Hello, Clippers!
Dave Tucker here again.
As promised, we’re kicking off the CLIP.com series on starting your own successful lawn maintenance business.
As you may recall from last week’s article, my family is my top priority. Back in 1986, I wanted to earn a little extra money to support them, which is why I started mowing lawns. With my family in mind, I became a team leader, got curious about software, and created CLIP — a state-of-the-art, cloud-based software designed for the unique needs of the lawn maintenance business.
My devotion to my family is what motivated my path to becoming a business owner. Now that I’ve been at it for a few years, I’ve discovered many other reasons why owning a business is an excellent idea. Today, I want to share four of the big ones with you.
It’s never boring
When you’re running your own business, be it lawn maintenance or anything else, there is always something new to learn. I started out simply mowing lawns; over time, I learned how to lead a team and develop software. Once you start down the entrepreneurial path, you will never again suffer from boredom. That’s a promise.
Freedom and flexibility
Owning your own business means setting your own hours. If you’re a morning person, you can get up at dawn and hit the ground running with a fresh cup of coffee. If you’re a night owl, you can focus on your most important projects once your little ones have gone to bed. You can take the afternoon off to cheer on your nephew at his baseball game or the week off to bring your family to Disney World or a national park. No need to check in with the boss.
Bottom line: When you own your own business, you make the rules. You can plan your work around your life and not the other way around.
Contribute to your community
When you run a small business, you create jobs for hard-working people in your community. You pay other small businesses — local banks, restaurants, retailers, and others — for services and products you may need.
Compared to big box stores and national chains, small businesses invest a much higher percentage of their earned dollars back into the local economy.
Your lawn maintenance business plays an active role in growing your community — and that’s something you can feel great about.
Build your legacy
Imagine teaching your children about hard work and professional skills from a young age and giving them the opportunity to help lead the family business when they’re ready. We all strive to leave a legacy behind, and owning your own business sets you on a path to put success directly into your children’s hands—what an incredible gift.
Of course, owning your own business is not without its risks. Many don’t succeed due to poor marketing, limited start-up funds, or fierce competition. But with the right planning, the right tools, and the right team, the good ones make it.
I have two things for you to think about before the next installment in this series on launching your own lawn maintenance business:
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Why do you want to own your own business?
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What obstacles do you need to overcome to make it happen?
One of the best books a budding entrepreneur can read is The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey, and I highly recommend it. One of the seven habits is, begin with the end in mind, and as you consider the two questions above, you’ll be doing exactly that.
Spend some time journaling or talking to a trusted mentor, friend, or loved one. You’ll find it time well spent.
Keep clipping!
Click here for the entire Quick Clip Startup series