This isn’t about a business. This is about your life.
I help people who are done letting somebody else decide their future find a business that fits the life they actually want.
Where I come from
I grew up in family businesses, including some I had a stake in. That’s where I learned what it takes to turn the lights on every day.
Then I spent twenty-one years in the corporate world and worked at just about every level. I ran the Jenn-Air brand at Maytag. At Toro, I ran the international consumer business, everything outside the US. At Electrolux, I ran a good-sized organization. I lived in Colorado and worked out of an office in Connecticut, out the door on Sunday and home on Friday.
I know what it’s like when somebody else decides where you live, what you’re worth, and what comes next.
What I do now
For the last fifteen years, I’ve been helping people figure out whether owning a business is right for them, and which one fits.
The people I work with are usually fifteen to twenty-five years into a serious career. They’re capable. They’ve done well. And they’re done having their lives decided by somebody else. They want a life that’s whole and fulfilling. It’s not just about money, and it’s not just about a title.
I start with two things: what you want your life to look like, and why you’d want to own a business at all. Being sick of working for somebody else isn’t a reason to own a business. There has to be something you’re running toward.
If you have a spouse or partner, I want them in the conversation early. This decision affects both of you.
How I measure it
The companies I work with have salespeople. My job is to make sure your eyes are wide open. It can be the best brand in the world. If it’s not the right one for you, we shouldn’t do it.
What means the most to me is when somebody sends me their wife or their son-in-law.
There’s risk in doing something. There’s just as much, or more, in doing nothing.
The people who never make the call are still in the same place, and they’re still stuck.