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The Entrepreneur's Itch

Written by: James Chan

Article Overview: The is a story of Bill Wolheim, who finally came to the realization that being on his own is the only way to be at peace.

The Entrepreneur's Itch

Bill Wollheim is a sort of plumber for the information age. He fixes problems that are less dramatic than a burst pipe but equally catastrophic: computers that have died or gone berserk.

Bill operates a one-man business out of his apartment on Roosevelt Island, in the middle of New York~{!/~}s East River. He has been doing what he does for 18 years. He now has a client list of nearly 300 small businesses and individuals who can feel secure that if things go awry, Bill himself will be right over. In other words, he~{!/~}s a entrepreneur who makes a good living from serving others much like himself. ~{!0~}I~{!/~}m the person they feel is responsible for their computer system,~{!1~} he says.

Bill feels that he has been assuaging, or causing, technological anxiety all his life. One of his earliest memories was setting up an AM radio, an FM radio and the television for an early experiment in stereo broadcasting, and sending his Aunt Ida into a panic. She was afraid that by turning on so many things at once, he would burn the house down.

Bill~{!/~}s education is in English literature. His business grew from a hobby, and a conviction that he didn~{!/~}t want to let technology pass him by. He bought his first computer in 1982. Since then, the personal computer has grown from a cultists~{!/~} toy to a necessity of life. Bill has opted not to grow with it; he has chosen to remain a one-person business. ~{!0~}I want to build a business, but not an empire,~{!1~} he says. ~{!0~}If I build the business too big, all I~{!/~}ll be is a manager.~{!1~}

It turns out that even Bill envies the plumber and the dentist, because the people whose problems they treat rarely try to second guess them. ~{!0~}People feel that they ought to know about computers,~{!1~} he says, and he believes that although most of his customers like him, they feel it~{!/~}s a failure to have to call him. They stand over him and watch closely, in the hope that they~{!/~}ll learn enough not to have to call him again.

Bill~{!/~}s problem is that computers are so complex that he often has to go down several blind alleys before he finds a way to solve the problem. ~{!0~}If you~{!/~}re lucky, the clients think you~{!/~}re a genius, and if you~{!/~}re unlucky, they think you~{!/~}re a moron.~{!1~} Bill says he tends to be a rather shy person. The feeling that he is always on stage is, he says, very stressful. He can~{!/~}t help feeling nervous when his work is watched so closely, but he is, at least, used to it. ~{!0~}So many things are out of control, and the client wants me to be in control,~{!1~} he says.

Besides, whatever stress he feels now is insignificant compared with the way he felt when he worked for others. ~{!0~}I spent years in therapy trying to figure out why I was not happy working for people,~{!1~} he says. ~{!0~}I finally quit seeing a therapist and started building my business. Now, I have the luxury of feeling fulfilled.~{!1~}

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Article Tags: aunt ida, burst pipe, computer system, conviction, dentist, empire 1, english literature, entrepreneur, first computer, fm radio, information age, man business, many things, person business, personal computer, plumber, roosevelt island, s education, small businesses, system 1



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