. I have also learned never to ignore my gut feelings when it comes to a person. Tread carefully.

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If you know someone is not a match for you, move on. There are plenty of people in your community, your state and your world who are a match for you. Do business with them.

When I head back to my desk, I realize that it’s after 6:00 p.m. I decide to shoot off some final emails and then I leave the office.

I get home about 7:00 p.m. to a hearty dinner of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and a glass of milk. Living alone has it rewards - this isn’t one of them.

I think about my day and I am aware that a person who made minimum wage today made more money than what I did. I can’t hang on to that depressing thought so I choose to focus on the positive: I made some great connections and have some clients in the pipeline.

At the very end of the day I remember that I had wanted to structure my day differently. I want to be able to accomplish more of the things that are on my to-do list. That did not happen today, I guess that also goes on my to-do list.

I think about the quote I received today for the website I want and I have scheduled a call to the web company tomorrow to discuss specific questions.

Other than that I’m not sure that I took any steps to grow my business today. This is discouraging. As a business owner you have to make sure that you are doing all you can do each day and you must make sure your business is moving forward.

I pull out a sheet of paper and write out the tasks I would like to accomplish tomorrow and decide I really cannot do any more today. It’s almost 9:30 p.m.

Crap. I forgot to pay the bills.

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My calendar is empty except for a call to the new

web designer to discuss my e-book.

I am thinking that before I go to the office I might

mow some of the back yard.

When I get to the office I really want to work on

some files, make some calls and work on a

structured calendar.

I cannot forget to update my contracts to reflect

the new prices that went into effect yesterday.

Wednesday, April 2, 2014

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I certainly cannot believe that there has only been two days in this month. I am exhausted! As I write this it is now past 8:30 p.m., my feet are killing me, I need a shower and my body aches. Here’s why:

After my morning routine which now includes 20-30 minutes on the tread mill I head off to work. I have my list with me which indicates that I need coffee filters and soil so before I head to the office I stop and pick up these items along with a couple of essentials – think deodorant, lotion, etc.

I totally forget to go to the Post Office and go to the office but of course I don’t remember this until the end of the day.

Today was unlike most days because I didn’t have any clients scheduled so I worked on some files. I checked my list and start with a former client who dropped off some paperwork over a week ago. A review of her file indicates that she is doing well so I call her to let her know. Unfortunately, she shares with me that she was denied a refinance due to items on her credit. The whole thing sounds fishy to me because what she said and what her credit report shows are two different things. I really don’t want to but I schedule her for a Saturday appointment to accommodate her schedule. Why do I do this? Because she is a good client, that’s why.

Usually my phone calls are routed to one number but I recently started getting calls at two numbers. I find that I sometimes have two messages from the same person. It sounds distracting but it’s actually helping me not to forget to call people.

Today one of the calls I received was from a company calling me about one of my client’s. I did not recall if I had a Power of Attorney to speak on my client’s behalf so I check the file. I couldn’t find what I needed so I promise to call the guy back after I called my client and checked the file for a POA.

I call my client and we have a brief discussion. I re-check the file and find what I need and call the company back. After over an hour of discussing the situation with the company we come to a partial agreement and schedule an update for Friday.

This entire event took two hours. Two hours out of my day! Two hours which were allocated for something else.

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As I was doing this I was trying to connect with my new web designer to discuss the e-book but she was busy with a client. Since we have a new relationship we are figuring out the best way to connect and do business.

After this I find out via Facebook that the package I sent Priority mail to a friend in New York still had not been delivered. I call the customer service number for the Post Office and after being on hold for 15 minutes get through to an agent and spend an hour with her. We never resolved the issue. I have two complaints in the system and a “case” number along with another request for the package to be delivered tomorrow.

There goes another hour and a half.

After putting out these two fires I am wiped out – I can’t talk to another person. I decide to do some work on one of my e-books that I plan to have available in the near future (“Get the Credit You Deserve”).

I spend the next few hours concentrating on this task and happily working in the silence.

Thanks to a client sending me an email confirming our appointment for tomorrow I remember that I have to update my contracts with the new prices. Now, I really didn’t forget my client’s scheduled appointment, it was in my book but when I am focused on today’s tasks, tomorrow’s tasks are not a concern. For me, new clients are easy appointments as this is when I educate them, let them know what they should expect and we sign a contract. Obviously, it’s important for me to have the contract updated before they arrive.

During this time two people come to visit – one came to provide me with an update from a meeting he attended and the other came to bring me some herbs from her garden. Sometimes, when you work alone these distractions are welcomed.

My day also included advising a potential client that I had not received their paperwork, connecting with a mortgage broker about a client, calling a potential client that was referred to me by a realtor, calling that realtor and giving her an update, connecting with my social media

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person to approve tomorrow’s post and connecting with my ebook editor.

It’s now 1:30 p.m. and my stomach is growling. The thought of losing my stride almost drove me to the vending machine but I stopped myself when I found a powered drink in my drawer. I poured it into a bottle of water and that was lunch. I should really keep healthy snacks in the office for when I forget to bring lunch or when I lose track of time. I write this on my to do list.

As a business owner you have to roll with the punches - even though you may have a list, priorities will take over. Heaven help you if you have a family and other responsibilities because if you do you are going to have to be very structured with your time.

My day ended with a few final calls where I left messages.

How much money did I make: zero dollars. It’s only the second day of the month so I am not worried yet. I worry if I get to the 15th and I haven’t made any money.

And by the way, dinner was soup and midnight snack was a bowl of cereal.

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• Client report

• 1:2:1

• New client

That’s all? Well that sounds easy.

Thursday, April 3, 2014

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Since I knew that I had a light schedule today I thought I would ease into the day. By the time I got into the office it was shortly before 11:00 a.m. Hey, I never said there would not be any perks to the job.

Before I go into my office building I look at my reflection and I realize that I didn’t comb my hair. Wow, I look like a crazy person!

As I am trying to make my hair look presentable I stop by a fellow business owner’s office. I wanted to discuss with her my e-magazine but she wanted to tell me about the success of a franchise owner.

Although she was verbally celebrating I was familiar with the look on her face – it was one of exhaustion and fear. It’s the look one has when they are not quite sure they are moving forward and they feel failure at their heels. I have had that look before. Employees can have this look too. It is when they are afraid that they are being replaced, fired, or that the company they have dedicated their life to is going out of business, merging or being sold.

Everyone has a different reaction to bad news. Some people pull themselves up and make things happen, some people give up and resign themselves to what they perceive is the inevitable. This woman certainly does not want to work for someone else now that she has had the taste of being a business owner.

Luckily for her, she has a husband at home who brings in a paycheck. She also has a small side job where she earns a bit of money. I am sure that things are tight for her and her family but there is a sense of relief to know that every two weeks some money is coming in.

I am lucky in the area that my responsibilities are limited to me, my dogs, the house I live in (hey mowing the lawn is no joke) and my business. I don’t have to worry about a husband and children. I am unlucky because if I don’t make money there isn’t any money. I don’t have a husband who brings in a paycheck. If I have a bad month it’s all on me. I want my business to be a financial safety net that can carry me and my family for many years. That is the goal.

I give her a bit of advice but she is not listening. She is stuck in what another franchisee is doing. The words of wisdom I provide her fall on deaf ears. Yeah, next time she will have to pay me for advice. I check

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the time and leave.

My office building smells old. To combat this smell I use an air freshener that smells like gardenia – it reminds me of my grandmother so it’s comforting. I recently called to order a year’s supply and the company did not have any in stock. The representative I spoke to said that he would send me something similar to see if I like it. This was two weeks ago but once again I find my mail box empty. I am disappointed and I have to remember to call this guy to find out if my order came in and if he sent the replacement item to the correct address.

When I get to my office I take time to check the phones for messages, check for emails and check my Facebook page. On Facebook I find that my friend in New York had to go and pick up her Priority package at the Post Office even though I had scheduled a redelivery. I will have to address that issue later.

My 1:2:1 arrives with a delicious Cuban sandwich so I make coffee and we sit and talk for the next couple of hours.

Let me explain what a 1:2:1 is: On a basic level it is when two business owners meet to discuss their business and hopefully get a referral out of each other. My 1:2:1’s are different. I want to meet with business owners and find out what their goals are. I want to know how they are planning to reach them. I also want to offer advice or connections if they are open to it. Very rarely do I meet with someone for a 1:2:1 where they provide me with advice. I don’t mean this in a smug way it is just that I read a lot and I take classes to help me grow my business. I’ve been in business for five years and I am very proud of this.

Historically my business has grown about 25% each year so I know a little about business and I am more than happy to help other business owners.

Once our meeting is over I have to take care of the personal issue of the Priority package I sent my friend in New York. I am upset because it sat at the Post Office for five days never having been delivered. That’s irresponsible. I take the time to find out where I should send a letter of complaint and find the address in Washington, D.C. I get

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my documents ready – including pictures and get a certified piece of mail ready to send off tomorrow. This job took an hour because of the research entailed but I am happy with my results.

My next appointment, a new client arrives so we sit to discuss her needs. What I love most about my job is when I can educate my clients on their situation. This client was so happy to have learned this information she could not wait to get home to share it with her husband.

Since I don’t have another appointment scheduled and it’s a beautiful day outside I decide that I want to leave early to mow the lawn. After that I can look forward to an easy evening. I look out the window to check the weather and I see 12 people smoking by one of the front doors. Down the hall from my office there is a call center and I think one of the requirements of being hired there is that you must be a smoker. I know that I don’t want to walk through the cloud of smoke so I wait a while before I leave.

When you rent office space you don’t know who your neighbors are going to be. Are they going to be loud, rude, slobs? This can happen when you buy a house too, it’s unfortunate. Office space that offers inexpensive rent will possibly bring in businesses with a host of colorful employees. There is nothing you can do about it.

After the cloud of smoke is gone and the employees get back to work, I leave my office and head home.

I pull up to my house and my lovely neighbors have left a bottle of beer on my lawn. I pick it up and throw it in their yard. Yesterday it was a waste basket filled with clothing, today it’s this. See, you just don’t know who is going to live or work next to you.

I get to the business of taking care of the dogs and then mowing the lawn. Dinner is a bowl of cereal.

I made $250 today. Today is the third, if you estimate that I worked 8 hours a day for three days that’s 24 hours. That comes out to about $10.42 an hour. I paid the phone bills which were a total of $172. I now have $78 which will pay for the dry erase board that came in last week. That bill is $64. That leaves me with $14 sitting in the bank

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waiting for his friends to come and join him.

At the end of the day as I sit with a cold drink and admire my lawn I think about what actions I can take to be more productive. I am in that space where I am very busy, but I am not ready to hire staff. I also want to take my business to the next level but how can I do that with my current time challenges?

I review my calendar and it shows that Wednesdays seem to be the lightest day of the week. I used to try to take a day off during the week but it always happened – someone wanted an appointment on that day and I would schedule it. When a client – especially a new client wants to meet me I want to be there.

Money talks b.s. walks. Maybe I can use Wednesdays to do some research and find an answer to my question.

I sometimes use Wednesdays to run errands. As a business owners we (I’m talking about you too) have the luxury of arranging our schedule around our personal errands if we have to. When I do this I almost always take care of some errands for the business because it just makes sense.

My schedule reveals that next week I have three networking events. Last week I attended just one event but the week before I attended two events. I know that I cannot give up networking as this very important. You never know who you are going to meet and one person can set your business on fire (in a good way).

When I think about my business I always feel as if I am missing something so small that I can’t see it. That little thing is what may boost my business even further but what is it? When I step back and examine my business I don’t see anything glaring back at me. This has been my unanswered question as I search for more business and additional ways to increase my own productivity.

As a business owner there is always that uncertainty. That feeling that you can be accomplishing more and making more money. You are constantly looking for that cash cow that will bring in revenue with ease.

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• Partnership request call

• Settlement call

• 1:2:1

• Complete client report

• Client calls to schedule appointments

Friday, April 4, 2014

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I left the house early so that I could stop at the bank to make a deposit.

Unfortunately, I never made it to the bank because there was a big accident in the major intersection a block from the bank so I had to make a detour. I back tracked to avoid the traffic jam and when I arrived at my office building I find a prime parking space.

When I moved into my office building three years ago there were a lot of vacancies. As the market improved and companies went back to renting office space the parking spaces at my office building became hard to come by. Add to that an office building with call center (or three) and you have to face the facts that you may possibly have to hunt for a parking space – it’s NYC all over again. When I come to work early I am always pleasantly surprised to find a wonderful parking spot. You can be sure I won’t leave the office unless it is absolutely necessary or I am going home.

******

I often will schedule my calls on my calendar, like an appointment, so that I am not playing a game of phone tag. I don’t even remember how I learned this tip but it is possible that I got tired of playing tag. It’s even more helpful when the person you are calling takes your call as planned. I really like it when people respect my time.

My first call is to the guy who wants to talk to me about how he can start a business like mine in Kissimmee. I’ve had time to consider his brief proposal and I have determined that it’s possible we can both benefit from his idea.

Before I call him and since it is early in the day I want to return calls that I should have returned yesterday.

Ten o’clock arrives quickly and I call the guy who wants to pick my brain. Since I have experience as a business consultant and I am growing my business in the area of business mentoring I don’t miss a beat. After typical formalities, I get to the point. I want to know how much research he has done about my industry and I want to know how much he knows.

So I ask him and he tells me he has researched for a couple of hours. A couple of hours! I ask him again and I guess the tone of my voice

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indicated to him that “a couple of hours” wasn’t the answer I wanted to hear. Now he tells me a couple of months. Still not the right answer but I move on to my next question. I want to know what he knows so far and as it turns out he knows very little. Proof that his first answer was an honest answer.

When I was learning about my business I did a year of research. I wanted to learn as much as I could about my industry. Then, I got certified. Even with all of the studying and certification, there were so many things that I did not learn. As I worked in the business and had real life experience I learned so much more. Now, I can educate someone on the basics of what I do in a short conversation. The nuances of this industry are learned on a case by case basis because there are far too many to detail. This field requires life-long studying.

My assessment of our conversation was this: He has an idea. He has a passion. He has the desire to be a business owner but he does not have the capital to invest in his business. He has a full time job that provides guaranteed income. His job provides vacation, sick time and medical benefits. I think to myself how ridiculous he is. He has no clue how difficult it can be to start a business. So many business fail in the first year.

I have found that the fourth year is the turn-around year for businesses. In my conversation with many businesses it seems that year four is when they have exhausted all of their money, maxed out their credit cards and are now thinking of a plan. Usually the plan includes a bankruptcy. I always try to prepare business owners with the real deal: life is tough, business is tough you have to have the moxie to make things happen and stop the “oh woe is me” attitude. Dreamers can stay home because they don’t want to play in this yard. Business owners play to win.

I remember a business owner who came to me with a similar request. This guy had knowledge under his belt. He also wanted to partner with me but I was not looking for a partnership. After some mentoring, coaching and a year and a half of him doing his own thing we have become business friends. He bounces scenarios off of me because I have been in the industry for years. That guy had a plan, he just needed someone to tell him that he could do it. And he did it. This other guy has no clue, he has an idea, big deal. We all have ideas, it’s what we do with our ideas that determine how far we get.

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I continue the conversation and share with him that he must start from the basics. He must decide on his business structure. He must research what is the best business status for his company. He wants to consider a name. A name is important to a business for more reasons than you can imagine. He doesn’t want to choose a name that belongs to someone else or is for a business that closed down as they may have bad credit attached to the name. Seriously, there are so many things to consider.

He needs a bond, he needs insurance, and he needs to draw up a legal and binding contract that must be reviewed by an experienced attorney. He needs an accountant to educate him on how he should start to do his books.

Like all business start ups it is best to start correctly so that you don’t have to redo things later on.

True to my nature, I give him homework to do and I tell him to think about whether or not he wants to work with me. I am a consultant and I have a business to run. If he wants my help I will give him my absolute best but my best comes at a fee. Gone are the days where I provide free services. If there is one thing I have learned from a business attorney is that free services do not meet the goals of a profitable business model. This was a free consultation and it was the best one I have ever had in my life.

He assures me that he wants to work with me because I had provided him with so much information that he did not even consider. Fine, I say. Next week we can discuss my fees because my fees are not designed to help my competition. I have to factor in the cost of training him into the price because he will be not only be getting business advice but valuable training that he can use to offset his cost to me. He tells me that he is going to submit his own information to me as the first “client” for us to work with. That’s interesting. He’s not as innocent as he made himself out to be, what a great way to get his hands on my contract – or so he thinks.

Take note of this: as a business owner when an opportunity arrives you must be able to assess it quickly and take it or leave it.

To help you develop this skill you want to have a mentor or a coach that has real business experience that you can turn to in order to bounce

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ideas around. Keep in mind that you should always listen to your gut. It will never fail you. Meeting with other business owners is also helpful and you will find out how ethical they are. I have met many, many business owners and finding business owners who receive graciously and give generously are few and far in between. Meet them, but always be aware of who gives and who takes. Keep a tally of these numbers because if they are not providing you something of value: education, confidence, assistance, referrals, support or connections than maybe you are providing them something beneficial. Stop providing and see if they stay connected to you or not.

Getting back to this guy who wanted to start a business like mine – he never came back. He never reached out, he never said he moved to the moon and he never said he could not handle the truth. I think that he wanted something for nothing and I was too seasoned to fall for his shenanigans.

Things like this happen in networking groups too. Typically, the members care about you while you are a paying member but kick you to the curb once you leave the group. The harsh truth is that most of them are not your friends and they don’t care about you or your business. As soon as you leave they will find another widget maker to fill your spot and praise him as if you never existed. I still have wounds from a networking group that I was heavily involved in and when I left – due to practices that I strongly felt were not in alignment with the group’s philosophy – they treated me as if I had never existed. Ouch and double ouch. Never again.

******* My second call is not as successful because as soon as I get through to my caller the door bell rings. I hang up and answer the door. By the time I get back to trying to make my second call I can’t get through. This call now goes on the list of calls to make next week.

I start working on the piles of papers I have stacked in various places in my office. It is time well spent as I file, shred and follow up on calls to people that had reached out to me in the past. Now, these calls were not to clients they were all to referral sources. When it comes to my clients both old and new those are the first calls I take care of, they pay my bills. Other calls are either scheduled in or happen when I have down time such as this. I got a lot done and felt a sense of relief.

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*******

Sometimes business owners try to get me to leave my business and work with them. Other times they want me to add their business to my book of business. I don’t think that they realize how much work I do and that any task I take on is a strategic move.

My next meeting is with a broker who wants me to join his company on a ‘part time’ basis. I let him finish and then I give him the bad news: I do not wish to do anything other than what I am doing because I love what I do. My business model is growing and changing in areas where my strengths lie. It makes me so happy to know that here I am coming on a five years and my business has evolved into something that brings me satisfaction and brings value to many people.

He is taken aback with how passionate I am about my company, apologizes and promises to back off. Personally, I am never offended when people want me on their team, it is a compliment. It makes me proud that they would even want me especially after they have gotten to know me.

If you have ever met me I am a straight shooter. If I don’t trust you it is very difficult for me to get past that and do business with you. I give everyone credit for who they are and what they are good at. I also will honestly admit when I am not a fan of someone or if I will not do business with them. If asked, I don’t hold this information back. I am guilty of being honest and this makes some people very uncomfortable.

Our meeting lasts for two hours. We share what we are working on, what we would like to work on together, what our goals are and what we are doing over the weekend. It was a nice meeting.

Once he leaves to start his weekend a client texts me to ask if he can come in and pay me. Why of course he can come in and pay me! I was going to leave at 4:30 p.m. but if he is coming at 5:30 p.m. to pay me I will be here.

Since I have not had lunch it’s me and a Milky Way. Once again, I remember that I really need to keep some healthy snacks in the office.

*******

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I have a client coming in tomorrow morning to go over his report and I have only finished half of it so now that I am having a slight sugar rush I can work on that project. It takes me about an hour to complete the report and as I am finishing it the door bell rings. It’s my client who wants to pay me.

I am a professional, I’m not just going to take his payment and say good bye. I invite him into my office and review his file. I want him to know what I have done since we last spoke. He is satisfied with the results.

He then he shares with me that he went fishing and got a lure stuck in his finger. He went to the emergency room to have it removed and is planning to fish again this Sunday. He also thanked me for meeting him so late because he was headed out of town tomorrow and he knew that his payment was due.

I think it’s nice that my clients feel comfortable enough to share their adventures with me. I think it’s great that they pay me for my services. Oh yes, every once in a while a client doesn’t pay me but I wish them well and let them go. I continue on my path and I never let a client play me out of too much money. I believe in karma, someone somewhere will cheat them out of money and in the scheme of life we will be even. Yes, it is a flakey model but the energy I would spend being angry at them is better spent in developing relationships, products and or services to make even more money. My best advice: have a plan in place so that you incur the least amount of loss.

When my client leaves, I finish the report I was working on and I shut the system down. My next stop is the supermarket because I would like to have something really good for dinner.

*******

Dinner was spaghetti with a meat and vegetable sauce and it was delicious! What was even better was that I made $350. I also spent $100 on the computer, $60 on the office cell phone and $113 on the office phone/internet. I’m still ahead of the game by a little bit, right? Hey, it’s still early in the month so I am not worried.

*******

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As far as I am concerned it was a very successful day. Do you think the week is over because it’s Friday? Wrong answer, many business owners work on Saturday. I am one of them.

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• Get gas

• Mail certified

• Client report

• Client file review

• Organize paperwork for Monday’s schedule

I’d rather be fishing.

Saturday, April 5, 2014

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Last night I realized that my car was on empty so this morning my first stop was the gas station.

A peek inside the Post Office makes me turn in my tracks and leave. It seems as if everyone who is off on this beautiful Saturday morning is in there.

I head to the office thinking about what I would like to accomplish today. I start by returning a client call from late last night, following up on a client to find out how his house hunting is going and following up with the realtor to see how she is doing with my client.

My client who contacted me a couple of weeks ago to let me know she got turned down for a refinance is coming in today. I review her current credit reports and I don’t see anything unusual. Quite frankly her credit score is good so I do not understand what the problem is. I want to have something in writing to share with her so that she could compare it to what her credit was a couple of years ago so I start working on a report for her. I did not get far when the door bell rang.

My 10:00 a.m. appointment arrived early because he was anxious to find out the results of his report. I sit with him and for the next hour and I educate him on what is adversely affecting his credit report and score. I also give him details on how he can go about resolving and correcting his credit hurdles.

Some people come to me because they don’t know what to about their credit. They want to know how they can repair it on their own. I assess their situation and provide them with a map that is tailored to their particular situation. That was what my 10:00 a.m. appointment was for.

I make it a point to ask him if he found my services useful as well as a good financial investment. He shared that I provided him with exactly what he needed and for a very reasonable fee. He was excited to know what he needed to do and thankful that he had clear instructions.

This reminds me that I have to create a card or a sheet that I can hand clients so that they can complete a quick survey and write their comments. For me, it would be useful as testimonials as well as knowing where my weaknesses lie. I make a note to myself to work on this.

He leaves and I close out the file.

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I get back to working on my next appointments report when a current client calls me to share a credit catastrophe.

I am clear in my role of having no control over the credit situations that my clients have gotten into. I let her vent her frustration and her fears and I give her my best advice on what she may want to consider. She is happy to have spoken to me and promises to do some detective work based on my recommendations.

I return to the report and find that it is short and sweet. I am pleased with the results. Short and sweet means that there are not many problems on her credit profile. I am ready for my client but a telephone call from her reveals that she is running late.

I receive a text from the realtor I called this morning letting me know that my client made an offer on a house and that she didn’t reach out to me because she wanted to surprise me. I text her back with my congratulations and I thank her for a job well done.

I pull out the file for my client with a catastrophe and I see that I need additional information from her so I send her an email requesting she fax me the paperwork I that I need.

Since my appointment is running late I start to pull stacks of papers that are in various places in my office and place them on my desk when the door bell rings and it’s my client. I get the door and then put the stacks back - on one hand I am glad they are here and on the other I now have my eye on a new project: clear up the stack of papers all over my office.

This family is one of the nicest families you ever want to know. I have worked with the husband and assisted him in getting a truck. I worked with the wife to clear up her credit and I see the mother-in-law every time I’m in the supermarket. When they come over it’s like family is visiting - a lot of fun and laughs.

I begin by showing her where she was when we started our process. Then I show her how far she has come. She squeals in glee – this is another thing that often happens in my office – squeals of joy from my clients. She shares with me that her banker denied her a refinance due to her debt to income ratio and items on her credit. The information she shared about her credit was not accurate but I go back to her credit report and calculate her debt to income ratio. It’s a little on

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the high side but since I am no longer in the mortgage industry I am not familiar with what are the underwriting guidelines at this time. I get permission from her to call a local mortgage broker and my broker says that based on what I told her she can qualify her for a refinance.

When it comes to mortgage lending, banks are usually limited in their lending criteria. A broker has a wider array of products that may fit a client with a lower credit score or a higher debt to income ratio. Having had experience with this in the past (I used to be in the mortgage industry), I am happy to refer her to a local mortgage broker.

They make an appointment with the broker for tomorrow, a Sunday. I thought I worked long hours but this broker has me beat.

My client is happy and promises to send me a text tomorrow and let me know what happens. I am happy to have helped.

Once she leaves I start emptying the garbage cans, wiping down the desk, phone, etc. You see, on Saturday, I am also the cleaning person. I look around at the office but I am too tired to vacuum and quite frankly, the place doesn’t look too bad. I call it a day and head home carrying a large bag of trash with me.

As I am driving out of the office complex I forgot about the trash and drive past the dumpster. I wound up taking the trash home with me. Once I pulled into my driveway I decide that besides dumping the office trash I should also empty the car of all of the pieces of junk mail, flyers, wrappers, coffee cups and receipts that are all over the floor and front seat of the car. As I am throwing away my assortment of trash I wonder to myself why I have put it off for so long – it only took five minutes.

I am tired and happy to finally get home. I just want to rest and unplug from everything and everyone. As you know, my weekends are usually spent cleaning, napping, reading, doing yard work and projects around the house.

My business requires a form of mental awareness that can be exhausting, a schedule that is tiring and a stress level that includes the challenges that my clients encounter. When it is my time, I don’t want to hear about anyone or their problems.

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I glance at my cell phone before I turn it off and I notice that one of my client’s sends me a text which shares that he made an offer on a home and he is waiting to find out if it was accepted. I text back: “Congrats!” and then I then shut off the cell.

It really was a successful week but I am happy to let the weekend begin!

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RECAP AND IMPORTANT BUSINESS LESSONS OF THE WEEK

Forgive me if I repeat some lessons throughout the recaps – sometimes I have to hear a lesson more than once to realize that

it is a sore spot in my business.

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I think I would have made a very good teacher. Part of my job is to educate my clients, my referral partners and anyone who may need my assistance.

My goal in writing this book is to offer real assistance and insight to people who may be thinking about starting their own business. This book may even be useful to anyone who has been in business who wants ideas for his or her business model.

During my five years of business I have learned so much that books, other business owners and classes have not taught me. I have real life skills based on a real life business. It’s like street smarts only this would be business smarts. I certainly don’t know everything but I have learned this:

• When it comes to business be as prepared as you can be but don’t be surprised when you are not as adequately prepared as you thought. Roll with it, figure it out, learn your lesson and get back to the business of business.

• Accept the fact that there really is a certain kind of crazy to being a business owner. Many people will not understand you or see your vision. Don’t concern yourself with them – keep your eye on the prize.

• Fight the battles you are equip for – hire professionals to fight the battles that are a waste of your precious time.

• Free online services can and will probably change their algorithms, this is why they are free – they can do pretty much what they want because you are not paying for it so accept it and move on.

• You can never say “oh well” or turn a blind eye to a problem when it arises in your business. You must face it and fix it. Do this quickly.

• Quite often you will be defeated and deflated but pick yourself back up and start the battle again.

• You will work hard – often harder than anyone else for longer than anyone else and in the beginning (maybe even longer) you will make less than everyone else.

• Sometimes you will not be able to solve your problem the way

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you want – sometimes you will have to settle for the next best resolution.

• People you count on will leave you, have a back-up plan.

• When people leave you blame yourself – do not bash or trash the person who left you.

• Put things out there if it is safe– even if it is in beta mode. You will be able to work out the kinks as you go or squash it if it doesn’t seem to work out.

• Opportunities are everywhere – keep your eyes and ears open.

• Being obsessed is the nature of every business owner.

• Grow, evolve, change – there is only one way to greatness and this is it.

• Have goals that you can measure. Have a goal for the day, the week, the month, the quarter, the year. Have many, many goals both large and small. You won’t accomplish them all but you will have things to celebrate.

• Eliminate things, complete things or change things but make things happen.

• Squeeze every moment out of every day for as long as you can – then rest – then squeeze every moment out of every day for as long as you can – then rest – repeat.

• Have an outlet that brings you joy and spend time enjoying it even if it is only done on one day of the week. This will certainly recharge you.

• Keep your eye on your personal goal – especially when you are kicking yourself because you don’t have any fun.

• Know who you are and what your strengths are – don’t be embarrassed when you toot your own horn. We all have gifts, celebrate your gifts.

• It doesn’t matter how busy you are at work you still have responsibilities at home. Attend to them.

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• Start your business with a good team. A really good accountant and a knowledgeable and experienced attorney. These are important foundations for your business.

• Make sure your accountant and attorney have the experience to offer you advice that helps you move from start-up to success.

• Unplug once a week so that you can recharge. (I know I said this before – it’s worth repeating).

• People will never move at your speed – practice being calm.

• Listen to your instincts, your hunches and your gut feelings. They will never be wrong.

• Hire help for projects as you need it.

• Make sure the business name you choose is not tied to any drama anywhere in the world. This drama may be attached to the name and cause future business challenges including credit issues.

• Accept this fact: Your days will be long. You will be exhausted.

• You can only control yourself – you cannot control the actions of anyone else or your dogs.

• Phone tag is not fun so try to schedule your phone calls just like you would a face to face meeting.

• Your knowledge is worth money don’t give it away – start charging people a consultation fee immediately.

• Thank and if you can reward those people that send you business once you have a real deal. It doesn’t have to be anything big – a gift card for lunch or coffee is always well received.

• Connect your business associates with each other – this will help you expand your networking circle.

• Adjust to how people want to communicate: phone, email or text.

• Don’t forget to eat healthy meals – you will need it.

• Not every day is a big money day – sometimes you won’t make a dime.

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• Have a work schedule that you stick to.

• Return all calls even if they are not bringing you business. I recently got a sales call from an accounting firm and now they send me clients - you never know.

• Return calls three times, if you’ve left message and have not gotten a call back give up. You definitely can spend your time doing something more productive than playing phone tag. Make sure that in your last message you let them know that you realize they are busy and you don’t want to bother them anymore so they should please save your number and call you when they have an opportunity. If they want to call you, they will. (I just remembered this important tip and I thought this was a good place to share it.)

• Networking meetings are great opportunities to meet new people. Make sure that you meet at least a few new people, and you reconnect with people you know and have not seen in a while. Bring business cards to share.

• Expect interruptions – even schedule time for interruptions.

• Always have an open door policy because you never know who will brighten your day or bring you money.

• Be pleasant during all business transactions, even if they are difficult ones with difficult people. You don’t know what that person is going through.

• Every relationship has value. They are potential referral sources, potential business or people you will know not to do business with. This is very important.

• Have an “I will call you within 24 hour/Monday – Friday” rule. Maybe even schedule your calls so that you can knock them all off in one sitting. This is a super time saver.

• If someone was a bad egg years ago, they are probably still a bad egg. You do not have to do business with them – you don’t have to bash them either. There is enough business for all of us but don’t taint your good name with person that has a bad reputation.

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Remember the saying: Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.

• Have a reasonable time when you are going to stop working each day. The body needs rest and so does the brain.

• Write out tomorrow’s tasks today and be reasonable with this task list.

• You will forget to do some things, forgive yourself.

• Don’t rush people. This is important if you are in the service business.

• Silence is golden. Take some time to disconnect from every device and just sit quietly – try not to think or do anything. Just sit. This exercise can really bring you back to your center.

• Have an appointment system that works for you. You don’t have to go digital to look cool or anything like that. I use an appointment book – I have for years. This works for me. Some of my friends show me their phone and tell me that works for them. Well, good for them. My appointment book works for me. Use what works for you.

• As often as you can, have tomorrow’s work done today. Heaven forbid there is a catastrophe and you are not prepared. I follow that rule more than I break it.

• Laugh at yourself when you are wearing a brown shoe with a black shoe, mismatched sox, or forget to comb your hair. Hey, you are human and you’re funny!

• Don’t spend all of the money you make, begin to build a business nest egg early. You may want to build that nest egg in a separate bank account.

• Keep costs as low as you can.

• Don’t build your business on credit or on other people’s money if you can avoid it. Plan on having a business that supports itself even if you have to start small.

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• If you really don’t want to work for someone else you will fight to keep your business alive, you will work hard, you will work long hours, you will reduce costs, boot strap your marketing, etc. So get ready to do what it takes so that your business is successful.

• Listen to good advice from people who have been there/done that. They have wisdom that could help you skip some steps and dumb mistakes. If they are willing to talk, shut up and listen.

• Have 1:2:1’s with people in your field, outside of your field, seasoned people, young people, old people, as many people as you can while still doing your job and bringing in the money.

• Watch how much money you are making and track your financial growth from year to year. If your business is not increasing its revenue from year to year you are not in business, you have a hobby. Ask the IRS if you don’t believe me.

• Always consider how you can become more productive.

• Don’t hire staff until you can really afford it. Be a one man or a one woman shop for as long as you can.

• Money talks b.s. walks – follow the money.

• Schedule time to network but remember you don’t have to attend every networking event. Balance is key.

• Always examine your business – watch it, evaluate it and figure out what your next logical step is.

• There will be uncertain times.

• Look for the cash cow in your business and work to grow that part of your business as soon as you can.

• Respect people’s time and expect that they respect your time.

• Learn as much as you can for as long as you can about your business before you open your doors. Even with all of the knowledge you gain when you open your business you will learn even more.

• Ideas, passion and desire are good but cash is king.

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• A 9-5 job has its benefits.

• Know exactly how much money you will need to start your business then save some more.

• Give yourself a time line for when you are going to meet certain financial goals in your business.

• Work with a business coach or a business mentor as soon as you can or on a project basis. You will glean a lot of information and not waste precious time.

• Give and receive.

• Don’t buy into everyone’s dream for you. Stick to your dream for you, that is enough.

• Follow the rules but flavor your business your way.

• Keep your eyes open for systems and procedures that would make sense in your business – systems that make things easier not more difficult.

• You hold every position in your company – you do it all – own it.

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• Files

• Call an old business associate (old as

from years past not that he is old, lol)

• Files

Monday, April 7, 2014

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Today feels more like an errand day and not a work day. After considering my schedule for the day I rewrite my list to make it an errand day.

Since I am the boss, I can change the schedule and run errands if I want to – and I want to.

I start out by going to the Post Office and I find my mail box empty. I drive around the corner to The Chamber of Commerce to see the receptionist and she is on her break so I wait for her.

A few weeks ago I had met with one of her co-workers in my office for a 1:2:1 and I sent the receptionist a recipe for a concoction that is supposed to attract and kill mosquitoes. It’s weeks later and the receptionist has not receive the recipe yet. Since I am running errands, I decide to hand deliver the recipe.

While I wait for her, I remember that another Chamber member whom I have not seen in a long time has an office there. I call her to see if she is in her office and can spare a few minutes to see me.

A little while later both the receptionist and the Chamber member come out and are happy to see me. Everyone is talking at the same time so I politely interrupt and hug the Chamber member while I am talking to the receptionist. She is eager to try the recipe and tells me she will let me know if it works.

I follow my friend to her tiny office where the floor, desk and credenza have piles of paper ready to tumble. I think to myself that she needs a bigger office. We catch up and she shares with me what she has been working on. She also asks me when her business fees are due to the County. I have her go online and show her where the fees are listed. I encourage her to pay them before the end of the month in order to avoid a penalty. We talk a little bit more and then I’m off.

I go my office to check emails and messages before I leave to my next stop. There were no pressing messages so I call on some business owners in the building to find out if they need anything from Costco’s. One does – one doesn’t.

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When you work alone it is nice to have relationships with other businesses because you never know when you are going to need some help. It’s like being kind to your neighbors – you never know when you are going to need them to help you push your car back to your driveway when it dies (true story). Relationships are the life blood of a business.

I leave the office with my list in hand and I drive to Costco’s to do some shopping for the office, house and for my office neighbor.

I forgot that the main road to my destination is under construction so I am stuck in bumper to bumper traffic. I’m not concerned because my calendar is free and clear so there is no stress here.

I get to Costco’s and find everything I need except for one thing so I see Wal-Mart in my future. Before I leave the store I pick up three sandwiches.

When I arrive back to my office building rather than unloading the supplies, I grab the sandwiches I picked up and deliver them to two different business owners in the building. Both of them are hungry because it’s past lunch time and they don’t have time to run out to pick up lunch. They are very happy to see me with food for them. Mission accomplished.

I have found that it is the small tokens of appreciation that will make someone’s day. If you can be a help or a hand to someone and it’s not going to set you back or break your arm, I say do it. Life is tough but when someone cares enough to bring you a sandwich you know you matter to someone and that can turn a bad day around.

Once I unload the car one of my office neighbors came by with his sandwich so we sit and enjoy our lunch. After lunch I looked around my office and I thought of my plan to move, downside or redecorate so I call my other office neighbor and I ask her if she wants a desk, a bench, a two drawer file cabinet and some faux plants. She gets excited and asks me “How much?” Some things are not worth selling – I say “Free!” She is so happy and tells me that she really wanted a desk, a file cabinet and some plants. I am not surprised. I tell her to take them when she is ready. Well, she is as much on point as I am so she gets her friends and they immediately move things out.

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When you are a business owner you have a vision way before you actually see the thing in front of you. At the vision stage of any enterprise you can make changes that don’t cost anything. Once things are written in stone then changes will more than likely cost you money. Remember that.

I start vacuuming the office and I think about different things such as:

• Today the author of a book I purchased a few weeks ago personally reached out to me through LinkedIn. I thought that was a really good sign especially since I am planning on publishing my ebook in the near future.

• My social media person has my posts ready for the week and we are due to talk about them tonight.

• Tomorrow night there is a networking event that I have never been to because it is out of my way. It always seems to rain when they have had this event in the past and I wonder if it is worth attending since the weather man predicts rain.

• I am working on a bartering deal that would secretly benefit two business owners that I know. I hope it works out.

• I didn’t make a red cent and I spent money on things that I needed for the office. Not making money and having to spend money makes me crazy.

I stop the vacuum and consider the day. Overall, it was a pretty good day. I only forgot one thing – to call that old business associate. Well, I will put it on tomorrow’s list.

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• Call an old business associate (from

yesterday’s list)

• Finish cleaning up the office

• Get some files done

• Business After Hours @5:30 p.m.

Tuesday, April 8, 2014

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I wake up to a gloomy morning after having a dream that some people were pretending to be police men and wanted me to turn off the alarm to the house and let them in. That was strange and I wonder what it means.

I mentally go through my morning routine waiting for the rain to come pouring down or for the sun to break through the clouds. Neither happens and even though I moved very slowly I am headed out of the house earlier than usual. I can’t figure that one out but I guess that I must have been moving so fast it felt slow – like when you are cruising along and you look at the speedometer realize you are speeding.

I head to the bank and as I pull in the rain comes. Although I have an umbrella I don’t want to get wet so I pull out of the bank’s parking lot and head to the office. I can do my banking tomorrow.

When I open the door to my office I am reminded of the mess I made yesterday. Adding to the mess, the office door seems to have expanded overnight making it difficult to shut. I start cleaning up and sorting things that will stay, things that are trash and things that will find a home someplace else.

The front office is finally cleaned out except for a few pictures that I will take home. I look around and I’m satisfied with my results.

I search for a phillips head screwdriver so that I can tighten the screws in the front door. I think that may be the reason it’s hard to close – loose screws. Sure enough, this works.

I head into my office and it looks like a tornado has hit it. Before I tend to the chaos I check for voice mails and emails. Luckily, there is nothing that can’t wait a couple of hours.

As I manage to clear a small part of my desk I remember that yesterday I wanted to call a former business associate. I pick up the phone and immediately reach him. He shares with me all of the areas of business he’s in and promises to set up a meeting with me in the near future. In our conversation I find out that he is working with investors. I don’t know how we can do business together but if we brainstorm maybe we can come up with something.

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I continue organizing my office and I am happy that I didn’t schedule any appointments this week. I really wanted to complete these tedious tasks without interruptions.

I decide to work on a couple of files and the idea comes to me that I must create something in writing that I can send to my clients letting them know that their file is closed. Sometimes I find myself providing services for people who should be considered former clients. I also don’t even charge them! I have to be stronger in this area. If there is one thing that business owners should be aware of it is their personal weaknesses and where they are leaving money on the table. Be aware of it and change it – immediately.

The phone rings and it is one of my realtors. I am excited to speak to her as one of my clients offer was accepted on a home. My realtor sounds a little sad and I ask her what’s wrong. It turns out that my client withdrew his offer on the home. I am outraged. I worked for almost a year getting my client ready to qualify for a mortgage. Then I send him to my broker who immediately approves him. Finally, I set him up with a realtor and off they go. After seeing so many houses my client finds a home, puts in an offer, the offer is accepted and he withdraws it?

I cannot believe that!

My realtor shares with me that a family member that isn’t going to live in the house does not like the house. Well, who cares? That person is not going to live there. Family dynamics can be a real damper on real estate deals. I wonder if they are causing problems because they really don’t want their family member to move out.

After I speak to my realtor who is ready to cry after all of the work she put in with this client, I text my client and ask him to call me. My blood is boiling and I cannot believe that one person can undo a year’s worth of work. It makes me want to spit.

I call a friend of mine to vent about the situation because I was so angry. I feel better after I vent but I know that I have no control over the situation. However, I am free to voice my opinion to my client while being professional. Of course at the moment I do not feel professional at all.

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I get back to my files and I complete two of them.

*********

An uninterrupted hour of organizing goes by and my office is starting to look decent again. The door bell rings and it is a business owner from another floor. She was obviously out on a cigarette break. As a former smoker it is very difficult for me to be around smokers or to tolerate the smell of cigarettes.

We are planning to work on a couple of projects together so we discuss them and come to tentative verbal agreements.

Our discussion then moves to current business challenges that she is experiencing and I cannot help but give her advice. I mentally remind myself that she is not listening – she didn’t listen the last time I gave her tips and that this is her problem not mine. It’s not that I don’t like her it’s that she undervalues my experience. Obviously, it has taken me some time to remember this and I mentally scold myself. I remind myself to stop giving away free advice.

At the end of our meeting she shared that she was speaking to a “marketing genius”. She was not talking about me - enough said. Maybe if she were paying me for my advice she would listen - I doubt it and I shut up.

She leaves and I shake off the after effects of that encounter and spray the office with a sweet smelling air freshener. It’s a mixture of disappointment and a feeling of “what the heck”.

Believe me when I tell you this: you will have meetings that will leave you wondering what in the world was the point of the meeting. Do not let this happen too often – sometimes you must sit through a meeting such as this. If there is a beneficial end result that is not too far in the distance, you may want to consider it your duty to sit there. You can only hope that your business associate will provide you with a money making deal in the near future or services that will help your business grow.

I get back to work responding to emails when the front door bell rings again.

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A neighboring business owner stopped by to have a cup of coffee, share with me the results of a recent meeting. He also wanted to find out if I will be attending the business after hour’s event this evening. I join him in coffee, chat a bit and promise to meet him at the event. He finishes his coffee and leaves.

It’s about 4:30 p.m. and I realize I have not had lunch yet. My shopping trip yesterday is a blessing today and at 5:00 p.m. I eat lunch: a cup of soup that was disgusting.

The business after hours begins at 5:30 p.m. so I leave.

My commutes are typically easy so I often forget what it is like to be stuck in traffic. Although the after-hours event was less than a mile away it took me an hour to get there. Once there I forgot all of my traffic woes and had a good time chatting with business owners that I know and some that I didn’t know. It’s all good business fun.

The results of this event were that I won two tickets to an event and handed them to a colleague so that he could take his wife and kids. I made an appointment with a business associate who needs my services and I had some really good food to eat including fresh fruit and dessert. Way better than the soup I had earlier.

I make it a point not to drink any liquor at these events. I do not want to be tipsy nor do I want to do or say something that is inappropriate or unacceptable. I am always shocked when business associates I know drink a little too much at these events, do something really stupid and expect people to respect them in the morning. It’s sad when I see someone who is extremely good at their job damage the good reputation they have built because they had a couple of beers. Please don’t let this be you.

It was a long day and I was exhausted. My dogs must be going nuts because they have been inside all day. When I check my phone I see that I missed a call from my client who withdrew the offer he made on a house. I check for a message but he did not leave one. I will have to try to connect with him tomorrow.

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After all is said and done I finish my work related duties at 11:14 p.m. I am tired but it was a successful day – in spite of the challenges and the fact that I didn’t make money. I didn’t spend money either.

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• Bank

• Post Office

• Finish cleaning up

office

• Return calls

• Pay final bills

• Files (if you have

time)

• Leave a bit early and

pick up carrots & milk

at the supermarket

• You must work out

today you fat slug

Wednesday, April 9, 2014

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Once again I woke up from crazy dreams and with a killer sore throat. That explains the dreams, whenever I am sick I have crazy dreams.

I can’t let a little sore throat stop me so I carry on.

For some reason there was major traffic on the road towards the bank again this morning but I must make this deposit. I continue to inch along until I make it to the bank.

I had about seven letters to mail complete with stamps but at the last moment before I threw them in the mail box they seemed a bit heavy. I doubted myself as I wasn’t sure if they were heavy or my aching arms couldn’t lift them. I decide to have them weighed at the Post Office and that turned out to be a power move on my part because two of them did need additional postage.

I arrive at the office and with dread I face the piles of papers all over the desk, floor and on the chairs. With a big sigh I start sorting, shredding and filing. I’m a one man shop so I can only delegate it to myself.

Most days I come to work and I am ready to deal with people, papers and telephone calls but today my body aches, my throat hurts and I am feeling whiney. I know that I have to suck it up and get to task so I just do it.

When I take time to look at my calendar I realize that the appointment I made at last night’s event conflicts with a workshop. I call my appointment and leave him a detailed message apologizing for my error and giving him other options for dates and times. I don’t like it when I do that. For this very same reason I should never make appointments without my appointment book in front of me.

I keep on working on files, making calls, shredding and doing administrative work. Today, I am a clerical employee. I take a look at a box I have filled with business cards and I wonder if I can hire someone to come in and put that information in Outlook for me. I think about that for a moment and file it away in my brain along with so many other ideas of “things to do”.

I remember that I have bills to pay so I pay some office bills and some personal bills. This makes me officially caught up with every business expense for the month. I feel relieved.

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As I am searching through a huge client file the door bell rings. The client I thought I had scheduled for Friday said I scheduled him for today. I don’t know if he noticed that I was a little frazzled that I made such a mistake. I apologize to him for my confusion, show him where the coffee is and clear off my desk so that he and I can sit and discuss his concerns.

The mission of my company is to educate as many people as I can about credit. In this case, he has a notice to appear in court in a couple of weeks and I have to assess the situation. I am not an attorney and when there are matters that require legal representation I refer my clients to their attorney. If they don’t have an attorney, I try to recommend someone who can assist them with their situation. In this case, I have to refer him to his attorney so that he can get the assistance he needs because his situation is beyond the realm of my expertise.

There is no charge for the consultation because we only had a conversation. He leaves feeling optimistic with the information I shared with him and I am glad for that.

I go back to my office to search for some paperwork which took me 20 minutes to find in a big stack of files. I want to use this paperwork to help me create and build something with a strategic partner. In choosing strategic partners you want them to have win/win attitudes. You want them to be the kind of people who realize that some things are bigger than just one of you but can be multiplied by two or three people and everyone benefits.

This sometimes happens. Seasoned professionals should look for an opportunity to work with each other especially if they have the same target market. This is essential.

I make a few more calls but for some reason today I have been unable to get through to anyone. I pack it up for the day and I’m off.

When I arrive home I get a thank you message through Facebook from a Chamber employee for a box of brownies and a card I sent her. I believe that appreciating the people who help you is a nice way to continue to grow the relationship.

I get a “hey I want to meet with you too” from the wife of the client I had a consultation with which means that she was happy with the

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information I provided her husband.

I also get a text from a friend who wants to know if I have a massage therapist who would volunteer massages at a teacher appreciation day. My mind races with connections, thoughts of responses and how I could help out but at the moment my throat and body are saying “no mas”.

I didn’t make a dime today. I spent about $65. Next week I will have to make some money for sure. I call it an early day – it is 6:54 pm.

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• File work

• Follow up calls on existing clients

Just two little things…..let’s see how that works out.

Thursday, April 10, 2014

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Two little things and I couldn’t pull it off.

My sore throat is now joined by his friends: sneezing, coughing, running nose with body aches and fever. I sound like I should be in a cold formula commercial or in bed.

I didn’t feel as bad when I left the house so I thought I would feel well enough to go to the office. Once I made it to the office I could feel my symptoms getting worse. I work hard at trying to stay well and I attempt to get some tasks done.

My computer is misbehaving and my IT guy cannot seem to figure out the issue. I don’t like to experience frozen screens so he remotes in to help me out.

The April issue of my e-magazine is ready for review and I begin to edit it but I cannot concentrate.

A new business referral source sent me a client whom I call and have a nice conversation with. He makes an appointment for the 24th of the month but will call me with his arrival time. I am too sick to schedule a firm time so I guess I will wait 24 hours on the 24th for my potential client. I pencil out the entire day just for him.

I am mentoring a business owner so I get an assignment ready for him to work on. I call him and ask him to come to my office to pick it up because I am too tired to go to him. I want to go home and climb in bed.

I call a supplier to let him know I have not received my supplies and thankfully I had to leave a message. I text and email everyone who wants to see me and let them know that I am going home for the day. I’m sick and I don’t want to share my bug with people.

My mentee comes and picks up his assignment, we chat for a few moments before he leaves.

I head home, take care of the dogs who think it’s time to play and then crawl into bed. It’s about 12:30 p.m. and I don’t wake up until 3:30 pm. My furry obligations are whining so I take them out again. I feed them an early dinner and check my messages.

The problem with being a one man show is this: the show must go on.

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The first message I receive is from a local financial planner. I listen to his message and then call him. In my mind if he has a client to refer to me I am honored. I am happy to have another client. He brings me up to speed about his client’s issues but before I call his client I lock up the dogs in the bedroom. My dogs are naughty and they insist on barking whenever I am on the telephone. I cannot allow that to happen.

I quickly become the professional consultant and call the client. I am no longer the person who just crawled out of bed. I apologize to her for not calling her sooner and explain that I am a bit under the weather. I apologize in advance in case she hears my dogs bark in the background even though she doesn’t know that they are locked up. I want to be respectful and advise her of my situation as it certainly makes for good bonding.

Our conversation lasts a half hour and she is happy to schedule an appointment and looks forward to working with me.

I call her financial planner back and give him an update as well as thank him for the referral. I also plant the seed in his head letting him know that I am also providing business mentoring. I do this in a matter of fact way so that he files it in the back of his head – you never know who he knows who will need this aspect of my services.

I set the hounds free and start making some hot tea while I listen to other messages, read text messages and check and update Facebook.

Friends often come to me for advice or assistance through Facebook. As it turned out one of my friends wanted to speak with me about her situation. She reads my post where I let everyone know that I was feeling ill and she lets me know via a private message that we can catch up another day – a day when I am feeling better. I am relieved.

I never want to push a friend or a potential client aside but when you are not feeling well – you are not feeling well and you certainly don’t want to talk.

It was a short day which felt really long. I didn’t make any money and I didn’t spend any money. For a moment I thought about the bills and then I remembered that I was completely caught up. What a relief!

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I will probably have to stay home tomorrow. Unfortunately, that will be another day of not making any money. That distresses me but I still have two and a half weeks to catch up.

Sometimes, the life of a business owner is not easy. My eyes are burning and it’s only 9:08 pm.

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• Stay home – you are sick

Good luck with that.

Friday, April 11, 2014

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Business owners everywhere know that the world does not stop because they are sick. Luckily for me, I got sick on a Thursday, I took today (Friday) off and I hadn’t scheduled any clients this Saturday because I had planned on taking the day off. Although I won’t get to do anything fun this weekend at least I don’t have to cancel and reschedule clients.

My day was spent in and out of consciousness and walking dogs who insisted they had to go out. There were moments that I felt like myself – completely healthy. It was during these times that I would return calls, text clients or send Facebook messages.

One client received their reports and he mailed them to me so I texted him letting him know that I would be on the look-out for his mail. Another client received his reports and he dropped them off at my office so I texted him and told him I would be in the office on Monday and that I would give him a call once I reviewed his reports. Another received her report and has it along with her payment for me and she wants to drop them off at my office tomorrow. I call her and tell her that I am sick but that she can feel free to drop off the report and the payment in my office and I will get it on Monday. She is fine with that and I go back to bed.

If she drops off her payment I made $300 even though I was sick and in bed. Not bad.

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Since I am not working tomorrow so that I can recoup from this crud that has a grip on me we will

recap the week at this time:• Errand days can be very productive. You can use these days

to take care of personal errands, business errands and as a bonus you can quickly drop in on referral sources and business associates with a small gift, article, token of appreciation, etc. They will be so pleased that you took time out of your “day off” to see them they may reciprocate by sending some business your way.

• If one of your business associates needs help navigating a website take the moment to help them out. They will think you are a genius and you will feel special.

• Even when you are off – except for extended vacations – check your voice mail messages. Make sure to immediately follow up on those important messages.

• While you are out and about running errands for your office check with your office mates or business owners you know that are also one man shops and see if they need anything. They will remember your kindness. Remember relationships are the life blood of a business.

• Drive safely and don’t get stressed over traffic. It’s bound to happen so don’t let it ruin your good mood.

• It’s the small tokens of appreciation that make someone’s day.

• Everything should not be for sale – if you are downsizing or redecorating offer to give away your stuff to someone who is just starting out or needs your old desk/chair/filing cabinet. Share.

• Whenever you can, do a task immediately.

• Agree to win/win situations under all circumstances.

• Have a grand vision not a teeny tiny vision. Visions are free – be expansive – dream big dreams.

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• Don’t stop reading, don’t stop learning and don’t stop reaching new heights.

• Keep an open mind, you never know where your next connection is coming from.

• Consider bartering for services. Sometimes you can gift the barter exchange and everyone wins.

• Make lists and read them often.

• Listen to your body – if its rest it needs, give it rest.

• If you don’t clean up todays mess today you will clean it up tomorrow.

• Develop some basic repair skills even if you are a woman business owner – anyone can use a screwdriver.

• Draft contracts for everything. The worse that could happen is that you wasted your time. The best that could happen is that everything is crystal clear.

• Have a beginning, middle and an end to the life cycle of your clients.

• Be aware of your weaknesses and be ready to address them so that you are not leaving money on the table.

• Sometimes your clients will let you down, it’s not personal, life happens.

• Have a friend, mentor or coach that you can confidentially vent to.

• Do not be embarrassed to let people know that you can’t be with them because you have a personal weakness. For example: hanging out with drinkers and you are a recovering alcoholic or hanging out with smokers when you’ve quit smoking and can’t be around it anymore. You must protect yourself from falling off of the wagon – any wagon. If they are offended well it’s their problem, not yours.

• No matter how much good advice you give people – if they are not willing to receive it your advice is falling on deaf ears. Shut up.

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• Know what the purpose of every meeting is because time is money, we can’t waste time and we can’t waste money.

• Control yourself if you go to an evening event and there is liquor. Nothing will ruin your status more than a drunk you.

• Be prepared for days that start very early and days that end very late.

• I think I said this before but always, always listen to your instinct even on small things like mail.

• Don’t make appointments off of the top of your head – have your appointment book in front of you when you are scheduling someone.

• All of the jobs, big or small are your responsibility - at least until you can afford help or staff.

• Every client is not a good fit for your business.

• Every proposition is not a good proposition. However, every proposition has its merits and can possibly become something else. Something profitable. Don’t immediately rule everything out.

• Have strategic partners that are smarter than you, partners in other industries, partners with experience in work and in business, partners you can trust.

• Try to make someone’s day at least once a week.

• Some days are just clerical days – enjoy them.

• Business can come from anywhere: your neighbor, your financial planner, Facebook, Linkedin, your website.

• People are watching you so make sure that what you do is honest, ethical and upstanding. I have had people who watched me for years before they became clients. My good reputation, my expertise, my efforts to not sell them a dream made them clients. They grew to trust me before they knew me. It’s a beautiful thing.

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• Sometimes you are just sick and you don’t have the stamina to go to the office. Have a system that lets your callers know or call them yourself if you can.

We will pick up again on April 14th. Next week it’s all about bringing in the money so I will be more focused on the bottom line.

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For Heaven’s Sake It’s Sunday!

Sunday, April 13, 2014

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I woke up thinking about metrics and this tells me that I must be feeling better. It’s as if I lost a month and yet it has really only been a day and a half. My business is in my blood, it’s all I think about, it’s all I want to do, it’s my contribution to the community, it’s my identity.

As I take notice of how I feel I would say I am 85% of my normal self. It’s not easy for me to hunker down and do what I consider to be nothing. Only illness can keep me in bed for that long.

I can’t wait to get back to the office tomorrow. I guess waking up to metrics is my way of thinking about the ways in which I am going to meet my numbers this week.

*******

The day did not end in silence. I received a call from a Facebook friend who wanted to come in for services and I sent a few posts to my social media rep that might work on my business Facebook page.

Jeanette Acevedo: all business, all of the time.

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• Ribbon cutting at 1:00 p.m.

Having lost half of Thursday, all of Friday and

Saturday I will have to play catch up today.

If the ribbon cutting mentioned above was for a

business owner I didn’t know I would not even consider

attending but this ribbon cutting is for a friend and I

want to support him and his efforts so I will be there.

Monday, April 14, 2014

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I made it through most of the day working from 9:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. It was an action packed day too. With systematic focus I made phone calls, appointments (one new client – thank you!), sent texts, checked up on posts and got through many details of the day.

Of all of the many calls and details of the day there was one call that was of much interest to me. A possible partner in business located in the Tampa area. I cannot forget to have a conversation with him. For me it’s a wonderful thing to have someone I can talk to who understands business and puts forth the effort to ascertain success.

I didn’t miss the ribbon cutting. I went with some business owners in my office building. We walked the short distance to my friend’s restaurant and the turn-out was amazing. I had the opportunity to share my contact information, connect some business owners who would benefit from each other and meet some new people. Ribbon cuttings can be a great opportunity to meet business owners in your community.

Once I returned to the office I went back to my tasks. At 3:00 p.m. I started to feel off of my game and after being sick for so long I decided that I had reached my limit. I went home.

On the way out of the building I ran into a client who was bringing me some paperwork. I talked with him in the parking lot for a few moments. Normally, I would have turned around and took care of him in my office but I was not feeling up to it.

*******

When you have dogs and you arrive home it’s like you walked right into a welcome home party. I took care of their needs and then went right to bed. A couple of hours later I got up and although I wasn’t feeling perfect I was not feeling as bad.

The events of the day were on my mind, I had several calls I knew I had to return. What was most impressed in my mind was how the systems and procedures I currently use to run my business are not efficient enough for me. My business has grown and I am running it as if it were a smaller business. I have to research ways to systemize my processes in a better manner.

Today, I made $300 and I didn’t spend any of it. That’s good.

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• New Client: 2:00 p.m.

Tuesday, April 15, 2014

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It has not been a good week. I certainly cannot believe today is only Tuesday. I feel as if I have lost so many days and I have not accomplished a thing. It makes me angry at myself.

I did my running around this morning and when I got to the office I had that weird fever feeling again. I felt as if I was going to pass-out and I didn’t know what to do about it. I had some water and Motrin and I hoped for the best.

Some people can plow through work even if they are sick. For me, concentrating on work is difficult when I’m sick. I came in so that I could catch up from the many days lost but I wasn’t sure if I would be able to pull it off.

I checked my emails and responded to each one by way of an email response rather than a telephone call.

A local business owner came by to let me know that he was meeting with someone I referred him to as well as another group that I was not familiar with. We bounced business ideas off of each other and he shared some insider business changes that his company was going to implement. According to him, I was now “in the know”.

Once he left I began working on the paperwork I received last night from a client when the phone rang. It was the new client that had a 2:00 p.m. appointment with me. He wanted to let me know that he would not be making his appointment. I didn’t argue with him about his change of plans, actually, I was relieved. I accepted his cancellation gracefully not mentioning scheduling another appointment. At this point I just wanted to go home.

I sent a text to the mortgage broker who referred him to me giving him an update and I left.

By the time I got home I was burning up with a fever. I took care of my dogs and climbed back into bed. I slept until 4:00 p.m.

Upon awakening I responded to text messages and Facebook messages. Another day lost, I am very frustrated.

*******

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I wish I had been smart enough to build a business that required less work and that made money in a more seamless, repetitive manner. My business counts on a continual pipeline of business therefore, I have to constantly generate leads in order to generate money. I am the face of the business, the brains of the business, and the secretary of the business. Quite frankly I am the business. It will remain as such until I am able to make enough money to hire staff. For now, it’s just me.

I may not be using my time wisely but I know that relationships are everything. This week, while I have been lying around (literally) I have been researching how I can streamline processes, make more money, or develop services that are in-line with my business model and that will generate monthly revenue. As I float in and out of consciousness this is what I am thinking about. I have several pages of scribble that may hold the beginning of a great idea – a great idea I can implement when I feel better and get back to work.

I know that many business owners have dug themselves in a hole of personal debt in order to support their business. Luckily, I have not done that. My business has slowly but surely grown to support itself. Now I need it to support me as well. That is my next goal to reach.

When I think of getting a job and working for someone else I worry that my free thinking and independent style would not be able to conform to someone else’s rules. This is especially true if I don’t believe in their vision.

Professionally, I don’t know who I can turn to who is able to help me reach the next level. I have found that most people don’t have real answers for me. They come to me for advice. Some people have nothing to share because they have never been a successful business owner. Talking to an unsuccessful business owner becomes a conversation about all they lost and their pain as they relive their loss by discussing it with me. I don’t want to hear that. I want solid and useful advice. They just don’t have it, so I look online for help in filling my educational/business gaps.

I’ve started working on my business credit to see if I can borrow money over the next year in order to reinvest money toward specific systems for growth. However, building credit takes time. It’s a

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work in progress. I think with 5 years of business under my belt and financials that look good it’s possible.

I can see a future where I partner with another business owner. I can also see where I can generate additional money however both those opportunities take an investment of cash and time. Obviously, if I do not invest the time to clean off the slate i.e. my current client files I will not have the time to invest in wrapping my mind or energy around another business.

The fact is that getting sick is a risk all business owners face. If they are sick who runs the business if they don’t have a team in place? Now, I am not so sick that I won’t be better soon….I just thought I would be better sooner rather than later. Getting sick has certainly set me back and I know that when I return to work it will have to be full speed ahead.

Every day, I have pushed myself a little harder to accomplish a little more in spite of how I feel and maybe that has not been the best move.

I’m off tomorrow because I have to take one of my dogs to the vet. Mya is 12 years old (Monday was her birthday). She is an old dog and her breed requires regular visits to the vet for steriod shots, anti-inflammatory drugs and her glands expressed. It’s a responsibility I signed up for when I adopted her five years ago. None of it is pretty but all of it is necessary.

The other exciting adventure for tomorrow is that I finally connected with my client who withdrew his offer on a home. He and I are meeting tomorrow at 6:00 p.m. because that is when he will be in my side of town. So, I have to feel better for that very important meeting. I need to find out what happened. Did my realtor upset him? Did the mortgage broker upset him? Did he get cold feet? What happened? A lot of work went into getting him from where he was credit wise to this point and I take it personally. The people I refer to are an extension of me but I don’t think it was my realtor referral, I think something else happened. I want to know what that something is.

Earlier this week I asked a friend of mine who is active in the PTA if there was a way I could share my services with the teachers. She was kind enough to get permission from the school Principal so that I

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can advise them of my services. I promised her that I would work on a creating a flyer to provide for the staff members of her daughter’s school and maybe tomorrow this would be the perfect task to check off of my list.

It has been another wasted day. I hope that I am better tomorrow. I have slept most of the day and it is now 11:15 p.m. I am so tired that I can absolutely go back to sleep and snooze all night.

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• Mya’s Vet appointment at 11:00 a.m.

• Client meeting at 6:00 p.m.

Wednesday, April 16, 2014

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My morning coffee tastes weird, my throat stings all the way down the length of my neck but otherwise at the moment I feel okay. Not great, just okay.

I wanted to get up and run errands before I took Mya to her appointment but then I thought better of it – maybe I can save my energy and make sure that I make my 6:00 p.m. appointment today. If I move in slow motion and I need a nap this afternoon I can do it today.

The thoughts of my work load are heavy on my mind today and I will probably work very long hours as soon as I am 100% better.

*********

I did not return to write the events of the day until the next morning but yesterday was a good day.

I did run errands before I took Mya to the vet – I went to the bank for gas money, got gas, played lotto (hey, you never know – someone has to win, why not me?), checked the Post Office box and then sprayed bug spray in my office.

When your office rent is cheap you don’t get all of the bells and whistles of a big corporate building – therefore, you may be responsible for taking care of pest control as well as minor repairs.

As soon as I was done with all of that it was a zoo at the house trying to lock up one dog and then leash the other. Since I live in a house with a back yard I don’t walk the dogs outside, I walk them in what I like to refer to as the “plantation” which is just a big back yard. Since my dogs are little it must be even bigger to them. When I bring out the leash (I only have one leash) both dogs get excited wondering who is getting a ride in the car. You would think that by now they would know that the leash means a trip to the vet. No one is happy going to the vet. Dogs are silly.

After the vet visit, I was poorer by $200 but my old dog has her tags and got a steroid shot for her aching body.

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My client appointment was not until 6:00 p.m. and I was feeling pretty good. My throat felt a bit sore but I did not feel as if I was the walking dead so I decided to go to the office. I arrived at about 12:30 p.m. and I was determined to keep my nose to the grindstone.

I started working on files at 1:00 p.m. and with the telephones off and by not being logged into emails or social media I was able to complete four files. That made me happy.

I had two visitors that came by to chat for quick moments but before I knew it was 5:30 p.m. I also had one new client schedule an appointment for Monday.

My 6:00 p.m. appointment arrived late due to traffic but after we met I was out of the office at 7:00 p.m. and satisfied with my successful day.

I didn’t make any money but I was able to complete some tasks that were on my mind. I was feeling optimistic that I could fully catch up on my workload within a reasonable amount of time.

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• New client at 11:00 a.m.

• Referral partner re: e-mag at 2:00 p.m.

Thursday, April 17, 2014

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My new client never showed up. No call, no text, no show. I called him and my call went straight to voice mail. I remember the conversation I had with him a few weeks ago when he set up his appointment – the most memorable statement he said was that “money was not a problem”. Meanwhile, his appointment to see me was for credit repair. Ironic. Oh well, maybe he decided to do it himself and that’s fine but a phone call letting me know that he was cancelling his appointment would have been nice.

One thing that you will learn when you are in business for yourself is that people don’t have a problem wasting your time. Especially people with paying jobs, they have no concept of what it’s like to be a business owner. Personally, I don’t like to have two things scheduled for the same time because I want to finish at least one thing. When I schedule time for you, it’s for you, no one else.

This reminds me of when I was an employee. I don’t know what the heck I was thinking about but I sure as heck did not think that someone – a real person – was paying for everything. Every paperclip, post it, pen, marker…. everything. I am sure that I could have been a more economical employee but I had no clue. I apologize to every boss I ever had for this lack of knowledge. I don’t know what made me think of that but maybe you can relate to the sheer clueless nature most employees have.

*******

The day was a good one. I knocked out at least 3 files – but it may have been more. I had one meeting with a referral partner which only took 30 minutes or so. We met about a new part of her business which builds websites – which reminds me that my website was down today. Oh, did I tell you? I am my own web designer and IT person. Here’s what happened…..

A new client called me yesterday to ask me if I received her email. She said she sent it to me through my website. Since I did not get her email, I checked my website and it was down! I could not believe it. I called my hosting company and they said I owed money. They also said they sent me an email – to an email address that’s not in use – very annoying and certainly my own fault. I was certain that I had paid for 5 years of services but I was getting heated under the collar. Since I was so angry I told the representative that I had to get off of the

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telephone because I was mad and I did not want to offend him.

After I calmed down I checked my accounting system. Sure enough I had not paid for 5 years on my hosting, I paid for 5 years on my domain name. I was wrong – good thing I did not offend the representative.

I called my hosting company back and after 20 minutes of hold and boring music I got another representative and I told her my situation. She gave me a better price for 2 years than the first guy did so it worked out to my advantage.

$118 for two years and they pressed a button and my website was live again. That’s less than $5 a month. The strange part is that once I took care of this issue I sent myself a contact form through my website and hours later I had yet to receive it. If I do not receive it by tomorrow I will have to call them again and find out what’s wrong and fix it.

The next kick in the butt was that my ranking on Google came down a bit just from being off line for a couple of days. That is not good because now my competition is right up there with me.

I did my own search engine optimization and I did a fantastic job. People pay thousands of dollars for what I did. I now have to go back into my website and work things out again to improve my ranking on Google. So, yes I am an amateur web designer – my duties never end.

*******

The meeting I had with my referral source was about the new service her business is offering: website development and seo. I asked for the pricing and when she shared with me her fees I almost fell off of my chair. I’m honest. If you have ever met me you will know that I will tell you the truth. I will give you your medicine with honey but I will be honest. I had to tell her that the price of a go daddy domain name added to web hosting with the company I use is far cheaper than what she was offering. I could not in my right mind refer business to her unless I knew that they could afford those prices. I certainly would not pay that amount of money – especially not as a start up and she’s not doing the work herself – she is outsourcing it.

Unfortunately, most business owners don’t know much about websites, domain names and seo. They hear those words and freak out so

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they pay big dollars so that someone else can do it for them. It’s a pity because business owners should have at least a basic working knowledge of what is available to them so they don’t get scammed.

*******

I feel as if I have wasted time and money and not met my quota this month. I can’t cry poverty or woe is me because I have been ill. What I have to do is take a good hard look at the damage and start calling people to get them in for services asap.

*******

The problem with putting your business information on Facebook is that your competition is watching, taking notes and implementing the exact same services you are providing.

I have local competition and although one of them claims to be my friend – and maybe he is – I have found again and again areas where I’ve noticed that he is doing the same thing that I am doing. I believe that once he figures out what I am doing he implements it. Call me suspicious. Several times he has told me that he will not “pee on my tree” but he has certainly crapped there.

They say the best compliment is a copy-cat. I don’t agree. I think it shows a snake in the grass, a lazy slug and a thief. However, you cannot stop people from copying what you do. It is a sore spot in the business world that will never go away. You must continue to be innovative, inspiring and creative and keep things in your pocket until it goes live or makes you a ton of money.

*******

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There is not one thing on my calendar – that’s

scary but maybe I can knock out some files.

Friday, April 18, 2014

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It was a great day. Since I didn’t have any appointments and it is Good Friday most people were laying low. I was able to complete the work on eight client files! That was a red letter day if there ever was one.

This morning I posted on Facebook “Expect great things to happen today!” I am a believer that if you expect great things to happen, great things happen.

As I drove down the block I marveled at my neighbor’s bougainvillea. Not only is it huge it but is the most beautiful color purple I have ever seen on this type of plant. I had to pull over on the side of the road, get out of my car and take a picture of it.

I think that by having a positive attitude this morning and taking a picture of such a beautiful flowering plant it just set the tone for the rest of my day.

In order for me to keep it moving once I arrive at the office I have to make sure that I keep interruptions to a minimum. I checked every device for messages – answered the important ones and then shut everything down.

You can’t get things done in a proper and expedient manner if you have too many interruptions.

It worked out perfectly. I got so much done, returned necessary calls, and completed most of the work on the files that were backlogged.

This weekend I don’t have to go into the office because I was so productive. I even cleaned the office and took out the trash. Now that’s progress.

I did bring six files home. I am planning to get some project work done and I want to review some files. I have both Saturday and Sunday to work on these tasks.

Most importantly in my file work is the family of three that I have been working with for a long time. We have accomplished a great deal however I think that I have to charge them an additional fee so that I can continue to provide services. I have to figure out what I will charge them as well as how I will address this issue next week.

I worked on a file for an out of state couple where I did not charge them upfront as I wasn’t sure what I would charge. I think I am going

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to leave it up to them to pay what they feel my services were worth. Sometimes this good faith effort is the key in continuing to build relationships.

I also have a file for a client that I can only connect with her late at night or on a Saturday. Since I need an update from her I will call her over the weekend.

These six files are plenty of work for me to do and they are not too stressful or time consuming.

When I arrived home from the office I found a potted plant with 3 big, beautiful sunflowers by front of my door. There was also a card. When I pulled into the drive way I just stared at them and was so pleased because not very many people know that Sunflowers are my favorite flowers.

When I went over to check them out there was a card from my neighbor. He wanted to make sure that I was okay after my recently illness. That was really sweet of him.

Overall, what perfect day.

*******

During this week I should have been focusing on bringing in the money but being sick set me back. Next week I will have to make a bigger dent on the income and not spend any money.

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RECAP AND IMPORTANT BUSINESS LESSONSOF THE WEEK

• Sometimes the dreams that you have at night are important, giving you some important information that you need to work out. Pay attention to them. Sometimes you’re just sick.

• Take care of yourself because being sick will certainly delay your business plans.

• Facebook is your friend and sometimes your friends will connect with you through that portal in request of services – even on a Sunday. Pay attention because you just never know where your next deal or connection is coming from or from whom.

• Support your local business owners/friends in any way that you can. Of course you cannot attend every event but if someone is relatively close to you make an effort to be there if you can.

• If you have a systematic plan to get through the day that works for you go for it – you know what works.

• Have someone you can talk to who knows and understands business. They don’t have to know and understand your business but they do have to know and understand business. Kicking an idea around with this type of person is very helpful.

• Ribbon cuttings and networking events are a great place to meet new people, once you meet new people connect them with other people – especially those people where it would be in their best interest to connect.

• If you feel off your game – stop everything. Come back when you are on your game.

• Be aware of when it’s time to change your systems and procedures – when things are not working for you it’s time.

• You may love what you do but making money is the name of the game.

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• Keep insider information secret.

• Consider the fact that some people will cancel their appointment and some people just won’t show up – you need to decide if you want to pursue those people or not.

• Keep your referral sources in as much of the loop as you can – without giving away your secrets.

• Be smart enough to build a business that requires less work and that makes money in seamless, repetitive manner.

• Until you make enough money to bring in staff you are every member of your team and you are the business.

• Building relationships is everything for a business (I think I have said this before but it is worth repeating.)

• Your notes, scribbles and research may provide the seed thought of a seamless cash cow. Pay attention.

• Don’t dig yourself into a personal debt trying to grow your business.

• If you ever think of getting a job working for someone else remember that your free thinking, independent style may not be able to conform to someone else’s rules. This is especially true if you don’t believe in their vision.

• Consider who your advisors are – they may be snakes in the grass or idiots.

• Begin working on your business credit as soon as possible. You just don’t know when you are going to need it.

• Clean up your person credit too. If you don’t know how to do this than maybe my ebook “Get The Credit You Deserve” can help you. You can find it at www.wagnerbusinessservices.com or at www.jeanetteacevedo.com

• Think about the future of your business – where do you want it to go? Make plans to get there.

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• Getting ill will certainly set you back and create a mountain of work when you return so be ready to move at full speed as soon as you are able to.

• Set your bar just a little bit higher than your reach.

• Listen to your customers – they have information about your business from a completely different angle.

• Some people will never get along.

• When growing your business don’t forget to consider every person that you know and how they can connect you with someone who needs your services. Do not do this in an obnoxious way but share with them what you do and who a good referral is for you.

• No matter how busy you are, you are still responsible for your family obligations (I know I have said this before but it’s worth repeating).

• Cheap rent is cheap rent. Use your current location as a stepping stone for your next location. In the beginning bootstrapping is the key.

• Excitement is contagious. Hang out with movers and shakers.

• People don’t have a problem wasting your time and time is the only thing you can never recoup. Expect people to respect your time, respect their time and no one gets hurt.

• Employees have a different mindset than owners. Help to fill in the gap via education.

• Every bell and whistle is not the bell and whistle for you. Know when something fits and when something doesn’t. Do not be afraid to reject things that do not fit with the core of your business.

• Keep track of your website and domain name expiration dates on your calendar because it can be a costly mess to fix.

• If you feel you are going to speak in anger remove yourself from the situation and come back to it when you are feeling in control of your temper.

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• Some services are just over-priced. Accept this as a fact of life.

• If you are not making money find out why, fix the damage immediately. Don’t procrastinate on this one – not ever.

• Your competition is watching you so that they can improve their services – watch them and improve your services too.

• People will pee on your tree, crap in your yard and smile in your face – it’s business. Don’t take it personal. Learn to separate who you are with what people do to your business.

• Continue to be innovative, inspiring and creative.

• Expect great things to happen, a positive attitude creates positive experiences.

• Stop and smell the roses – yes that may be a cliché but take a moment to look around you and see the beauty of nature – take a deep breath and now continue.

• Keep interruptions to a minimum if you are plowing through projects.

• Take time off to rest and relax.

• Sometimes moving from one office location to another really helps the juices flow – maybe work from home one day or work at the library or sit on a park bench and do some required reading or podcast. It’s refreshing and invigorating.

• People will sometimes surprise you with tokens of their appreciation, feel the love.

• Set-backs will happen – regroup and come back to task at full force.

• You don’t know how everything you are doing right now is training you for the next level.

• Be great at whatever you do – don’t half ass it.

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We are winding down…..it’s been fun!

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I have another 8 days or so of sharing my business life with you. I hope that so far you have found this ebook both interesting and useful.

There have been times when I have gone back and read some of the days of my business life and found some gold nuggets which I have already implemented into my business. I must say, they have been useful.

Thinking about the next few weeks, I am fully aware that I must focus on making money because I’ve only made about $1500 this month. That’s not a lot of money. I will also change my schedule next week and make it more structured. For example, I have already written out the names of client files that I want to complete on Monday and Tuesday. Wednesday, I have to reach out to potential clients. Thursday, I have to reach out to referral sources and Friday, I have to continue to close out files. That brings me to April 25th and only leaves three working days for the month.

On the home front I have not gone grocery shopping. I know that when I actually shop I will spend about $300. Since I do not shop every day or even every week, I typically fill up the cabinets in one clean swoop. I am sure that you have already determined that I don’t have time for the supermarket but if I don’t shop I eat junk food all day. That’s not good for my health or for keeping my energy level high.

As I sit here typing I look over at the clock and it is 12:41 a.m. I don’t feel tired but I know I will certainly pay for this late night tomorrow morning.

It suddenly dawns on me that tomorrow is Saturday and I don’t have to go into the office. Oh happy day!

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• Although I am not going to the office,

I did bring some files home but I can

do them at my leisure.

Saturday, April 19, 2014

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It’s not every Saturday that I get to stay home - unless I am sick of course.

Today, I chose to stay home and do some work. I want to follow up with a client who is out of town and get an update on her status.

I need to call another client, the one who brought me his paperwork while I was walking out of my office that day when I was sick and discuss with him the documents he shared with me.

I also have three files that are for one family that I would like to review. I need to decide and discuss with them a family rate to cover them through the rest of this year.

In my effort to assist people I sometimes forget to charge them. That is a very bad business move on my part. However, it has come in handy when I need to pump up my bottom line – like now.

At about 11:00 a.m., I called the client who brought me his and his wife’s paperwork. I caught them just when they have arrived back home from their Saturday grocery shopping. It was perfect timing.

Normally, I am a lot of fun and this works for me in helping my clients feel at ease. Once my clients are comfortable and when the time comes to discuss business it’s like I’m a different person. I’m not bragging when I share that I am really smart about my industry. When I think about it, I impress myself. It’s amazing but I didn’t know what I wanted to be when I grew up. Now, I know – call me a late bloomer.

When I am discussing a clients’ file with them not only do I want to tell them where they are at, I want to educate them as well. I never want them to feel that I have not answered all of their questions. I want them to feel empowered.

Thirty minutes later they had a huge amount of information, their “homework” as well as an appointment scheduled with me for next week.

I love it when clients tell me that they feel a sense of relief and that they understand everything that is going on with their credit. It is satisfying that most people tell me that they feel that a load has been taken off of their shoulders once they know how the information on their credit reports affects them. They also feel empowered when they know what they can do about it. My approach is to share with my

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clients all of the possible ways that certain actions can positively or negatively affect them. I don’t dictate, I educate and discuss possible avenues where they can overcome their current situation.

The client who is out of town called me but when she called I was walking the dogs so I texted her that I would call her as soon as I returned.

*******

When you work in a consultant atmosphere you must try to keep your hand on the pulse of your clients as much as possible. Shame on you if you aren’t doing this. In this case, shame on me because my client had done and undone so many things it was shocking. The last time she and I met I shared with her where she was missing the mark and she knew it was going to be a sore spot for us. There were some changes in her employment that she had to share with me if and when they happened – and I discovered that a completely different thing happened. Finally, she was out of town for a month on business and this just added to my inability to connect with her. Regardless of all of that, I take full responsibility for not being in the know.

As a business owner, you are to take the blame, even if you think otherwise. This is how you learn. This is how you upgrade systems and procedures – through your mistakes. Learn those lessons quickly, make the changes and move on. Don’t sit and wallow in your misery and for heaven’s sake don’t blame your client or get upset with them.

*******

The rest of the day was spent watching mindless television, mostly sitcoms and it was wonderful to decompress.

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• One new client at noon (a business owner who

was referred to me by one of my clients who

is also a business owner. When you provide

good service word spreads.)

• Six client files to work.

• One follow up call.

Monday, April 21, 2014

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After a weekend of being home I was anxious to get back to work. This really is the proof of whether you love what you do or not – it wears you out, you work hard, the pay might suck but you love what you do so much you wish you didn’t need money to stay afloat and you would probably do it for free.

*******

My day was a far cry from my schedule. The day began with a quick meeting with a referral partner, checking voice mail, checking emails, Facebook posts and checking balances on bank accounts. These duties took far longer than anticipated and they just added to my list of things to do.

My noon client arrived a little late but you can expect that from a business owner because they cannot just up and leave their customers and clients. They must finish the work at hand and then go to their appointment.

It’s a fulfilling day for me when a client shares with me that since they met with me the positive energy they received motivated them to begin on their path towards financial and business success.

This was the case with my noon client – she felt empowered.

My next call was to a potential client whom I had to schedule our call for a time when he was available.

Once I reached him and we were able to discuss his situation and now he was ready to sign a contract. I emailed him a contract along with instructions and I left a note to myself to reach out to him again during the week if I have not received his paperwork.

*******

When I receive calls from past clients I usually think it’s because they want to share with me what is going on in their lives. A call from a client from 2012 proved different.

As you know by now, my goal, my mission is to educate every client so that they have improved credit for life. Sometimes I have clients where it does not matter how much I educate them or what I say because they hear something completely different and proceed to undo any positive changes I have helped them create. This was the case

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with this call.

This particular client saw a realtor, met with a mortgage broker and discovered once again that his credit was not where it needed to be. It’s as if our work during 2012 never happened.

This conversation only reminds me that I must close out files and begin to charge old clients a fee for additional services. I get mad at myself for leaving money on the table like that.

As a courtesy I order both his and his wife’s credit reports and ask him to get them to me once he receives them in the mail.

I work on another file, then another, then another. The day is almost through and I feel as if I should have been able to perform many more duties but I can go no further without some food in me.

The soups I bought at Costco’s are horrible and it’s too late for lunch and too early for dinner. I decide to leave the office and stop at the supermarket because as usual I do not have groceries in the house.

*******

I always park far from the entrance of the supermarket. I see this as a way of getting a little bit of exercise. As I am walking towards the entrance I see a black SUV with a magnet for a realtor on it. I wonder what her insurance rates are as I am shopping for car insurance. I make a mental note to talk to her if I see her – even though I don’t know her.

Soda, frozen pizza and ice cream. Not one bit of nutrition in any item but I am sad, tired and hungry – good enough reasons for me. In the frozen pizza isle I see the realtor and as promised, I introduce myself.

I am very friendly which is kind of odd because I am a New Yorker and I don’t mean Upstate New York. I mean New York City – el Barrio – East Harlem – Wagner Projects. Actually, that’s how my businesses got their name. Wagner Credit Repair has been opened for five years and I recently created Wagner Business Services. When thinking of a name for my business I wanted to pay tribute to the neighborhood I grew up in.

I stop the realtor and tell her that she doesn’t know me but that she should. I pull out my business card and of course, the ice between us is

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broken. As we talk it turns out that we work with the same mortgage brokers so now we are instant friends.

My job here is done. We shake hands and promise to connect and then we are off in our own directions. This is networking at its best.

*******

It was a draining day, I do not feel accomplished but I did make $300, so overall it was a good day.

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• A 10:00 a.m. client.

• An 11:00 a.m. phone call.

• Four client files to work.

• Everything I didn’t do yesterday.

Tuesday, April 22, 2014

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From the looks of my files I think that I will probably wind up working this Saturday. I’m not happy about that.

Unfortunately, I miscalculated the time I would spend on my first client of the day. We started at 10:00 a.m. and did not complete our job until about 2:30 p.m. It was a long adventure. It started with file review, status updates, making phone calls to third parties, waiting for email instructions, notarizing documents and it ended with faxing documents in confirmation of agreements.

I thought it was a productive day for my client as I saved him $2400. I also handed him two contracts each for $300. Therefore I made $600 but I was not paid yet.

Our time took so long we even went to lunch together where I footed the bill as part of my marketing efforts. A satisfied client is a client that will not have a problem referring business your way.

Once my client left, a local business owner came by to give me an update on his day. After he left I was exhausted. I could only think about going home but I had one more call to make before I could leave.

My call was to a potential new client referred to me by a mortgage broker. I call him and we had a nice conversation. I found out that he is a mortgage processor, his wife is a realtor and his credit is not the greatest. This is a great opportunity for me to provide services to someone who can provide me with referrals in the future. He made an appointment for a Saturday a few weeks out.

Now I can go home.

*******

I didn’t go home to goof off – I carried three client files with me – these are the same three files I carried with me on Friday so that I could work on them over the weekend but I opted to watch television. This time, I plan to accomplish my task.

Before I work on the files I need to take care of the dogs, get comfortable and return a call to one of my mortgage brokers. This particular mortgage broker sent me a referral today and I want to thank him.

*******

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The work on the files is tedious and the information overlaps with each other. It is to be expected as these clients are related. Many of their issues are co-mingled making it a small challenge to figure out.

*******

I did not complete the work on the files until 8:45 p.m. During that time I also tried to reach out to a potential client because we have been playing telephone tag for two days. I had no luck there.

I did however discover that one of my client’s contract was about to expire and I had given another client over a year of free services.

Once again, I scold myself because I really must to have a better system to charge clients their fees.

During my file review I came up with a new procedure that I will implement immediately. This procedure should help to keep me on track with my files and help me to collect my fees on schedule. I am positive that there is a better way to do this but without the deep pockets of a big company and time to research my options I am stuck.

Bringing work home is never fun and at times I resent it. However, in this case I was able to “find” an extra $600. This along with the two contracts I handed my client this morning makes the potential income for today $1200. Now it’s not cash in my pocket but it is money that is forth coming.

Over the years, I have purposely kept my company expenses as low as possible. Yes, I always need stuff and I always want stuff but I refuse to put any of my business debt on my personal credit. Slowly but surely I am building business credit. It really helps me out when I need it. The $1200 I made today can carry my business for two months because I run a tight ship.

*******

Someone from another county had contacted me a few weeks ago because he was considering hiring me as a mentor/business coach. He called today and decided that he wants to move forward. I have to work out the pricing details so this weekend I will research fee structures.

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I am excited that someone wants me to educate them. You never know how your business is going to grow and evolve when you start. This guy will certainly start his business with all of the potential I have established over the past five years. How much is that worth? I don’t want to under price myself but I do want to gain this experience.

*******

As I look back at my day it was very successful and I’m pleased with it. Of course any day where you make money is a successful day.

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• There are no appointments on my schedule. I had

actually planned to go marketing and networking

today. The delays from my work schedule during

Monday and Tuesday has set me back so I will

have my nose to the grindstone. It’s also still

looking as if I will have to work this Saturday.

I must find time to mow the front yard.

Wednesday, April 23, 2014

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It’s almost 9:00 p.m. and I am done with my day. It has been a long one. Last on my list was the lawn but it is way too late and I am far too tired to address that jungle.

I have to say that I had a very productive day. I did not see one client in person but I did paperwork, made long overdue telephone calls, worked on files, had lunch with a business associate in his office, and met with another referral source.

If I didn’t have responsibilities at home I probably would have worked in the office until midnight.

There were many highlights to my day but I want to share with you a disappointment.

I am only one piece of a larger puzzle. My typical client has credit challenges and wants to improve them so that they can buy a home.

I have a client that I worked with whom I referred to a mortgage broker that I met through a realtor.

After a conversation and a meeting with the mortgage broker I felt confident that he was a match for my client.

His biggest down fall was that in his desire to assist my client he decided to give her credit repair advice. His advice was wrong. He advised my client to get a secured credit card. You don’t advise someone who has problems paying their bills to get a credit card – even a secured one.

I called him on this and he pooh-poohed me. At that point I was annoyed and decided that I would not send him any more referrals. This particular mortgage is for over $400,000 I don’t know what his commission would be on this but it is way more than what I got paid that’s for sure.

Here we are maybe six months later and my clients score has declined due to this credit card. When I called my client to follow up because she should have been closing on her home this month she shares with me that the mortgage broker was upset with her because she did not follow his credit repair tips.

I was very mad. I called him and my call went to voice mail – of course. I then called the realtor who referred him to me and asked her if she

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thought I was wrong. She agreed with me – he had no right to give her credit advice without consulting me first.

The moral of my story is this: don’t bite the hand that feeds you because you can be certain that they will never refer business your way and they will make it a point to advise people to get as far away from you as possible.

Secondly, make sure that you have the tact and verbal skills to inform the person who has wronged you what they did and how this is a detriment to your business. Be diplomatic but make sure to clear the air. You don’t want to carry around that bad mojo.

Finally, don’t send them any more business. You don’t need them because you will only lose with them. Quite simply, if you have to watch your back with a referral source they are not a referral source they are snakes. Stay away from them - it is in a scorpion’s nature to sting. Enough said.

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• 1:2:1 with a referral source, I want to

give her a referral fee for a client she

sent my way.

• Files

• Phone calls

• Mow the lawn

Thursday, April 24, 2014

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Mowing the lawn did not happen today either – it really is a jungle out there.

*******

I had a 1:2:1 with a referral partner who is also a client. As a referral partner she made $60 from a real deal she sent my way. Needless to say, she took more of my cards because for her it was easy to sell my services. I certainly don’t have a problem paying a referral fee to someone who sends me qualified referrals.

As a client she has been in contract for a little while. We applied for a credit card today and she got approved. She was so happy because she went from challenged credit to good credit. There is still room for improvement but as she continues to follow my instruction she will continue to drive her credit score up.

I billed some clients for services provided so hopefully $1300. will see its way into my business account.

I worked on files, made calls and did all of the normal stuff I do with no interruptions or fires to put out. It was an easy day.

The biggest challenge of the day was that I called that mortgage broker to inform him that I will no longer do business with him. Not only did he undo services for a client that I referred to him, he also crossed the line by not adhering to standard professional courtesy.

In his attempt to be an “everything man” he gave my client credit advice – thus causing her score to decline because apparently he believes he is a credit expert. I called him on it and I advised him of my disappointment in his actions. I told him that I felt that I could not trust him and based on his actions I would not send him business. End of story.

I don’t have a problem standing up to people if I feel that they have deliberately stepped on my toes. We are human, we like certain things and we dislike other things. That’s life, I want to take care of the situation and be done with it. As a business owner you have to fight your own battles. Just use your inside voice, don’t get all “I’ll snap your neck” ghetto but do get your point across in a professional manner.

Some disagreement or disappointments are not worth your spit but

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some are. In this situation it was important for me to let this guy know how unprofessional he had been and how he had ruined what could have been a great relationship.

Someone sends you a $400k deal and you stab them in the back? Yeah, that is not professional.

I’m mad at the situation because I hate when I encounter people who are sneaky. I wish people were honest but that is not always the name of the game in business. I have completely lost respect for him and that is pretty much the end of it. He forgets that he is not the only mortgage broker in town.

I called the realtor that connected me with him and shared with her what happened and she was in agreement with me. You don’t bite the hand that feeds you.

I called my client and apologized to her as well. I needed to inform her that I would not be working with him. I shared this with her because I don’t want to be caught in the middle of a he/said/she/said discussion. If my client wants to take advice from him that is her business not mine. I have fulfilled my contractual agreement with her – I checked.

Don’t get me wrong, this mortgage broker did some things really well and I give him credit for that. However, as our relationship progressed I found that he is one a smooth talker who attempts to wrap you up in his web of verbal confusion – because we are all stupid – except for him. That’s not a good look for anyone.

It’s also interesting that he is no longer with his previous mortgage company and he is doing his own thing. I wonder if he is now having a funding problem.

None of it matters at this point as I am done with him. I have other very qualified mortgage brokers that can assist my clients. I wish him a happy life far away from me.

*******

Little by little I am getting caught up on all of my files. I feel the beginning of new things. It’s apparent to me that my business model is changing and I feel as if I am on the cusp of greatness. Every day I consider different ways to streamline my business and to move faster.

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Being a business owner is a constant. You never let that role go. I only wish that I had someone in my circle who was a huge expert in my industry. I’d like to meet someone who has already streamlined their business model and was willing to share this information with me. That or a credit repair company telling me they want to buy out that portion of my business. For the right price I would certainly sell it – then I’d do business coaching/mentoring. That is fun too.

I finished my duties at 10:16 p.m. and I am not sure if I have the strength to even take a shower. This is the joyful life of a business owner.

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• Client between 9:30 a.m. and 10:00 a.m.

What a sweet schedule!

Friday, April 25, 2014

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I plan to leave the office early enough so that I can go home and mow the lawn.

I run around to get things done so that I can leave the house early enough to meet my client. When I arrive at my office a local business owner came by to bring me a couple of donuts. We take some time talk and eat donuts before I get to the tasks of calling clients, sorting reports, filing and all of the little jobs that sometimes get pushed aside due to a busy schedule.

When I look at the time it’s 11:00 a.m. and my client did not call or show up. Well that stinks because he was the only reason I came in – I could have had the whole day off instead of a few hours. I give him a call and let him know that I will be in the office until about 1:00 p.m. but I never heard back from him. This is disappointing because he also owes me $300.

I don’t let it stop me and I continue working until 1:30 p.m.

Once home, I have a nice afternoon working in the Florida sun mowing the front lawn and trimming the hedges. I decide to mow the back yard too but a quarter of the way through I ran out of gas so I’m forced to stop. Maybe I will get some gas tomorrow and mow on Sunday.

Most people do not like yard work but for me it is a time when I don’t have to think. Every problem, issue and concern is silenced by the noise of the mower, the tediousness of the job and the physical labor. Personally, I enjoy it.

Once I’m done I started thinking about my business again and this thought came to me: What if I could develop a plan to diversify my business offerings beyond credit repair? What if I could tap into promising markets like business owners looking to qualify for lending products? What can I do to grow in this direction?

I am certain that the hum of the mower, the quiet patience it takes to trim hedges helped me to slow down my thought process and have this idea.

Sometimes you just need to do something mindless and great ideas come to you.

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• Client call to update on events that transpired

on Tuesday.

• Data input: intake forms.

Big Note: Including today I only have

four

more days of this journal - that went by

pretty fast.

Saturday, April 26, 2014

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Today was one of those days where everything seemed to flow. Since it’s Saturday there was no traffic as I drove to the office. Before I left the house I called a client and arranged for a 10:00 a.m. appointment.

When I arrive at my office building I have my choice of several perfect parking spots, I received some mail I was expecting and I get to work.

My clients arrived and thanks to my new conference table we sit there instead of in my office where space is limited.

We spent a couple of hours together going through what had been done and what we were expecting to happen. It was a very productive meeting and I made $600.

I asked my client’s if they were happy with my services and they were. Naturally, I asked if they wouldn’t mind posting a positive comment on my businesses Facebook page.

Once they left I started doing busy work that I typically cannot get to during the work week. Interruptions and deadlines always prevent me from doing busy work like data input. In the past, I have hired clerical people to do data input but it seems that they rather talk, text their friends or play games on their phone. I refuse to pay people to sit and waste my time and money. This is how I wound up doing most of the work because I have not found a dedicated, focused and smart person who can handle this very easy job.

I call a potential client who I thought might be working on this beautiful Saturday. As I guessed, he was and he was surprised that I was working too. He informed me that he would get his contract and payment to me by Monday. Sweet.

On Saturday’s I usually work from 9:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. but on this Saturday I called it a day at 1:30 p.m. – don’t tell my boss, haha!

I headed out the door to the Post Office, the bank to make a deposit and withdraw money for gas because my tank was on empty, the gas station, the supermarket to play lotto and to the “bodega” (Spanish grocery story) to pick up dinner.

On the drive home I was feeling so wonderful because it’s the end of the month and I have made great business strides. I have made a bit

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of money too. I have increased my fees and only one person said my fees were too high. I am not concerned about people who think my fees are too high because I am certain that I bring more value to my clients than what they pay me for.

It is normal for me to tie loose ends during the end of month as well as make plans for the next month.

Every month does not end with me feeling so optimistic about the future of my business. Every month does not end with the anticipation of great things to come. However, this month is ending on a high note and it makes me feel as if I am on the right path.

Hours later as I was winding down one of my clients called to tell me that she and her husband went out to celebrate. They were so happy with everything that I was doing to help them that they had to celebrate. Yeah, I’m certain that I’m on the right path.

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RECAP AND IMPORTANT BUSINESS LESSONSFOR THE WEEK

• Make sure you are keeping an eye on how much money is coming in and how much money is going out.

• A structured schedule sometimes goes out the window – be flexible with your schedule.

• Take care of yourself – try your best to rest and eat healthy meals.

• Create a schedule that allows you to meet your personal responsibilities and your business responsibilities (I am sure I have said this before).

• Saturday’s can be very productive work days.

• Do your job really, really well so that you impress your clients with your abilities.

• Have an outlet or a hobby that takes you away from all the worries of your business.

• Don’t put your job in front of those personal things that are really important to you. Love yourself.

• Keep your hand on the pulse of your clients.

• If something screws up in your business take full blame, apologize, and attempt to make it as right as you can then forgive yourself and continue moving forward.

• Admit it, being at home is nice but when you love your job you love being at work. No guilt here.

• No matter how much you educate your clients some of them won’t listen to you.

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• Create a system where you can keep track of your sales otherwise you are giving away the farm.

• You can network anywhere – even in the supermarket.

• No matter where you live, it’s a small world.

• Sometimes a job you thought will take an hour takes hours. There is nothing you can do about it however, determine how investing more time into the job will reap you referrals or create a smoother, quicker system.

• Keep your eye on the prize.

• If you bring work home with you – do it. Don’t carry it back to the office undone. If you know you will not be able to do it at home, leave it in the office. Save yourself the disappointment.

• Keep your business expenses as low as possible.

• Begin to build business credit as soon as you open your business.

• Consider how much your knowledge is worth – remind yourself of this worth often.

• Every opportunity is an opportunity to learn something new.

• Look back at every day and determine if it was a success or not. You really want more successful days.

• Sometimes a day without clients is the most productive day you can imagine.

• Don’t be afraid to directly address issues with a referral partner who has stepped on your toes. If handled professionally that person will know you demand respect.

• Fire those referral sources that are cheaters, liars and have their hand in your pocket. Fire them immediately.

• If you find a referral partner who sings your praises and brings you business reward them or make them part of your team.

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• Watch out for people who try to lure you into their web of confusion. You will know these people immediately because they never give you a direct answer, they speak in circles or they talk down to you. Do not form relationships with people like this.

• Job hoppers are usually running from something, take note.

• Always take time to consider ways of streamlining your business and move faster.

• You never let go of your role as business owner. Sometimes you just put it away to mow the lawn or something but you never let it go.

• Always consider that your business may be up for sale one day. Plan for that future event.

• Develop a plan to diversify your business offerings – grow from one product and add other products that are necessary or make sense to your buyer.

• Figure out how to tap into promising markets that would make sense for your business model.

• Slow down your thought processes to tap into your ideas.

• Every day is a good day to see clients.

• Every day is a good day to make money.

• Ask for referrals from your clients.

• Ask for testimonials from your clients.

• Take note of your progress and feel good about it, even celebrate it.

• Keep your hand on the pulse of your business to make sure you are on the right path.

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There is nothing on my schedule!

Monday, April 28, 2014

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I began my day early arriving at the office before 9:00 a.m. I remembered to bring my fax machine from home because I am just going to bite the bullet and get a fax line. It pisses me off that Verizon will not give me a bundle package for this service but what can I do? They have me cornered. In my next business I will really shop around for my services.

I had a list of things to do and most of them were personal items. Things like “pay the electric bill”, “shop for car insurance” and “find out about your funeral arrangements” but I don’t think work duties made it to my list.

First thing this morning I read a Facebook message from a client who was so happy with the services I provided her. Obviously, reading a message like this set the tone for my Monday.

At the office the first email I read was a much more detailed email from this same client who shared how she felt awesome now that her credit challenges had been cut down to size. It validated me.

Yesterday Facebook was kicking my butt by not allowing me to see the next day’s post. I was very annoyed that I had to do anything techie because it was my only day to unplug. After reading my clients note it gave me a great idea for a post so not having a scheduled post worked out.

When I don’t have clients scheduled I try to do paperwork. My job is paper intensive and a small task may take hours. I just work on a file until I am done and then move on to the next one.

At a certain point – when I start to get frustrated – it’s usually because I am tired or hungry. I was hungry so I stepped out to pick up lunch and pay my electric bill. Once I returned I was able to concentrate and get my work done.

I receive a call from a referral source and I had the strange feeling that she was trying to get information from me for someone else – my competition. I tried to shake off the feeling and I gave her a bit of information. I am sure that the conversation will materialize itself in the near future. Call me psychic.

Otherwise my day was uneventful except for the email my client sent me.

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I took some time to read the first draft of this ebook and I am left wondering if my thoughts, ups, downs and rambles will be of use or value to anyone. I wonder. I will continue recording my thoughts and my business happenings in anticipation of completing this ebook and sharing it with business owners who can possibly benefit from it.

I think I lost sight of my original goal. I believe that now my goal is to find a way to make my business a huge success. I have been plugging along, unable or unwilling to commit to a huge business model and now I am wondering why I chose to limit myself in this manner. Fear of success? I don’t know.

Tonight I am thinking about the things I have accomplished. Where have I been successful? What are the things that work really, really well for my business? You know, the cash cows of my business.

I think I have to have a huge dose of reality and ask myself these harsh questions: Why haven’t I met the goals I outlined for myself five years ago? Why haven’t I achieved the financial success I anticipated? Were there specific challenges and setbacks that really prevented me from reaching my goals?

Furthermore were these challenges and setbacks unavoidable? Were they things I could have changed? And if they weren’t things I could change how did I overcome them? Did I overcome them?

Finally, what is the end result for me? What did I determine 5+ years ago would be the end result? Did I even think about that? Should I think about that now?

I need a strategy. I need to grow faster than the 25% I have been growing from year to year. Can I double or triple my bottom line?

Serious questions require serious concentration, focused action and a journal.

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• Work on files in drawer

• Fax POA’s for clients

• Call Tampa banker re: underwriting

guidelines

• F/U with some pending clients

• Appointment @ DMV

Tuesday, April 29, 2014

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The end of the month always finds me trying to complete tasks that I had begun earlier in the month that I have not completed. Today is no different. The only difference is that I have to go to the DMV this afternoon and that will take several hours out of my day.

I am anticipating a fax install tomorrow so I have set up an area for my fax machine.

I call a referral partner whom I have not spoken to in over a year. In our conversation he shares with me that he is processing judgment recoveries. He asks if I would like to offer the same service and I decline. Judgment recovery would require a great deal of additional learning as well as a dedication of time I do not have. I laugh at the offer, thank him and provide him with a referral source that he may be interested in meeting.

I continue plugging along and a local business owner is kind enough to bring me pizza for lunch. I am appreciative – can you see how the lunches I have given people pay off in my future?

About an hour before I have to leave for the DMV a potential client walks in. She wanted to know how to improve her credit. I take time to clear off the paperwork on my desk and spend about 30 minutes with her. I review the credit report she has, explain to her the model that is used to provide her with her score and I give her tips that will more than likely help her.

She asks me what the fee is and instead I ask her for a “like” on my business Facebook page and a possible comment on her experience with me. While she sits there she goes into her app on her phone and likes my business page.

I leave to the DMV. While there I am disappointed that I forgot to bring something to read so I people watch for a couple of hours. When it’s my turn my business took about 15 minutes. I head back to the office in what is pouring rain/bright sunshine which is not uncommon in Florida.

At the office I check my emails, phones and daily list and find that almost everything has been done. Anything that has not been done can wait until tomorrow.

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When I leave the office I stop off at the supermarket for two frozen dinners.

My day was productive but, I didn’t make any money. I wonder if I should feel disappointed because I don’t.

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• Friend visiting my office this morning

• Pay office rent

• Verizon appointment anywhere from 11 a.m.

– 3 p.m.

• Fax POA’s you did not complete yesterday

• Decide on May’s theme for the month

• Pay car insurance

Wednesday, April 30, 2014

Today is our last day together. It has been an interesting ride and I am excited to read this business journal. I am sure that there are things that I said I was going to do that I didn’t do (like exer-cise). I am sure that I have logged some great tips that I did not implement as of yet but I will. I hope that anyone who reads this finds tips, tricks and gold nuggets that they can incorporate into their business model.

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My day started with checking my balance in my account only to find that my web hosting company billed me $72 for something that I did not request. I am heated because I run a tight financial ship and I want to pay my office rent first.

I deliver the rent check and cross that off of my list. I then address my hosting company. Strangely enough their telephone number is not on their website but eventually I find it. A call to them proves that they sent me an invoice which I did not read. I didn’t read it because when I had the other website with them and it expired they just shut it down. With this website they automatically charged my account the amount.

I had additional bills to pay but until they reverse the fee I can’t pay any additional bills because I didn’t bring cash with me to deposit into my business account. I also don’t want to go to the bank.

My friend arrives and spends quite a bit of time talking with a business owner who also stopped by. Since they are engrossed in conversation I begin working on files. When they were done talking and he leaves my friend and I have time to catch up.

Yesterday’s journal writing was not done so I tackle that after she leaves.

The day was a steady flow of work. In my business I don’t always have walk in clients but today a young man arrived at my door. After educating him he shared that he wanted to move forward so I go through a contract with him. After I address all of his questions he shares with me that he has to share the paperwork with his wife and he will come back to bring the contract. He leaves and I get back to work.

Am I a little disappointed that I didn’t get the contract? Sure, however I rather have a client that does not cancel than a signed contract that will cancel in three days.

I continue to tie up loose ends. It seems that people are not doing what they should be doing but it’s the end of the month – I expect this type of behavior.

I leave the office thinking about my frozen dinner.

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At about 8:00 p.m., I receive a message from one of my clients on Facebook. She tells me that she posted a comment on my business page. Immediately I go there where she wrote:

“Four years ago, due to the economy, my husband and I lost our business, between that and the events leading up to it we also lost our stellar credit rating of 30+ years. We’ve known Jeanette for over a year and finally contacted her to do a Credit Snapshot for us. What we learned was astounding, she educated us on our current situation, advised us how to address and resolve those issues, and ultimately how to move forward and rebuild our credit. We are, again, moving in the right direction. If you have any credit issues, large or small contact Jeanette for her knowledge, understanding and advice – she will truly be your advocate.”

This is why I do what I do. I may not be rich, I may not be famous but in the scheme of my reality I am making a huge and positive impact in the lives of people in my community.

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RECAP AND IMPORTANT BUSINESS LESSONSFOR THE WEEK

• Just because there is nothing on your schedule doesn’t mean that nothing gets done. It’s the perfect time to get things done.

• If you need services bite the bullet and get them. There is nothing worse than your duties being delayed because you don’t have the services you need.

• Work on something until you get it done or you have gone as far as you can.

• Sometimes your frustration is because you are hungry – eat something.

• People will always try to get information out of you for free.

• Try things even if you think they are not going to work – at least you will know if they work or not and not suffer from the woulda/ shoulda/coulda’s.

• Re-visit your original goal, it might have changed.

• Try not to limit yourself.

• Keep track of your successes.

• Make a note of those things that are working.

• Perform a reality check as often as you can.

• Ask yourself this question: why haven’t you reached the goals you set for yourself?

• Ask yourself this question: why haven’t you reached the financial freedom or success you planned to?

• Learn from those specific challenges and setbacks that have prevented your growth.

• Ask yourself if those setbacks were avoidable?

• Did you overcome them and if so, how?

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• Think about ways that you can double or triple your bottom line.

• What really is the “end result” for you?

• Don’t bite off more than what you can chew.

• Ask people to like your Facebook page and post a positive comment.

• Keep an eye on your bank account.

• Celebrate every achievement and toot your horn.

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EpilogueMay 1, 2014

Today I saved a client over $9,000, I am feeling special and blessed that I am able to help people.

They say that you should do what you love and the money will follow – they never said how long it would take.

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Dear Reader,

I want to thank you. I took on this challenge in order to help you understand what it’s like to be a business owner – sometimes a struggling business owner at that. I imagine that I am the voice of so many business owners too ashamed to share their hurdles. We often find out about their challenges when they close their doors. It’s all very sad. Every time a small business owner shuts its doors I wonder if my input could have helped them in some small way. I am not a genius but I believe that by bouncing ideas off of each other the possibility of great things can occur. Thankfully, I am not at that point where I am considering closing my doors. I pray that I never have to deal with that heavy burden. I am glad for the network and resources available to me and that I am constantly in student mode. I want to learn more so that I can do more. Here is what is interesting, I wrote this book for you and yet this book has helped me in ways that I did not expect or imagine. With that being said, thank you for taking this ride with me. I hope that my words have shined a light on a hurdle or challenge that you may be experiencing. I hope that you felt the connection of two people who don’t know each other but have similar problems. To you my friend, be great in all you do! My name is Jeanette Acevedo and I have a small local credit repair and education business in Brandon, Florida. I have been in business since 2009. I am not great or extremely successful (yet). I am a small business owner trying to make things happen. Some days are wonderful. Some days are a challenge. I often wonder where I am going and when will I arrive. Obviously, as of this writing I have not arrived.

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In my efforts towards success I have written an eBook on credit and it has been live since 7/7/14. To date I have had one sale. One local business owner saw it in her heart to purchase it. Everyone that has read it says it is a great value however only one person has purchased it. This tells me a lot about people. They will grab something that is for free but they will not invest money in someone they know brings the goods. It saddens me but such is life. I will not let that get me down and I will continue to try to promote my ebook.

If you are interested in it you can find my ebook “Get The Credit You Deserve” here:

www.wagnerbusinessservices.com

Shameful advertising? I think not. I’m pretty good at what I do and honestly, I have helped so many people reach their credit goals – why shouldn’t I help you too?

In closing, I wish you the best my fellow business owner.

Jeanette Acevedo

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So many people almost fail and some people never give up. I know I won’t give up. Will you?

ALMOST FAILURES – BUT THEY NEVER GAVE UP:• Michael Jordan – The most famous name in basketball was

actually cut from his high school basketball team.

• John Wayne – Before his successful acting career he was rejected from the United States Naval Academy.

• Steven Spielberg – This household name dropped out of high school and applied to attend film school three times but was unsuccessful due to his C grade average.

• Beethoven – His music teacher once told him that he was a hopeless composer.

• Henry Ford – The Ford Motor Company was his third business, the first two did not work out.

• Marilyn Monroe – she spent most of her younger years in foster homes.

• Walt Disney – was fired by the editor of a newspaper for lacking ideas.

• Soichiro Honda – was turned down for an engineering job by Toyota.

• Thomas Edison – as a boy he was told by his teacher that he was too stupid to learn anything.

• John Grisham’s – was rejected by sixteen agents and twelve publishing houses.