What Did You Do ???

[lesterj2]

What did you do before you got into the carpet cleaning business..

I use to work for a Gov't Contractor and also cleaned carpets with a Rug Doctor & Kirby on the side...

 

[captaincarpet]

US ARMY, before that... high school

 

[TimP]

I sold floor covering.....through my in-laws business. I also installed floor covering....still do at times. Before that I sold appliances at a Sears full line store. I worked at comp-usa for a short time. Before that I worked for my inlaws again....they had a sears dealer store at one time sold stuff at their store (they closed the dealer store in 2 years for lack of profit) and when I started with them I installed fences with her father and crew....which I despise with a passion. Before that I worked occasionally when in junior college with my brothers grandparents in their bar/restaurant cooking.

I rather enjoy carpet cleaning now after doing all those different things. The greatest thing is I don't have a single boss....the worst thing is worrying about paying the bills when it's slow.

 

[AshleyMckendree]

1st job: 11 years old Helping dad cleaning carpet

2nd: 14 years old Construction clean up and window cleaning, while still helping dad on the side clean carpets

3rd: @16 Started Janitorial business cleaning dealerships so I could buy my dads CC business

4th: @18 Bought dads business and proceeded to "FIRE" most customers... because cleaning at .10 per sq foot was painfull.

Years ago durring a few TOUGH winters I delivered Pizza for Pappa Johns, making $40+/ hour, actually really enjoyed that job.
Was almost like my own business, because I never saw my "boss" and could control my hours and show up when I wanted to

 

[renegade_cowboy]

I was a cook and a baker at a local restraunt. I mostly worked in the restraunt industry, until my bro got me a job at SS 10 years ago. I bought cheap crap equipment 4 years ago in a 76 van and a HM hydracat. Worst mistake going that cheap.

I had 3 kids over the last 5 years, My last 2 kids were in Childrens Hospital for a combined 5 months, so I played it safe working for the man, bringing home the paycheck, never did anything big with my equipment, until later this year when I bought a new van and rebuilt the HM and transfered it over. Now I am without job and making my business work.

My TM is now at my brother while he rebuilds the carb, engine is fine. I am thinking of working part time to make it through the winter and shoot out the gate full time next feb-march when things pick up. I have alot of good ideas and working on things now to get work without spending alot of money. Gotta be honest its kinda scary, but I will muster through it to be a profitable company. Well atleast I hope. :shock:

Thats me in a nutshell.

:mrgreen:

 

[XTREME1]

I did alright. President of a small chain of restaurants, Executive with Sodexho Marriot, Executive Chef at a few places, Owned a Catering and concessions company as well as a stake in Restuarants, Executive Director of Nutrition and Foodservice for a large healthcare company. My oldest son was special ed when I won custody of him and I didn't want him abused in the work place so I started a small carpet cleaning company for him for when he graduated now he is honor roll and I am the fulltime carpet cleaner.

Wish I started earlier

 

[jstucky]

went to college for 2 years and a large university..got way too depressed and addicted to pot and failed out...was a shift manager at Hy-Vee Food Stores while going to college...I worked for Hy-Vee for 5 years thinking it was goign to be a career...small business and being your own boss is muccch better than knowing more than ur bosses and watch them do nothing...

by the grace of God...parents invited back to run a carpet cleaning business they had with a vacuum store they boought...cleaning was verry verry small...grown 25% each year the last 2 years...keep on truckin...started as VS Assocaiate...added small Porty and New Larger porty...about to add a Re-coil or looking into some other options...

no more drugs...no more depression...college just isn't for some...but im def ready to start taking some IICRC classes....Doug Heifermann this week in Indiana!!!!....

 

[Dolly Llama]

did a lot things as a kid for money.
Paper route, mowed lawns, pumped gas.

First "real" job was at Muphy's Mart dept store.
Started in the stock room and shortly after went on the floor in the sporting goods dept.

Money wasn't good enough in retail , so when i turned 18 I went to work in a local forge shop pounding white/orange hot steel.
Landed a union job a year latter in the auto factory.
Did everything there from grunt production worker to welder, to material handling, to heavy equipment operator, to crane operator, to shipping & receiving, to quality control.

The periods I was laid off from the shop, I've did a lot things.
Roofer, auto parts store, die setter, machine repair/millwright, paint/adhesives batch mixer, bartender, bouncer AND carpet cleaner

..L.T.A.

 

[Heathrow]

Newspaper delivery kid
Timber mill/treatment yard worker
Auto parts assistant
Waiter/barman
Canvas sewer/sailmaker
Natural gas pipeline labourer/contractor
Underground Thrusting contractor
Water services/utilities worker
Surveyors/engineers assistant
Musician/drummer
Tavern/bar manager
Despatcher/Sales Rep then area manager for large quarry & transport company
My own landscape supply/transport business
My own carpet cleaning business

Jeezuz I've never written them all down before :shock:

 

[Able 1]

I ran one of these

Good money, job sucked!

Keith

 

[Bob Foster]

Keith nice Vactor....

I can relate - here is one of my old rigs.

 

[XTREME1]

I thought for sure Bob was going to post bodies and say serial killer

 

[Able 1]

It's actually thats a Mud Dog made by Super Products. I don't think the vactor had high pressure water. The only thing is miss is driving that monster!

Keith

 

[Willy P]

I was a shepherd. And apprentice astronaut. I also worked at the spice factory picking fly shit out of pepper.

 

[Mikey P]

Mowed lawns, gas station attendant, liquor store stock boy, ice cream boy @ thriftys, ham slicer guy @ KMart, short order cook, prep cook, bus boy and juicer at various health food stores, cfo @ Little Debbie's snack cakes, taxi cab driver, $12.95 a room hack @ Millers, $49 a room hack at Coit and now this stupid job.
,

 

[Doug Cox]

LOL Greg!! I've been doing this since I was 19

 

[XTREME1]

I noticed foster didn't confirm or deny serial killer

 

[Bob Foster]

don't bother me I'm busy stalking...

 

[Dolly Llama]

The only thing is miss is driving that monster!

Keith

one of the favorite jobs at the car factory was operating equipment.
Did that for 6 years. Ran forklifts mostly, but because of my hi-code status/license I also ran bobcats, backhoes, mag crane, LULL machines, etc.
My favorite was operating the D7 Caterpillar. (a bulldozer )
They put hard rubber tracks on it to run indoors and was used to pull huge dies from storage area to press lines.
(some dies were bigger than most bed rooms)
I did that for 8 months while the regular operator was on sick leave.

When on that beast, you was a biggest baddest dude in house as you came rolling down the isle.
a D7 is good sized Cat and shook the floor as it rumbled by

i was like a kid in sand box :mrgreen:

..L.T.A.

 

[Doug Cox]

Good job Bob!!

 

[B&BGaryC]

Fry Cook @ KFC
Prep Cook @ Fishhouse
Line Cook @ Fishhouse
Line Cook @ Steakhouse
Salesman @ Furniture Store
Waiter @ Perkins
Waiter @ Denny's
Fry Cook @ KFC
"Chef" @ Creole Restaurant
Phonebook Delivery Boy (Paid way better than most any other job I had)
Carpet Cleaner @ Elite Cleaning Co
Cook @ Bar and Grill
Division Manager/One man show @ B&B Disaster Restoration and Carpet Cleaning.

 

[Able 1]

Fry Cook @ KFC

Phonebook Delivery Boy (Paid way better than most any other job I had)


Did you just throw the book by the mail box? I have issues with these phone book guys!

 

[Ron Werner]

Univ to the Navy
Navy to night janitor
to carpet cleaning for The Bay
To running my own show

 

[B&BGaryC]

[quote="B&BGaryC":3lbn35rt]Fry Cook @ KFC

Phonebook Delivery Boy (Paid way better than most any other job I had)


Did you just throw the book by the mail box? I have issues with these phone book guys!

[/quote:3lbn35rt]

Put it on the doorstep out of the rain unless they had dogs.

Had a few people complain when I was doing the small towns because we were throwing it out of the car window and trying to land it close to the porch.

Tell your neighbor to put his rabid freekin' dog up and we'll get out of the car.

For the most part all good deliveries. My friend who was doing it with me and I made sure to always get more done and get better placement so we could negotiate a higher per book salary.

 

[Jim Martin]

electrician....

 

[Steve in Omaha]

Warren's sounding board

koolade stand in the third grade, and it was off to the races!

 

[Out of Character - 0]

Most of my jobs have been Waiter or Busboy.

The best job I've had was Manual Arm for a group of wealthy entrepreneurs who ran 6 types of business, I did that for 4 years. I had 2 new vans, 1 assistant and vitually no budget. My duties consisted of spying on projects and other employees, delivering documents, local collections, some political ass kissing, showing properties, purchasing of local materials and can't pass deals. I learned a lot from them, the scope of work was so broad and money so important (to them) that it was very exciting for me, I like pressure. I logged in 60k miles per year in their van, and worked about 75hrs every week.

 

[Mike Draper]

Auto sales 8 years, Smith Barney Investments 2 years.