My Story

byStephenFarr

253 followers

11 years ago

My name is Stephen Farr and I live in Grid City AKA Milton Keynes

I am 32 years old and have 4 children.

I have been trying to make money online since 1999 when dial up took for ever and tied up the phone line in the house.

For the last 7 years I have been working as a car salesman for a couple of local car dealerships. In my last post I got heavily involved with the online marketing of that company. I set up the Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Foursquare accounts, ran the company website, even setting up a Ebay motors account to maximise exposure. This would include making sure all the stock was advertised and that the current adverts were being promoted and upto date.

Then in March 2012 I saw an advert for a Online Marketing Sales Executive! Going out to meet potential clients on prebooked appointments to offer them the companies Online Marketing Services. Fantastic Just the job I wanted it could not of been more perfect. It was less hours than I had been working, so meant that I would have weekends off with my family. The post also promised more money. Well I got the Job, I said goodbye to my 56 hour a week job and my company car and started my new position the begining of May 2012.

New Job New Start!

My first day was great a training day with 3 of the new companies clients, excellent I thought the course was all day with a break for lunch. During the 8 hours there was only 3 points all day that I did not already know about or tools that I had already used. So as the new guy I thought I am in the right place here I know everything that the job can offer me I know everything that the business can offer potential clients so I was in a good place.

Within the first 2 weeks in this post the office team of 2 web developers, 2 telesales agents the boss and myself had diminished to me the boss and 1 developer??? Oh dear what have I done.

Over the next 2 weeks things did not get better my job of going to see customers and closing deals had changed to me now on the phone cold calling clients to make my own appointments.

Then on the 7th of June 2012 when I turned up to work I found the office that I had been turning up to each day in darkness everything gone :( As I turned around to walk out of the building my boss called me from behind a door of a room that I had never even noticed before when I went in I saw why it was no bigger than my downstairs bathroom. Things were not looking good.

My boss explained that things were not the best and if I wanted to continue working for him then the terms of my contract would have to change. I would need to work 6 days a week instead of 5 and work on commision only?? That was the end of that job.

Now in my working carrear I have only ever been sacked twice.

I was dumb struck at first thinking what do I do now? but then it hit me I can do everything that this company does myself.

I can build websites.

I can build Facebook applications

I understand and am active in all the major Social Media outlets.

I can help people with their Online Marketing be it via articles, Facebook Ads or Google Adwords I can do it.

The biggest kick in the teeth when I lost that job was that I had given somebody else the power over my life to decide if I was paying my rent this month, feeding my kids and all the other luxuries that money brings.

So that was it from that day I decided that I wanted to work for myself doing what I know and enjoy which is helping businesses, charities and professional people to succed online. Also by working for myself it all stops with me if the rent does not get paid or my kids don't eat it is because I did not try hard enough or put enough effort into it.



So that is me thank you for reading my story on how I got here. I look forward to hearing yours

Take care Speak Soon

Stephen Farr