Advice From a Longtimer

The Super Organizer has been in business 15 years and he shares his thoughts about being an entrepreneur. alottofhelp.com

Episode Transcript

(00:02):
Ali. This is the Super OrganizerShow with James Lou Junior. That's Sweat
Show at James D. Junior.It is for twenty four, twenty four.
And I when I talk to youa little bit because IVE be gain
a lot of questions about this,a bout being in business for a long
time, in the organizing business andwhat it feels like. I always want

(00:22):
thanking gratitude first, like it basicgratitude to everyone who's ever watched the show,
listen to the show, been onthe show, shared the show.
Comment on the show, nearly nineyears of doing this, it'll be in
June, it will be nine yearsso month and a half or so,

(00:43):
and so heading towards ten years sincedevelopment. And I posted on one of
my social media account for here wasI found a video of me on my
first day going in to do it. It was like, oh my god,
I forgot all about that, allthese memories, and I'm just amazed
on some level that I have amasked the kind of many mini empire that

(01:07):
I have, and so thanks andgratitude to all that everybody's support of me.
I actually have three books out.It's called Follow My Leads. You
go to Amazon and get them.And my friend Caesar Espino and I wrote
three books on different stages of ourbusiness and being entrepreneurs. We just finished

(01:27):
our fourth book, which will beout soon, so stay tuned. I
will be out soon, and thatwill also give you more insight to how
I've run my business, how He'srun his business during pandemics and viruses and
all kinds of stuff, so you'llget But those books we tell you the
truth and shame the Devil. Wetell you exactly what it's like for some

(01:48):
of us out there in the world, because I don't believe it share coding
stuff or making it sound like,oh my God is wonder if owning is
great or I'm not doing gloom either. It's just it's owning a business of
any kind as a matter of whatI feel it is or what it is
you're doing. It's many things,and it's many emotions, and it's many

(02:09):
feelings, and it's many it's manyeverything, and it's just so there's just
so much to it. And Ithink that for us we need to explain
and share with you guys out therewho are maybe have not been in business
as long, or or you've beenbusiness as long as I have and are

(02:30):
just like, it's this normal.A lot of stuff is normal. Ups
and downs. That's the one thingthat to everybody all the time. Ups
and downs will happen. There's andbut I it was the funning when I
first started. Yeah, there wereinfluencers out there kind of but you had
to go, you had to payto go to their seminars or things and

(02:53):
see them. Now we have socialmedia. That in business fifteen years so
now we have social media, socialmedia. Everybody, everybody quotes, everybody
is an influencer or business coach orwhatever. Some of us go to school,
which I did, and god trainingand certifications and knowledge, actual practical

(03:19):
knowledge, and also just doing it. That's that's life. Experience is just
as important as long as you payattention. But now everybody telling you,
Okay, if you do it thisway, you'll be rich. We do
it that way, you'll be successful. You do it this way. It's
like people are you know, peopleare trying to find a quick way to
do it, you know, andsome there are some out there who really
are like myself, really are tryingto help you, and you have to

(03:43):
really weed through all of that.I think most of you are smart and
will know that when after you startyou're with somebody, you could tell if
they're full of crap or not,or that their way doesn't work for you.
I say, it's just like bringprofessional organizer or a life coach.
You can vet them, you cantry different ones. You don't have to

(04:04):
you can you can interview them.You don't have to go. You know
how. You can consult them andlike and as I'm doing to you,
and ask questions to see if you'rea good fit. And for me,
I've had people I would tell themI'm not a fit for you. I
listen, I'm not interest for themoney. I don't want to because I
don't want you to hire me andI can't help you the way you want

(04:29):
and you won't win anyway. JustI'm just taking your money. I will
narrow do that. Same with organizing. I don't do horder houses anymore and
that kind of stuff that's just notfor me. I will pass you on
to somebody else. There's certain criterianow that in fifteen years I don't have
to do. I don't clean,I don't do so, I don't do
handiwork. It's like there's certain thingsI don't do because I don't have to,

(04:49):
and that's just, you know,my choice. So I just said,
of all the time, there's there'sthere's things you have to kind of
you. You have to kind ofbe sincere to yourself and true to yourself
because your clients can seize right throughit. They can people can tell I
do if you're being sincere or not. But being a long timer and fifteen

(05:11):
years is the time I say anythingyou know, five years is good,
ten years is great versus ten years. Okay, you're on your way,
but I think after ten years it'sold. In a story, fifteen twenty
twenty five, you're somewhere in themiddle of you are. You're non newbie,
you're not ancient either, but you'rea longtimer. You're in there,

(05:33):
and you've been in business for enoughtime. You've gone through several decades,
You've seen changes, and chances areyou're a little older. So depending on
when you start your business and whereyou are in fifteen twenty years, I
started in my forties, well Isee late thirties now in my mid fifties.
That changes too. Your life changes, Kids get grown up, you

(05:56):
get grandkids, aging parents may comeinto the picture, downsizing yourself maybe happening.
Moves may happen, So all kindof stuff can happen when it comes
to while you're having a business andyour life. So I always say that
there are there are things that arereally crucial to people on long time business

(06:26):
that are different than newbies or peoplewho are just are people who are theres
A lot of the needs are different. You know, we may be trying
to slow down, we were tryingto cut jobs, trying to cut how
much we do. It's doing themwhen you're young and hungry and you're just
starting, that's a that's a differentstory. But when you been in business

(06:48):
for a while, you maybe youmight be like, well, you know,
now I'm not I'm trying to I'mtrying to like let go. Or
there's just like I said, certainneeds are just doing for you know,
when are you getting older? Alsoin some cases you maybe try to expand.
You're like, okay, it's beenten years, twelve years, now

(07:09):
I want to expand, And I'mlike that's that's that's it. There's no
story too. So I don't know, it's it's just it's a it's a
different world, and I just dothings in there. I've enjoyed being a
business. I like being my ownboss. I can do things however I

(07:29):
want. It's my business. Andbut I'll tell you there are things I
do miss Sometimes sometimes I'm like,I don't I don't want I make should
I say this? There are timesI do miss having so make a decisions
for me. I'm my decision.There are times when I miss not having

(07:58):
vacation pay. You have to makeit up for you where it's done for
you. You have to you haveto send everything up yourself, so if
you don't work and get sick,you have to set up yourself. But
there are times I wish that someoneelse did all the accounting, all the
paperwork, that kind of stuff.And you can, I mean, as
you know, at some point youcan hire that if you want you and
to get that going. But youknow what I mean, Like, there's
sometimes when I had jobs where allthat was taken care of. All I

(08:22):
do is focus on the job.Right now, I have to focus on
the job and the budgeting and ofthis and of that, and the payroll,
and it's it's a lot to dowhen you're a small business and I'm
not looking to expand because I'm trying. I'm actually going to do less.
I mean, I have I havetwo business I'm running right now. I

(08:43):
kind of I needing insidy to bethere for my mom, I have grandkids.
I mean, there's things that Idon't I don't want to work as
much. So there's that also,So I've been hiring people to help.
I don't hire anybody yet to liketake over. That's the thought also in
your long time business owners. Okay, well when do I down but continue
the business? And when do Ihead over somebody else to run. There's

(09:05):
a lot of things that come inand I'm kind of I'm out there yet.
I was like, I got alot of I gotta work a lot
of years. But there are thingsthat I am thinking about. You know,
the next ten years, I'll besixty five. Twenty years, i'll
be seventy five. You know,like what does that mean for me at
that point? Because of an organizingworld, especially you want forever this is

(09:26):
this and people always need to organizedwhatever. I'm in a big city of
lam I can have business all thetime in which I do. So it's
kind of like that's not the problemeither because I'm a longer I'm a longer
timer, and I'm like, Idon't want to work as much. I've
pared down how many people I've hadand how many things. I'm just I'm
just like, yeah, I waslike, I'm talking another question. People

(09:50):
were asking me, Uh, whatdo I do when people look at you
are question your business or question howyou do business? Especially mean when you're
finding a long time, what doyou try to get you suggested you think
you should do? That's always atough one. I think I did a
show on that on some folks.I have mentors, I have people like

(10:15):
that do go to for stuff,and everyone's while someone comes up with a
great idea that I've implemented in myin my business, I'm like, oh,
yeah, that's a great idea,but I don't. I don't.
I don't ask for advices I needit, and I don't give advice unless
I'm asked to me. I havemy business. I run however I want.
You, it's my business. Ido however want And if you don't

(10:39):
like the way I do it,or you think I should do it this
way, and I say it's allsubjective, Oh why don't you do this
or why don't you you know,why aren't you. I can influence yourself
and post videos of you thinking ahouse like that's not what I want to
do and that's not who I am. There are folks who do that and
works for them. It's like everybody'sdifferent. My responses idea is we'll get
your own businesses. We're mature stuff. Don't worry about what I'm doing over

(11:03):
here. But folks will always That'swhen I just learned. People will always
tell you stuff we always do.I'm unsolicited or not. They will always.
There are people out there who justcan't help themselves. They will be
like, well, you know,you think it's a good idea to do
it that way, and you justdefend yourself. It's your business. You
don't have to answer anybody. That'sthe whole point. Get your own business.

(11:24):
We won't run your business. Didyou do it your way? So
there's always that whole thing of watchingoff for those folks who are telling you,
if you do it this way,you'll be successful. Plus those folks
who tell you you should do itthis way. You're like, but I'm
already successful. I'm fine. Ihad someone to ask the other day,
why do you need the insurance business. There's lots of money in it.
I'm like, it wasn't my passion, and it was kind of like,

(11:48):
like with my passion, I'm notin it just for money, you am
I trying to do work just formoney. I did that job because I
needed a job. I was helpingout a friend at first. I stayed
for eleven years. I stayed waytoo long. It was not my passion.
I respect the genre, it's thegenre. I respect the industry that
people are in it who do it, and but for me, it was
just a job. It was nota career or a passion. For me.

(12:11):
What I do now is a passionatecareer and so I and so maybe
I'm making less way than I wouldhave was insurance. People are like,
Jane, you're a sales fer.You should be like, I don't want
to do sales. Yeah I cando sales. I've done sales in a
mask. That's just not me.That's not I'm not trying to be like
everybody else. I have my ownstuff. I do buy my own lane,
and that's why I do, andthat's what I think. That's my

(12:33):
advice to everybody. Just you knowyou're gonna get all kinds of stuff thrown
at you from people, whether theybelieve in you, don't believe in you,
question, you don't question, Youtalk crap abouts. You don't know
anything. You're gonna hear all kindsof stuff. You have to stay at
the course you want to set foryourself. If you want your business a
certain way, do it. Mistakeshappen, but you have to learn it.

(12:56):
You have to learn it. Iwant tell people if something doesn't work
that I've tried, it's on me, because now I won't resent you because
you said you should try it.This I try. It doesn't work.
It doesn't work for everybody. Butmy own thing is I don't it's my
business. I don't want to it'sme. I will succeed or fail on
my own. Also to those anotherquestion I get all the time is to

(13:20):
those who at least the most thingyou think is a hobby of a part
time Again, how you sending business? You're a business, however common,
It would depend on what kind ofsuccess you have. Some organizers have it
as a part time business and theymade the parameters and it's working for them.
They like on the weekends. Ido this during the week I have

(13:41):
my regner job or it works.It works as it works, and there
are others who don't have success,like why am I getting more successful?
And I want to? You haveto get leap of faith. That is
just anything you do, you haveto just go, okay, I'm going
for it, and just go forit. I always believe that when your
energies are all devoted to this onething, the chances are it will happen.

(14:05):
When your energies are scattered acrawl,you're like from over here, kind
of my foot's over here, myfoot's in you over here, kind of
that you don't that's really happen.That's that's just my opinion on that.
But I just think that it's youhave to kind of you have to leave
I fainth things go Okay, I'mgonna do this and really sit around it
and really assess your life and what'sgoing on. Before you do that,

(14:28):
of course, you might find outyou can do it and with deal,
here's a tie line. Okay,I'm going yourself a year. It doesn't
pick up. When nothing happens,then I'll just that's it. But some
of us, this is we foundour calling being business owners and being entrepreneurs
and you can also modify your businessanother thing too, Nothing is set in

(14:50):
stone. You can always edit andmodify your business, business plan, business
model, business services. You candrop things, add things. That's the
smartest things. There are things Idon't do any more that I did fifteen
years ago, and there are thingsthat I do that I did do fifteen
years ago. So I mean itjust it can it can change. And
also we know for us we hada pandemic, so maybe of us had

(15:11):
to change. Then in La wehad strikes. Someone's had to change.
There's some outside things that happened toweather. It can make you change,
extreme weather conditions, all kinds ofhealth issues. You might have to pivot
and change. So I think it'sagain, it's fine. It's totally fine.
Nothing is set in stone, likenothing. You can change names,

(15:33):
titles, services, businesses, moneyamounts. Here are you want whatever you
want. There's a lot of ailways. Said you guys right now by saying
give up books, follow our leads. There's three books. The fourth one's
coming out soon and I'll be postingthem on here when the fourth one comes
out Amazon. James hot Junior,Caesar Rspina checked those out. Then of

(15:54):
course just check out the show.I mean I talked to all these professionals.
My other show too, a lotof help with James Lott Jr.
And sometimes I have professionals on extraconnections with James lor. We talk about
all this stuff. We talk aboutall of it and just give you us
something. Just give we give youthings to think about if you're in the
business or think about going in abusiness. For yourself. I think it's

(16:17):
I thought it was for other people, got no misconception, but it was
for me. I'm James lot Juniorsuper Organizer. Is on allia platforms.
I was there. This show isaudio and video audio. It's on every
streaming service platform and on video.It's at jail Jake Media on YouTube.
Everyone take care of yourselves and let'stalk to you later.