What I Learned After 1 Year In Business
Andrew Exler Consulting was “officially” launched just about a year ago on November 19th, 2019, though there was significant planning for months and months in advance. Now that I have been operating for a year, it is gratifying to be able to take a moment to reflect on the past 365 days. If I could go back in time to the mid 1990’s to tell little Andrew in this photo what his life would look like in the future, I think he would have been ecstatic. The computer is slightly updated, the attire has altered a bit & there is less hair, but not much else has changed.
On paper, I have had the most successful year of my career, but that was not my goal in year 1. I knew my first full-year in business would be filled with peaks & valleys. I knew I would experience great wins, while also preparing myself to know that not everything would go as planned. I gave myself “cushion” to fail, understanding that when you fail, the only way to go is up.
As I look back on year 1 and prepare for year 2, here are a few things I learned along the way.
Create A Routine & Stick To It
Luckily for me, having two dogs makes sticking to a routine much easier…..because I have no choice. I wake up every morning at 5:30am, walk & feed the dogs, make coffee, work through some emails for an hour or so before heading to the gym. Upon returning, I shower, make a smoothie and get my work day fully started by 9am. This is every day for me and keeping this routine has not only helped my mental & physical health, but it helps me to focus every day. Keeping a routine will help you become better with time management, while also keeping your day organized. Once I finish my work day, I spend a few minutes reviewing my calendar for the following day so I can plan accordingly for any meetings or other events that I have upcoming. Start slow by implementing a new item to your routine around every 3 weeks until you believe you have a viable routine set. DO NOT try and overhaul what is “normal” for you overnight. You WILL burn out. It’s all about baby steps.
Give Love To Get Love
Yes, the goal for 99.99% of businesses is to make money. That is obvious. What isn’t obvious is that in order to make money, obtain clients & build trust, you must do more than only promote yourself & your business. An essential of business is building relationships with potential clients, colleagues, friends, relevant businesses and even your competition. Utilizing my social media presence (personal & business), I “give love” by engaging with the accounts of other businesses and interacting with them. I look at every relationship as an opportunity, but not just an opportunity to gain a client and make a few bucks, but as a potential to work with someone who could help me in other ways. I offer free trials of my services, guidance & insight as my way to build trust and allow others to learn from me at no charge to them. Business is a long-term play and in the short-term the relationships you create & build will help you in the future. I guarantee it. Starting #TheGroundFloor a year ago has helped me provide value to the general public at no charge, while hopefully sharing insight & tips that are helpful to others.
Get EVERYTHING In Writing
Fortunately for me, I learned a lot about business when I was younger as I grew up between two different family businesses. While there are many takeaways I can share, the most important is to ensure you get EVERYTHING in writing. A “verbal agreement” is nice, but it is worthless. Whether we are talking about a contract, scope of work, overview of services, partnership agreements or anything else, you must get everything in writing. I recommend handling all professional communications via email, as texting can be a bit of a grey area if you ever need proof of an agreement or a contract. Even if I am texting or on the phone with someone to put an agreement in place, I ALWAYS follow-up with an email to that person to lay-out any details that may have been discussed. When it comes to contracts, ensure that both parties sign & date the agreement and that both parties have a copy of the signed agreement. If you are offering virtual signature, I recommend using an e-sign software like RightSignature or DocuSign as they provide full signature verification & authentication (compared to someone scribbling in a Google doc who could later say they didn’t actually sign). Having verification & authentication services ensure you have proof & will protect yourself. Even if your potential business engagement is with someone who is the nicest, most genuine person in the world, get anything you need in writing. You never know how business can change people. I lived this & fortunately had myself protected.
It’s Ok To Turn Down Business
I’ll keep this one simple. Not every business opportunity is going to be a fit for you. The QUALITY of your clients is much more important & valuable than the QUANTITY of clients. Prior to initiating a contract agreement with a potential client, take the time to learn not just about the business & the scope of work, but learn about the people you will be working with. Ensure that their expectations align with the work you will provide for them. What type of person are they? Are they kind, honest & genuine, or are they rude & demanding? Sure, the money may be great at first but if your client is a pain in the a**, they may end up costing you more with the time you’ll need to spend on them and the mental toll they could take on you. It is ok to say “no” to a potential client who may not be a fit. Look out for red flags while you are still learning about a potential client. What is their business experience? What types of reviews does their business have? What is their reputation? Do they say please & thank you? Do they have a business plan? There are things you should look for & consider before creating a long-term relationship with them. The value of $1 isn’t always worth it’s full value.
Bookkeeping Skills Are Essential
While I am proud of many things I’ve done in life, getting an accounting degree was by far one of the best decisions I have ever made. Having an understanding of the “language of business” has helped me immensely as a business owner, especially as I am considered a freelance contractor who must keep my financial books clean & organized. This isn’t to say that you need an accounting degree to be successful in business, but having a basic understanding of finance & bookkeeping will help you build a sustainable business. Understanding the various financial statements & learning from your revenue & expenses will help you earn a larger profit year over year. There are many tools out there that are simple & inexpensive. I love using Quickbooks for all of my needs.
Take Time Off
When I launched Andrew Exler Consulting, I found myself wanting to work all of the time. This was to the point where I’d be in bed late at night/early morning and have an idea and go into my home office, turn on my workstation and start working. This was a common occurrence for me early on. Over time, it began to wear on me to a point of burnout. I found myself at the start working upwards of 80 hours/week without separating my personal life & my work life. Once I cleared many hurdles at the beginning of starting a business like increasing my brand awareness and sharing news about launch, I was able to get into a working rhythm that allowed me to finally separate my work-life from my personal life. This is very difficult to do as a self-employed individual working by yourself, but it is possible. Much of this topic can relate back to my point on having a routine, but the overall idea to get across is that it is ok to take time off of work, and it is necessary, which I’ll talk about next. Set times in your calendar that you will not work. This will not work for everyone, but I have completely removed my work email from my cell phone. Clients & friends who know me, know they can reach me directly if they need to and if there is something urgent to be dealt with that they should call or text me. Due to the success of my routine, I am able to be very efficient on my email every day from my home office, without needing to be glued to my work when I am away. This is a balance that took time for me to see success with, but implementing & sticking to strict guidelines allow this. The key to your success of taking time off comes through your communication. Give your clients & others advanced notice of when you will be out of office if you are taking a vacation, utilize auto-reply on email with best methods to reach you if urgent and most importantly, know that it IS ok to take time off for yourself. If you are in a business relationship with someone who gives you grief for taking time away from business, that is a relationship you should reconsider.
Mental & Physical Health Are More Important Than Money
Growing up playing sports, I’ve always taken care of my physical health. It was only until recent years that I slowly learned about mental health and how important it is. Sure, being engaged to a social worker certainly helps, but in my experiences working with youth I’ve become closely familiar with the importance of mental health. It is unfortunate that the stigma in the working world continues to exist that you should be working at all hours and that taking time off is a sign of “weakness”. I’ve witnessed employers look down at employees who want to take vacation to ACTUALLY step away from work and I’ve witnessed individuals scoff at the new trend of “mental health days” being included in a benefits package. I’m not a doctor or a licensed therapist, but I can speak from the perspective of someone who manages themself. Since starting my business a year ago, I made it a priority to take care of myself. I schedule out “mental health days” where I separate myself from work and do something to clear my mind. During every work day, I take some time to clear my head by going for a walk with my dogs, hopping on a quick round of video games with a friend, call my grandparents or sometimes just simply sit on my porch and unwind. What works for me may be different for you, but it is so important for you to take care of yourself, not just by working out in the gym or going for a run. Life is too short to stress & mentally burn yourself out. Find yourself an employer who embraces it (or start your own thing)!
After 365 days in business, one thing is certain. I love my job. I love getting to interact with individuals & businesses from various backgrounds. I’ve found myself to be much happier sometimes working 80 hours/week for myself than 40 hours/week for someone else. Running a business takes time, effort and A LOT of patience. If you’re thinking about starting your own business or just have questions & would like to chat, reach out to me any time.
- Andrew
