The Weight of the Keys

It's a massive day for me today as I set out on a totally new adventure. We got the keys to our new studios yesterday, which has put me in a reflective mood, so let's start with some background.

All my life, the men in my family have owned small businesses: my grandfather, my uncle, my dad, my stepdad and both my fathers-in-law.

My Grandfather

After leaving the Navy after WWII, my grandfather worked at a regional bank in Memphis for quite a while before setting up his own real estate business, "Germantown Real Estate". (no points for originality; he was a practical man)

He sold up and retired after building that into the city's largest and most successful real estate company. But after a few years, he got bored and went on to open (of all things) a swimming pool business that sold chemicals, pool maintenance, etc., and (because I was into BMX bikes and he saw the potential of a rapidly growing market) he sold BMX bikes as a side business. "Pool & Pedal" became "Germantown Bicycle Shop" ← again, very practical - like his real estate agency, it became the second largest bicycle shop in Memphis.

My Uncle

My uncle ran his own development company building houses and eventually spent the better part of 20 years working for Habitat for Humanity in Tennessee, Texas and Arizona. He was even on Oprah's TV show talking about it. (You can still find it on YouTube if you look hard enough.)

My Dad

My dad was a radio DJ on the station KAND in Dallas for many years before setting up a series of small businesses - everything from being a tree doctor to a picture framing business (Picture City) in a mall to running a pool hall (Rack Em Up) and finally a fuel delivery business.

My Step Dad

Through a bit of luck, my stepfather made a ton of money on some property he owned and ended up buying an auto tyre business in Phoenix that he successfully ran for several decades.

My Fathers-in-law

One had a series of successful businesses in Chicago, including a chain of 16 liquor stores, a liquor distribution business and a chain of local travel agencies up on the North Shore.

The other one has been a Chartered Accountant for 56 years, running his own accountancy business.

Where do I come in?

I worked for almost all these businesses at some point (as good family members do), and I've had my own consulting company, Futurehand, for 20 years.

NB - The company's birthday is actually on May 15, 2025, which is a major achievement in itself.

I spent the first part of my career as a travel agent, helping people make travel arrangements before the internet was a thing, and we've been forced to do it ourselves. Being a travel agent is 90% customer service and 10% industry knowledge, no matter what anyone will try and tell you, and this is where I learned to deliver above-average customer service.

I went on to work in 'tech' where I ran teams of consultants delivering professional services for a series of startups in the US and the UK, many of which were hugely successful and/or sold to larger companies.

So why am I telling you all this?

Good question.

Talking to people on the phone and/or over the internet is great and can be hugely rewarding. SaaS businesses are all the rage, particularly now in the age of AI. However, having a physical local business where people come from around your area to your location, and you work and interact with them is an entirely different ballgame than selling software.

It's an entirely different skill set that I'm very much looking forward to using again. I love interacting with people in person and making customers happy. IMHO, there's nothing better than that.

Getting the keys to my own physical space where I'll work intimately with people, helping them be successful and be the best they can be, is an honour I'm not taking lightly. I'll be honest, I didn't expect to be emotional about it, but here we are. "Reflective" might be a better word for it, but whatever it is, I'm down.

Onwards and upwards!

May 9, 2025