It just dawned on me the other day that self-employment has led to some pretty wierd money coming from some strangely unexpected places. I've remarked a few times that now that I own a business, it seems like people just mail me checks now and then for no apparent reason.
I am going to explain this in the context of the fact that I earned less than $30,000 for most of the first years of my career. Pretty much from 1991 thru about 1995. In 1995, I got a couple of raises and took a transfer and promotion, and that put my salary in the $40K range, where I could afford to buy a house and eat something other than $2.00 meals at McDonald's. Before that, though, I didn't make much money. Not in the Army, not in school (though I did pretty well, all things considered) and not for the first few years as a computer programmer.
So, when it comes to wierd money, the first is the money I get from participating in the Navy Reserve. All told, it will probably mean about $8,000 this year. This, by the way, is not entirely different than the total amount of money I made as an E-5 during my last year in the Army.
Granted, I could have served in the reserves all during my adult life, and sometimes I wish I had. However, it is very, very hard to do so and to keep a demanding career going. Although employers wave the flag publicly, military reservists are discriminated against for promotion and hiring in the real world. I doubt I could have risen as far and as fast as I did if I had been serving in the reserves at the same time.
The next big chunk is from credit card rewards programs. Conservatively, I spend about $200,000 to $250,000 a year on credit cards. If I get a 1% rebate on this, that, alone, is $2,000.
Third, I get a rebate on my royalties paid to Servpro if I attend their convention. This is based on how much I pay in royalties, but on the low side, I get maybe $3,500. On the high side, almost $6,000.
So, even when my company is doing poorly, I can get maybe $15,000 a year just from serving in the reserves and getting rebates.
Granted, I couldn't live on that. However, it's not an insignificant chunk of change. I used to work 50+ weeks a year to get maybe $25,000. So, relative to what I used to have to do to earn my living, I am still more than a little impressed that a part time job and a handful of rebates can be so substantial, financially.
On the deployment front, I just saw a short-fused (meaning they need somebody to pack up and leave right now) opportunity that looked great to me. It was for an assistant supply officer for a seabee regiment. I would love to have volunteered for that. However, there were a few things that didn't work out.
First, I'm not sure the commander of my current unit would approve it because it would delay me getting my DAWIA (military contracting) certification. Also, I am supposed to be deploying as a contracting officer, not a supply officer. I think I could talk him into it, but that's one reason against it.
The second reason is that the business really needs my attention right now. I'm putting in longer hours than I have since year two. I'm also doing things (like finding money) that I really can't delegate. I need to be standing in the middle of this thing if we're going to weather this storm.
Third, I want to wait one more year before deploying. At that point, I will be an O-3, which is a difference of about $20,000 a year if deployed. Granted, money isn't the reason I'm in the reserves, but if I'm going to spend a year away, $20,000 is a not-inconsequential chunk of change.
Funny, but I really could use the money right now because business has been so slow. Yet, that's the exact reason why I shouldn't go. I need to be here to get the business through this rough spot.
It's funny how life is hard to read while you're in the middle of it. It's hard to recognize moments for what they are until years later when you have the luxury of hindsight. Every day, people are bringing out their inner hero to address problems they face.
Years from now, when I'm rich again, I will look back on this time the same way I look back on my first year of business: a trial by fire that separated me from those who failed.
In the mean time, it's not much fun, but this is what I was born to do. I was born to own and run a business, and so long as I have the ability, that's what I'm going to do with my life. I have had many minor callings, but this is the life that has always been on my mind for as far back as I can remember.
Now, things are tough and this is where the really capable guys distance themselves from the folks who were just along for the ride.
Granted it takes a certain talent to run the business in the environment I was in from 2005-2009. I took sales from $0 to over a million. I joined the country club and had money to spare every month.
Now, though, things aren't like that. There's just nothing to be done about that. You play the hand you're dealt.
The fit has hit the shan. I need to be the best man in the garbage can right now.
The survival of the business, the jobs of my remaining employees, and the future prosperity of both me and my son depend on it.
The good news is that, again, this is what I was born to do. I can't guarantee I'll succeed. I can guarantee that I stand a better shot than most.
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