It’s hard to believe it’s been almost eight years since I sold my small web development company to Brant and joined Kelsey Advertising & Design. I thought I would stay at Kelsey for a year, maybe two at the most. Year after year, we have continued to work on interesting and challenging projects, for some really great clients both locally and all over the country.
We’ve done some really amazing things while I’ve been at Kelsey… built the first mobile website for McDonald’s (coincidentally the first mobile website for any quick service restaurant franchise), built out a system architecture and server infrastructure to process millions of transactions in a single day, wrote a book, traveled the world speaking at conferences and organizations about online marketing, and most recently worked on the infrastructure and architecture of a new startup targeted at franchise companies. And those are just the highlites.
But all great things come to an end, sooner or later.
I’ve been an entrepreneur and business owner since I was a teenager. I’ve started several businesses, merged one, sold one, shut one down, and built 2BigFeet.com into a multi-million dollar business. I’ve never been the type to punch a clock. But for the past eight years, I’ve been leading a double life. By day, I was an “eight to fiver” punching a clock and earning a living that supported our family. And in the evenings and weekends, I would work on growing our business. Having a stable income allowed us to reinvest in the business, growing much faster than we otherwise could have, especially in the early days.
But after almost eight years, the entrepreneur in me was screaming to get out. And 2BigFeet has grown to be a very successful business, capable of supporting us and needing more and more of my attention. Friends and colleagues would often ask me, “why are you still working a day job?” and I’d usually respond “because I love it!” But one day, I realized I didn’t love it anymore. I yearned for new and exciting challenges, for the thrill and uncertainty of entrepreneurship.
It’s been both challenging and rewarding, and I value the experience I’ve gained while at Kelsey, but it’s time for me to start the next chapter of my life.
In the immediate future, I plan to devote more of my time to 2BigFeet. I’ve neglected it for so long, and it needs my attention especially now going into the busy holiday season. I am also going to be writing and speaking more, and am excited to have two upcoming speaking engagements already booked. But sometime after the first of the year, I’m going to figure out how I want to write the next chapter.
It’s exciting, and a little terrifying, to leave a great paying career for the uncertainty of blind entrepreneurship. I could have waited until I figured out what was next… but I feared if I tried that, I’d wake up one day to find another two or three years passed. Instead, I opted for the less secure, but more adventurous path in life.
Thank you to all of the people that have made a difference in my life and career over the past eight years. Thank you to my wife Tracy, all my coworkers, clients, colleagues and friends over the years for all your encouragement, support, and friendship. It really means a lot to me.
Now, let’s get this party started!
It’s time! Congrats.
[…] Leaving Kelsey Advertising & Design was one of the hardest decisions I’ve ever made. I never imagined when I sold my little web development company in 2006 that I’d stay there eight years. In fact, I really thought I’d work there a year or two and move on to something else. We did some amazing work at Kelsey, and I learned a lot there. But everything comes to an end eventually, and I really felt it was time to move on. […]