Lenny v the girls (+ Z, lmw and James) challenge lose the fat and the debt

ZTD

I do wish you two wouldn't make decisions at 2am-3am...

What you should do is sit down - not an emergency meeting, but properly planned when you're awake, lucid, and not had an argument and decide:

What makes *you* the most money: The drum gigs or working the business.

What will make *you two* the most money: Selling the business with you actively running it, or just as a sum of its parts - with you doing drum gigs.

I would guess your buyers have pulled out, because they no longer see you as competitors, and hence are no longer buying out a competitor. Maybe eating a little bit of their lunch may persuade them that's a bad decision.

ZTD

PeachPickle wrote: »

I'm feeling like a useless lump today, which is pretty normal really as I've just been to see the parents :mad:

You should never feel like a useless lump - because you're not. Makes as much sense as me feeling like a Sõtõ sect Nun from Japan...

Toto

Well, we do potentially make more money from running the business, however we also have to cope with feast or famine cash flow and people going bankrupt on us. So, by me working on the drum gigs and him working on his sound gigs we make a much more regular living, and we do ok.

And, yes, the business would get more if we were running it as a business rather than selling the bits. But, we know that we secure a lot of our business because it's us. Without us in the equation it becomes an entirely different business and our clients know that. We don't hold anyone to contract, they use us on an event to event basis. They could easily use the competition but they choose not to. This is why our buyers suddenly wanted to increase the term we were tied to them for, in fact they want 3 years but we have an agreement from one of the partners that he would accept 18 months.

So, in a nutshell our choice was to pull out before the contracts are exchanged on Tuesday or accept the terms, OH turn down the position he's been offered and I pretty much need to stop working my sessions. We needed to sit down and thrash it all out last night because we're like ships in the night at the best of times and although we're working together tomorrow it's pretty hard to discuss this stuff when we're supposed to be giving our attention to the band.

I've been struggling to find the point in continuing our business when our individual careers have suddenly pushed us both in different directions. It was great when we both worked the business 100% but so much has landed in our laps we wouldn't turn it down. I hope we've made the right choice; it was one we made together though so right or wrong no one will resent the other. It's all just a case of horrible timing.

ZTD

Could you run it without the OH?

Even if you could "buy-in" help?

Does it need much running during the "famine" parts?

Toto

I pretty much do run it without the OH but I do need him to design the sound systems. I work on the lighting rigs so we both need to be involved. It isn't that the work is feast or famine it's the cashflow. We can go 4 months with no one paying us, then they all pay at once. It's a pain in the bum and there isn't a solution without factoring which costs a fortune and annoys the client. Even companies who've been around 25 years + have the same problem. Of course we still need to pay the engineers before we get paid so it gets really rough at times. I very rarely have to wait for more than 5 weeks to be paid for a drum gig, same with OH. It'd be nice knowing that we don't have to stress about working to pay people until our clients pay us.

I'm going to speak to a business broker tomorrow and see if we can get it sold that way. If OH didn't have this once in a lifetime job offer there'd be no question that we'd just carry on as we are, but he does.

sammy115

Toto, I feel for you love.. I am not sure I totally understand half of what you are on about, but I do understand that you have had to pull out of two things that would have made a massive difference to your lives.

However, it seems that the people buying your business were asking just too much for you to compromise.. It seems it would have made you miserable and resentful so if it is any consolation I do think you have done the right thing.. In fact you have made the decision, no good wondering if it is the right thing, just make the best of the situation.

Hope the meeting witht the business broker goes well.......

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!{BIG HUGS}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}

elantan

just a quick on tonight i put on 2.5 lbs not too bad after being away two weeks (i think i put more on but this was from the last weigh in i gave here) SORRY WILL TRY HARDER

Snaggles

Toto wrote: »

It's all just a case of horrible timing.

Definitely not good in your line of work...;)

I'm sorry things didn't work out as planned Toto, I hope you are both really happy with the decision you've made though - and with regard to the move to the US, remember you're not saying 'not ever', just 'not yet'.

ps I haven't weighed in.....I daren't

Burlesque_Babe

no change for me this week. Bum.

Away from tomorrow until Friday night, which is going to mean a few naughty treats.........ah well, it'll be worth it

Toto, it just wasn't the right time for you - it will be one day. Been thinking of you.

Toto

No change for me either, you know 5 years ago I found it much easier to lose weight. I probably do more physical stuff now and try to keep my diet sensible but the weight hangs around now. It seems once I hit 30 something everything slowed down.

Where are you off to keren? I hope you have a great time where ever it is, enjoy yourself and don't worry about naughty treats. You only live once after all.

Thanks for the thoughts, obviously 'life' didn't quite agree with our plans and has something else in store. It's all an adventure isn't it, I just hope the poverty chapter is over, I flippin hate most of the tesco blue stripe value range:rotfl: