Bet Big on Your Happy Skills. You Will Be Grateful 10 Years Down the Road.
3 Things I learned from a happy friend doing his own thing in retirement
The header is not one that I conceived over lunch.
It is a statement made by my friend. His name is Joseph. He is a proud retiree of 6 years, and a healthy, fast-walking bloke, currently 58 years young.
I love talking to him. It felt like he had life, retirement, happiness, and the next stage figured out.
His words often make me think hard about life. I become a time traveler into my unforeseen future.
He Runs a 1-Person Handyman Business
This guy is a happy dude.
Joseph fills his purse while walking around the neighborhood. His neighborhood. Everyone calls him Uncle Handy.
And he loves it that way.
Why? Because he runs a handyman business.
I remembered asking him why this business. Of course, I asked him a string of questions, too.
Here are those I remember.
- “From when you started running this business?”
- “How do you know this business is profitable?”
- “Why this business?”
- “Why run it alone?”
I bombard him with questions each time he comes to my place with a mini drill gun. Actually, I should have those answers.
He fixed my lightbulbs, toilet throne, stuck pipes, faulty water heater, and a creaking table.
But I wanted Uncle Handy to tell me.
He did.
“I Love What I Do. I Can Do This All Day.”
Honestly, I wasn’t even expecting Mario & Luigi from Super Mario Bros to tell me this.
Joseph said this straight to my face over a cup of coffee. I was impressed beyond words. I was.
“I have always enjoyed taking things apart and fixing them back. I wanted to know how things work from the inside. It is fun! They are like human bodies. Same, but vastly different.”
He took a sip of coffee and continued.
“A lightbulb moment hit me when I realized youngsters like you no longer fix the house. So, I started a simple 1-person business. That’s it.”
A storm broke in my mind when Uncle Handy said That’s it.
The first thing that came into my mind was… I am overthinking things. And maybe, we do.
I spend (way) too much time deliberating niche products, premium services, market segments, and branding messages that I often lose sight of my True North.
I, or we, ought to return to the basics.
When starting a business,
- Focus on what we love doing.
- Identify customers.
- Sell our services.
That should be it.
Joseph’s go-to-market strategy is simple. It is about plastering his handphone number in eateries, town halls, and community centers surrounding his apartment.
He got his first business call within the first two hours of his first day.
Uncle Handy also used his Facebook account to share what his workday is like. His images say it all.
- Posing with a smiling customer.
- Back facing the camera while fixing a water pipe.
- Recommendations on neighborhood handyman stores to patronize for goods.
Joseph does not write lengthy social media posts. 1-liners, 2-liners, with weird hashtags and that’s it.
He used images and videos to convey his knowledge.
That was it.
And by the way, he has 20,000 followers on Facebook. If a 58-year young old boy can do social media, you can too.
“At 52, I No Longer Want to Do Work I Don’t Appreciate. So, I Fixed Things on the Side.”
Uncle Handy was a printer maintenance service engineer before his official retirement.
His job required him to travel around the country to fix printers. It was a tough job. He had to climb up at 4 in the morning to travel to the Remote West where the client’s office was and repair the printers before the first office worker walked in.
He stayed in the Far East.
Long distance commute sucked. Of course, it didn’t help that the customers were always frowning.
“I didn’t enjoy interacting with sulky customers. I mean, they whine and complain about me, to me. It dampens my day.”
I can tell why. Uncle Handy is a light-hearted person, always looking for a good laugh. This is a happy man.
According to Joseph, that turning point came at 52.
He woke up wondering why he is suffering at work. Uncle Handy does not like attending to sulky clients. So, the solution, in his mind, is simple.
It is time to walk away.
It took him another 3 days to secure a handyman project fixing toilet thrones. That first project put $20 in his pocket.
Joseph was sold. There was no looking back. He continued doing what he enjoyed over the weekends, building his project base, before leaving his day job for good.
Now, he smiles daily.
This is what he told me.
“I fixed things over weekends. At first, it was people referring me to others who needed help. I would go, get things fixed, and receive a tip. That’s the point where I knew I could do this for a living.”
There is a book of life lessons in what he said.
Here are some lessons I learned.
- You must figure out your persona to be genuinely happy. Don’t hang around the wrong customers. They kill your day!
- Go where your skills and presence are genuinely appreciated.
- Focus on what you enjoy doing.
- Start small. Take time to grow.
I like the last 2 bullet points. They are so simple, and straightforward, and yet many never follow. I, for one, belong to the overcomplicating camp.
I should start thinking simply. It works. Joseph convinced me so.
Parting Keynotes
I asked why he continued to run his business as a 1-person operation.
He laughed. Joseph was candid.
“Young man, do you enjoy managing people? I don’t. So, I manage the business myself. I wake up and sleep happy. That matters.”
Again, it defaults to our personalities.
I think this is a brilliant unexplored perspective. Many of us start businesses with lofty ambitions. Few have a grounded orientation towards our humble 1-man business.
Uncle Handy’s line of thinking was a breath of fresh air.
In fact, Joseph imparted me practical lessons on retirement, running our own business, and being happy with individual effort.
His message to me is wrapped up in one single message.
The best business you can build during retirement is what you can do today with a smile.
I loved it.
As a content contributor, I write my daily life observations and business exposure. Our life experience is the bedrock of our unique perspectives.