Success After Being Screwed Over

A few years back, I ran a profitable enterprise in a niche market. At first, owning a corporation helped me pursue my other passions, such as filmmaking and a writing career, while being a caretaker for my mother. Excited by my prospects, I didn’t realize I was defeating myself by taking on more than I could handle.

I began with one business I worked from home. Because that business did well, I bought stores in the same industry, but separate fields. As I started running them, I lost more than I gained. My creative life, family responsibilities, picking a child up late at the airport where she waited in her Navy whites, holidays fielding calls not celebrating, too tired to be present with family, and the delight turned to ash. I stopped being a creative and writing became more of an afterthought.

FIRST RULE — ASK FOR HELP!

I loved running businesses. Over the years I worked as the operations officer for entrepreneurs and small stores. I knew how they operated. As the company grew, I brought on staff.

My first mistake was not getting outside help once I opened the second business. What I had purchased was an employee business model, but the truth was a different story. I chose a staff member with management experience as general supervisor.

I was owner of businesses, but “owning” them was running me ragged. Not eating or sleeping, my mind worried and picked at problems, but figure out how to fix them as I was so tired, and my joy after a few years disappeared.

Does The Business Model Work?

I closed after four years. The stores needed subcontractors who rented out space, not employees. The previous owners didn’t figure out the issue which explained why I purchased at such a low price point. Shifting the focus to the retail and online store, their successes would have continued. Hindsight is 20/20.

Make sure the working model fits the business. If not, close briefly, consult with outside counsel, and then rehire the staff or replace them.

Failure imminent, mom and I very ill, and my right-hand person, who had been so successful, slacked off. When mom passed, I continued straight into the busy season as I had employees and clients who needed me. By mistake, I leaned too much on the general manager. The signs were there. They resisted proposals, their performance worsened, and I took outside work to stay afloat.

I was done with a fork sticking out of me.

If your business is a struggle, step back and reexamine for your own health. Look at it from another angle. Having another set of eyes looking at the problems can be a tremendous help. Hire outside professionals — business coaches or consultants, accountants, and lawyers. Though I had most of them on speed dial, not talking with a business coach or consultant was the wrong move.

It’s Okay To Let People Go

After the closure of all but one of my businesses, I picked up other work which involved long travel. I had kept my general manager, leaving them to handle the home front.

I avoided the various nigglings of unrest. My manager approached me to buy the business. I waited for a month and prompted them for an answer; they said they weren’t interested; they wanted work, not own a company.

I returned home to find out I paid them, but we had no clients for our busy time. The holiday season never took off. I fired the employee and I salvaged what I could; the damage deep. This business closed a few months later.

I saw the analytics, crunched the numbers, easier to stay with what I was familiar. Prayed things would get better. Aware of my employee’s personal issues, I wished for them to succeed, so I ignored the signs.

When you work in small business, it’s natural to get drawn in to other’s problems and blurring the lines between what works and what is easy. You need to make the hard calls. I didn’t.

The former general manager waited out their term per our contract and opened a similar business — with my old clients and employees. It was heart wrenching and my fault. I was heartbroken and talked to my business friends, many of which had this same thing happen to them.

Take Five and Reevaluate

This was a rough time, because I not only failed my businesses, but those who supported me. I also let myself down. My love for writing had fallen away and I missed it.

I continued with my current job traveling. I was more of a cog in a wheel instead of a manager, but it gave me the rest I needed. It took a couple of years, but I developed a career I adore.

Stepping back helped me reevaluate where I was, where I was heading, take care of my health, and find myself again.

Find Your Passion

For me, I had an “ah-ha” moment. I worked as a filmmaker and writer and felt lost not having projects. I wasn’t aware how much until an issue lit me up and I ran to the computer to write.

In that moment of typing furiously, I realized I loved writing. Not everything, but what stoked my fires. Glancing over the many articles, blogs, and ghostwriting I had done during my “dark” years, those that stood out and those that didn’t. The ones which did were because the topic was one I enjoyed.

This is how I dug my passion back out of the ground and found it. Yours may be different, hiding in the closet under old high school yearbooks. When you find it, it will show. Don’t burn out on what doesn’t matter or it may take a few moments before you find what you lost.

I am writing again, successful by my standards not someone else’s, and enjoying my life. I believe if I hadn’t crashed and burned, I would not have found the passion again. I would have been too busy being busy to notice.

Even if you’ve been screwed over by a business partner, a friend, a lover, remember, you will survive and be stronger for it. No longer does it hurt to see my former associate doing well.

I’m grateful for the lessons learned. They have made me a better writer and business owner and if they help you, then it has been worth it.