Clean It Up
UK Window Cleaning Forum => Window Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: geefree on August 27, 2008, 08:41:00 pm
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I just thought it would be interesting to see how this poll goes, just for fun reading, but serious answers all the same.
Thanks for any votes.
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Hi Gazzasp8..long time no speaks....
The aim is to remain a one-man band...I would like about 10k more work per year and that would leave us comfortable and able to save...
Currently I have 6 weeks work out of 8 and and a number of half days off during the 1st 6 week period ...must admit I like it like this....
Would like to persue something else in the 'off 2 weeks'...perhaps soemthing that helps others...bit of volunteer type work...what I am not sure.
There simply has to be more than working all day, every day for the buck.
Cheers
Dave.
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Had enough of employing people to do window cleaning that's for sure.
If you put all the brain cells of the last 5 to work for me you'd be lucky to generate enough intelligence to strike a match ;D
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I would be very happy to earn more than i did on treble shifts in my last job. Some weeks i match it but it's not enough as a business.
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Would love to pack it all in, rent my house out and go move to the Caribbean as a diving instructor.
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did that for 3 years in Thailand...not all it's cracked up to be...even paradise has it's downsides.... ;D sorry for the hijack Gazzasp8..
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What are your ambitions Gazza? ;D
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Had enough of employing people to do window cleaning that's for sure.
If you put all the brain cells of the last 5 to work for me you'd be lucky to generate enough intelligence to strike a match ;D
lol...
Now there speaks the voice of an employer ;D
Got to agree though. As 'the boss' you end viewing your team as the enemy.
Always makes me laugh when I hear somebody blathering on about how 'They'd do it all different if I was the boss'.....yeah, I'm sure you'd love giving out holiday pay or sick pay on a Monday morning or Friday (if its next to a Bank holiday!).
I'm sure you'd love the pressure of VAT returns, HMRC breathing down your neck, employers NI (which nobody thinks is real!) customers bullying you for a better deal while at the same time staff pestering for pay rises....
Oh yeah, its all so easy being 'The Boss'
I still go for Empire Building though.
You live and you learn. These people aint my friends or family. They are tools just like a van or pole... Harsh but true.
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I'm aiming for world domination within five years. I want to be more famous than Jade Goody and I want to earn at least a million pounds per year.
Failing that, two holidays a year instead of one would be nice ....... and a season ticket for my beloved Liverpool, who by the way, are playing poop this evening!!
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My ambition is to be an ice cream seller on a beach ...anywere ;)
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employing aint all its cracked up to be...ive had my share of numpties and im only just really starting out doing it!
but im gonna keep at it cause i want it to work and it will
but the only way i would really reccomend it is finding someone good and working together at it. this way you know its been done right and you are on top of it, no stress.
but i still want my empire :D
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employing aint all its cracked up to be...ive had my share of numpties and im only just really starting out doing it!
but im gonna keep at it cause i want it to work and it will
but the only way i would really reccomend it is finding someone good and working together at it. this way you know its been done right and you are on top of it, no stress.
but i still want my empire :D
Why would you. On your own you would earn more then enough to make a very healthy living. Why bother?
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to have world domination of course :P
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employing aint all its cracked up to be...
but the only way i would really reccomend it is finding someone good and working together at it. this way you know its been done right and you are on top of it, no stress.
there will come a time when you have to let them loose on their own, otherwise there is no point in employing. No matter how good they are while they are with you, once on their own they will do it their own way. If you want to build an empire you can't just stick at 1 employee and you can't be with them all of the time when you have more.
The good ones, yes there are some out there somewhere, don't stay forever though, no matter how good you treat them.
Keep at it mate if that is what you want, but let us know what happens when you have 3 or more ;D ;D ;D
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When I have achieved my goal of retiring at 43 , I will look back at these posts and laugh at gazza for missing out on a once in a lifetime oppurtunity , while he is rounding up trollies at asda ;D
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Why would you. On your own you would earn more then enough to make a very healthy living. Why bother?
true, but get it right with staff and you don't do the work yourself and reap the benefits. Personally I don't want to be window cleaning when i get to mid fifties, i will still want a good income though ;D
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and when i go on my luxourish (cant spell) holidays whos gonna keep my empire going?
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Just want a comfortable round myself - but it seems that I always want one that is a bit more comfortable than the one I've got :) .
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to leave the window clean from dirt, smeers, dust and bird poo.
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When I have achieved my goal of retiring at 43 , I will look back at these posts and laugh at gazza for missing out on a once in a lifetime oppurtunity , while he is rounding up trollies at asda ;D
you never cease to amaze me with your comments. lol... now why would i end up in asda pushing trolleys,when i am pushing forward in this business.... your a proper loopy cookie bud lol
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Hi Gazzasp8..long time no speaks....
The aim is to remain a one-man band...I would like about 10k more work per year and that would leave us comfortable and able to save...
Currently I have 6 weeks work out of 8 and and a number of half days off during the 1st 6 week period ...must admit I like it like this....
Would like to persue something else in the 'off 2 weeks'...perhaps soemthing that helps others...bit of volunteer type work...what I am not sure.
There simply has to be more than working all day, every day for the buck.
Cheers
Dave.
GOOD TO HEAR FROM YOU DAVE, WE BOTH STARTED AT THE SAME TIME..oops... and shared a lot of the start up problems together ,
good to know you still at it and making it work.
good luck with your ambitions.
Gary.
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What are your ambitions Gazza? ;D
Well,.. first i want to build a comfortable round..( think thats ok now,).... then i want to take it forward, and employ someone , part-time... then another part time. and take it from there.... my goal is simply to be successful at this,
and there ara so many variations of success, in different individuals that , what i may class as success, others may not.
if you know what i mean.
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been going 10 yrs now, working for 3 days a week for the past 5yrs.....work to live not live to work and all that........ always able to get work done in britains weather situation......no stress :P
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6 figure income 20 hours a week work.
My problem with a comfortable round, what next wheres the challenge, wheres the satisfaction?
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ive achieved the "Just to build yourself a comfortable round"
so i guess i have no other ambition to do with work, that just might be my problem
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For close on 40 years I was (almost) content with a full round - enough work to give me a comfortable income and the security of knowing I could weather recessions, bad winters etc.
A couple of years ago I suddenly realised I was getting near retirement age, and although I've been paying in to a private pension fund for umpteen years, there won't be enough money to live in the lap of luxury once I stopped working "on the tools" - in fact there won't be enough money to stop working :'(
So I worked out an "emergency" business plan. I decided the only way I was going to achieve a reasonably comfortable retirement was to have a minimum of 6 people out there working, and providing me with an income.
As lots of you have stated, employing is a nightmare - been there etc....
Currently I have 3 franchisees, all working well, earning themselves a good living and paying me a royalty fee (which is much less than they would be "paying" if they were employees - i.e. the proportion of their wages to the amount of income they would generate for their employer). I've just appointed the fourth who will be starting after he's had his hols.
Originally the plan was to appoint one every six months. I'm a little behind schedule, but I'll get there.
There you are: that's my ambition described in detail.
RETIREMENT ;D
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i voted empire building , and im on my way , ( still a long way to go )
however , i have also ' had enough of window cleaning '
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i do like the idea of building an empire, but the trouble with that is it would mean living the business for a good few years. And i'm not prepared at this stage to do that.
At the moment i want to build a comfortable round that also improves my hourly rate. I am in my 5th year now and there are many (if not most) aspects of the work i could do with my kit, that i know very little or or nothing about. And i want to learn more about window cleaning prices before i put my efforts into larger, higher end work.
So i'm happy building myself a nice little round, acquiring (slowly) the tools, the knowledge, the website, stationary and training.
When i have all this in place i will probably look again at how i can improve things..
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after employing one,two three that can be a nightmare and going back to square one is a kick in the teeth more than once it hurts and gets you very down, I voted build empire, and this is not just window cleaning as I like more baskets and more eggs. Employing is not as easy as some would make out trust me I have done it and still do. Takes a lot of thinking and planning and your staff are key to this, wages to them are more important than anything else.
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For close on 40 years I was (almost) content with a full round - enough work to give me a comfortable income and the security of knowing I could weather recessions, bad winters etc.
A couple of years ago I suddenly realised I was getting near retirement age, and although I've been paying in to a private pension fund for umpteen years, there won't be enough money to live in the lap of luxury once I stopped working "on the tools" - in fact there won't be enough money to stop working :'(
So I worked out an "emergency" business plan. I decided the only way I was going to achieve a reasonably comfortable retirement was to have a minimum of 6 people out there working, and providing me with an income.
As lots of you have stated, employing is a nightmare - been there etc....
Currently I have 3 franchisees, all working well, earning themselves a good living and paying me a royalty fee (which is much less than they would be "paying" if they were employees - i.e. the proportion of their wages to the amount of income they would generate for their employer). I've just appointed the fourth who will be starting after he's had his hols.
Originally the plan was to appoint one every six months. I'm a little behind schedule, but I'll get there.
There you are: that's my ambition described in detail.
RETIREMENT ;D
Ian how do you work the fee they give you out of interest.
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Had enough of employing people to do window cleaning that's for sure.
If you put all the brain cells of the last 5 to work for me you'd be lucky to generate enough intelligence to strike a match ;D
I have to say we have been really fortunate with our guys - they have been with us for a few years (4 or 5) and no problems,ever. I can happily leave them for weeks at a time if I want, money never goes missing, I have told both of them that if they are out working and want to take £10 or so for lunch then its no problem - they always bring a packed lunch though.
Gave both our guys a pay rise 3 weeks ago of £220 a month, between the 2 of them they brought in nearly £900 of new work in the last year and I wanted to reward them for it.
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Had enough of employing people to do window cleaning that's for sure.
If you put all the brain cells of the last 5 to work for me you'd be lucky to generate enough intelligence to strike a match ;D
I have to say we have been really fortunate with our guys - they have been with us for a few years (4 or 5) and no problems,ever. I can happily leave them for weeks at a time if I want, money never goes missing, I have told both of them that if they are out working and want to take £10 or so for lunch then its no problem - they always bring a packed lunch though.
Gave both our guys a pay rise 3 weeks ago of £220 a month, between the 2 of them they brought in nearly £900 of new work in the last year and I wanted to reward them for it.
Which method works best for you regarding paying them.
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Had enough of employing people to do window cleaning that's for sure.
If you put all the brain cells of the last 5 to work for me you'd be lucky to generate enough intelligence to strike a match ;D
I have to say we have been really fortunate with our guys - they have been with us for a few years (4 or 5) and no problems,ever. I can happily leave them for weeks at a time if I want, money never goes missing, I have told both of them that if they are out working and want to take £10 or so for lunch then its no problem - they always bring a packed lunch though.
Gave both our guys a pay rise 3 weeks ago of £220 a month, between the 2 of them they brought in nearly £900 of new work in the last year and I wanted to reward them for it.
Which method works best for you regarding paying them.
Bacs, or cheque on work complete
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ha ha, he means hourly rate or paid on work done.
What's brilliant about Ians scheme is that this empire avoids Vat, and therefore has a 20% edge over a similar sized conventionaly structured biz. It does however have the economies of scale, shared advertising, and Ian's head office backup and strategy.
Get all six viaing to be the top boy, and if they are ever stupid enought to want out he will buy back. It's a masterstroke Ian and I'm a bit jealous, but after forty years I think you're entitled.
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And their's one other thing as a business (assuming this works) it has a huge stand alone value, which at some point in the future Ian could cash in either by selling the biz to one or more franchisee's, or a third party.
'
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For me its the comfortable round scenario.... ;D
Only want to be busy nearly everyday, that would be great.
We are getting there, but still need more ;)
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I wont be happy till im earning £5 million a year from window cleaning ;)
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my guys are on an hourly rate - the £220 bonus is dependant on their completing 36hrs per week - in other words they received a pay rise of £1.41 per hour.
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Ian how do you work the fee they give you out of interest.
Not sure I understand the question.
In all franchises the franchisee pays a regular fee, usually a percentage of his turnover, in return for management services, and the right to continue trading under the franchisors business name etc.
I provide my franchisees with all the work they require, and I charge a franchise fee of 20%
As part of the service, we maintain records of work done, etc. Provide weekly print outs of work due to be done, supply pure water, carry spares of all necessary equipment, maintain a spare van in case of breakdowns and so on. Spares can be bought from us "of the shelf" when required, the van is available at an agreed rental rate, and help and advice is available at all times.
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my guys are on an hourly rate - the £220 bonus is dependant on their completing 36hrs per week - in other words they received a pay rise of £1.41 per hour.
Alan out of interest what hourly rate were they on before the £1.41 rise. :)
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my guys are on an hourly rate - the £220 bonus is dependant on their completing 36hrs per week - in other words they received a pay rise of £1.41 per hour.
Alan out of interest what hourly rate were they on before the £1.41 rise. :)
£1 !!!
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We're just happy ticking along, paying the bills; not stressing or working too hard (though we do work hard - but not for extended periods of time), with enough money to get a few beers in and to be able to afford a few luxuries, like soap and toothpaste.
It's good not to be in a 'rat race' and getting yourself all stressed out about work; is it? In a previous life I was promoted from a private soldier to a Staff Sergeant and posted to a Warrant Officer Class II post (and paid for it); fairly quickly too. I was even called 'Sir' by those soldiers who didn't see my rank but assumed I was a 'Sir' because of the job I did.
But I only gained promotion by working long-tough hours, over-and-above what would be expected; and of course by my natrual leadership qualities, talent, charm, wit and intelligence; and my good looks too. ;D We had all the material stuff; we had a brand new car each year; my last was a top-of-the-range Freelander; holidays to nice places, Venice is nice this time of year, but my family suffered due to my work regime, and so did I!
So, I think when you have a family, there's a fine line to tread over being too ambitious and working too hard, and making sure your family and yourself have a good quality of life; which doesn't always mean earning loads of cash.
My ambition is to work three-days-a-week and have the same quality of life as we do by working four-or-five-days per week!
The lazy git I am, but we're all happy; usually!
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My ambition is to work three-days-a-week and have the same quality of life as we do by working four-or-five-days per week!
The lazy git I am, but we're all happy; usually!
watch it tosh, you will be having your invitation to the "slackers club" ;D ;D ;D