For you cleaning employees who have the dream of owning your own business, I encourage you to take the “high ground” and DON’T burn bridges with your current employer. I know that can be a lot to ask. I know that many of you probably feel tired and used. You may even feel disrespected.

 

Planning A Business Change

As we ready ourselves to turn the calendar, it’s a good time for self-reflection and planning. We’ve talked in previous podcasts about NOT making rash decisions. Crossing the bridge to “ownership” means building business the right way and may involve some boot-strapping. Understanding that the nature of life and business includes constant challenge. Some of those are small and simple to handle. Other business changes and challenges will require help.

 

Feelings are Temporary

Those of us in commercial cleaning understand the job is physical and mental. Keeping a good attitude can be tough when you’re tired. Give yourself time to rest and recover. Embrace your nature. Being passionate about having a business or delivering excellent cleaning services will help to fuel you when you ARE tired. But those times can also fuel negative emotions. And THOSE are the kind that rush to burn bridges. Keep a tight grip on how those emotions are expressed. Often, how you feel “right now” will change after some time has passed.

 

Your Current Job Was YOUR Bridge

Remember as you cross the bridge from employee to owner, that what you learned before was given to you by your employer. I know, you earned the time and put in the effort. I respect my fellow business owners and front-line employees who do so. As the owner of multiple companies, I could NEVER accomplish what we do without my staff! By the same token, the people you met and learned from were (and are) a part of your success story. Remember how you received those opportunities. Gratitude goes a long way. It may even reinforce the option for your old boss to refer work to your new business.

 

Work with A Coach Who’s Crossed That Bridge

Becoming “The Boss” sounds very attractive until you discover all the details that come with it. Now, I’m not trying to change your mind. I AM giving you a peek at what’s in store. Learn from everyone who offers you wisdom and experience. And when you find you are at another bridge for growth, you may find the need for a coach who’s already been there. This is a great time to contact me. As a previous ISSA Master Trainer; Owner for multiple businesses; Sales Professional and Previous front line cleaner, I work with owners every week to improve and grow their businesses. If that’s something you want, use the form on this page or contact us here. I look forward to guiding you into your dream job growth in the commercial cleaning field.

 

This Week’s Podcast transcript can be found below.

Ray
We are talking about not burning bridges when you leave an employer.

Joel
Don’t torch ‘em, burn to ashes, never come back!

Ray
I can only imagine the times that having left a job, part of the reason that we leave is because we’re not happy or we see a better opportunity someplace.

Joel
Correct.

Ray
It’s easy to seek what I call a cinematic moment. I would like my big goodbye speech to tell you just how stupid you are to lose me.

Joel
Yes, there are those feelings deep down at times. (And then?) But then when you really think about it, you don’t know if you need to go back to that bridge. I’ve been laid off. I’ve been unemployed. The very first question when you sit down with the unemployment office is, “Why don’t you go back and talk to your former employers and see if you can reapply there?” Get a reference.

Ray
That’s even better.

Joel
Get a reference, yeah. It’s like, No. I burned that bridge. My father always told us, “Never burn a bridge”. Because you do not know when these people are going to come back into your life. One company that I left years ago, they had lost a huge contract, and I almost had survivor syndrome with that one. So, when I left that company, it was more out of survivor syndrome. I felt guilty for being one of the few people that actually still had a job after laying off thousands of people. And then the other one, management and myself, we just didn’t see eye to eye anymore. I had reached the ceiling of where I could be in their company. Because of their size of their company. I felt like I needed to grow. They could see that they were hindering my growth, but I did it the right way. In both cases, I put in a two-week notice. With the first company where I had survivor syndrome, they honored my two weeks. The second company, because of the role that I had with them, I was, in essence, walked out the door that same day because of the information that I was privy to.

And I knew that going in when I put in the two-week notice, but that was their prerogative. But in the back of my head, I knew that was probably going to happen.

Ray
But that was you actually honoring your employment?

Joel
Yes. Where in today’s day and age, that thought process has just left people. They don’t even show up to work. They don’t even tell you. You find out that they’re working somewhere else, and they don’t show up for work. I really think that you don’t want to burn that bridge. Because you don’t know if the grass is going to be greener on the other side. Now in my case, the grass wasn’t really greener on either side when I switched jobs and I looked for other opportunities as they came available. The funny thing is that the companies that I worked for or the people that I worked for that were now in other companies never forgot the respect that I showed them. And now these people have become some of my biggest referrers of work. One of the companies that I had built on a sales side to over a million dollars before I left has continued to grow. A lot of the original clients that I brought to them, they still have. And now they reach out to me because they have so much work that they can’t always get to it. And they know I may not be able to do the work, but they give me that opportunity.

Joel
And I’ve done more work with them in two years than I made in all the years working for them. And I think that’s a true honor. And the fact that they realize that not only did I honor by giving them a two-week notice, but I also didn’t go poach their clients. (That’s a big deal.) A few years back, they took me out to breakfast, and they commented about that and about the level of trust that they have with me because I didn’t poach their clients. He’s usually when you go to another sales job, that’s what they want you to do is poach. But if you’re worth your weight in gold when it comes to a sales position, it doesn’t matter. You should be able to sell anyway and get new clients.

Ray
Agreed. As we talk to the person who might be employed right and is looking to start their own. What specific piece of advice would you give them? They’re going to have to wear a lot of hats. They’re going to be in production. They’re going to be frontline cleaners for a while. We’ve talked to folks about bootstrapping. Starting out slow, have a second stream of income while you’re getting your business started. And they might just be frustrated because they have been where they’re working, they’re not seeing changes. Maybe they’re feeling a little abused, whether it’s reality or not. It’s a demanding job.

Joel
It’s a very demanding job.

Ray
What piece of advice would you give this person.

Joel
Don’t cut off the hand that feeds you. Even though in some states there’s non-competent laws, in some states they’re being challenged and all that, you don’t want to get caught up in a legal battle with your current employer or an employer you may need to go back to later. Because if you treat them right, you don’t know what down the road means. My former employer has generated a lot of additional business for us over the last two years. More business than the first three years my business existed. They’ve brought me more revenue than the first three years combined. And then I have another source where I left, and that gentleman where he works now, they have a very definitive size building that they work with. I can work with the sizes down they don’t do. So, I constantly get work fed to me from them, too. And again, it was because I treated the way that I left correctly. And starting my company, I have done all the right things and have continued to give a very high level of service and a high level of customer service to my clients that they have seen in the workplace, that they I feel very comfortable to offer those referrals to me knowing that, Hey, this person called me because of who I am.

We can’t do it. But here, I trust this person.

Ray
Joel, I think there are a couple of links in this conversation. One that you brought up very specifically. Don’t steal from your employer.

Joel
It’s not just “Don’t go after their clients. Don’t steal their equipment, their materials, their chemicals.” You may think that your employer is dumb. They’re going to figure it out because we know how many microfibers should be in a building. Then when you’re telling me that you need more and how much chemical that you’re using because everything has its life expectancy. We’re pretty smart, so don’t steal from your employer, not the clients, not coworkers.

Ray
The other one that we added around was, what if this gets bigger? Let me set the stage. That person who wants to start their own might simply be thinking, I’m just going to get a couple of accounts. It’ll just be me. It’s not that big a deal. I just need something to feed me. Looking beyond that. In the event that it grows, that means your side gig or your growing business is going to have to survive in the same business community as your previous employer. And they can be a great help or a great hindrance to you.

Joel
Absolutely. I have a client on my consulting side that basically did what you’re talking about. (Do tell.) They had four small janitorial accounts. They were working with another company who hired a custodial company to come in and do the work. It’s a very large piece of business. They had seen a couple of different companies come and go. Saw the problems, and they’re like, Well I can do that.

Ray
That was the impetus for your customer to start?

Joel
Yes. They reached out to me (asking), “How do I go about doing this?” (Honorably.) Honorably, because this individual’s employer was going to become their client. There was a trust level that they had with this individual. So, there was a lot of negotiation going on. And they would call me and say, They said this. I would give them answers, and then eventually, they closed the account, and it was a $300,000 a year account.

Ray
Nice piece of business to start your business with.

Joel
Things have gone very well. Their first month in business, they virtually have had no hiccups, which that doesn’t typically happen with a piece of business that large.

Ray
I wonder if it’s because they have a good coach, Joel!

Joel
Maybe. I don’t know.

Ray
Okay. It seems like what we’ve really talked about is starting the business with integrity.

Joel
Integrity is everything.

Ray
Joel, thank you.

Joel
You’re welcome.