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Larry Edgerton
08-11-2012, 8:36 PM
One of my customers is a CEO of a large company, privately held, and he made arrangements to for me to meet with a district manager to talk about a management position. This was just out of the blue, nothing I innitiated, but the CEO has become a friend of sorts and knows that the work is getting hard for me so he set this up to see if there is a fit.

Its a good company, and although it is not building it is in a related field that has been holding its own, and this company has actually been growing. I am not worried about the company.

But...... I have been in business over twenty years, have a good but older customer base, and a sterling reputation for both quality and honesty. I have about $250K invested in tools, although I would not get much out of them at auction today with the economy in depression.

The work is getting harder, and I know I can not be climbing around these monster houses much longer. I have the tools and tooling to do just shop work, and that has been my plan all along for the day I could no longer build houses, but that market has all but disappeared around here. Many custom shops have folded or moved out.

I have work lined up until December, and I agreed to work at their distribution center for a month at that time to learn their system and give them a chance to check out what I can do. I will have to take a drug test and an IQ test, neither one concerns me.

To go beyond this will require a move, and I will have to shut my business down. My tenitive plan is to work the month and learn all that I can and see how I feel at that time. I have told them that moving to a metropolitan location is not happening, but they do have locations in smaller communities.

The thought of Crooked Tree Joinery not existing bothers me. Its not that it is a saleable company, without me it would not work as I do specialty work that few can do, but still, the thought of it not being there after so many years of hard work is bothersome. I suppose that is my own vanity. I do love building things.

So it is an opportunity, but not one without costs. On the other hand my own business is down 92% from its peak years, and is lucky to have survived at that. How much longer can it provide a living? Will I like whatever I end up doing? So many questions.

Just thinking out loud......Larry

Matt Meiser
08-11-2012, 8:52 PM
To me, it seems like you've pretty much already made up your mind.

Nothing says you have to sell all your tools and stop building stuff. But now you can do it on your own schedule and budget.

Ryan Mooney
08-11-2012, 8:56 PM
An IQ Test? Thats .. sort of crazy .. I have a hard time conceiving what sort of job and IQ test would be a reliable indicator of performance for. I've done a lot of interviews over the years and about the only thing I've ever seen that indicates job performance accurately is. .well job performance.

Larry Edgerton
08-11-2012, 9:37 PM
To me, it seems like you've pretty much already made up your mind.

.

Not at all Matt, But I have it where I have time. I have jobs started and told them I will not leave a customer in a lurch.

Last year I gave a customer a Greene and Greene book for Christmas, and he promply put his house on Lake Michigan up for sale and says he wants me to build a shrunken version of the Gamble house when it sells. This is what I have been waiting for my whole career, but in this economy, will his house even sell? He is on a round the world sail so who knows what revelations he will experiance on his voyage. Not really counting on it but it would be a great way to cap off my years of work.

Always questions. Always uncertianty. A little more than five years ago I thought I had the world by the tail, but things change. If the upcoming election goes the wrong way I am afraid it will get even tighter.

Its harder to make big changes as I get older? don't have time enough left to make up for mistakes I guess.

Larry

I would sell off the construction tools, but not the shop equipment. I plan on being the envy of every old fart in town in my golden years. And thats not counting my beautiful wife!:p

Jim Matthews
08-11-2012, 9:46 PM
Work without searching for clients - might be worth looking into.
As my mentor has reminded me, never let your first answer be "no".

David Weaver
08-11-2012, 10:45 PM
Go for it. Things change, and in 5 years, your body will be thanking you and so too will be your wallet probably. Use the extra time you have to do things you want to do while your body still works. If it doesn't work out, you know you have what it takes to get back into something that will spend what you have left of your body.

Andrew Joiner
08-11-2012, 11:47 PM
Larry,

I'm retired now,but I got a lot of my self worth from being hardworking, self employed,creative and successful. Is this a part of your decision as well Larry? I feel like I know you from your posts. Believe me I have a ton of respect for you.
I retired when I was 40. I had income from rental properties I'd fixed up and a high deductible health plan I could afford. I had similar feelings when I retired. Giving up my business was hard. A lot of it was ego for me. What was I going to tell people when they'd say "so what do you do"? I loved telling people I was a furniture designer, but the truth was I'd lost my passion for building and designing. I had a new love travel and windsurfing. So I traveled and windsurfed. I told people the truth when asked,but it felt odd saying I'm retired.

The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence. When I was a kid working for other shops I'd tell myself "if this was my shop I'd do it this way" I got the chance to do it my way in my own shop for years. I also had all the pressure and long hours. Many times when working my _ss off I'd fantasize about how nice it would be to work 9 to 5, get paid vacations, and benefits.

I think trying this out in December is a great idea. Having a 9 to 5 job with benefits may be good fit for you.

Phil Thien
08-12-2012, 12:31 AM
It may be a godsend. None of us are getting any younger. And the type of work you do isn't going to get any easier.

I like the idea of trying it for a month.

People that are long-term self-employed tend to be self-motivated and highly productive. Something tells me the CEO friend of yours knows you'd be a catch.

Richard Wolf
08-12-2012, 9:39 AM
WOW, this is one of those opportunities guys like you and I dream about, and when they come along, find it very difficult to pull the trigger. My gut is to take it, I'm older than you, and it is physically getting very difficult to get going in the morning. For me it's not just the work, I find that the people that have the money to spend are more difficult to put up with. I started my life as a school teacher, teaching high school shop, I used to say it was a great job until the kids walked in, it's kind of the same with the stair business now.
Good luck with your choice buddy.

Kevin Bourque
08-12-2012, 12:15 PM
Close your eyes and ask the angels what the correct choice for you will be.

Frank Drew
08-13-2012, 2:45 PM
As my mentor has reminded me, never let your first answer be "no".

I like that; good advice.

Frank Drew
08-13-2012, 2:50 PM
As my mentor has reminded me, never let your first answer be "no".

I like that; good advice.

Greg Portland
08-13-2012, 4:12 PM
One of my customers is a CEO of a large company, privately held, and he made arrangements to for me to meet with a district manager to talk about a management position.
Larry, are you the kind of person who will be happy working for the same person/people and on a fixed schedule? Is this a job that will present new challenges each day?


My tenitive plan is to work the month and learn all that I can and see how I feel at that time.My only concern here would be if your joinery business suffers while you are away.

phil harold
08-13-2012, 4:19 PM
Larry, are you the kind of person who will be happy working for the same person/people and on a fixed schedule? Is this a job that will present new challenges each day?

My only concern here would be if your joinery business suffers while you are away.
+1
You were self employed for how many years?
Now you want to work with other people, and office politics?
I see the temptation, but the reality is will you miss being in charge?

Rich Engelhardt
08-13-2012, 5:31 PM
If the upcoming election goes the wrong way I am afraid it will get even tighter.
LOL!
The wrong way as in both candidates aren't magically whisked away by aliens on Halloween? ;).

I tell people there's only three things I miss about work now that I'm retired:
- The paycheck
- Paid vacations
- Paid holidays.

Seriously - there's a lot to be said for a steady check and nice climate controlled building to sit in & watch some fool either sweat or freeze half to death... :D

Matt Meiser
08-13-2012, 5:51 PM
The wrong way as in both candidates aren't magically whisked away by aliens on Halloween? ;).

This is what I'm hoping for!

Jason Roehl
08-13-2012, 6:15 PM
Seriously - there's a lot to be said for a steady check and nice climate controlled building to sit in & watch some fool either sweat or freeze half to death... :D

I was once told by a paint store associate that they have a zero-degree paint available. I responded, "I bet there aren't many zero-degree painters." That's the beauty of painting--it, too, prefers a narrow range of conditions, so I can often claim the conditions aren't optimal for the paint...

Larry, I've often considered getting out of the trades, too. But then I look at the number of years of experience I have (which I've found lately does carry some weight with potential clients) and all the tools I have accumulated (not near $250K worth, though), and all the freedom I have (sometimes unwelcome in a slow economy, of course), and I would find it hard to ever punch a clock for someone else. But I'm also quite a bit younger than you are...

Patrick McCarthy
08-13-2012, 8:42 PM
Larry, I had a similar situation I faced when I was much younger. When discussing my concerns with my FIL, he asked if I thought the wrong decision meant i would never work again and that the sun would no longer rise in the morning? I said "No, i know i have to work because i have all these mouths to feed." He then pointed out that it was not a question of whehter i would ever work again, but just a matter of where. Now granted, I was younger at the time, and the economy was different, but if you think you might enjoy it and it would save your body, thus increasing overall quality of life, then it is worth a try. I think the month of putting the tip of your toes in the water is a good idea . . . .

Life, whoever said it would get easier as we got older . . . . . sold us a bill of goods.

Good luck my friend, patrick

Larry Edgerton
08-14-2012, 8:22 AM
Larry,

I'm retired now,but I got a lot of my self worth from being hardworking, self employed,creative and successful. Is this a part of your decision as well Larry? I feel like I know you from your posts. Believe me I have a ton of respect for you.
ou.

I think you may have nailed it Andrew. It is vanity on my part, but I am good at what I do and take great pride in my work. People can say what they will about me, but they can not call me a hack. They say pride goith before the fall......

Part of the problem is that there seems to be less and less people that can even tell the difference, and even fewer that are willing to pay for it. I can not compete with the hacks if it comes to that, I can just not make myself cut corners. I am a dinosaur in this business.

I also look for your posts along with several other people that have posted in this thread, and I appreciate each and every viewpoint.

Thank you gentlemen, Larry

Andrew Joiner
08-14-2012, 1:10 PM
It is vanity on my part, but I am good at what I do and take great pride in my work. People can say what they will about me, but they can not call me a hack. They say pride goith before the fall......



I bet your CEO friend sees those character assets and more in you Larry. No shame in using your talents in another business.
I'm 61 now and I build for fun. Once in a while I miss the challenge of having to get the job done on time and to spec to get paid. Never do I say to myself " I wish I still had to pay overhead, breath dust and fumes,wake in the middle of the night to sketch a detail and deal with the latest government regulations"

Brian Elfert
08-14-2012, 2:58 PM
I ran a business for five years. It was fun, but frustrating at the same time. I had the freedom to go run personal errands during the day if I wanted, but on the other hand when I went home I usually ate dinner and went right back to work at home.

I have a regular job now and it is great not having to worry about how the bills are going to get paid and all that. I get a steady paycheck with decent benefits.

dennis thompson
08-14-2012, 3:05 PM
Larry
-your business has been declining
-you don't think you'll be able to physically do your work much longer
-your backup plan of shop work is no longer viable

-I don't know how old you are but if you have been in your own business for 25 years I'd guess you're in the 40-50 age range
-getting a job at that age is difficult in good times & in the currrent job market could be impossible
-what happens if in a couple of years you can no longer do the work & the job market remains difficult?
-you have been offered the opportunity to try it for a month to see if it's a fit for you and the company

I have worked as a business owner & then for a corporation. Corporations are not all the devils they are made out to be. It's a rare opportunity to "try out" a job.
I recommend you try the job.
Dennis

Ben Hatcher
08-14-2012, 3:52 PM
I think it really boils down to what the new job is and if you'd enjoy that kind of work. As hard as it might be to get up and going each day to do manual labor, I assure you, getting up to go to a job you hate is harder. If the CEO is a friend, and has looked for something that would be a good fit, then maybe the work will be enjoyable enough even if it isn't as rewarding as what you do now. Not all corporate jobs are highly structured or require you to be in a certain place all day. Many companies offer flex time should you need to pop out for an appointment or errand and make the time up later. Some jobs require little problem solving and become boringly routine after about a day. Others require complex problem solving and no day is the same.

I suggest that you take an inventory of what you like/dislike about being your own boss, and share that with your friend. This would help him determine which position in his company is really a good fit.