The last Day !!

David Sutton_3

Well today was the last Day......mixed emotions as i watched my old truck drive out my driveway,it was the end.
i stood there with my wife and watched, as the truck rolled up the hill my mind shot me back to the frist day at the oil co. the strange feelings i had being the new guy, there where 9 men there of them only two still remain, Gordon loomis the service mgr. and Ed wandzy, i have seen alot of people come and go some good and some not so good,
the guys i just left the few that have been there for a while, the ones i saw grow into a team of pros.i will miss but see from time to time,

the best was a young man name Russ, hes 21 he came here from school to be a aprentice, he was green but willing, it was nice to see him grow in the trade, to see him go from just standing there with that look on his face to being one of the BEST men i had the privalage to work with!!!!

All my children where born while i was there, i burned 35% of my body in a fire, all my parents and grand parents pass away while there, and the guys there were there for me, i lost my best friend who worked there Big Jim he died over a yr ago,

its funny how we say its just a job when we spend more time with them than we do with our own familys, we fight we argue we throw things at each other, we get sad when bad things happen, we show joy with the good, we get our feeling hurt and we hurt them, but still say its just a job!

well enuff said, this is what i haved learned... that yes the work is the job, but the people are our friends and some even closer, i hope as i move on i will remember this as i treat those who will come with me or be with me down the road, i think i'm going to call my new partners and have some time with them... thanks for listening..David

George_10

Out on your own

is an adventure and a soul wrenching experience. My first business that I owned was a printing company. I owned it by luck. The previous owner owed me money and could not pay. I took it over and called the debt even. I had never run a company before, but I did have a good idea of the kind of boss I wanted to be. I let that idea be my guiding light and I tried my best to treat my customers right. I had plenty of competition and most of my work was custom and by bid. The one advantage that I did have was I knew how to sell. The end of the story is I sold this business three and 1/2 years later for a sizable amount of money. I believe the most valuable ideas I can give you are make sure the customer sees the perceived value in what you are trying to get him to do.

Break you bids out and explain the why and where fours. Show pictures of your jobs, a digital camera is cheap and it will pay for itself. Get yourself a good web site and display your work pictures on it. Put your web address on every thing you hand out. Business cards, proposals, invoices etc. Don't worry about competitiion, you can not do anything about it. You can however, respect your customers and give them straight answers and even the "why" behind the answers. People like to feel informed and informed people will make decisions. Over time your reputation for good work will bring you business and it is the best form of advertising.
Good luck.

George

Don Walsh

Starting Over

David,
You are about to embark on a very thrilling part of your life. It will not be the easiest road you have ever traveled, nor will it be the hardest. I and many others on this board have experienced the same feelings of separation and of self doubt that you might now be feeling. This shall pass as you grow into your new surroundings. There were two old sayings that were of comfort to me as I started out on my own; they are:
"The greatest mistake you can make in life is to be continually fearing you will make one." and, "The trouble with using experience as a guide is that the final exam often comes first, and then the lesson." Fear not the decision you have made, surround yourself with the best advisers you can afford- CPA, Insurance agent, Lawyer, etc. Listen to their advise and make decisions based on their input and tempered with your own gut feeling. Just remember your primary focus in all this, Your Family! They are Number ONE, all else is secondary in importance. From your posts, I gather you are a well trained and sincere person; now comes your chance to shine and prosper.........Good luck and enjoy the ride.

To Learn More About This Contractor, Click Here to Visit Their Ad in "Find A Contractor"

ScottMP

The other family

David I know just what you mean. We work with these people every day and sometime spend more time with them then we do our own familys. You have relationships with these people. Sometimes the people we work with are invited to weddings before family. Sometimes thats a good thing .

You'll do fine but you have friends for life.

When my Dad died there was a young girl from his office that he was allways nice to. I think we wound up consoling her instead of the other way around. Funny is'nt it.

Scott



To Learn More About This Contractor, Click Here to Visit Their Ad in "Find A Contractor"

Dave Yates (PAH)

that

is one beautiful post David. Sums it up nicely.

To Learn More About This Contractor, Click Here to Visit Their Ad in "Find A Contractor"