Tweet

Change is Good!

Guest post by: Debbie Lessin

Article Overview: Change is a word that oftem brings fear into the hearts and minds of many. Debbie Lessin has never been one to fear change. But she readily admits that the decision to move her CPA office after 23+ years was a huge change and a decision that was a long time in coming. Having survived the move, she recalls how she approached this move methodically, professionally and with a whole lot of balance. As you read the aritcle, remember that the change doesn't have to be about moving an office per se. Think about any change that you are putting off or may not even realize that you need. Change is good. And good change is great! And that's exactly how Debbie feels about the move to her new office space. Some decisions take time. By taking her time to find the right space, Debbie's new work environment is everything she could have hoped for!

Change is Good!

I didn't realize that I was stuck, until I was unstuck. Lead shoes didn't keep me glued to the same old routine. Nothing was really broken that needed fixing. Nothing was really wrong that needed correcting. But after 23+ years in the same building, albeit in 3 different spaces, I finally knew that it was time to move my business to a new location.

One wouldn't usually rent from the same landlord for 20+ years without an idyllic landlord/tenant relationship. But I'm not sure that the words "idyllic" and "landlord" even belong in the same sentence. I was a fixture at the 444 N. Wells office building. I had a great space, albeit a little large for my current needs. The management and staff of the building knew me well. Having downsized my practice for the third time nine years ago, the office reincarnation as an art gallery for over 4 years keep me entertained and company until it didn't. When that venture soured, it was time to move on. But moving on was a mission not taken lightly. The intent was that this would be a long term move. In my head it would be the last move before I retired or sold the business. What landlord wouldn't want a long term, timely paying, and fun loving tenant like me?!?

From a home office to outside office(s) in a trendy not quite downtown Chicago neighborhood, I now wanted to move somewhere closer to home. Somewhere I could walk to/from when the weather was decent and I wasn't walking alone in the dark. This move also needed to save money in the long run. Although in the short run, the physical move itself and the "you know you need new things for the new office" trips to Target, Office Max, Office Depot (because these stores really do carry different things when it comes to cute office supplies!) and Best Buy really add up.

And so for two spring/summer/falls I walked my neighborhood. I checked some online listings and scoped out one building on a busy street that reminded me of my current space yet in my home neighborhood. There was a wealth of opportunities if I was looking for 1500 square feet or more. But my pretty much just "me", one person business was looking for 1000 square feet or less. And those spaces really are not as plentiful. (Note to real estate developers - think about small spaces for entrepreneurs and your real estate crisis might be less of a crisis.) I asked management companies if spaces could be split in half under the theory that you don't get what you don't ask for. No takers there. And then as fall turned into winter that first summer, my thoughts of moving banished themselves as I moved back into work mode. Moving in tax season wasn't an option.

It had been 9 years since I had a lease or a rent increase for that matter. Trust me I was renting from a well established real estate company. When I downsized in 2000 and spun off my remaining full time employee into her own bookkeeping/payroll accounting business, I made a valiant attempt to move to into a much smaller space in the sister building next door. Much of the neighborhood's renovated office lofts spaces were my landlord's doing. And I really did love my landlord. Long story short... I was cut out of the space by the leasing agent who originally represented me when I moved in the building and who now worked for the building management company. After this fiasco, the president of the company stepped in to take care of the situation. I got a nine month reprieve on the rent I would have saved by moving next door. After that we went back to the old rent I had been previously paying.

By then, I was comfortable with the other cost cutting measures I had implemented (no employee salary being the biggest change). After a year, the redefined revenues after the restructuring gave me enough of a sense of security. I simply wasn't ready to leave the neighborhood or the building. And so I didn't. The management company knew that I was open to moving to a smaller space in one of the buildings on the block. But nothing ever came up. There was never another lease signed or a subsequent rent increase. I stayed another 9+ years, surviving the change in the business in a positive financial way so that I didn't have to think about moving until of course I did.

And when I did, I had a vision that I stuck to, waiting for two years until the right space came along. And when it did, it was more than I had expected but richly deserved. They say you have to kiss a lot of frogs before you find your prince, well the same goes for real estate. After no prospects for over a year all of the sudden there were three potentials all less than a mile from home. The first one wouldn't commit to a long term lease. The space was a big step down in style but a giant drop in cost. I would have settled for it mostly because of the cost savings, but there were too many safety/security issues at hand in the end. I was pretty sure that the developer was looking to sell the building when the market improved and I'd have to start all over again. Not an option.

Then there was the interesting space a block from home. It reminded me of the house on I lived in on Bissell Street that I rented for 13 years, 15 years ago - older construction but interesting space. That was one of the times I got creative asking about splitting the larger space in two. Timing being what it was someone else had made a similar inquiry. The idea floated out there but never went farther than a look-see of the space. But by now I was truly optimistic.

For at the same time on a beautiful June 2009 day I was out for a stroll in the neighborhood. This was how I looked for space often and this time I ventured out a little beyond where I had walked before. And lo and behold an office building that I had walked past many times caught my eye. The building was clearly under new management and being renovated. The alderman's office used to be there (before he was thankfully voted out of office!) and I'd visited several times over neighborhood permit parking matters. I'd been taking my car to be pampered at the car wash at the west corner/side of the building for many years. I had no idea when the building changed hands or how many times I had gone by it by foot or more likely by car and simply not noticed. But this time, the "for rent" sign lulled me. So I pulled out my phone, dialed the number and met the leasing agent there two hours later. We looked at several spaces in the building. They were willing to divide the spaces and were looking for good long term tenants.

One space on the 2^nd floor enticed me - large open space, storage space/closet, an adjunct office. It never once dawned on my in looking that I'd be thinking about a newly renovated space. I'd done that when I moved into my first office 23 years ago. Not having done the real estate experience for so many years, I simply wasn't familiar with the ins and the outs of the current market. I didn't think to contact a broker/agent. I just knew how much I wanted to pay and what I was willing to pay for rent.

Over the next few weeks, I visited the space a few more times, bringing key people with for a second glance. We discussed whether or not the space could be split in half, my interest really lying in saving costs. The downside to that was that I'd need outside storage which came with both a cost in terms of time to access it and additional monthly rent. As I was negotiating this space and waiting word on the one other, I was so surprised that at last I might have found that I was looking for. I wasn't in a huge hurry and was buoyed by the wealth of sudden opportunities. When asked what my ideal time frame was for moving, I answered without a moment's hesitation - I want to pack up my office over the summer, get past my final October 15^th compliance deadline, go to Nashville for a long weekend to visit my friends who had just moved there and come back and move the office. Having said it out loud...that's exactly what happened!

I expressed my interest, said I'd get back to them upon return from my vacation and so I did. Asked to make two offers, I offered full price rent they quoted on the 600+ square foot space that I wanted split. And on the bigger space I offered a significant reduction in rent that was essentially equivalent to the maximum/month that I was willing to pay. With this offer came a list of improvements including an expanded storage area and expanded storage closet with built-in shelving throughout. Although not surprised, my offer for the larger space was the one accepted with the caveat that they wanted another $100/month. If they wanted $100 more per month, I wanted a parking space (priced at $100/month). Although my intent was to walk as much as I could, I'd use the space when it was cold/dark/raining/convenient. Deal done - finally at the end of August with the target occupancy date of October 15^th.

I hired my next door neighbor's brother Scott who had just started a design/architecture business to map out the space, coordinate the furniture I had and plan where it would go in the new space with my vision. What I thought was just space planning turned out to be much more. Scott became my advocate as a general contractor, making my participation in the actual renovation process limited to simple decisions and no muss and fuss. The only additional rehab cost turned out to be $1500 for the carpet/floors which over the long haul was not much to spend. They gave me keys the day I signed the lease so that I could visit and track the progress (or Scott could).

Now that I had signed a new lease, it was time to tell my current landlord. I had no idea how much notice I needed to give or not give. I didn't bother to cull through the expired lease from 9 years prior. I wanted to stay in the space until October 31^st. The two week overlap would make the actual move out fairly simple. As it was the end of August, that was still 90 days away. So I crawled into Howard's office and sheepishly said that I was moving. And he started to laugh. "Do we have any of your money?" he asked. When I replied $2000, he asked me why I didn't ask for it back. My simple reply was that I didn't know that I could! My earliest security deposit far exceeded this amount - this was the reduced amount after the last move 13+ years prior. We went to tell some of the other "old-timers" in the company (which I say fondly!) all of us growing and working together for over 20+ years. The next day I received the most beautiful email thanking me for being such a good loyal tenant all these years. No matter where I went I'd still be the favorite tenant. And he reminded me that they expected an invite to any office opening party (on the horizon soon I hope!) So I know why I never really looked to move! I wasn't renting from a company. I was renting from wonderful people.

And so the three month odyssey of moving began. Silent packing had already begun, boxes hidden in the conference room, shaded from the glass door panorama of the office. Summer jobs for Demi (college student) and Faith (high school student), one packing this, the other packing that. Now that the cat was out of the bag, the packing was out in the open. Trying to stay organized, marking the contents of the box clearly on the outside. Every week was a round of pack, trash, donate and give away. It was a cleansing in every way. I culled through drawers and files that hadn't been touched for years. I found mementos from years past that brought back fond memories. At the same time, I visited the new space each week to watch the progress. And being the shopper that I am, I bought small things for the new space that I stored in my second bedroom at home. I went to the office on my precious no tax work Thursdays and Fridays to pack. I did it with joy and anticipation. There was often a Cubs baseball game on television to amuse me. I packed for three or four hours at a time and still left myself enough time in the day to do other things. But the summer/fall of 2009 was all about moving the office. And that was okay by me.

The actual move itself went really smoothly. My choice of movers was good. They were respectful of my well packed boxes and the walls/carpet at both locations. We filled three trucks and caravanned to the new space. The red and gray walls and open space beckoned for company. And so with a little help from Scott, his final job as the space coordinator, our predesigned furniture plan came to life. It was a beautiful day to move, a warm fall day with hints of summer past. The air circulated through the sliding door, the mood was festive. I bought pizza for the movers. And when they were done, I went home to start again the next day.

Timing being what it was, my long time associate Susan Fairman was coming through Chicago (she now lives in Maryland) that very night. She remembered that I was moving and wanted stopped in Chicago en route to visit her kids in Iowa and Minnesota. Susan has worked/freelanced for me for close to 20 years. She's a stable in the business and someone I rely on each tax season, despite living out of state. She takes a week of vacation and comes to Chicago the last week of March/first week of April and works with me like the crazy CPAs that we are for a week or ten days. Not what I'd call a vacation. But since she's no longer doing tax work full time and likes the work and working with me. Susan arrives around 9:00 the night of the move. The next day it rains all day and we unpack the office together. Susan opens and unpacks the boxes and I put everything away, finding new homes for the supplies and accumulated stuff that made its way into the boxes. By the end of the day, we are amazingly done. So done, that we break down the boxes for me to take to a recycling center the next day. The tech guys show up on Friday to set up the computers, internet, and fax. I start to put my desk together. By the end of the day, I'm ready to roll.

And so the new journey begins. I'm ready to work on Monday morning. But October/November is my really quiet time. I knew the right time table for me to move. My major compliance deadlines for the year are done. I call the time "no man's land". And this year there's not much to do. Clients aren't doing much tax planning since the economy is holding everyone back from doing much of anything. I take advantage of the lull to slowly get the space together. The file room will wait until my nephew Benjamin is home from college. He and Faith will pull all the boxes thrown there helter skelter in the move off the shelves and organize everything in a meaningful fashion during Christmas break. Watching Faith boss him around since those file boxes were previously her domain was truly amusing.

The walls remain bare by choice. I want to work in the space and get a feel for everything before I decorate. A few pieces of artwork get put temporarily on the existing nails on the exposed brick. The space is so me. I'm back to my red, black and gray color scheme, having comprised years ago in painting the walls in the old space for the art gallery. The truth of the matter is that it I know that I have reclaimed my space. And it feels as if I have reclaimed my life!

Working in the new office is a joy. I love going to work. I love being in the space. I buy some new artwork over a few months, finding great buys on Etsy.com and another piece at an art fair visiting mom in Florida. I commission a Mandela after seeing the artists work at a gallery. And finally, one Saturday night in February my friends/clients Brian and Andy come over. We order Chinese food and open a bottle of wine. The Winter Olympics are on the 42 inch flat screen television that now graces the large wall opposite my desk. Brian's design sense takes over and we even rearrange a few pieces of furniture. We place art on the walls in the main room and hang a shelf that will hold my "lips" collection in the kitchen area along with my other "lips" artwork. The diplomas and certificates are hung above the file cabinets in the second office, visible but discreetly not too much so. In the early years of the business I hung these and framed articles in the conference room. They were my walls of fame and glory. But now, after all these years, I line the walls of the bathroom with the PR articles. It's my own private joke as to what it all means to me now. But it provides a little reading material at that and better yet, 20+ years of my hair styles. Every time I walked in the bathroom the first few weeks, I couldn't help but laugh. Now the office is for me. It's my personal showplace and less my professional one, even though the presence and feel is truly professional. I don't need the ego boost that the diplomas, certificates, awards and articles provide. My ego is boosted simply knowing how much my business (and myself) has grown and changed.

Slowly but surely, it all comes together. For the rest of tax season, I stare at the walls in between burying my head in the files. I have the best tax season of my life, working a little less than normal and happy to do so. I proudly show off the space as my clients stop by to drop off their tax information. I am so happy. I have a new work home. Waiting for the right space was the right thing to do. This change could have overwhelmed me. But from the get-go I never let it. I welcomed it with open arms. I really needed a change. I just never realized how much. And for me, the moral of the lesson is this - mix things up once in a while. Granted, I don't plan on moving my office for a long time (hopefully never again!). But for someone who is so focused on living a life in balance, I need to open myself to the opportunities that change brings. I'm not afraid of change. But like everyone else, I know that it's easy to be lulled I into an easy routine, especially if it works. But change is good. And good change is great! And this change, the move to my new office. This was a great change! Yeah for me!

Related Articles
  Ambush
  Will Your Salespeople Change Behaviors to Improve Their Effectiveness?
  Change Ready Companies Experience Faster Success in Sales Development
  To Change or Not To Change
  Making the Case for Change
  Practical Advice for Making “Real Change” and “Change Real”
  Why Welcome Change?
  What Power Tool Online do you need for a business?
  Be New and Improved
  Sales Leaders Must Accept Change
  Are you too Comfortable?
  Evolve and Thrive
  Do you Believe In yourself?
  Meeting People Where They Are
  Change is a Fact of Life --- Six Keys That Make a Difference
  “Got Resistance To Change? Then Get Strategic Thinking Business Coaching!”
  Keeping the Change Process Cool
  How to Limit Business Growth in 2011
  Embrace Change
  5 Ideas for Managing Change

Article Tags: change, cpa office, decisions, hearts and minds, moving an office, office space, taking her time, work environment



Related Forum Posts
Re: Spellcheck? - [quote="TheAnonymousMan":2f894q6j]When discussing the majority of people I would definitely say that most people hit the "Change" or "Ignore" button without thinking too much about the correct spelling of a word. All bosses are concerned about is getting the report to the Directors meeting on time.[/quote:2f894q6j] That probably depends on what the "majority" are trying to accomplish. I have word set to alert me about misspellings and grammatical problems, so I fix most as I go. But I also add names etc to the dictionary because I get tired of seeing the red and green squiggles when I know the info is right. If you're only going to click "Change" or "Ignore" then why bother to take the time to use spell check????? Business people that I work for want the info compiled in a timely manner and they want it right - which is fine because that's the way I strive to do any project. Sending out a memo, letter, report etc with obvious spelling and grammatical mistakes makes the person and the company look bad as far as I'm concerned. Shri
Re: Networking - Good work, just remember to continue to plug away and dont stop. Good luck, Matt Belock
Re: SEO for your small business: 4 tips - Good post....thanks for sharing. Good to know. Thanks for a great source.
Re: e-Commerce and e-Payment providers - Hi GT It is only fairly recently that people in South Africa have been able to get full use of Paypal as we were only able at one time to make payments but not receive them. Fortunately this has now changed. I have received money through Global X Change for one of the affiliate programs that I promote and have found them pretty good as the money is normally transferred directly into my bank account within 2-3 days and I have not had any problems with them. MichelleJ
Google Pagerank update inprogress - Hi All, Good news! Google PR update is in progress & my new blog (3months baby) acquired PR2 yesterday but I am seeing a SERP drop. Lets hope for the best. Good luck to all ! -Mr.Ven


Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.

Leave a comment below or share on the left and you'll help support entrepreneurs in Africa through our partnership with Kiva. Over $50,000 raised and counting - Please keep sharing! Learn more.

Newsletter

Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!

Name:
Email:

Popular Articles

Ten Reasons to take Notes during Sales Meetings

Sales is a Flawed Model

Suggestions

Email us your ideas on how to make our
website more valuable! Thank you Sharon
from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for
your suggestions to make the newsletter
look like the website and profile younger
entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez.