Just like my idea to save a couple of bucks on my web domain, I had the bright idea to go shop all the bonus offers for opening bank accounts at various banks. I found one that had a $450 bonus, so I opened that account to use as my business account. (yes, I'll need to wait 90 days to get my money, but free money is free money.) How is this a mistake? Well it isn't in and of itself. The idea is fine. What is tough is transferring funds between that account and my personal account ("paying myself"). When I transfer funds from account to account WITH THE SAME INSTITUTION, the money moves instantly and I can use it as needed. But now that I have a new account at a DIFFERENT bank, the transfer is taking several days, and the funds are just "gone" - not available for use in either account until the transaction is completed. Thankfully, this hasn't caused me too many real problems (overdrafts, NSF, etc), but it certainly could. So in my attempt to get a few extra bucks for free, I have created a drag on funds available. Sure, I could learn to live with it and just account for the extra time, but when things move at the speed of business, I want to be ready to act immediately. Takeaway: Consider how one decision can impact other areas of your life and your business. Chasing the shiny object can cause otherwise well-oiled processes in your business to start rusting. Just be careful. Me? I'll likely end up closing this account and opening a separate one at my current bank - you know, AFTER they pay me my $450. 8^P

This Skool journey is really helping me with something I've struggled with a lot in the past. I'm something of a perfectionist. This sounds cool, like I have high expectations for myself (which I do), but what it actually means is that I am often the victim of self-sabotage because I'll make every excuse not to release something because it is not yet "perfect." Well in Module 1 in the Classroom, I have talked about just getting started rather than worrying about making your very best builds your first business product offering. It is much better to get something built and sold, generating both revenue, and importantly, feedback. This has been the case with the videos I have recorded for this group. I cringe at how amateurish they are. Low production value. Bad lighting. Goofy looking guy. You get it. But hopefully some valuable content that can help you with your new woodworking business. Rather than re-recording and over-editing my videos a thousand times until they would make professionals in the field drool, I just want to get them out there. Get started. I know I will get better at scripting, performing, lighting, recording, editing, etc. over time. And I may even choose to one day go back and re-record these early videos after I've got more of a clue what I'm doing. But that's not why you are here. The business of woodworking is much more important than putting out polished videos at this point. And helping others get a start with a solid foundation is THE point, right? So I'm happy to announce that I am (with great struggle) taking my own advice, and prioritizing progress over perfection. It is helping me get started here, just as it can help you get started wherever you are at.

I thought I would be slick and try to save myself a few bucks by shopping different registrars in order to reserve the domain for my new business website. I have been hosting on Squarespace for a few years and already know their platform, so that's where I intend to host this site as well. However, I decided to see if prices were the same across different companies, just for the domain purchase. I looked through several different sites and then found that GoDaddy had the cheapest domain price for my domain (different domain names can cost different amounts, depending on how popular or in-demand they might be.). Well I though I was being a savvy shopper by doing this, so I bought the domain through GoDaddy. Then I tried to transfer it over to Squarespace. That's when I learned the first important lesson of this story... You have to wait 60 days before you can transfer a domain. Doh! Well here we are, 60 days later, and I went ahead with the transfer, only to find out that Squarespace is going to charge me for the transfer! $14! So in an effort to save $6 on a domain, I ended up having to wait 2 months before I could even use it, and then it cost me another $14 on top of that. So, saving $6 actually cost me about $54 (the $8 difference, plus about $23/month in hosting that I couldn't use). Takeaway: Don't be as cheap as I tried to be. Just take the easy way and don't overcomplicate things.

For those of you who are new to Skool, you may have noticed that you have started out with a Level 1 badge by your name. This has nothing to do with your business level or woodworking skill, but your engagement in the community. Every time someone reacts to a comment you've left or a post you've made, you get a point. As you accumulate points, you will level up. Currently, there are no real differences in levels, but as we grow, and as I get the time to more fully populate the curriculum, downloadable resources and course content, certain bonuses will be gated at certain levels. This is in an effort to encourage members to post meaningful content, ask questions, give thoughtful responses to others' posts, etc. The more engaged you are in the community, the more everyone grows. Takeaway: Get involved. Ask questions. Respond to others' posts. Be a real part of this startup community. I promise, the rewards will be worth it.

Today's progress was less about building the business, and more about making future work more comfortable and efficient. My wife and I spent most of today rearranging the house to create an official office setup for both of us. I will be building my business from the new office, and she will work there when working from home. But best of all, it's a clean, dedicated space that will remain free of the distractions of working from more common areas in the home. I am fortunate that our home has a completely self-sufficient Mother-In-Law Suite attached. It's basically a 1-bedroom apartment. It can (and will) be closed off and insulated from the main house during work hours, allowing it to feel like I am "at work" even though I'm still at home. I know that not everyone will have the benefit of such a dedicated space to work in, but I urge you to try to find a place, or even just a time, that you can work without distraction, if possible. It will do wonders for you, both in the amount of work you can get done, and in the mentality of having a scheduled time and place to work (like a "real" job). I'm really happy with what we got done today, and I'm looking forward to recording my next video in there tomorrow. See ya then!