As of yesterday my firm has been around for half a decade. For those of you that don’t know, Open World was a dream of mine when I got approved in 2018. I grew the firm slowly, meaningfully, and have found that I love the people that I work for. So thank you if you are among them!
This is a big milestone for me, as I wasn’t even sure I would make it. I projected conviction and believed in the data, but as most entrepreneurs will tell you, it’s impossible to not worry that it will all evaporate one day. As a gamer who routinely rolls Nat 1s in critical moments, I will say that I lucked out to have a successful firm.
What are the things I feel like I’ve done well as a firm owner?
- Consistency. I try to always show up when it matters. If a client calls or emails, I reply as soon as I can. I’ve also stuck close to my vision – wanting to help people live better lives and reach more goals, without having to worry as much about money.
- Presence. I always listen and give my clients great customer service. At least, I think so. We keep meetings on the calendar, I check in frequently, and we make patient progress on all of their financial and life goals.
- Choosiness. I only say yes to people I like to work with. There have been opportunities to do work that would have been profitable, but would have made me miserable. I think running a successful solo business requires you to always be passionate about the work.
What are the things I feel that I need to improve on?
- Education. Even writing this post is something that I just “got around to doing” and isn’t something that I had a consistent pattern of doing. I was great at posting content early, but I’ve been worse at it lately.
- Persistence. I have a lot of cool projects that are almost done. Unsurprisingly, a few of these are education resource projects. I’ll be looking at polishing those up this year, to make sure that I finish what I started.
I am grateful for where my business is. It’s enabling me to save for a house and a wedding. It’s enabled me to get my life back on track both financially and personally. I’m glad to be able to take days off and to smile while I work. But, like anyone else, I can do better. I look forward to pushing myself to do so.
Thank you for five years of progress, whether you’re a new reader or a client who has been with me the whole way.
