Written by Jeffrey R. Armstrong – President/Owner of Armstrong Capital
Your favorite Master Note Buyer – Straightforward, Honest, Fair…
(Written in 2006)
If you’ve been following my articles this year I have been laying out a foundation for your success. I gave you a Self Confidence formula and then wrote about the focus that is needed, continued with the underlying desire that is required to succeed the Effort that you need to put in to be successful and finally the factors that tie it all together and make it work are the underlying Knowledge and Skill that you will build upon as your business grows. Once things are growing steadily you can then begin incorporating your family into the business.
When I started this business I had no idea that it would be a life changing event, for me and my family. Nineteen months from the time I started the business I quit my job. At that time my oldest daughter was two and a half and my youngest was going to be born in a few months. And as the years went by and the girls grew up I have slowly encouraged my wife and daughter’s to assist me in the business. Never pushing them but just nudging and suggesting things for them to do with and for the business.
It started out when they were around five years old with licking, stuffing and stamping envelopes for our direct mail campaign. When they got tired of that I had them sticking labels and stamps on postcards. When that started to get boring I taught them how to file and keep track of expenses in ledger books. As the years progressed I would give them more and different things to do when they were not busy with school work and their extracurricular activities.
Today at the age of 16 and 12 ½ they are still doing all of the above, when time permits, as well as updating the website, managing our lists and internet marketing. Granted, they may only spend a couple of hours a week on things but they help out when they want to and more often than not most of the time they are asking me what they can do.
If you attended the convention in Atlanta this year or if you purchased the audio recordings you may have seen or heard my oldest daughter doing a presentation with me entitled “Cash Flow for Teens”. In that presentation, we talked about how she is currently marketing to business brokers for business notes on the internet.
She started this effort in January of 2005 and currently has 8 closed transactions attributed towards her efforts. She has sent out over 5000 emails, one by one, to various business brokers across the country. The email directs them to go to our website and educate themselves about what we do and how we can help their current clients and their past clients that have carried back a note as part of the proceeds of selling a business. I in turn follow up with the business brokers, speak to them when they contact us, on the phone if they call, return their emails and educate them about the options that are available to their clients. When there is a fit they then refer their clients to me and I try to assist them.
Once my younger daughter saw that the older one was making money from what she was doing for us she started to do the same. I will point out that I do not yet let them talk to anyone over the phone. I do all of the work after they send out the initial contact email. However, it at least starts to get them involved with the business a little bit more.
My older daughter is now learning how to properly fill out a worksheet (both business note and real estate note worksheets) and why the information on the form is important. They have both been able to operate the calculator since they were about eight years old and can calculate out a payment amount on a note and the current balance on a note.
What are our plans for the future? Well, my oldest daughter is planning on becoming the youngest member of the million dollar club (hopefully in 2007). The youngest one has yet to close her first transaction but she is not giving up. They will both attend college when it is time and get the well rounded education I think everyone should have. However, they will also have a firm understanding of reality and how life works in the real world. If or when they decide that they want to continue with Armstrong Capital I will welcome them with open arms. If not, that’s ok, because I am laying the foundation for the rest of their lives and know I will have taught them about money, positive cash flow and the power of passive income.
Stay positive, keep marketing and never stop until you succeed. TWITA!