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LES Team

It’s 10pm on New Year’s Eve, and everyone in the family has already gone to bed, except me.  I’m working away on various Local Eye Site projects.  Now that’s excitement. 

It hasn’t been completely low key for us, however.  I did take the kids downtown for the early, kids version of the New Year’s Eve countdown.  Raleigh (the City of Oaks) drops a giant acorn at 7pm and midnight to celebrate the end of 2008, and usher in 2009.  It was fun, but New Year’s Eve ain’t what it used to be for me; that’s for sure.

While I was working, I began to contemplate the end of 2008 for Local Eye Site.  Although we haven’t yet been in business for a complete year, this is the end of our first calendar year.  This time last year, Local Eye Site was just an idea and a dream.  I informed my previous employer in February of my intentions, and in early April, Local Eye Site became my full time career.  So, we have roughly 9 months under our belts.  That’s 9 months with no corporate salary, no company car, no company paid health insurance…woo wee.

So, what are my takeaways from 2008 at Local Eye Site you ask? (Well, you didn’t really ask, but indulge me for a few moments).  Here are a few:

1.  I’ve been blown away by the support of my friends and family, but especially my wife.  You can imagine telling your wife, the one that stays home with your two small children, that I think I’ll quit my job and build a website.  Don’t get me wrong, she knows I’m the man, but this was asking for a new level of trust.  However, she’s delivered with flying colors.  I’m really proud of her.  2008 has probably been the best of our 9 years of marriage.

2.    I’ve been encouraged by our investors.  There is a group of experienced professionals that believe in the Local Eye Site concept.  I know they believe in it, because they’ve put their resources where their mouth is.  I’m flattered and very appreciative.

3.  I have a new appreciation for small business owners and entrepreneurs.  The complexities of our business pales in comparison to many others, however I’ve seen enough already to understand the level of determination and focus necessary to make it stick.

4.  Someone told me recently that most small businesses don’t fail…they give up.  I think I get it.  The life of a company has a lot of peaks and valleys.  You have to continue to believe, put aside your fear, be willing to take chances, stay focused, and have a willingness to make changes to your plan. 

5.  I love it.  I know that all of my professional experiences leading up to Local Eye Site have prepared me to take on the challenge of creating a new business, but that aside, I wish I did this a long time ago.  I never knew it could be so fun to work this hard.

We have a long, long way to go, and lots of goals unattained.  However, we are extremely pleased with our accomplishments thus far and very excited about what 2009 holds.  Please continue to follow Local Eye Site, and I look forward to sharing takeaways this time again next year.

Brad

Today is a big day in the life of Local Eye Site.  I think we should pause (for only a second J) to take in the fact that the Bascom-Palmer Eye Institute at the University of Miami, Miller School of Medicine put up their first 2 postings on Local Eye Site today.  A banner ad on the home page to follow in the next few days.

Why is this such a big deal?  Because Bascom-Palmer is one of the most, if not the most recognized name in Ophthalmology.  A recent Ophthalmology Times article ranked Bascom-Palmer as the nation’s best overall Ophthalmology program for 2008.  Having Bascom-Palmer as a Local Eye Site client in our first 7 months of doing business is a big deal.  A partnership with such a respected organization sends a message to the rest of the eye are community that Local Eye Site too is respected and worthy of consideration.  That’s a big deal. 

Deep breath.  Okay, back to work.

Local Eye Site is indirectly involved with Prevent Blindness as I am on the Board of Directors for the North Carolina Division.  Today I had the pleasure of working a free vision screening booth at the State Fair in Raleigh for Prevent Blindness.  We offered visual acuity checks and a glaucoma check using a visual field machine. 

This is the second year that I have participated in this.  The thing that strikes me the most is that both years I have been overwhelmed by the amount of traffic that the booth receives.  This morning we had 6 people working the booth and we pretty much stayed busy the entire time I was there.  I have also noticed that we tend to have more traffic than any of the booths near us.  

It’s interesting that many of the people visiting the booth for eye screenings don’t routinely visit an eye doctor, and many can’t remember when they did see one last.  However, it’s important enough that such a huge flock stops when they see it’s free and easy.  Well, so are the salsa samples across the aisle, but they don’t get the traffic we do.  Why is this?  It’s because eveyone knows that their site is precious, and they need to have their eyes routinely checked.  However, sometimes we have to stumble across a free screening in order to force us to take the time.  I’m sure that there are some who can’t afford an eye exam, but we have plenty with health insurance that visit the booth. 

Certain eye diseases can be easily identified with simple tests, and the prevention of the progression of these diseases a real possibility.   I have to admit that I’m just as guilty of neglecting visits to the eye doctor, but don’t follow my example and take the time to get your eyes checked routinely.

Local Eye Site has it’s first postings in the states of Florida and Illinois!  We continue to make noise across the country and are growing rapidly!

Maybe it’s because we have kids now, or maybe I’m just getting old, but more and more I feel the urge to share the stories of my life with the hopes of passing on helpful lessons of wisdom.  For me, that typically means lessons that I learned the hard way. 

The biggest professional mistake I ever made (and almost made a second time) was making a job change.  You must be thinking…Brad, you run a website with a job board…don’t you like it when people job hop?  Good for business, right?  Well maybe, but it may not be good for you (or your employer). 

In the mid 90’s I had a great job in health insurance sales.  I had been with this company for a couple of years, had made more money than ever before, had just won one of those salesie tropical trips, was happy, liked the people I worked for…I could go on.  But for some inexplicable reason, I quit that job.  Big, fat mistake.  Sure, the new job was supposed to be a little more money and promised a bit of adventure I suppose.  Unfortunately, I ended up in a situation where I didn’t respect my boss, I made less money, I was unhappy…I could go on.  It took me a number of years to recover professionally and personally from that mistake. 

Am I saying that you should never switch jobs?  Of course not, the fear of and unwillingness to change can lead to career suffocation and is equally devastating.  What I am saying that you should take a careful inventory of why you are considering making a change.  You should also carefully examine the things you like about your job.  What role is emotion playing in my consideration?  What can I do to make this better?  Do I need to grow up?  What opportunities do I have to grow professionally and personally right where I am?

It’s entirely possible after a time of genuine honesty and maturity with yourself, that you draw the conclusion that you do need a change.  In that case, you need to make that change.  Just don’t fall prey to the Careerbuilder marketing campaign that leaves me at least, feeling like I should always be looking for the next thing, that there is always something better, that I have been somehow cheated and oppressed by your employer, etc.  That kind of attitude is more closely related than we may all realize to our country’s recent big, fat financial woes.  

All I’m saying is we should value all of the blessings in our life.  Today, especially, employment is a blessing.  So, handle with care.

I was interviewed recently about the experience of creating Local Eye Site, and the results of that Q&A were recently published on North Carolina Startup blog.  Answering these questions was fun for me, as it caused me to reflect on the last couple of years, and what an incredibly fulfulling journey it’s been to get to this point with Local Eye Site.  We are so thankful for your support of the site and our mission.  Please let us know how we can continue to improve this site for eye care professionals.

Local Eye Site has added customers and job postings in Virginia, South Carolina, Georgia and Mississippi over the last couple of months.  We are excited about our growth beyond the North Carolina boundaries.  Most importantly, however, we are excited about the response that these postings have received.  Most of these postings have received good responses from the “job seeker” community.  Our customers have been pleased with the rapid response they have received from quality applicants.  These responses have included quality resumes from experienced Ophthalmic Technicians, Registered Nurses, Sales executives for Optical Depts, and Surgical Techs. 

Local Eye Site remains committed to the North Carolina market as well, but we want to raise awareness that our audience of eye care professionals is from all over the country.  Thanks to everyone for their participation in this eye care community…over 12,000 visits and 7,000 individuals strong!