Stressed and Blessed.
Some people expressed concern over my last post. That I was in a dark place, that I may walk away from all we’ve built in such a short time. So I thought I would write this one as a follow up.
Folks…I am just stressed. It’s natural for start ups, and my personality type. Writing is an outlet for me that I am trying to do more often. Yes I am stressed, but I am also blessed.
When I first started my business while on Chemotherapy, my idea was to work a little bit and slowly build a business. I thought it would be the least stressful way to make some money. Since I was unable to work for 9 months, and all of our savings had dried up, going back to school was no longer an option. Since I would not be able to hold a regular job for several months, working at my own pace seemed like a great idea. I could work part time, and take days off whenever I needed to rest. It would be stress free, and would help me to recover from the effects of the Chemo better than sitting on the couch binge watching Netflix and playing video games.
Initially it was great. A few different friends and family members hired me to do house cleaning, janitorial, and odd jobs. it was more or less “easy” and stress free.
Boy have things changed.
Now we are 1.5 years into an exterior cleaning business.
Perhaps it is just my perfectionist nature and my being prone to anxiety, but being a start up entrepreneur has to be one of the most stressful occupations. Sure we are not on the front line of a war, or fighting bad guys with guns, or rushing into burning houses, or flying airplanes, but we deal lots of stress every day.
Uncertainty
Is there going to be work next week? Next month? Will we have enough saved up to get through the slow season? Will we have the funds to make our payments? What is the best way to do this or that? Did I remember to follow up, close the deal, where did I put that phone number? And on it goes.
Responsibility
We are personally responsible for every decision and action taken by the business, whether its me or an employee. We are liable when things go wrong. We are responsible for finances, our employee’s actions, for everything.
Working Hours
We have the longest working hours of any occupational group. I routinely put in 16+ hours per day 6 days per week…not including the time I lose sleep thinking about work. But I am putting systems in place, like answering services, automated customer management software etc.
And on Sundays it is so hard to shut it off, but I do my best. Even with the phone on airplane mode, and going to church, the thoughts of work bounce around my head. I. Can’t. Shut. It. Off. I utterly fail at the 4th commandment, and in trusting the Lord to provide. Please Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner! Grant me rest.
Learning Curve
The learning curve is so steep, and must be ascended so quickly, that many of us fall or give up before we make it half way up the mountain…I have had several stumbles, charging too little, taking on too much, using the wrong chemical, mistakes and mistakes …soooooo many mistakes….and I have seriously considered giving it all up an a few occasions. But they say that experts are those who learn from their mistakes….so I must be a master by now….haha. LOL…I wonder what mistake I am making right now?
All The Hats
Not only do we have to “do the job” in providing a service to others, we also wear all the hats. ALL THE HATS. At least at first. And there are like, 217 hats. We are the sales people, receptionists, maintenance workers, drivers etc. And we have to rapidly develop expertise across the entire breadth of managerial occupations from strategic, finance, sales, marketing, procurement, risk, operations, IT, to human resource management.
My Reaction To It All
There have been a few times in my life when I was as stressed as I am now. But those times were short lived. Times like leading up to my dads death, the time between the day I was told I had cancer to the day that the biopsy results and prognosis came back, the time the baby had colic for 6 weeks, and the time sitting in the principals office as he pulled the strap off the bookshelf…
I go between wanting to give it all up, to planning another start up to cater to the Snow Birds in the Coachella Valley during our BC slow season. What to name it? Hmmm…
Coachella Power Washing?
Cathedral City Prowash?
Palm Springs Pressure Pros?
Rancho Mirage Spray Wash?
Joshua Tree Pressure Washing?
Indio Exterior Cleaning?
Or just stick with New Again?
I have wild swings going from “let’s sell the truck and all the equipment and I’ll be a part timer security officer at SMH and go back to school and leave all this behind” to “My goal is to build an company with gross sales of 5 million by 2023. Get the systems in place. Build relationships! R&D! R&D!!!! Work Work Work!”
Stressed to Blessed
I tend to focus on the negative things that are few and far between, like unhappy clients, or negative comments, the bank account, or slow periods – like this week – but if I take my tunnel vision glasses off, and look away from the negative things, between Google and Facebook, we have 30+ 5 star reviews online in a less than a year and a half, and we have already started seeing the residual drip, drip, drip of referrals.
Despite all the uncertainty, the financial hardships, and the stress on our marriage and family…we have been blessed. I am relatively healthy. I have the love of my Lord, a good wife, and 3 amazing kids. There may not be much money in the bank, but the Lord has provided a truck and trailer, good equipment, a roof over our heads, clothes on our backs, and food on the table. And really that’s all I can ask for. 
This is a road we never thought we would travel, but we’ll give it our all. We are reminded in the book of Colossians 3:23,
“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.”
So here I am, a simple guy who was planing to go to seminary, who was forced down a different road. I never thought I would be an exterior cleaning specialist, but here we are. And I will work it with all my heart, as if I am working for the Lord…as if I was in seminary or in the ministry. Because this is where the Lord wants me right now, and despite my anxiety, I know that he is good, and so is his plan.
To him be the glory.
The stress is real. But so is the blessing.
Now.
About that name.
Maybe I should play off the fact I am Canadian for all those snow birds…. Timmies Maple Wash? Hmmmmm….
