"Sending out an S.O.S."
Hoo, boy. Here goes:
As many of you know, I’ve been an independent computer/tech (Apple) products consultant and technician for the past 5 years; I went into business for myself after leaving Apple, but I still wanted to help people in ways that Apple was unable to (like house calls, out-of-warranty repairs, stuff like that).
I’ve met many wonderful customers, and I’ve learned a lot in the past 5 years. I’ve stumbled and I’ve fallen repeatedly. But each time, I’ve gotten back up and tried to make a go of it again. But it’s becoming increasingly difficult each time I do.
In a separate, but very much related note, my brain is pretty severely ADHD — to the point that I get dangerously distracted while doing things like cooking (for example). Executive function tasks (like organization, planning, routine actions, administrative tasks) are particularly difficult for me. The longer I am in business, the more calls I end up accumulating, and most of them become calls that I get sidetracked from calling back on time (if at all). Unfortunately, I am unable to treat my ADHD with medication.
So I’m in the same position that I’ve been in for a while now. I know I need someone to help me with executive function tasks that I’m unable to do effectively, but at the same time, I haven’t been able to stay on top of enough work to get ahead and save for things like office rent or salary for an assistant/employee.
My brain is not wired for running this business…and yet, I have this business. I have customers that value and appreciate the services I provide, but some of them can get understandably frustrated when things like unreturned calls or non-received invoices come to play.
It has gotten to the point where I need to decide if I’m going to continue with Beach Tec or not. My original vision was to eventually have a retail shop/office where people would feel comfortable bringing their gear to fix or to just learn. A place that would offer small business and on-site support as well as personal/corporate training. A place that would have friendly experts on-staff or in partnership.
It’s clearer to me now, more than ever, that I can’t make that happen, at least not on my own.
This post is running on longer than I had intended…but I’ve been wanting to put this out there for a while now. I work mostly solo since I started Beach Tec (5+ years ago), so I don’t really get a chance to run stuff like this by friends or colleagues (one of several things I miss about working at Apple).
Thanks so much for your time, if you’ve read this far (or any part of this). If anyone would care to offer thoughts/advice, it wouldn’t go unappreciated.
Thanks! Kevin TL;DR I could really use someone who could help me run my business, or probably need to shut it down.