Jonathan D. Byrd I
A contemplative in a busy business world.
I learn through experiences, and most of them cost me something. This is where I reason through what they taught me.
Husband, father of thirteen, and Catholic. I started Clean Pro Gutter Cleaning in 2001 as a local service business and built it into a national company without outside money, teaching myself what I needed along the way. I've founded six companies in all. Today I write, and I advise a small number of business owners.
What experience taught me
Most of what I know, I paid for.
- The high cost of debt, and what it does to your mind.
- The cost of scaling without good systems.
- The cost of not knowing how to manage.
- The cost of building a business while trying to raise a family.
- The cost of hiring friends.
- The cost of being nice.
- The cost of not being you.
When the noise stopped
It usually took getting too sick to work before I could see clearly.
The constant build, build, build of business lets you move through life without examining it. When you have nothing "productive" you can do and you have to get away from the noise, you start to see the reality around you.
Looking back, the best parts of my life were the ones I didn't plan, the times I got away from the grind.
What I saw was that I wanted something different from life. Some of it only God can provide. The rest: more time with my family, better relationships with people I respect, to keep learning, to grow in virtue, to be more disciplined, and to make sure my actions corresponded with my beliefs.
At 44, I'm designing a life around who I need to be.
What I'm thinking about
Recent writing
The Trouble With Easy Money: What 1929 Still Teaches Us About Debt
Easy credit can encourage poor decisions, postpone necessary changes, and weaken financial discipline—even when borrowing appears affordable.
Read article →Why Work Is So Easy to Put First
Work gives owners immediate feedback: sales, numbers, solved problems and finished projects. That can make work the easiest duty to choose even when health or another responsibility deserves the next hour more.
Read article →You Are Not Your Business. So Who Are You Becoming?
When your profession becomes your identity, leaving the business can feel like losing yourself. The problem begins long before you decide to exit.
Read article →Why I write it down
A small pebble can ripple across an ocean.
I write to think things through. If something here helps you ask a better question about your life, your family or your company, that's enough.
If you want more than reading
I work privately with a small number of established business owners as an advisor. They execute; I advise, review and help them think.
Interview: Why Successful Owners Never Find Time To Plan, Price of Business with Kevin Price.