Not too many people know that last year I wrote an ebook at the insistence of an individual that I met with who is a business guru. My meeting with her was set up by a good friend of mine. My meeting with her started out a little weird. My friend had told her about my Park project and she wanted to meet with me to what he thought talk to me about finding funding so I okayed the meeting.
She started by asking me a few questions and then really laid in on me because of my answers. She said that I was arrogant and egotistical and I stopped her and put her straight. The meeting lasted about 2 hours and by the end she was singing my praises as one of the most knowledgeable individuals in my industry. She went on to say that just by listening to me and my answers to her questions and my solutions to scenarios that she brought up anybody meeting with me would automatically assume that I earn at a minimum $250,000 per year, but that she was going to bet that I didn't make close to that. She told me that I had become the Walmart of Business Planning and Consulting and in most cases a pro-bono consultant. She told me that I was doing a disservice to my family that I cared more about others than my own wife and children. It hit me pretty hard the realization that although I was helping a lot of people I wasn't getting paid for my work and when I would it was way below market and way below what she perceived my worth to be. She asked my about how much I charged for a business plan and I told her my price and she was blown away by the low cost and said then you must not be any good (trying to drive the point home to me). I told her that most of my clients when they presented their business plans to investors were told that the plan was the most detailed and informationally solid plans that they have ever read. She told me that I needed to start seeing my worth and charging appropriately. She said because of the low cost my clients weren't valuing the information as they should and I was doing them no good by not charging them or charging them too little.
She told me because of my views on finances that I needed to write an ebook and perform seminars. At the end of the meeting I went from being arrogant and egotistical to being an intelligent, confident person who should be hailed as a master in my field. Like I said the meeting was weird.
After the meeting I went home and thought a lot about what she said and I decided to write the book. I did so and left it at that. Recently I decided to have the book published and found a publisher. It is now ready for sale and Amazon is going to be selling it on their site. I was contacted by the Executive Director of the Small Business Development Center who requested to meet with me on how we can collaborate our efforts on helping the small businesses in the Salt Lake Valley and how he might be able to promote the book to his clients and possibly set up workshops and seminars to be given through them. I am pretty excited about the prospect, we shall see how it goes.
I need to get it translated into Spanish because I already have some people in Mexico who are interested in reading it and promoting the book there in Mexico. I am pretty excited about that. Who knows, if I can't get a job maybe I can do something with this and make a difference in the lives of many while supporting my family finally with my knowledge that I've garnered over the years.
My parents are pretty excited that I am a "published" author. It is kind of surreal to look at the book and see my name on the cover. I just hope it does the job at helping someone find the peace that it is meant to help find.
I am grateful to my Father in Heaven because I know that He is the fountain of all that I know. It is only because of His eternal love that I can do what I do. He blesses me with the ability to learn and decipher information. All glory and honor be His continually because I of myself am nothing, but He is great and eternal, and I love Him with all my heart.
