Closing Doors

My mind whirls.  I've slept horribly for the last week now.   We are talking everyday about our options and how to get of this business which we've run for over a decade.  We are truly done with this company and with customer service.  JD's resume went out yesterday for that job out West.  The butterflies haven't stopped since I hit send on the fax machine.  It's scary, but exciting too.

This really can't happen fast enough for either one of us now.  We aren't looking at dream jobs, we are looking at money, time, and being challenged once again.  We are looking for anything to get us out of here.   Neither one of us had been really happy here for awhile, but it paid the bills and allowed me to have the necessary time off we needed to have Lola.  It allowed JD no time off.  Working 7 days a week and long hours.  So long in fact that he averaged seeing Lola a 1/2 hour in the morning before we all leave for work.

Once we leave here we will no longer have to deal with employees and their constant complaints and cry baby behaviour.  We have one very loyal employee who has been with us for over 28 years (old family business remember) and the rest are young kids (early 20's) who have this awful sense of entitlement.  This new generation behind us seems to have no work ethic, no manners, and thinks that working for us is doing us the favor.   We are both so tired of 'babysitting' these kids and prepping them for the 'real' world.  Sure we've had some great employees but we've had some horrible ones too and that my friends I am not going to miss.  I have one new employee right now that I can't stand.  He drives me insane.  And if I have to hold onto this business for another 2 months, I am firing him pronto and hiring someone else until I walk away.  (they won't be left jobless, head office will have a floater come in and run the place until someone new can be transferred in.)

I think because we've made the decision that this is the year we walk away from this business it has really made us open our eyes to everything we dislike about it.  It's sad to walk away from a family business that has been in the family for 30+ years, but it's not the same business it was 20 years ago or even 10 years ago for that matter.  It's still an extremely profitable business netting 1.5 million a year, but we certainly are not seeing the fruits of our labor anymore.  

There are plenty of things I'm going to miss.  But I think it's time we closed this door.  And start cracking the window on a new future.  It may not be the future we are envisioning today, because as we know life always likes to throw you a curve ball or two, but it'll be a new adventure with the possibility of brighter days ahead which we haven't had hope for in a long time!  (there is no room for advancement with the company we are with unless we take on more locations equaling a lot more stress and less time at home for not much more money).

JD and I approach this change together with excitement and strength.  We know we can make it through anything as a family.  And we know that we are making these changes for the better of all of our family members.  I just pray that we hear something soon and we can 100% close this chapter.

Here's to better days ahead.

Much Love!

ks