Selamat Hari Raya!
Taking a few days off now. FI had been at my new office to and fro for the last 3 weeks, overseeing the renovation and moving in of furnitures and everything else to get started.
I realized how NOT EASY it is to go brick-and-mortar. Even though I am bootstrapping and my office is very simple for starters – it took me a week longer than I expected and so much for keeping in with the budget. I ended up spending an additional RM12,000+ on top of my original budget due to underestimation and making some mistakes here and there.
However I still count myself a thrifty spender already if compared to other businesses that require high 5 or minimum 6 figure RM just to begin.
The 1,054 square feet office is an open work space area with a common area and balcony outside, overseeing Paradigm Mall and the LDP highway.
I’d like to think of my new office space as a throwback to how MindValley originally started at KL Sentral in 2006 – with some improvements of course.
I am not big about splashing money on all the secondary and tertiary concerns at the moment. Those matter, but only at a later stage. And it’s up to me to grow the business to that level that warrants all the fancy playing.
So… no official logo right now. No fancy carpet (there’s a rug at the common area). No big plasma TV. No huge glass door.
Just going to focus on getting sales first on a company level and hiring a team.
While the trips to the office and other places to buy essentials took place in the day, I spent many of the nights going to events, gatherings and seminars for networking opportunities to build my connections and also understand the B2B game – to be precise, how the world outside Internet Marketing works.
And then figure how I can introduce my online marketing expertise that I have accumulated over the last 9 years to the tables of my new clients.
My brain feels muddled and fried now, and I admit to having little idea as to what to exactly do next, other than knowing I have several options, newly built connections and some rough ideas. Yes, this surprised my business associates who know me for a long time as a detailed planner and thinker.
It’s because I am spoilt with choices now that I don’t know which ideas bring the best, optimal results.
Since my office at present is 95% complete – just the installation of the pantry’s cabinets to go – I’ve decided to just continue hustling after the Raya holidays is over. I trust that clarity will get better over time, as it had always been in the past. Certainly beats sitting around doing nothing.
It so happens that Jeremy Wong (Singapore) and Fukuda Koichi (Japan) happen to be in town so I welcomed my first guests to the office last Saturday. We bounced off some business ideas and got their insights as well.
All in all, exciting times ahead!