Hello everyone!
I’m currently watching a program called “How I Made My Millions” and it inspired me to finally write this post.
For those of you that don’t know, I run a company called The Afterschool Club; although it’s currently in the process of being shut down.
The first thing people asked me is, why? It was a good idea, and it was an idea that worked! I managed to sign up several partners because I offered them a good deal; I signed up several schools because I offered fantastic programs – I just didn’t enjoy what I was doing!
How I Made My Millions is about entrepreneurs that have earned millions. I find it interesting because it highlights how there is no one path to success! One woman earned her millions making cookies, another guy set up a business selling vegan toothpaste… and then sold it to Colgate Palmolive for $100million! Who would of thought vegan toothpaste was worth so much, eh?
There are so many ways to make money, there really are; and that’s why I shut down TAC; I wasn’t going to be stuck in a business that I didn’t enjoy! And because I didn’t enjoy it, the level of customer service wasn’t where I thought it should be be!
You see, the reason I set up TAC was because I hate awful customer service… I absolutely hate it! So I set up a business designed around delivering fantastic service! Because the service was the best; we were able to charge the most! However, it got to the point that because the customer service was so bad; people started questioning why we were charging so much!
The other reason I decided to shut down, is because the Canadian government told me if I wanted to stay in the country I had to get a proper job… I got said job! Once I got the job, I spent less time running the business, which is another reason why the level of customer service plummeted. Because I was spending less time on the business I was relying on one of my employees to ‘run’ the customer facing parts of the business for me! It didn’t start off too bad, but when I started questioning what he was doing, and why I was not being kept in the loop, he’s response was “They don’t know you, they know me!” – not long after that conversation I decided to cut ties!
Lesson learnt though; when it comes to the customers, make sure they know who you are! I admit that my immigration status made it difficult to run my business, but I really did take my eye off the ball, and in turn, gave someone way too much leverage against me! Never again.
When I was in Uni I said I wanted to run a business to learn some lessons; 2 lessons I definitely learned are:
1. Only run a business that you’re passionate about;
2. Keep your eye on the ball; if you lose track of where it’s gone, it may be very hard to claim it back!
And so there you have it; The Afterschool Club has been fun, but I think I can safely say I wasn’t overly passionate about it, and that started to become quite obvious to a lot of the people involved.
So, thanks to all my supporters, but for now, it’s time to draw the curtains on that chapter of my life! 
Mike.
