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 "The Internet is a medium in which I truly believe. Call me naive, but I honestly believe that by working in manner which I totally support and believe, I can't go wrong." "In today's large corporations, there is a distinct gap between senior management and relatively new, technically- savvy hires."
"Most clients relish the idea of getting away from the office and meeting in a quiet place."
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Selling Real Property from Cyberspace
interviewed by
Tripod: You left a good job at GE Capital to start your own business out of your home. What do you get out of doing your business at your house that you weren't getting sitting in an office?
Brian Boodry: Perhaps the main reason I left my position was that I felt my abilities were not being adequately used in a large corporate environment. In today's large corporations, there is a distinct gap between senior management (those who have been with the company at least ten years) and relatively new hires. Employees who grew up and were educated in the computer (or information) age know how to use technology to perform their jobs quickly and efficiently. As a result, they can acquire particular knowledge and expertise in an industry which previously would have taken many more years to acquire. Decision makers do not realize this and still insist upon hiring someone with "15 years experience," in spite of the fact that someone may be able to perform the job more effectively who only has three years experience. The person with three years experience is not even given the opportunity to demonstrate what he or she can accomplish. There is a prevailing "Goddammit, I've paid my dues, now you shut up and pay yours" mentality. Another important reason for leaving the corporate atmosphere was bureaucray. A project that should take 10 hours of input (such as publishing a simple Web page) became a six-month project, because anyone who felt their turf was being infringed upon had to be placated. This usually involved endless meetings that focused upon nothing but ego-stroking. In the case of publishing a Web page, a complete educational course on the World Wide Web had to be presented to the decision-makers (senior management), because they had absolutely no clue what was involved. To make matters more complicated, because I did not have "15 years experience" they were skeptical of what I was presenting. Instead of listening to their own employee, they felt it would be better if we hired an outside consultant. Ironically, the outside consultant was less knowledgable and at least ten times more expensive. Now that I am working for myself out of my home, the only person who affects my projects and decisions is me. I can choose what projects to pursue, budget my own time, and work only with those people that I feel are knowledgable. And if a large corporation calls seeking some guidance, I'll be happy to provide it -- at ten times the cost. Tripod: Now that your domestic life and business life are located in the same place, how do you separate the two?
BB: Personally, I do not seperate the two that much. There are no children to deal with, and my spouse is an extremely knowledgable business person who serves as a good sounding board. When meeting with potential clients, I try to arrange the meeting at their place of business. If this is not possible, I have a dedicated office area in my home which serves as a great meeting place. Most clients relish the idea of getting away from the office and meeting in a quiet place. One item which I have found to be a necessity, is a seperate phone line for business purposes. This one item can take care of 99 percent of the "problems" associated with working from home. All in all, it is very easy to switch from my domestic mode to my business mode. I can work on domestic projects part of the day and business projects part of the day, easily intermingling the two. Tripod: It's sort of a strange thing you're doing, the most virtual of virtual occupations: marketing real estate on the Web. With so many people trying to make money in cyberspace, are you worried that your profits will be virtual as well? Do you have a business plan that projects that by X-date you'll be bringing in more money than you're shelling out? BB: Well, with Housatonic Valley Realty Net, I am trying to return real estate to what it truly is -- a business best conducted on the local level. Many of the real estate-related sites on the 'Net have forgotten this. For the most part, they are large, national databases administered by someone with no knowledge of local markets. Instead of providing nothing more than a large database, HVRN explores the local market in Connecticut through feature articles and provides links and ads to realtor homepages, not through a large impersonal database.
Certainly I am aware of the poor track record of firms attempting to milk a profit out of the WWW. The industry is currently in the throes of a major shakeout, and the firms small and nimble enough to quickly change with the market and meet the demands of its clients will be the ones to survive. Ideally, advertising revenue would meet my profits goal. However, this may take some time, so I must be prepared to provide any service my clients demand -- consulting, training, design, programming, etc. There is a fear that in spite of this nimbleness, my profits may not match my goals. But, the Internet is a medium in which I truly believe. Call me naive, but I honestly believe that by working in an area in which I totally support and believe, I can't go wrong. Sure, I may not be able to retire tommorrow, but ten years from now -- anything is possible! My business plan does not say that by X date I'll be bringing in X amount. I have an unwritten goal to be profitable as soon as possible. One amazing thing about Internet commerce and development is that entry costs are so small. Giant media companies, such as the New York Times, felt they had to pour millions into their WWW sites and guess what -- they failed! Take a hard look at the vast news gathering capabilites -- which were in place prior to an Internet site development -- and they're on the same level as anyone else. Tripod: What do you miss most about not being in an office? Do you feel isolated working at home, or are you happy nobody's there looking over your shoulder? BB: I can honestly say that there is not much I miss about being in an office. Little things, like an endless supply of office supplies and a subsidized cafeteria, are certainly missed -- but I do not feel isolated working from home. Any home-based business person must spend a vast majority of his or her time networking, marketing, and meeting with clients -- and all of these require a hugh amount of contact with others. I can imagine some situations where a feeling of isolation exists, such as for freelance writers and editors, but this is not something I worry about. As far as someone looking over my shoulder, I never really experienced that too much in an office environment because I tried to be as productive as possible. My managers were never too worried that the job was not getting done. I am, however, glad that there is not someone there to take credit for work I performed. In any office environment, the manager and co-workers will always take some credit for work performed by any member of the "team." In some offices it is worse than others. Tripod: How do you assess your own performance? Do you expect more out of yourself than your boss did? Do you feel more motivated to succeed?
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BB: Working for myself out of my home has certainly driven me to strive for more success. So far, I would give myself an average grade for performance -- but I rationalize this by telling myself I have had to adjust to a new environment. In all honesty, I was never motivated by the office environment -- why should I bust my ass so my boss can get a promotion? This is a question I have yet to see a "corporate boy" answer to my satisfaction.