You might be thinking what could be new under the sun when
it comes to notary work. And you would be right, what I offer is not new, just
a spin on the tried and true.
When I evaluate what I have done over the last 15 years to
have a thriving business, it is really old-school application to solve an
ever-evolving challenge. We all have about 50+ years to work and as we
transition our work, we have an opportunity to look at what matters, brings us
pleasure, makes us proud, makes a difference and brings a source of income that
serves our needs today as well as in the future. Endurance and Happiness cannot
be just about ourselves. We need to be connected to the whole, a part of
something bigger than ourselves. As we find ways to combine our ability to make
a living with fitting into the bigger picture, we uncover joy, reward, purpose
and satisfaction.
I have identified four strategies that serve me well that
I’d like to share with you. And if you can take away even one idea that
improves your business, then I have met my challenge.
Leverage (Your history comes into play): Old skills may transfer to new assignments.
Inventory your work history, education, life experiences to see how some of
what you know can develop a stronger, better-rounded notary professional. I ran
a facility for elderly persons before starting my notary business. That inside
knowledge about the industry, the contacts, the hands-on with clients prepared
me well for hospital and skilled nursing assignments. Before that I managed a
recall program for heart valves which involved skip tracing to find the
recipients and the paperwork was staggering. It taught me about developing
protocols to organize my actions so I didn’t repeat or miss steps. Before that I
was a Quality Control Manager in the food industry. I have skills in
identifying what is incomplete which helps me see missing signatures, stamps,
blank spaces. Who knew all those jobs
would contribute to building my unique ability to provide stellar service. You want to start your own notary business click site.
Repetition (Paying your dues): Do more signings; it is the price of
admission. The more you do the better you get, the more confidence you build.
My first assignment was a disaster and I thought I’ll never get another job. I
was late due to printer issues, I dropped the stack of papers as soon as I
stepped in the door, and I was slow as heck – I think I took almost 3 hours and
the package was under 100 pages. I would take an assignment and then fret over
things like what if I didn’t recognize a document or know how to fill out the
certificate. What if I made a mistake, what if the signers are grouchy? Reality
was every time I successfully completed an assignment, I felt stronger, more
knowledgeable, and competent. 15 years later there isn’t much I haven’t seen,
but more importantly I know the secret to dealing with documents I don’t
recognize. I don’t panic. The signers
don’t know what any of the documents are so when they see me presenting the
stack and I only need to look more closely at a few they are still impressed.
The next time I see it I know what it is. I am as proficient and knowledgeable
as I am because I have performed 30,000 notarization. You just can’t fake
experience. My first few were scary, the next were slightly better and soon I built
a rhythm to the set up and at the table presentation.
Consistency (adding up to make you the best you can be): It
is about the everyday, not about the assignment you knocked out of the park.
Building a reputation for dependability goes a long way with companies and
consumers who hire us. That takes time, consistent and accurate work day in and
day out. It is great when we get an assignment that is close by, paid over the
average fee, a small package and was open-time scheduling that fit my day.
Those jobs are our reward for the 95% that are not that way. Those challenging
assignments help us grow and develop a consistent service no matter who, what,
where or when. The details that you successfully navigate over and over again
make you the professional you want to be. Strive to consistently deliver what
you say you will deliver. That means we are on time, we are prepared, we are
equipped with the right tools and resources, we are efficient without making
the signer feel rushed, we exude confidence about the successful completion of
the assignment
Reinvent yourself (I did and
look where it has led!): A one-trick
pony gets old. Instead of all the eggs in one basket, have several baskets with
few eggs in each so that if one stream isn’t producing you can balance out with
others. Even the packages and forms we see continue to be reinvented (it would
be nice however if they let go of the old ones). Just when they think they know
all you can do, surprise them with a new specialty, service, approach, etc. I
started with loan documents and when the bubble burst I realized I needed to do
more. I looked at some of my incidental non-loan-signing work and saw adoptions
as work that I could develop upstream rather than get when they stumbled over
me. I reached back to my contacts to develop an expertise in facilities to
back-fill what I lost. I made a connection over dinner at a conference and
within six months started teaching mandated training classes for the NNA. I
started speaking locally to non-profit service groups to educate the public
(business owners) about what and who notaries are and began getting more
commercial work. I was mentoring so many other notaries I didn’t have time to
handle all the notary work and was turning down assignments. This meant I lost
money helping someone else and the customer was not served. Two challenges to
overcome. I started a local Meetup group with other notaries to build
relationships that later allowed me to create another line of business to
privately coach which brought me another revenue stream to make up the loss,
and I started referring the work I couldn’t handle to notaries I coached and
the customer was served. I became a speaker at the annual NNA conference, which
lead to repeat paid requests to speak in two other states and three other
organizations. Which led me to identify a local need to help notaries identify
a new philosophy of abundance, that other notaries are not the competition,
they can be your colleagues and together, we create more work than we had
alone. Most recently the Notary Symposium is the dream to help other notaries
see the potential we all have to make a good living while serving others. Have
I stopped? No, when a notary reached out to me to consider partnering with her
to add a new service to my menu, I decided not only to meet her, I asked her to
be a speaker at the 2017 Symposium and is now partnering with numerous other
notaries handling Apostilles. So what is next?
Making sure I keep ahead of the curve by upgrading my traditional tools
to E tools so I am positioned to handle what is coming both in executing the
work and coaching others to do the same. Don’t stand still, join the parade!
