We recently connected with Thomas Dowd and have shared our conversation below.

Thomas, appreciate you joining us today. Getting that first client is always an exciting milestone. Can you talk to us about how you got your first customer who wasn’t a friend, family, or acquaintance?

You must like people, like talking to them and relating to them.
People like to work with people that they know & like.
Building a network is very important.

When I left corporate Wall Street in NYC after 9/11 I needed to reinvent myself.
I had a 4 year degree. I had lots of education and training. I was experienced in the financial markets, but getting new clients in a new industry was new to me.

So, I threw myself in. I started by going to some business & social events locally and finding out “who” I needed to meet with for advice and direction and “where” would I go to accomplish that. I decided to take a risk and join some groups (paid & unpaid). I quickly found that people like meeting new people, learning about them and if you are excited about your business people are drawn to you.

Then you need to do some uncomfortable stuff and reach out and show up. I find that “Half of Life is just showing up”.
If you offer a good product, service the hell out of your potential clients and listen to their needs and then solve their immediate issues you become their “go-to person” and you get referrals. You need to look outside of the small circle you might have painted yourself into and allow growth to become natural & organic.

For instance. After I solved a local clients issue I was recommended to an area I had never considered servicing.
I took a risk and serviced that out-of-area client and realized I do not need to restrict myself. And if it’s too much I can hire knew helping hands. That is what happened. I hired a person to handle the out of area clients, that was near their area and not only did I grow my business, I continue to get referrals and I am able to help others grow their revenues by servicing my accounts.

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

After the surprising and horrific events of 9/11 I lost my building, my job and then my career.
I never expected to leave the financial world. I did like it very much, But when the market was suddenly flooded with other displaced people from downtown NYC I needed to find something else.

Luckily I was putting some money away while I was working in finance .. listing to the recommendation I was making to others.
I was able to start planning for my next career. As I was so focused on Wall Street I never considered any other industries and was still pretty shaken up from all the losses I had experienced. Therefore I made the decision to buy a franchise. I figured I new how to run finances I could learn the business from the franchisor and be off and running, which did happen to a point.

I researched franchises to invest in and made a choice. In hindsight I may have chosen the wrong one and that was the 1st lesson in the School of Hard Knocks in this new business. However, it did teach me to listen to my heart more. Things I felt were odd where in fact issues I uncovered. A few years down that road I joined a group of other fellow franchisees to sue the franchisor for numerous legal issues, things that were financial hurtful to the franchisees.

A few years of legal drama and I decided it was time to move on. Now that I had my financial background, I learned to listen to my self and trust my instincts I started the search for my next business.

I swore it would never be another franchise after the 1st experience was an unhappy one.
Well I was wrong, I did but another franchise. However, this time I was much more prepared.
I knew what to look for, what to ask for and what to what out for.

This time around my experience is 180 degrees from the previous and life is good again.
There is still room to grow, especially personally. I think I gave too much to the business and not enough to myself at times thinking it was only for a short while and then I could experience some life again. Well 15 years blinks by quickly. I guess I still have a few things to learn.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

You cannot give up.
If you not try you will never get anywhere.
You need to allow for some uncomfortably challenges and take some risks.

I didn’t let the terrorists kill my spirit when they were trying to kill me altogether.
I didn’t let corporate franchise fraud and greed deter me.
I didn’t let the losses stop me.

In fact each setback pushes you forward, just maybe not in the direction you expected.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

I believe I covered this already.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.breakcoffeeco.com
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• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/98539395/admin/page-posts/published/

Image Credits

These are all mine.