Fired and Focused

Episode 132

Being fired COULD motivate you to start your own business. When my client got the call that he was being let go, most people would’ve panicked. I’ve been there. Losing steady income is terrifying. But this guy did something different. He didn’t spiral into despair. I know this guy. He’s a client. Instead, he looked at his situation and asked the right question: “Do I go hunt for another job, or do I grow my company?”

From Fired to Growing

Here’s what I love about this story. This man had already been using my materials and working with me on coaching. He knew the playbook. Now he just had to execute it under pressure. The choice was simple. But simple doesn’t mean its easy.

Guerrilla Marketing That Almost Didn’t Work

Short on cash, he took a simple step. His first move was to hit the streets with flyers. He blanketed his community, expecting the phone to start ringing. It didn’t. Not right away, anyway. Did he return to the idea of being fired? NO!

Most people would’ve quit. “Well, that didn’t work.” But he understood something crucial. During our coaching sessions, we’d reviewed why silence doesn’t mean no. It means not yet. So he went back out the next week and did it again.

Being Fired Fuels His Sales

This is the lesson I’ve applied to every sales role I’ve ever held: Become number two in enough places so that when the person in the number one spot drops the ball, you’re the obvious choice. Persistence isn’t annoying, it’s professional. And being fired fuels him ONLY because he prepared his mind and with our training.

The First Contract Changed Everything

After a couple weeks, the first call came. A walk-through. A presentation. A signed contract. Anyone who runs a business knows that feeling. That moment when someone says YES!Grasping the importance that they believe in what you offer enough to hand you their money and trust you with their work. He told me it made him feel like a million dollars. Of course it did! And that felling was peaked, because being fired is part of how he arrived at this point.

What Happened Next

He pushed harder. Within one month, he landed six new accounts. Six, in one month!

Now, I don’t care if those accounts are for one day a month or five days a week—that’s an impressive result. More importantly, it proved something: he didn’t give up. He kept showing up, kept working, kept believing.

From Fired to Scaling

Here’s where it gets really interesting. After building momentum, he came back to me with a new problem. This is one of the best kind of problems to have.

“Joel, how do I scale?” he asked. “I need to bring people on. I need to figure out equipment. I need to plan for growth.”

He’d taken the tools I gave him, used them to rebuild, and now he was ready for the next level. He realized something powerful: Working for yourself is infinitely more satisfying than punching a clock. Your only real boss is the client. And if you’re doing good work, they’ll tell everyone they know.

He’s not just cleaning buildings anymore. He’s selling floor jobs, carpet jobs, additional services. He’s building a real business.

Your Turn

Here’s what I want you to hear. Getting fired isn’t the end of your story. It might be the beginning of the best chapter.

If you’ve been bootstrapping your business on the side and waiting for “someday,” I’m asking you something direct: Why are you still waiting? Another year of “it’s just a side gig” is another year of untapped potential. You have the tools available. You have the knowledge. What you need is a plan and someone to help you execute it.

Pick up the phone or go my website. Contact me. Let’s build something real.

Don’t wait for the phone to ring. Make the call.

This Week’s Podcast transcript can be downloaded here for free.