income up reply more

[Susan Kline]

Dear James,

Your points are very well taken. It's up to people to decide what sort of
business they want, (and to figure out whether they have the wherewithal to
achieve it) and then to make the choices and pay the price.

The "underbrush" option also makes very good sense for many people. If you
have the talent, training, and desire, you can do the work on high quality
pianos for musical people, too, just not all the time. You end up with a
very mixed clientele, but also with very low stress and extremely low
overhead. You can choose to live in a calm and pretty place, and you don't
have as many obnoxious wealthy people to deal with ... not that all wealthy
people are annoying, but a few of them sure are! 

> If you operate on the fringes, do you ever get real recognition?

Sometimes, sometimes. (Did last week.)

Susan
---------------------------------------------------------


At 07:59 AM 8/1/98 -0500, James wrote:
>I just took my morning shower and my mind came up with some more stuff.
>	A person can run their business as an "underbrush" sort of operation or go
>all big time like the "big guys" do.  If you operate on the fringes, do you
>ever get real recognition?  Let me give you an example.  One of this lists
>members, Willem Blees, started here  in St. Louis some years after I
>started in business.  He has grown from just piano tuning, to repair, to
>rebuilding, to renting pianos, to selling used pianos, and on to selling
>new and used pianos and accessories and has the only piano store in the
>southern half of the St. Louis area, biggest and only.  Think of all the
>hoops he has had to jump through with store rents, licenses, zoning, gov.
>rules, sales tax and so on. Did this deter him, no. There is a time when
>you have to choose if you are going to run with the big boys and you have
>to follow the same rules that they have to follow UNLESS, you choose to
>stay in the underbrush and have that kind of clientele. 
>	 If you are good at what you do don't settle for being on the fringe. 
>Move up.  If you have to do the government walk, walk it.  Even though they
>will get a cut, so will you get the biggest cut.  	We just had that $275
>Mil PowerBall thing here.  In order to win the #250 Mil. you had to spend a
>buck.  Isn't that the way it is for everything?
>James Grebe
>R.P.T. of the P.T.G. from St. Louis, MO. USA, Earth
>Piano Service and Piano Peripherals
>Creator of Hardwood PLTR's and Custom Piano Benches
>pianoman@inlink.com         If I wake up in the morning, it WILL be a great
>day!
>
>----------
>> From: pianoman <pianoman@inlink.com>
>> To: pianotech@ptg.org
>> Subject: Re: income up reply
>> Date: Saturday, August 01, 1998 7:27 AM
>> 
>> Yes Wally,
>> 	 Mo does have a sales tax regulations.  I am trying to see if I can do
>> mine to tag along with my wifes number for her sales tax number.
>> James Grebe
>> R.P.T. of the P.T.G. from St. Louis, MO. USA, Earth
>> Piano Service and Piano Peripherals
>> Creator of Hardwood PLTR's and Custom Piano Benches
>> pianoman@inlink.com         If I wake up in the morning, it WILL be a
>great
>> day!
>> 
>> ----------
>> > From: Wallace Scherer <WallyTS@compuserve.com>
>> > To: INTERNET:pianotech@ptg.org
>> > Subject: Re: income up
>> > Date: Saturday, August 01, 1998 5:40 AM
>> > 
>> > Lisa's comment was similar to mine.
>> > 
>> > In Virginia, once a business has started to sell taxable items, there
>is
>> a
>> > big form to fill out every month, whether or not a sale was actually
>made
>> > that month. I haven't sold any taxable items yet, but I have done a lot
>> of
>> > advertising for Dampp Chaser systems, so expect at some point to have
>to
>> > fill out the tax forms. My new receipt for services also has a section
>> for
>> > parts and materials, with a place at the bottom for sales tax.
>> > 
>> > Wally Scherer, Norfolk, VA
>> > Web page: http://www.geocities.com/Vienna/2411
>> > 
>> > 
>> >   
>
>
Susan Kline
P.O. Box 1651
Philomath, OR 97370
skline@proaxis.com