Unorthodox Profession of the Migrant Technical Worker

Mike says:

What's that you say Kendra?? You LOVE the idea of moving on a whim's notice?? And you're upset because we haven't relocated within the last 3 MONTHS ?!?!

Well, I can fix that :)

!! VIVA KINGMAN ARIZONA !!

Thus the life of the migrant technical worker..

I love my wife.. I really do.. I know it and she knows it, but YOU probably couldn't tell if you saw the way I have made her pick up her life and move so often (I think we're up to 4 times in 18 months).. I must be a bad husband because EVERYONE knows that the stereotypical-newlywed-mormon-husband SHOULD have one thing, and ONLY one thing on his mind:

Finishing his formal education so he can get a 'REAL' job

You know what I mean.. Finishing up all those lovely credits, earning that diploma, and then committing to slaving away for someone else at a 9 - 5 pace in order to provide the security blanket (aka salary + benefits) to his honey-bunny plus munchkins..

That makes for a Nice.. Safe.. Plan..

But that plan is NOT for me..

Never has, never will be.. It is just not in the books for me.. Perhaps I am a bit too cocky.. Perhaps I take too much pride in trailblazing my own way through life rather than taking the beaten path.. But for one reason or another, I cannot dedicate my time and effort to building someone else's legacy.. I have always thought that a formal education was insulting because it wanted to train me to commit MY PRECIOUS LIFE to someone else's agenda.. Instead I opted to take the road less traveled, one where my business is committed to MY BUSINESS..

and look at me now!! Businessman extraordinare?!

Well, Not yet..

I've been reduced to taking a step back and working an old job to pay the bills and build up capital for my next project.. It is a very humbling state indeed, considering our current living conditions and financial stability.. But I know that this is a low-point.. I know that we are ALWAYS improving.. Last year, we were flat broke.. 6 months ago, we got caught up on bills and starting making more money than we spent.. As of late, we have kept a modest amount of money in the bank and have a plan to be debt free in another 6 months..

My resume includes one business started, and one business failed.. That's 0-1 in football standings.. Starting Dish Tech required a mere $4,000 investment and I made exponentially more than what I put into it, but still ended up 0-1..

BUT WHAT AN INCREDIBLE RIDE!

0-1 is a completely different league from 0-0, and WOW!! What a trip it was!!

I, Michael B Taylor, kick started a business that made a PROFIT!! I actually paid taxes to Uncle Sam on the profit I made!! What an incredible statement: I was SOOOOO successful, I was actually TAXED for my profit (take THAT recession)!! My business, Dish Tech, sold and installed satellite television for Dish Network.. I think the most satisfactions came when I realized that

PEOPLE WERE COMMITTED TO MY BUSINESS

I set and met goals with my guys to grow and expand.. I experienced days of glory and triumph that were packed with unexpected success..

Unfortunately, I also felt the adversity that comes with unexpected growth; playing hard ball with suppliers, delays from shipping, and accounting for all that cash flow.. I learned from mistakes, minimized overhead costs, and GREW.. It was a beautiful ride, but short-lived.. as it turns out, door-to-door salesmen don't like to knock when there is 12 inches of snow on the ground and Utah gets it's fair share of snow in the winter.. My sales guys eventually left me for 'steady' and 'safe' jobs and Dish Tech went into hibernation.. but -

I CAN'T WAIT FOR ROUND TWO

Before that happens, I want to have my personal finances in order so I can invest the majority of my money and my time into my business rather than monthly payments on personal debt which consists of student loans, car payments, credit cards and such..

I have been working with a company named Dish One as a Installation Manager since last summer to pay the bills and satisfy all of that personal debt.. Dish One is a solid, honest company and they pride themselves on integrity.. Their paychecks are accurate and on time and they are genuinely concerned with their employees / contractors.. As cliche as it sounds, Dish One has been a huge blessing for Kendra and I because we now have a plan that will re-pay every dime we ever borrowed after next summer's program and it will leave us with enough capital to fully invest into Dish Tech..

I HAVE BIG PLANS FOR DISH TECH

I invested the minimum requirement the first time, but next time around I am thinking BIG.. I think of the first time around as a mere dab of the foot in the water to get the feel for it, but my next trip to the rodeo will be a full fledged swan dive from the high dive.. I'm excited :) I'm going to set up shop in Arizona to avoid stepping on Dish One's toes (who has dibs on Utah), as I would not feel honest if I recruited / competed with any of their salesmen.. I am going to recruit a Sales Manager and have him recruit the first batch of salesmen and take them out for Dish Tech's innagural summer program in 2011..

and after that, who knows..? Satellite television is the bomb-dot-com for the time being, but know knows when that gravy train will run out.. But whenever that is, the success we'll have will put us into position to invest into the next big opportunity that comes my way, and I'll be ready..

..and then after we make it, perhaps Kendra might forgive me for living the life of the migrant technical worker..