Things change, business continues
Today is the last ‘work’ day for my colleague who after 7 years has found a new gig. In those 2 weeks since her notice, the pace of my participation in the day to day operations of the business has increased expotentially. While, operationally, the team I have in place can handle most eventualities, I’ve never stopped paying attention, so it’s not like I don’t know how to run my company. In fact, like I’ve mentioned a few times over the years, to succeed in business - at least in my business - you really have to lower your expectations of your help. It’s no slight against them to acknowledge that few people you hire will be as committed as the Owner, so as an owner, you just have to find a way to accept that so you don’t drive everyone out the door.
The reason I mention it, is similar to why I said in the last post, ‘my skills aren’t what they used to be…. (Wait for it) - they are a whole lot stronger than the last time I had to flex like this. I know my business inside and out, I built it from it literally from nothing to a marketplace leader. I’ve hired most of the team. I’m the one with the more durable relationships with our vendors and subcontractors. Takes a lot of work, and takes a shift in my mindset, but it’s not as if I’ve lost touch with the nitty gritty of the pulse of the business - that’s one thing I’ve learned over the last two weeks.
This departure by a senior member of the team has allowed me, has forced me, to look at the company and decide how to move forward, and interestingly there are lots of ways to re-invent and improve - just have to shift out of cruise control and rev the rpm's, - which is getting a little harder as I age, and have a comfortable nest egg, I must admit.
Another thing I’ve learned is that the Catskill’s marketplace for real estate is still pretty strong. It died out a little last fall, but starting about 2 weeks ago, you could tell that there were still a lot of buyers out there. We have put 2 homes into contract - 2 completely finished spec homes - in the last week, and we weren’t even that motivated to sell them with the market still trying to figure itself out. But that’s an incredible unexpected boost to the 2023 outlook, and gives us the leeway to lean into the mystery of what the marketplace will bear in 2023.
2 houses just going into contract for March or April closings.
