How I Created A 30-Year Career From A Workshop That I Never Taught

Continue learning about franchising beginning with this free report: 7 Habits of Highly Effective Franchisees. Get it now by subscribing to my newsletter!

Post image for How I Created A 30-Year Career From A Workshop That I Never Taught

In the spring of 1979, I had hoped to teach a workshop for Temple University’s Continuing Education program. Workshop title: How To Write A Book & Promote Your Business. Not only did I want to teach the one-day workshop because I had plenty of good information to share, but it also would have paid me $750, and I needed the money!

So the university prepared a tri-fold promotional brochure about the workshop and mailed it to alumni throughout the Philadelphia area and in spite of all best efforts and my anticipation, not one person registered for the workshop.

Not one!

This was even better!

But three businessmen called me with the same request: I can’t attend your workshop, but I need your help with a book project. Can you come and visit me?

Indeed I could. This was better than teaching a daylong workshop. Suddenly I had opportunities to help three people produce a book — any one of which would pay me more than $750! I was disappointed that the workshop didn’t come together, because I love to teach and share practical information, but little did I know that I was missing the Big Picture!

Three book opportunities

One of the phone calls came from a prominent Philadelphia attorney. He wanted me to help write his book: Divorce: Your Fault, My Fault, No Fault. Pennsylvania had just passed a no fault divorce law. Perfect timing for him and me!

Another call came from a consultant who wanted me to write How To Win Productivity In Manufacturing. This consultant sold a software program for $100,000 and he needed the book to help open doors.

Franchise . . . Revelation

And the third call came from a franchisor – John Kinch of TriMark (see the two earlier blog articles about my experiences with Kinch). With Kinch, I wrote Franchising: The Inside Story, published by Harper & Row. It was the first book that helped people evaluate a franchise to buy.

Totally unexpected, the franchising book launched my career as a franchise author, speaker/trainer/consultant, and eventually led to me owning several franchises and becoming the CEO of a major franchisor. All from one book.

Which is a nice way of tying back to my original premise.

Want to promote your business? . . . Write a book!

Promoting Businesses

Almost half of the 18 books I’ve written were commissioned to promote someone’s business.

In keeping with the spirit of these blogs about Kinch, I again tip my hat to him — at least to his memory since he’s now deceased — because if it weren’t for his call 30 years ago this spring, I would have missed out on an extremely rewarding career — one that I could not even have dreamed up on my own.

And oh, yea, coincidentally I’m going to teach a workshop: Write Your Book & Promote Your Business. If you want details, send me an email. . . . On the chance that you can’t attend but you’ve got a book project. . .call me!