My home based clients don’t do business with me because I know more than they do about computers, networks, and servers \u2013 there’s always someone who knows more about those things and my clients know it.<\/p>\n
They do business with me because I insist on making the interactions with them reasonably pleasant.\u00a0 They are happy to see me coming and know that I’ve helped them in the past and will do what I can to help them now.\u00a0 Many of them understand that I can’t solve every problem, but they’ve grow to understand that I will do my best.\u00a0 I make it clear to them that they aren’t simply numbers on a spread sheet.\u00a0 I enjoy helping even when things are blowing up in our faces and the world appears determined to stay in disaster mode. Here’s the problem though, on average, home based businesses can’t offer enough work to build and sustain a full-fledged business \u2013 a business that I can use to act as an employer to others.\u00a0 Don’t misunderstand, I know that there are brick and mortar stores that have built a reputation for working on systems brought from people\u2019s homes, but realistically, how many home users or even small offices have the capital to pay for recurring managed services?<\/p>\n A few weeks ago I was working on an idea to help me get new business and something occurred to me.<\/p>\n I\u2019ve been maintaining a bit of a fiction (I\u2019ll explain in a bit).\u00a0 There are two ways to look at how you are doing business.\u00a0 If you\u2019re like me, you\u2019re the chief cook and bottle washer.\u00a0 You\u2019re also the head steward, bean counter and sole tax payer.\u00a0 This is fine in the short term, but this method \u2013 known as working IN the business, is just that, short term.\u00a0 It\u2019s not sustainable in the long run.<\/p>\n The primary reasons it\u2019s not sustainable are pretty plain, there isn\u2019t enough of you or hours in the day to go around.\u00a0 It really doesn\u2019t matter how much you bill per hour, over the course of months or years you will eventually burn out and then where is your business?<\/p>\n When I say that I\u2019ve been maintaining a fiction this is what I mean.\u00a0 I realized a while back that I can\u2019t keep up this pace for long.\u00a0 Where I need to be is developing new business leads and products.\u00a0 I need to be sitting down and creating proposals for new clients and building stronger relationships with existing clients.\u00a0 I need to employ others to help grow this thing I\u2019m doing.\u00a0 This is known as working ON the business and it\u2019s what a true entrepreneur is all about.\u00a0 The other method is just being \u2018the computer guy\u2019.<\/p>\n But NONE of that will happen the way I am doing things now.\u00a0 I am spending 10 to 12 hours per day working IN the business.\u00a0 Yes, I\u2019m making money and taking care of my family, but like I said earlier, it\u2019s not sustainable. I hope that you\u2019re in business to do more than make money; hopefully you\u2019re trying to build something that didn\u2019t exist before, something that will last and be a benefit to your community.\u00a0 In my opinion, that\u2019s the true purpose of small businesses around the world.<\/p>\n I came up with the concept of Grow Or Die two weeks ago and put those words on a piece of paper on the wall right behind my center monitor.\u00a0 It\u2019s the first thing I see when I boot up in the morning and the last thing I see when I go to bed at night.<\/p>\n Kind of melodramatic?<\/p>\n Perhaps.<\/p>\n But consider this, if my business isn\u2019t growing what is it doing?\u00a0 If I\u2019m<\/em> not growing, what am I doing?<\/p>\n Look at the following facts:<\/p>\n Some or all of these things could quickly end my business or your business and put us right back in line looking for a job.\u00a0 And, really, who wants that?<\/p>\n Guest Post by Ronn Hanley: Ronn is a technology enthusiast from way back, during the dark ages of the Arpanet and the Purple monochrome monitor screens. His first computer was a Commodore PET and his first laptop was the size of a suitcase. Despite that, he loves computers and technology to distraction and has been working in the tech world for almost 10 years full time, currently as the owner of a Desktop and Network support company in Atlanta, Georgia.<\/strong><\/p>\n © Technibble – A Resource for Computer Technicians<\/a> to start or improve their Computer Business<\/a>
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To get started with your own computer business, check out our Computer Business Kit<\/a>.<\/p>\n