2015 NH Ultimate Connection Winners
All About the RRRRRRRRR’s
Since our Ultimate Connection meeting with Governor Hassan and the education experts, things have been clicking along here at PickUp Patrol headquarters (aka “PUP HQ”). Our website activity is up, and we’ve added new customers. Mostly, it’s been all about the R’s:
REST & RENEWAL
The middle of June was a time of Recuperation. In the three months of Alpha Loft’s intensive accelerator program, we were working day, nights and weekends at 2-3 jobs each. After that, we all needed a bit of time to Rejuvenate and gear back up for the next step. A mountain of laundry and neglected errands were also piling up! It was time to shift priorities at least for a weekend or two.
RESTRUCTURING
We Reviewed our operating agreement, and we made some changes to our equity structure. Since our company focus has made a shift from development, we were also had Requirements for new skills. The decision to add someone to our PUP family wasn’t easy. Finding someone willing to work for less than peanuts (free) seemed like it would be even harder. Luckily for us, the timing was right. Renee Dickson came on board to join our sales and marketing team. She came to us with a wide range of experience and incredible drive. In just a few weeks, Renee is already proving to be a valuable member of the team. She’s been on vacation this week and we are already having a hard time living without her. I keep thinking, “When does Renee gets back?!”
REALITY
As many of you know, bootstrapped startups are tough. We experience long hours, unknowns, stress, constantly pushing ourselves to learn new skills, and finding ways to do more with less. We do all this for zero income. In our home, three of us are involved in the company. This makes the wear and tear on our family quite significant. To help improve this, we’ve made some adjustments to Re-balance business efforts with other things in life that matter, such as health and family. Yes, there are 50 things that need to be done for PickUp Patrol today! It’s equally important to hit the treadmill and spend quality time with my daughters.
REGROUPING
Over the past several months, we’ve received a great deal of advice. It has all come from highly skilled, experienced people who genuinely want to see us succeed. Still, we always remember something that Mark Kaplan, Alpha Loft’s CEO, said the first day we met, “It’s your company. You are going get all kinds of advice, but you need to do what’s right for you.” Now it is time for us to sift through all the input we have received and come up with a plan for our next steps.
Stay tuned in for more updates on our journey to success as the 2015 Ultimate Connection Winners!
