...My life and business were spiralling out of control.
At that time, my role was a firefighter, not literally...
But my primary responsibility revolved around extinguishing work-related crises here at A1 Garage Door.
I had a small group of four trucks...
...A team of fifteen hardworking employees...
...And my own mom even stepped in as the temporary secretary.
Just when I thought life couldn't throw any more challenges my way...
Everything hit me at once.
Two of my most valuable employees confronted me on the same day about problems I couldn't possibly solve.
My number 1 technician wanted a raise...
And my right-hand person wanted a brand-new truck.
I knew how important it was to keep these guys on board...
But here's the kicker:
It would cost me over $50,000 right away to give them what they needed...
And I didn't have that kind of cash lying around.
That realization hit me like a ton of bricks right in the face.
It was like I couldn't breathe for a moment.
These guys were like family to me, and they truly deserved the things they were asking for.
But I felt like such a loser because I couldn't afford to give it to them.
It was a tough pill to swallow and it left me feeling defeated and overwhelmed.
To make matters even worse...
My business model left no room to reward my incredible team for their hard work.
Although it seemed like our business was doing fine to others...
No matter how hard we worked, our profit margins remained stagnant.
It was like we were stuck in this never-ending loop of the same old margins.
And let me tell you, it was beyond frustrating.
It was like hitting a brick wall, and it left us all feeling frustrated and underappreciated...