Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Carrielynn Fournier . We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Carrielynn , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today One deeply underappreciated facet of entrepreneurship is the kind of crazy stuff we have to deal with as business owners. Sometimes it’s crazy positive sometimes it’s crazy negative, but crazy experiences unite entrepreneurs regardless of industry. Can you share a crazy story with our readers?

I recently encountered the most unprofessional “professional” while on a job site.

My small business, Busy Bee Cleans, works with local construction firms and contractors, many of whom are well known in the area for their professionalism and excellent craftsmanship. As soon as a new build and/or a new remodel is ready for completion, the project manager reaches out to me to schedule a walk-through of the site and from there, an estimate is written up, submitted, and we schedule the post-construction cleaning service.

A newer construction firm wanted to work with us again. Let me rephrase, a newer firm to my business. They’ve been in business 30+ years and seemed to have a good reputation. The job I did for them went smooth and they paid their invoice immediately. My business is tiny, and payments received on time and in a timely manner definitely matter.

Well, they are ready to work with us again! Woohoo I thought, another firm believes in my tiny business to provide quality cleanings for their clientele.

The project manager reached out to schedule the walk-through. I made a note that I haven’t worked with this site manager before. Cool, another person to meet and network with.

The day of the walk-through, the project manager forgot about our appointment. I am already on site. Me being me, I provided the walk-through without him.

Later that evening, I put together the estimate and stated we could be available the week they’d be completed. I was told completion would be 5-weeks out. I thought to myself, a month plus is plenty of time for all parties involved. I hit send on the email and immediately flagged the account. Flag read: no-show from site manager.

Three weeks later, the site manager reaches out to schedule the post-construction cleaning. In those three weeks, I thought to myself, it’s strange I haven’t received a confirmation and/or correspondence. Well, here he was, 1.5 weeks out and ready to confirm the cleaning service. Luckily, the service date was still available.

Here we are, day of the cleaning service. Pulling into the driveway, I see tradesman vehicles. Two electricians are on site doing work. Per my terms and conditions, the site must be un-occupied during the cleaning process. The electricians immediately state that they will be wrapping up in a few minutes. I’m a tad disappointed that the project manager did not communicate with me that work was still being done. But, I was not surprised. Remember, the account was flagged. I bite my tongue and continue to unload our equipment. While inside, a guy comes up from the basement and I introduce myself as the cleaner. He looks me up and down and says “I remember you” and then walks away. I was taken aback by the entire interaction. I thought, I don’t know this guy and I’ve never met him. I also thought, what a rude jerk, he didn’t shake my hand! I wander down the hall and say out loud “so who’s the project manager ?” The electricians state it’s not them and then the rude jerk states he’s the guy! I ask, “when will everyone be wrapping up?” my question was met with a condescending undertone of a reply from the site manager. I looked at the site manager and I let him know it was unprofessional not to shake my hand or introduce himself when I let him know who I was. He interrupted me and said I came in with a certain attitude. I looked at him and I said “Sir, don’t gaslight me” he stood there dumb founded. I walked away and went outside. I needed to cool off!!! I came back inside and he wants a “do over” his words. I said to him “ I no longer want to be here, and I sure as hell do not want to pick up after you, however, I don’t work for you, I work for your employer”. Those were my last words to him. I got to work and he finally left the job site. The job got done and the invoice was sent. My tiny business didn’t get paid for almost 4 weeks. I had to reach out directly to the dispatcher to receive payment. I’ll never work for that construction firm ever again!

I can only speculate that the site manager was a misogynist and didn’t respect my rate. He had no idea who I was or what I represented, now he knows!

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I started my tiny business in 2019 after being fired from my dental assisting career. So, there I was, job-less and needing something new that I could call my own. So, I took my severance package and started my cleaning service. I had big plans for the business at first, but, COVID put things into perspective for me. After much trial and error, I realized being small is where I’m most comfortable and that it’s ok to be unconventional. Acts of service keep me humble. I don’t have time for stigmas or stereotypes. For the most part, our clientele are like-minded individuals. However, if we’re not on the same page, I will professionally vocalize it and respectfully move-on.

Have you ever had to pivot?

I had injured myself on the job back in 2022. I was down and out for 8-weeks. The first week I was a ball of stress. I had never slowed down in my life. After the second week, my mind settled and then my soul. I started spending more time outdoors. I realized the down time was the best time. I did some soul searching during that time too. After I was healed, my schedule was evaluated and working less was my top priority. I managed to adjust my schedule according to me and my needs. Finally, the perks of being your own boss! Money is not everything, not to me, not anymore. Time, time is everything!

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

My social audience came from the Pandemic. While most were at home, I was out busting my chops cleaning houses for real estate agents while the housing market was “HOTT” during 2020/2021. I shared on-the-job content day after day. Creating content became another piece of my business and before you knew it, we were getting views and followers. At first it was about marketing the business to the local area. Marketing on Instagram helped significantly. After some time, I realized other cleaning services were following our account from all over the world. We were building a community! A cleaning service community, how beautiful. I enjoy connecting, however, building a huge online presence is not what I’m all about anymore. Posting everyday is not top priority. Our social presence is what it is now, lol. The only advice I have, before and after pictures are everything!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.busybeecleans.com
• Instagram: busybeecleans_ma

Image Credits

Tiffany Chapman