Clean It Up
UK Window Cleaning Forum => Window Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: Clive McDonald on August 01, 2010, 06:50:03 pm
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I was wondering of the wc's on here who have 'done better than the rest of us' how you spend your time?
I'm mainly window cleaning and then admin, no time for anything else, so i wondered how people have freed themselves up and what they actually do.
How many hours a day actually window cleaning? Admin? thinking about the business? disscusing with partner?quoting? Pitching? Getting accreditations? Training staff?
So how do you spend your time?
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at the mo window cleaning, 7-8 hours a day, mon-wed
about 2 hours collecting on a thursday evening, and 2 hours on a friday evening.
if i have the time, do about an hours admin on friday night.
Thursday & Friday i (try) to spend time canvassing, and doing other jobs gutter cleans fascia's etc...
and ALWAYS "thinking" about ways to improve the business, and future prospects
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what do you class as successful ???
im happy with what i do thats an success to me :)
so how are you measuring success :)
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Sorry Garry999 i realised after i'd put it up that any one who replied might feel a bit pretentious.I wasn't meaning to dig at differing perspectives.
What i've found is that the job has physical limits.It's hard for someone keeping on top of five or six hundred customers to find much time for expansion.I rely on machines as much as i can but i'm still too whacked to have much humph.I just wondered how others have moved on.
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Sorry Garry999 i realised after i'd put it up that any one who replied might feel a bit pretentious.I wasn't meaning to dig at differing perspectives.
What i've found is that the job has physical limits.It's hard for someone keeping on top of five or six hundred customers to find much time for expansion.I rely on machines as much as i can but i'm still too whacked to have much humph.I just wondered how others have moved on.
no probs wasnt offended at all :)
was just wondering from which perspective you were looking at it :)
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Hi Clive
on average 3 hours window cleaning per week and 112 hours working on the business.
I am not saying for one minute I am successful, but I know 100% I will be.
This year has been a major milestone in my business, I have picked up so much work my head cant keep up with it all.
IMO if you want to get where you want to be quickly, you have to get off the tools.
I am in a similar situation where I have to get out of the office dutys, I am getting bogged down with the trivial, when I should be thinking of the bigger picture.
As Duncan Bannatyne says there is no substitute for hard work, that is the biggest factor in any successful business, not luck, just plain old hard work.
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It was interesting to see that 'Twitter' has reached 20 billion 'tweets' recently. Apparently it took 4 years to reach 10 billion 'tweets' and then they did the next 10 billion in 5 months. It seems that when your business reaches a critical mass point things really take off. Sounds as though you have reached that point Dave.
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Most of the successsful window cleaning / office cleaning contractors that I know seem to spend all their time playing golf.
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I remember when i took on my first staff member, i was abit nervy as to wheather i'd have enough work, however it freed me up to get more, now i employ 23 staff, and are very busy, so its very hard to expand while working on the tools your self, the only danger is that sitting in office most of the week piles on the pounds so important to get to the gym too..... which i must do at some point!
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I just want to be a success, I know it is going to be hard work etc but you guys on this forum help the small guys like me want to achive more.....
So Thanks to all...... ;D ;D ;D
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Hi Clive
on average 3 hours window cleaning per week and 112 hours working on the business.I am not saying for one minute I am successful, but I know 100% I will be.
This year has been a major milestone in my business, I have picked up so much work my head cant keep up with it all.
IMO if you want to get where you want to be quickly, you have to get off the tools.
I am in a similar situation where I have to get out of the office dutys, I am getting bogged down with the trivial, when I should be thinking of the bigger picture.
As Duncan Bannatyne says there is no substitute for hard work, that is the biggest factor in any successful business, not luck, just plain old hard work.
So Dave - you mean that out of 168 hours in a week you spend 115 on your window cleaning business? :o
So out of the 53 you have left, if you spend 7 hours a night in bed then that's 49 so you now have 4 hours a week, for meals, the three "S's", work on your home, relaxation, holidays etc etc.
Do you think you have the best balance Dave?
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Gold
I even work while i sleep, I also wake up in the night thinking about work,
I also eat many a meal whilst working on the pc.
All I ever do is work, I spend the odd ten minutes posting here, but I see that as work as well.
I get to go out for a couple of meals a week, usually late and I pop a bottle of wine open at about 10.00pm a couple of nights, I am usually up at 6.00 am then back to the grindstone.
I wouldnt say it was balanced, but its not meant to be, the only way to get to where I am going is by putting the hours in.
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I wouldnt say it was balanced, but its not meant to be, the only way to get to where I am going is by putting the hours in.
Carl Jung said that each of us much realise that the goal each of us will reach is DEATH.
And you will never be at a plateau where you'll think , "This is it, I'm here...".
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Thats true Tosh, but the journey counts too.
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Dave i hope you're investing some of that cash in a good life policy.
What you're doing isn't sustainable. But your business name might live on?
ewan
;D
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whos carl jung?
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Where are you heading Dave?
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Where are you heading Dave?
hadrians wall at this rate
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whos carl jung?
Didn`t he sing Kung Fu Fighting?
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Where are you heading Dave?
hadrians wall at this rate
to infinity and beyond!!
he wants to change his name to buzz lightyear!! ;D ;D
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Malc
I am heading to the place where I can escape, I have seen the end of the tunnel and thats where I am going.
Some people watch Corrie or Eastenders, I get my kicks out of business, I love the challenge, even though it is long hours, I actually enjoy what I am doing.
At the moment I am stuck on the Hamster wheel and need to get off it, I am doing all the mundane tasks and need to pass them onto someone else, I also need to get a Nigel.
Dave
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Where are you heading Dave?
vertically by the sounds. ;)
Don't do it dave. With just 5% of your time dedicated to life outside (in thought and deed) of work, will improve the quality of your life by at least 50%.
Is a better business investment than even an accountant.
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success for every one is different, i view my self as having a successful business, i work part time, spend more time with my kids, and have money in the bank to cover any unexpected bills, so am pretty happy
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i work to live and not live to work
although i have had some good success i have also found out that all work and no play sends me round the twist ;D so for the sake of my health and sanity i need to find the balance
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At the moment I am stuck on the Hamster wheel and need to get off it
Ha ha,
I couldnt put it better myself dave,
thats exactly how I feel at the moment.
12 hrs a day 5 days a week and then another 12 hrs a day doing, thinking or dreaming/nightmaring about other related stuff.
Dean
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And I work every saturday morning too whether im at my caravan or not.
Itll all be worth it in the end though.
Dean.
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the end can come quicker than you want it sometimes
better to make sure you are getting some real quality of life
today
tomorrow may never come :)
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The trouble with grafting like that is that you don't realise how messed up you have become, until about 6 months after finishing and you wake up not feeling jet-lagged anymore.
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I am heading to the place where I can escape, I have seen the end of the tunnel and thats where I am going.
Calais? ;D
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Gary,
When i first started 7 years ago I turned over 7.5k and was totally skint,
.
for 2010/11 im hoping fingers crossed to turnover well over 100k and we are living a good life at the moment,
Its only through being on the hamster wheel and driving over 1000 miles a week that its come.
I escape nearly every weekend to our caravan in wales and we have quality family time.
Ive got 3 kids who Id love to pass the business onto when theyre older so that they can have a good future and I can take a backseat role with my lovely wife.
Does that sound like a plan or what?
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Gary,
When i first started 7 years ago I turned over 7.5k and was totally skint,
.
for 2010/11 im hoping fingers crossed to turnover well over 100k and we are living a good life at the moment,
Its only through being on the hamster wheel and driving over 1000 miles a week that its come.
I escape nearly every weekend to our caravan in wales and we have quality family time.
Ive got 3 kids who Id love to pass the business onto when theyre older so that they can have a good future and I can take a backseat role with my lovely wife.
Does that sound like a plan or what?
Why do people bang on about "turnover"? It means nothing!
What's your profit Dean?
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the end can come quicker than you want it sometimes
better to make sure you are getting some real quality of life
today
tomorrow may never come :)
and with that way of thinking the tomorrows when old can be very very sad.
Not saying your wrong but always a fiip side to everything.
Balance is the key I think.
working on the tools is never going to make many rich imo
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Gary,
When i first started 7 years ago I turned over 7.5k and was totally skint,
.
for 2010/11 im hoping fingers crossed to turnover well over 100k and we are living a good life at the moment,
Its only through being on the hamster wheel and driving over 1000 miles a week that its come.
I escape nearly every weekend to our caravan in wales and we have quality family time.
Ive got 3 kids who Id love to pass the business onto when theyre older so that they can have a good future and I can take a backseat role with my lovely wife.
Does that sound like a plan or what?
Why do people bang on about "turnover"? It means nothing!
What's your profit Dean?
I dont know yet until the end of 2010/11.
Im not banging on, im just explaining the reasoning behind it and figures are the only way of doing it.
Dean
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Gary,
When i first started 7 years ago I turned over 7.5k and was totally skint,
.
for 2010/11 im hoping fingers crossed to turnover well over 100k and we are living a good life at the moment,
Its only through being on the hamster wheel and driving over 1000 miles a week that its come.
I escape nearly every weekend to our caravan in wales and we have quality family time.
Ive got 3 kids who Id love to pass the business onto when theyre older so that they can have a good future and I can take a backseat role with my lovely wife.
Does that sound like a plan or what?
Why do people bang on about "turnover"? It means nothing!
What's your profit Dean?
I dont know yet until the end of 2010/11.
Im not banging on, im just explaining the reasoning behind it and figures are the only way of doing it.
Dean
2009/2010?
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The higher the turnover also means the lower % of profit you need to come good.
Ie 25% of 100k wouldnt be worth the hassle but 25% of 2million would be great.
Dean
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Fair play to you all that choose to work like this. But it isn't sustainable and has a limited shelf life. It is very hard for anyone to have a cut off point before walking away or scaling down. Being disciplined with the cash generated can make it worthwhile. Using it to generate more profit down the road is a good thing. But if it ends up subsidising lifestyle, i think it ends in tears for most people.
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The higher the turnover also means the lower % of profit you need to come good.
Ie 25% of 100k wouldnt be worth the hassle but 25% of 2million would be great.
Dean
But the 2 million is a fairy tale with very, very little chance of happening.
So, out of a 100k turnover, what do you predict the actual profit to be & for how many hours/days worked?
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As much as possible ofcourse.
Its all trial and error.
Nothing ventured nothing gained ;)
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As much as possible ofcourse.
Its all trial and error.
Nothing ventured nothing gained ;)
Do you not keep track of your business income & expenditure?
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You asked me to predict the impossible,
Next you will be asking me for wednesdays lottery results. 8) 8)
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6, 12, 34, 36, 42 and 49
go on I dare you ;D ;D ;D
Dean
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the end can come quicker than you want it sometimes
better to make sure you are getting some real quality of life
today
tomorrow may never come :)
and with that way of thinking the tomorrows when old can be very very sad.
Not saying your wrong but always a fiip side to everything.
Balance is the key I think.
working on the tools is never going to make many rich imo
that is the point i was badly trying to make ;D
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the end can come quicker than you want it sometimes
better to make sure you are getting some real quality of life
today
tomorrow may never come :)
and with that way of thinking the tomorrows when old can be very very sad.
Not saying your wrong but always a fiip side to everything.
Balance is the key I think.
working on the tools is never going to make many rich imo
that is the point i was badly trying to make ;D
;D
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This is getting a bit tetchy, those of us with obsessive personalitys and on a hamster wheel know this already.We don't need someone who works two days a week giving us first steps on the ladder info just because he is laid back.Their is no more superiority in this than in having a banging business turning 100k.
We are looking for info from above, people saying, get off the tools, go vat registered, become limited.I don't see why people who have pushed the boundarys should be put on the defensive.
It just seems that the world would collapse if i stopped scrubbing windows, and that's probably not true.So I'm asking those who've gotten this far how it seems to them.
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coo! i wish i only had to work two days a week :'(
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This is getting a bit tetchy, those of us with obsessive personalitys and on a hamster wheel know this already.We don't need someone who works two days a week giving us first steps on the ladder info just because he is laid back.Their is no more superiority in this than in having a banging business turning 100k.
We are looking for info from above, people saying, get off the tools, go vat registered, become limited.I don't see why people who have pushed the boundarys should be put on the defensive.
It just seems that the world would collapse if i stopped scrubbing windows, and that's probably not true.So I'm asking those who've gotten this far how it seems to them.
I couldn't tell you as i havn't gotten very far, but, as an observation (and i'm only new here) i have noticed noticed a few of the 'successful types' post here that they have had enough and are wondering what to do, sell their work,sub it out, pack it all up or just carry on etc...
Now i don't know about you but i reckon someone who has the drive and acumen to get so far then falter at his own descisions and asks openly what they should do might be suffering from stress. Oh yeah, i nearly forgot your question !!! I reckon they fret all day !!!!
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"Money never made a man happy yet, nor will it. There is nothing in its nature to produce happiness. The more a man has, the more he wants. Instead of its filling a vacuum, it makes one."
Benjamin Franklin
"He who knows how to be poor knows everything."
Michelet
"Never invest your money in anything that eats or needs repairing."
Billy Rose
"Make money your god and it will plague you like the devil."
Henry Fielding
"Money on its own is neither good nor bad. It is a means to an end."
Author Unknown
"One must be poor to know the luxury of giving."
George Eliot
"Wealth consists not in having great possessions but in having few wants."
Epicurus
"Who is rich? He that is content. "
Benjamin Franklin
"Money often costs too much."
Ralph Waldo Emerson
"If you want to know what a man is really like, take notice of how he acts when he loses money."
Simone Weil
"A wise man should have money in his head, but not in his heart."
Jonathan Swift
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6, 12, 34, 36, 42 and 49
go on I dare you ;D ;D ;D
Dean
This wednesday! It's a sign! :D
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What about, Greed Is Good
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Money might not make you happy but not having enough to pay your bills can weigh heavily on your heart, I know I have been there and nothing makes you more misreable, all I want in my life is to have enough to be in control of my life
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As much as possible ofcourse.
Its all trial and error.
Nothing ventured nothing gained ;)
Do you not keep track of your business income & expenditure?
he probably does but why would he post that on here? whats your profit?
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why all the philosophers all of a sudden. if somebody wants to graft hard for a better life and the ones who are scared of doing anything more than a small round get upset, if your aim in life is to do 3 days and you live comfortably i admire you i wouldnt think any less of you than the man who earns 1 million money is not a measure of a persons substance or success as a humna being and never will be , but if you are bitter about it either do something or stop moaning
my aim is to get time off from work to be with family and enjoy my hobbies but still earn while i sit around ie staff , it will take a while to get that first van out earning without me but i am working at it and hope to have one out by 12 months time, and then keep on for next few years till i can lower my living expenses which are currently sky high and up my profit in business till i can sit back. my cost of living is really high due to being young so saving to get house, got young family so only one income and loads of personal/business debt plus employees wage etc etc
so id be interested to know how those that now sit back from tools took there first step away and handed over to staff because i think that is the hardest part ...
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As much as possible ofcourse.
Its all trial and error.
Nothing ventured nothing gained ;)
Do you not keep track of your business income & expenditure?
he probably does but why would he post that on here? whats your profit?
lol i know lets all post our tax returns online lol
he might not want staff etc knowing profit
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Money might not make you happy but not having enough to pay your bills can weigh heavily on your heart, I know I have been there and nothing makes you more misreable, all I want in my life is to have enough to be in control of my life
How can you control your life? Wives have affairs, family die, we get cancers, it rains when we want it to be sunny; shoe laces break and we suffer with flat tyres.
Did I ever tell you what the Buddha said about life? ;D
I'm joking; I know what you mean, Dave.
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Maybe not in control of my life but in control of my finances. Ever since man began we have all competed for the biggest cave, it's in our blood.
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It just seems that the world would collapse if i stopped scrubbing windows, and that's probably not true.
Only probably?
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As much as possible ofcourse.
Its all trial and error.
Nothing ventured nothing gained ;)
Do you not keep track of your business income & expenditure?
he probably does but why would he post that on here? whats your profit?
Why would he post a turnover of 100k ?
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As much as possible ofcourse.
Its all trial and error.
Nothing ventured nothing gained ;)
Do you not keep track of your business income & expenditure?
he probably does but why would he post that on here? whats your profit?
Why would he post a turnover of 100k ?
maybe because thats what it is, so whats YOUR profit and turnover then?
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or maybe it is just an achievement to him, or maybe just an example, I would have thought it was an achievement but well done to him. He was also very honest in the first year he only turned over 7.5k which is more than I did
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As much as possible ofcourse.
Its all trial and error.
Nothing ventured nothing gained ;)
Do you not keep track of your business income & expenditure?
he probably does but why would he post that on here? whats your profit?
Why would he post a turnover of 100k ?
maybe because thats what it is, so whats YOUR profit and turnover then?
I'm not offering either, nor am I asking you!
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I think it would be helpful if we defined what a 'successful type' actually is.
For me, someone whose successful enjoys what he does for a living, has a good family life, has an outside interest in something that's neither work nor family related; is financially secure (which does not mean having too much money); and has a happy attitude towards life.
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As much as possible ofcourse.
Its all trial and error.
Nothing ventured nothing gained ;)
Do you not keep track of your business income & expenditure?
he probably does but why would he post that on here? whats your profit?
Why would he post a turnover of 100k ?
maybe because thats what it is, so whats YOUR profit and turnover then?
I'm not offering either, nor am I asking you!
the fact that dean is heading towards a turnover ov 100k
is not reverlant at all he as 3 full time window cleaners as well as
himself, i know for a fact that dean is heading towards his goal
and i'm helping him to achieve this in my own little way
he helps other leading players in the world of window cleaning
by subbying their hard to cover work loads and making it pay
so to all you who mock n disbelive i say "lets see where you are
in say 5 years " cuz i know where dean an his company
will be , FACT !!!!!!!
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Maybe not in control of my life but in control of my finances. Ever since man began we have all competed for the biggest cave, it's in our blood.
quite a few caves in cornwall, none round here though ! (suffolk coast )
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It really depends what you class as successful. Material things or a fulfilling life.
Here is a little story I like:
A little story about a Mexican fisherman illustrates success in a simple life well lived.
The businessman was at the pier of a small coastal Mexican village when a small boat with just one fisherman docked. Inside the small boat were several large yellowfin tuna. The businessman complimented the Mexican on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took to catch them. The Mexican replied only a little while.
The businessman then asked why he didn't stay out longer and catch more fish? The Mexican said he had enough to support his family's immediate needs. The businessman then asked, but what do you do with the rest of your time? The Mexican fisherman said, "I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, take a siesta with my wife, Maria, stroll into the village each evening where I sip wine and play guitar with my amigos; I have a full and busy life, señor."
The businessman scoffed, "I am a Harvard MBA and I could help you. You should spend more time fishing and with the proceeds buy a bigger boat. With the proceeds from the bigger boat you could buy several boats; eventually you would have a fleet of fishing boats. Instead of selling your catch to a middleman, you would sell directly to the processor and eventually open your own cannery. You would control the product, processing and distribution. You would need to leave this small coastal fishing village and move to Mexico City, then LA and eventually New York City where you would run your expanding enterprise."
The Mexican fisherman asked, "But señor, how long will this all take?" To which the businessman replied, "15-20 years." "But what then, señor?" The businessman laughed and said, "That's the best part! When the time is right you would announce an IPO and sell your company stock to the public and become very rich. You would make millions." "Millions, señor? Then what?" The businessman said, "Then you would retire. Move to a small coastal fishing village where you would sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take a siesta with your wife, stroll to the village in the evenings where you could sip wine and play your guitar with your amigos."
The fisherman, still smiling, looked up and said, "Isn't that what I'm doing right now?"
-Author Unknown
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Maybe not in control of my life but in control of my finances. Ever since man began we have all competed for the biggest cave, it's in our blood.
Some might deduce from that then Dave that money IS your life ;)
You wouldn't be the first.
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And a Christian (which I'm not) may say we've a 'God sized hole in our soul' and we can try to fill that with drugs, alcohol, sex, fast cars, big houses, and yes, money; but the hole will still be there.
As I say, I'm no Christian, but there's some wisdom in there.
I'm trying to fill my own personal 'hole' (fnarr fnarr)! ;D
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Define your success - In my point of view, that is to do some good in your life to other people - and also perhaps not strive to more cash all the time.
If you hire people, the first ones are really important to get right!
That has everything to do with if a small company is going to have a success.
Do you want a balanced life? Working 12 hours a day - 5 days a week is NOT balanced in any way in my opinion.
You want to have a life - with family, friends and hobbies.
I started running a company as 18 years old guy withing AV/IT, we were 8 guys then - but after some years I had it!
To have my whole life as work is not any good, and I almost had a "breakdown" because my life was so really unbalanced. A hard party life, and much work does not fur fill your life.
But it is all a learning game, but now as I´m 25, and have been running a window cleaning business for 2 years. I still have problems with turning my head of with ideas and whats needed to be done - and this is a part of the job that I really DON`T like. You feel like you are on the job all the time. To change this I have done some, and going to do some more changes to live a more simple life.
From September this year I´m only working 3 days a week, 8-9 hours a day. The other two I am going to do something that I really enjoy.
I have got one man to do a 50% position, and now I´m trying out a nice girl that are going to do everything that has to do with salary, invoicing, contracts, paying bills, budget and so on. I will even try her out in sales to corporate.
But my main thing is to try to have other people to do a lot of the work, and do less my self. I do not want the job to take in charge of my life, as it has for some years now. Have one person that could take a large part of the administration.
I will try to live a simple life, and try to have a nice buffer in case something is going to happen
Some have a goal to have 25 guys working for them, make some good money and then die at a age of 50 with heart attack, and divorced two times.
I want to have a balanced life, with a family and good friends. And to have the possibility to live ok, have some vacations and so on.
My 5 years goal is to have between 2-3 fulltime workers, and stay there. Not more! I have seen the different stories with people running small and large companies. And I have to say, the people that had small companies had a MUCH better life, their families also!
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MY idea of success is a great big house, a couple of expensive cars and more money than you can spend.
You are never going to get to that stage working only 40 hours a week. (not in cleaning anyway)
And once you get to that stage you can have as much time of as you like.
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Im a success, I have surpassed what I first hoped to achieve in this game; by definition I am therefore a success.
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MY idea of success is a great big house, a couple of expensive cars and more money than you can spend.
Have you ever gotten what you wanted; a beautiful woman who you've had to do some chasing to get maybe; and somehow over time the novelty of her just wears off and you need something different or something more? Or a brand new car? I used to buy one every year when I lived in Germany; some really nice top spec models. They bored me after a few months.
Human nature dictates that no matter how much we have, we always want more; or maybe it's just me and I'm a greedy bustard!? We're never fully satisfied, and that's where the suffering lies; however it's not an easy process to 'not want to want'. And maybe we're confusing pleasure with happiness?
But money doesn't do it for me.
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Great topic, it could have been informative and enlightening but instead its developed into a why be focused on your work, lifes more important debate.
My thoughts on the topic,
Start up phase: time rich & turnover poor. Not enough customers, lots of downtime for canvessing etc.
Developed Sole trader: Turnover vrs time investment is in balance. The owner has enough income to meet his lifestyle needs while working on the tools and allowing time for the admin, collection and sales sides of his business.
Small business Expansion phase: Turnover rich & profit poor with an abscence of proper systems causing a running to stand still feeling. Investment is required in admin/ proceedures either by Owner working around the clock to catch up or by financial investment in non cleaning staff. The toughest stage in my opinion.
Developed Small business: At this stage the business has a consistant level of monthly turnover, regular reliable employees, an admin set up that works efficiently and an owner that while still on the tools from time to time has the space to oversee the operation of his business.
Small to Medium Business: This cant happen without the previous step, the time created by the previous stage for the owner to oversee includes business plans, budgeting, longterm strategies etc which are now the most important part as getting the funding / investment from your bank / backers will take a lot of time.
This stage will involve pitching to larger commercials or the purchasing of smaller businesses in order to meet with the turnover needs of the business. This is the point where the owner probably has to start wearing a suit ;D.
I am at the Small business expansion stage, in my opinion.
Interested in other thoughts not about quality of life. I love my business and what I do, I dont see any hour spent working on it as a chore I see it as an adventure, one I cant wait to get back to each morning.
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I cant wait to get back to each morning.
If you're posting on here at 1.30 pm, how motivated are you?
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I think it would be helpful if we defined what a 'successful type' actually is.
For me, someone whose successful enjoys what he does for a living, has a good family life, has an outside interest in something that's neither work nor family related; is financially secure (which does not mean having too much money); and has a happy attitude towards life.
ahhh talking about me again tosh, i love you too :-* :)
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I cant wait to get back to each morning.
If you're posting on here at 1.30 pm, how motivated are you?
What has that got to do with anything? Are you such a complete numpty that you think that because I am not out cleaning windows then I must not be motivated? I work from an office Tosh, it even has a computer ;)
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Great topic, it could have been informative and enlightening but instead its developed into a why be focused on your work, lifes more important debate.
My thoughts on the topic,
Start up phase: time rich & turnover poor. Not enough customers, lots of downtime for canvessing etc.
Developed Sole trader: Turnover vrs time investment is in balance. The owner has enough income to meet his lifestyle needs while working on the tools and allowing time for the admin, collection and sales sides of his business.
Small business Expansion phase: Turnover rich & profit poor with an abscence of proper systems causing a running to stand still feeling. Investment is required in admin/ proceedures either by Owner working around the clock to catch up or by financial investment in non cleaning staff. The toughest stage in my opinion.
Developed Small business: At this stage the business has a consistant level of monthly turnover, regular reliable employees, an admin set up that works efficiently and an owner that while still on the tools from time to time has the space to oversee the operation of his business.
Small to Medium Business: This cant happen without the previous step, the time created by the previous stage for the owner to oversee includes business plans, budgeting, longterm strategies etc which are now the most important part as getting the funding / investment from your bank / backers will take a lot of time.
This stage will involve pitching to larger commercials or the purchasing of smaller businesses in order to meet with the turnover needs of the business. This is the point where the owner probably has to start wearing a suit ;D.
I am at the Small business expansion stage, in my opinion.
Interested in other thoughts not about quality of life. I love my business and what I do, I dont see any hour spent working on it as a chore I see it as an adventure, one I cant wait to get back to each morning.
Outstanding summary bluez, you put into words what i'm grappling with.I can't understand why so many people need to justify themselves.
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I'm probably in your small expanding phase, but i disagree when you say it's the hardest.The hardest bit is always wherever you are at that moment.I had zero customers, and thought, this is going to be hard.
I think the biggest mental hurdle is VAT. As soon as you hit it you hand over tenpercent gross, so it's more profitable to stay under it.Turnover of 60k is probably no different to 80k in terms of net profit, it's just that you've done 20k more work, so this is demotivating.To get to the next level 100k you need two staff, and that's another brake on profitability.150k and you need two staff at least, and another van.
Escape velocity must come at about 200k.Here you probably earn enough and don't work like a donkey.
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As much as possible ofcourse.
Its all trial and error.
Nothing ventured nothing gained ;)
Do you not keep track of your business income & expenditure?
he probably does but why would he post that on here? whats your profit?
Why would he post a turnover of 100k ?
maybe because thats what it is, so whats YOUR profit and turnover then?
I'm not offering either, nor am I asking you!
the fact that dean is heading towards a turnover ov 100k
is not reverlant at all he as 3 full time window cleaners as well as
himself, i know for a fact that dean is heading towards his goal
and i'm helping him to achieve this in my own little way
he helps other leading players in the world of window cleaning
by subbying their hard to cover work loads and making it pay
so to all you who mock n disbelive i say "lets see where you are
in say 5 years " cuz i know where dean an his company
will be , FACT !!!!!!!
Please enlighten where any mocking or disbelief of turnover occurs anywhere? Or, can't you read properly? ::)
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As much as possible ofcourse.
Its all trial and error.
Nothing ventured nothing gained ;)
Do you not keep track of your business income & expenditure?
he probably does but why would he post that on here? whats your profit?
Why would he post a turnover of 100k ?
maybe because thats what it is, so whats YOUR profit and turnover then?
I'm not offering either, nor am I asking you!
the fact that dean is heading towards a turnover ov 100k
is not reverlant at all he as 3 full time window cleaners as well as
himself, i know for a fact that dean is heading towards his goal
and i'm helping him to achieve this in my own little way
he helps other leading players in the world of window cleaning
by subbying their hard to cover work loads and making it pay
so to all you who mock n disbelive i say "lets see where you are
in say 5 years " cuz i know where dean an his company
will be , FACT !!!!!!!
Please enlighten where any mocking or disbelief of turnover occurs anywhere? Or, can't you read properly? ::)
oh i can read perfect , as i read it it came across
to me as people werent beliveing deans comments n imho
id class dean and his business as quite successfull FACT , END OF
>:(
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As much as possible ofcourse.
Its all trial and error.
Nothing ventured nothing gained ;)
Do you not keep track of your business income & expenditure?
he probably does but why would he post that on here? whats your profit?
Why would he post a turnover of 100k ?
maybe because thats what it is, so whats YOUR profit and turnover then?
I'm not offering either, nor am I asking you!
the fact that dean is heading towards a turnover ov 100k
is not reverlant at all he as 3 full time window cleaners as well as
himself, i know for a fact that dean is heading towards his goal
and i'm helping him to achieve this in my own little way
he helps other leading players in the world of window cleaning
by subbying their hard to cover work loads and making it pay
so to all you who mock n disbelive i say "lets see where you are
in say 5 years " cuz i know where dean an his company
will be , FACT !!!!!!!
Please enlighten where any mocking or disbelief of turnover occurs anywhere? Or, can't you read properly? ::)
oh i can read perfect , as i read it it came across
to me as people werent beliveing deans comments n imho
id class dean and his business as quite successfull FACT , END OF
>:(
People? not me though. The questions were for a purpose & were leading to some advice but we'll leave it eh. That's the trouble when numpties jump in and "assume" ;)
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r u for real lad numpty wake up
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haha some people on here really make me laugh, offer dean advise like he's a new starter, ye ok ::)
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This is getting a bit tetchy, those of us with obsessive personalitys and on a hamster wheel know this already.We don't need someone who works two days a week giving us first steps on the ladder info just because he is laid back.Their is no more superiority in this than in having a banging business turning 100k.
We are looking for info from above, people saying, get off the tools, go vat registered, become limited.I don't see why people who have pushed the boundarys should be put on the defensive.
It just seems that the world would collapse if i stopped scrubbing windows, and that's probably not true.So I'm asking those who've gotten this far how it seems to them.
Haha, point taken. Is interesting topic all the same.
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As much as possible ofcourse.
Its all trial and error.
Nothing ventured nothing gained ;)
Do you not keep track of your business income & expenditure?
he probably does but why would he post that on here? whats your profit?
Why would he post a turnover of 100k ?
maybe because thats what it is, so whats YOUR profit and turnover then?
I'm not offering either, nor am I asking you!
the fact that dean is heading towards a turnover ov 100k
is not reverlant at all he as 3 full time window cleaners as well as
himself, i know for a fact that dean is heading towards his goal
and i'm helping him to achieve this in my own little way
he helps other leading players in the world of window cleaning
by subbying their hard to cover work loads and making it pay
so to all you who mock n disbelive i say "lets see where you are
in say 5 years " cuz i know where dean an his company
will be , FACT !!!!!!!
Please enlighten where any mocking or disbelief of turnover occurs anywhere? Or, can't you read properly? ::)
oh i can read perfect , as i read it it came across
to me as people werent beliveing deans comments n imho
id class dean and his business as quite successfull FACT , END OF
>:(
People? not me though. The questions were for a purpose & were leading to some advice but we'll leave it eh. That's the trouble when numpties jump in and "assume" ;)
I'm assuming the point you are getting at is "turnover is vanity, profit is sanity". At the risk of being a numpty jumping in and assuming. ;D
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As much as possible ofcourse.
Its all trial and error.
Nothing ventured nothing gained ;)
Do you not keep track of your business income & expenditure?
he probably does but why would he post that on here? whats your profit?
Why would he post a turnover of 100k ?
maybe because thats what it is, so whats YOUR profit and turnover then?
I'm not offering either, nor am I asking you!
the fact that dean is heading towards a turnover ov 100k
is not reverlant at all he as 3 full time window cleaners as well as
himself, i know for a fact that dean is heading towards his goal
and i'm helping him to achieve this in my own little way
he helps other leading players in the world of window cleaning
by subbying their hard to cover work loads and making it pay
so to all you who mock n disbelive i say "lets see where you are
in say 5 years " cuz i know where dean an his company
will be , FACT !!!!!!!
Please enlighten where any mocking or disbelief of turnover occurs anywhere? Or, can't you read properly? ::)
oh i can read perfect , as i read it it came across
to me as people werent beliveing deans comments n imho
id class dean and his business as quite successfull FACT , END OF
>:(
People? not me though. The questions were for a purpose & were leading to some advice but we'll leave it eh. That's the trouble when numpties jump in and "assume" ;)
I'm assuming the point you are getting at is "turnover is vanity, profit is sanity". At the risk of being a numpty jumping in and assuming. ;D
;D ;D ;D ;D
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Some proper numpty heads on here mind! ;D ;D
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We need to define "successfull". I know what successful means though :P.
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£100k,profit :P,that,wuld,be,nice
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We need to define "successfull". I know what successful means though :P.
The definition is making money.Lifestyle and how you view yourself is another thread.Tosh made the point 'we are never happy'.One day xxx pd is just a dream, another if thats the 12 oclock figure okay, but otherwise you go home and want to shoot yourself.
But that's hard graft and while it may be sustainable for some of you it's not for me.It's too hard.
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.Its all to do with Management: First we manage to clean window. Then we manage people who clean widow for us. Then we manage, managers who manage people who clean window for us. Then we manage to have a good time spending our spoils. It always sound easy but each transitions is difficult to make as we move ahead. one needs to leave the past part of out job in some one1s hands.
Who is the one who has the heart attack? The one who thinks it cannot be done without him.
8) 8)
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Some proper numpty heads on here mind! ;D ;D
dont drag me into it again :P
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I'm going to lock it because its a bit big and long and all of the usefull stuff has probably been said.If any thinks of another avenue for this, start another thread from scratch- successfull types 2- or whatever.