The Ferrari arrived before the conversation.
It came roaring into the parking lot, silver with black trim, windows dark enough to hide whoever was inside. You noticed it because you couldn’t not notice it. In Tulsa, cars like that didn’t blend in.
A few minutes later, your boss was standing in your office.
“Kevin, you’ve given me a big problem,” he said, half-smiling, sounding more like Al Pacino than a business owner. “Your managed services work has been so profitable I just paid another three hundred eighty-nine thousand dollars in personal taxes. We’re spinning you out into a C corporation.”
Then he was gone.
I didn’t know much about C corporations then. But I learned fast. I learned they required transparency. Public ownership records. Boards of directors. Governance that existed to protect clients from fraud, not owners from scrutiny.
Three months later, he came back.
This time, he wasn’t smiling.
“I need you to buy the business,” he said. “Assume the revenue. I want one hundred sixty-two thousand for the antiques.”
I had always hated antiques.
Saying yes was easy. Having the money wasn’t. I called a distant relative—CEO of the largest book distributor in the world. He wrote the check. He brought in other board members. There was a quorum. Suddenly, I was responsible.
Then I opened the books.
Four-page income statements. Three-page balance sheets. Expenses that didn’t belong to the business. Fifteen thousand dollars a month skimmed on a corporate American Express. Missed payments. Charges you couldn’t explain.
That Ferrari? I was paying for it.
Every month will feel like survival. Sweat usually runs down my face during calls with the board. I have a mortgage. A disabled wife. A daughter in college. Staff depending on me. Debt waiting patiently.
Unfortunately, I can’t fix it with speeches. I’ll fix it with discipline. Streamlining systems. Tightening controls. Helping clients avoid loss because they can’t afford mistakes—mine or theirs.
But our business isn’t fractured. No Law firms have lost continuity. Access hasn’t drifted. Clients haven’t had surprise problems.
Instead, I know that pure motives, proven process, and a little time and faith …
Some of you reading this post already know this story, that cashflow and everything else (while definitely not easy) is positive, and I thank you as well for the opportunity to help support your business.