I need to approve expenditure, be involved in contract negotiations and make sure that DTD loses the minimum money in the first year. We need an accurate budget for live and online, and we need professional procedures for spending money and agreeing deals, basically, what sf group needed to mak sure it did not go bust.
In sf group, this is now all done with my FD and MD, it really runs itself, with DTD I need to be much closer to the the running and finances, amd manage the risk. I am finding it harder to do this, having been out of the "business loop" for so long, to be honest, I still find it hard not to play online till 6am morning and just get out of bed when I feel like it. This is all big change for me. I´m not moaning, but I really worked my ass off 24-7 for 10 years and enjoyed the 3 year break when I hit 30.
DTD started off as a hobby, an idea, a concept, buts the damn thing has grown into a big venture with significant risk. With running costs of live and online of over 250,000 pounds per month, 3 million pounds per year, it wont take long to drain all my cash if DTD is not managed properly. I´m pot committed now, "I can´t pass" if you know what I mean. There is no going back.......
Striking the balance between shrewd investment and wasting money is a key part of the success of DTD, and I need to make these decisions after analysing all of the information avaliable. I also can´t afford to carry passengers, people who are costing me money but not bringing in revenue, directly or indirectly. This is the type of business where this could happen in abundance and I need to make tough decisions over the first 12 months of operation........deciding who is an asset and who is a liability. This might seem a bit harsh to say, but that's my system, everything out in the open.
Its not that I feel activley running a business is beyond me nowadays, its just something that I would prefer not to do long term, because of my family situation, but I am committed to sacrificing 12 to 18 months to get DTD running smoothly where I will need to have less input. There are so many simalarities with my recruitment business and the online business that I am confident I can make that work, the live club is a different kettle of fish, so I will have to learn as I go along. A part of me is glad to have these new challenges in my life and be taking more risks, but I can´t pretend that I am overjoyed with all of these new responsibilities. DTD will employ over 120 staff, this will be a headache.
I often get people coming up to me and bragging that they have done "so and so" and made "such and such" money. The conversation then normally sways towards what they can do for me.............and then inevitably ends up being about what I could do for them. So many people are full of crap, I just nod and try and get away from them. Its like people think I owe them a living or something, like its their "right". I get the most bizarre proposals made to me........ last week a guy who I had NEVER spoke to called me over in my pub, did some small talk and then asked me to lend him 85,000 pounds to do up his house, he said he would donate 1% of the profits from the sale to my charity. He said he had made loads of money at property but it was "all tied up"..............please
I guess I should not grumble being me. Okay I´m very busy now, but so are many other people and it was my choice. I get "nipped" a lot, but maybe I should expect that. Overall, I know I have been very lucky in life, noone ever gave me anything and I´m able to do a lot of different stuff nowadays. I´m upbeat about DTD, I love going to see the club now the work has started, I just know that I have a tough job ahead making it all work.
I´m actually posting on a PC in a estate agents in Tenerife belive it or not! I have had to fly over for just 1 day to sign some paperwork for Nick "The Shrew" and then I fly to Dublin tomorrow.
Over and out. Rob
