[Dry Clean]

Wealthy people tend to keep working because of the status and power it gives them, plebs tend to keep working because they
have no choice, have done nothing else but work and its too late to change or they're just greedy for money that they no longer really need, either way its more to be pitied than celebrated.
Dazmond is still in his Iv turned my life around for the better stage and once the novelty has worn off he will soon see sense.
 

[dazmond]

Wealthy people tend to keep working because of the status and power it gives them, plebs tend to keep working because they
have no choice, have done nothing else but work and its too late to change or they're just greedy for money that they no longer really need, either way its more to be pitied than celebrated.
Dazmond is still in his Iv turned my life around for the better stage and once the novelty has worn off he will soon see sense.

its amazing how we all have different attitudes.......

i dont pity anybody whos still working in their 70s..... should i pity my dad whos still works at 72?   .....no i dont..he enjoys it and is much happier working part time than not working at all....he s in good health and looks years younger than his age.....

IMO anybody whos still active and reasonably healthy should be doing some sort of work whatever their age(even if its only voluntary work).....

[dazmond]

You want to work until 75 Daz?

I hope I don’t have to work until I’m that age. Do you not pay into a pension/property or similar to pay for a decent retirement?

why not?some of us enjoy work mate.....both window cleaners i know(one i used to work for over 25 years ago now)are both still working.one is 71 and the other 69.(their both on ladders too!).they look years younger than than their age and i reckon theyll carry on for a few more years yet......

they both have holiday homes abroad and pensions but still like to keep their hand in with the window cleaning(albeit on a part time basis).it keeps them active....and topping up their nest eggs/pensions....

I enjoy work as much as anyone. At 75 though I reckon I’ll enjoy relaxing and spending time doing my hobbies more....I hope so anyway.

im already semi retired anyway danny and enjoy my hobbies,relaxing etc (as well as my window cleaning work).the great thing about window cleaning is you can cut down your hours to suit....

[Marc Stock]

My van was only £4000 when i bought it 7 years ago on finance. Its been paid now 2 years so it doesn't cost anything in finance now.

Van Tank, static tank, pole, di, merlin ro, pump, hose reel and hoses and gubbins all in for £800 from fleabay.

Last year i turned over £45,300 and only 3 and a 3rd days a week at that.

This year we hope to hit 60k a year, and im buying a cheap van and tank as above for 3k if i can and get someone in it and keep pushing forward. I am already approaching £51,000.

You don't need to spend 30k on vans and equipment to have a profitable business. Its all snake oil, customers dont care if you have ionics systems with go faster stripes. They just want thier windows cleaned to a high standard with minimum fuss. Make that your goal and you will always have plenty of work.

no you dont have to spend a lot on vans/systems marc  but youll be changing them a lot more often than me.....

i got sick of messing about with old second hand vans,breakdowns,garages etc.....

I will always go for a van where the majority of the depreciation has settled,
this is around the 4k mark. As long as you keep it clean, and well maintained even after 7 years i know that just after a couple hundred quid valet and polish and de logo, i could get 2k for it right now as its still that good.

Let me tell you about seriously wealthy people, and trust me i have met a few where they have so much wealth, they dont even realise money exists they just do what they want they dont buy the latest cars and stuff, they tend to keep what they have and maintain it at any cost because they can.

I had a lady on the St George's Hill Estate in weybridge a few years ago. She would always wear green gardener quilted coat, and a lady cravat, leather welly boots, and equestrians. They had these two A reg jaguars, one in green and the other in gold and these were thier daily drivers still back in 2004 maintained at ANY cost in pristine condition one had over 190,000 miles on it and the other 120,000 miles. They had their own coachbuilder, their own mechanic, etc.

She bought another 7 million mansion outright just for a project because it was 'fun' they renovated it and rented it out for £25,000 per month. Lol and she had the cheek to try and knock me down on price, lovely lady though.

[Stoots]

I dont there is anything wrong with buying the latest gear and brand new vans on finance etc as long as you realise its not the best decision from a business point of view.

Nothing wrong with wanting the best gear, some spend there money on hobbies, holidays.

I must admit, i like the idea of new vans and gear eventually, but ill only do it once the important things have been done first and that to me is increasing profits.

If you can afford it and you want it, buy it, afterall  thats what we all graft for to have nice things.

[Marc Stock]

Id rather spend my hard earned money on motorcycles and fun things with yhe wife and kids. Work vehicles are meh, they do the job, they are tidy, and they make you doshino

[Dry Clean]

Wealthy people tend to keep working because of the status and power it gives them, plebs tend to keep working because they
have no choice, have done nothing else but work and its too late to change or they're just greedy for money that they no longer really need, either way its more to be pitied than celebrated.
Dazmond is still in his Iv turned my life around for the better stage and once the novelty has worn off he will soon see sense.

its amazing how we all have different attitudes.......

i dont pity anybody whos still working in their 70s..... should i pity my dad whos still works at 72?   .....no i dont..he enjoys it and is much happier working part time than not working at all....he s in good health and looks years younger than his age.....

IMO anybody whos still active and reasonably healthy should be doing some sort of work whatever their age(even if its only voluntary work).....

As long as it isnt replacing work that should be paid for I wont argue against doing a bit of voluntary work but lets be honest
if your father is still working then its for one of the reasons I mentioned above, you cant pity somebody who's fit and able to
work at 72 but can you pity them for feeling they need to, thankfully most dont think like you Dazmond or it would be a lot easier for the government to have us all working until we drop.

[Dry Clean]

I dont there is anything wrong with buying the latest gear and brand new vans on finance etc as long as you realise its not the best decision from a business point of view.

Nothing wrong with wanting the best gear, some spend there money on hobbies, holidays.

I must admit, i like the idea of new vans and gear eventually, but ill only do it once the important things have been done first and that to me is increasing profits.

If you can afford it and you want it, buy it, afterall  thats what we all graft for to have nice things.

Thing is Adam most of us dont consider window cleaning equipment to be nice things, I buy what I genuinely need to make my
working day as comfortable and profitable as possible, when it come to the things I enjoy then I dont mind wasting a few quid.

[dazmond]

I dont there is anything wrong with buying the latest gear and brand new vans on finance etc as long as you realise its not the best decision from a business point of view.

Nothing wrong with wanting the best gear, some spend there money on hobbies, holidays.

I must admit, i like the idea of new vans and gear eventually, but ill only do it once the important things have been done first and that to me is increasing profits.

If you can afford it and you want it, buy it, afterall  thats what we all graft for to have nice things.

exactly adam.........ive spent over 3k on 2 drum kits too as drumming is my main hobby along with £300 a year gym membership,gym clothes etc...

i like cars too so ive got myself a brand new golf GTD (which should be getting delivered within 2 weeks).ive also booked a week in a 5 star hotel in lanzarote for september.........

ive spent many years in this game just getting by and struggling financially when i was a trad window cleaner.....thankfully my business has picked up a lot since i went WFP nearly 8 years ago now......i also make a bit of money playing drums too(which is all cash in hand)....

[dazmond]

Id rather spend my hard earned money on motorcycles and fun things with yhe wife and kids. Work vehicles are meh, they do the job, they are tidy, and they make you doshino

i can afford all that too though marc....holidays,eating out at nice restaurants,hobbies(drums,gym,etc),nice clothes,top of the range smartphones etc....

[dazmond]

Wealthy people tend to keep working because of the status and power it gives them, plebs tend to keep working because they
have no choice, have done nothing else but work and its too late to change or they're just greedy for money that they no longer really need, either way its more to be pitied than celebrated.
Dazmond is still in his Iv turned my life around for the better stage and once the novelty has worn off he will soon see sense.

its amazing how we all have different attitudes.......

i dont pity anybody whos still working in their 70s..... should i pity my dad whos still works at 72?   .....no i dont..he enjoys it and is much happier working part time than not working at all....he s in good health and looks years younger than his age.....

IMO anybody whos still active and reasonably healthy should be doing some sort of work whatever their age(even if its only voluntary work).....

As long as it isnt replacing work that should be paid for I wont argue against doing a bit of voluntary work but lets be honest
if your father is still working then its for one of the reasons I mentioned above, you cant pity somebody who's fit and able to
work at 72 but can you pity them for feeling they need to, thankfully most dont think like you Dazmond or it would be a lot easier for the government to have us all working until we drop.

my dads happier now he s working again sean...i come from a working class family....we ve always worked....it beats all the scroungers that live around near me who have never had a job in their lives....proper scrounging scumbags IMO......

[dazmond]

I dont there is anything wrong with buying the latest gear and brand new vans on finance etc as long as you realise its not the best decision from a business point of view.

Nothing wrong with wanting the best gear, some spend there money on hobbies, holidays.

I must admit, i like the idea of new vans and gear eventually, but ill only do it once the important things have been done first and that to me is increasing profits.

If you can afford it and you want it, buy it, afterall  thats what we all graft for to have nice things.

Thing is Adam most of us dont consider window cleaning equipment to be nice things, I buy what I genuinely need to make my
working day as comfortable and profitable as possible, when it come to the things I enjoy then I dont mind wasting a few quid.

window cleaning equipment is certainly up there  for me esp the diesel water heater and carbon poles.having hot water "on demand" with no faffing about with gas bottles is heaven!

having a van with a heated drivers seat is also great esp during the winter months and air con for the hot summer days....

[Marc Stock]

I have to admit Dazmond, its a nice feeling when everything 'comes together' isnt it.

Recently since getting over my depression, my business is really starting to come togther again and its a good feeling. I had been a sufferer of depression for 9 years and worked simply to pay the bills (just about) and that was it.

Most days i found it hard to even get out of bed for days at my peak suffering, and early on i tried to take my life twice, before i met my good and lovely wife debs and now have two lovely kids 5 and 7 years old.

All this was from loosing my very lucrative commercial window cleaning business and house and ex misses and tax investigation, it wiped me out pre 2008.

Just a word of advice Daz, dont brag or blow your trumpet too much, HMRC do and will have people checking forums like this and if your reported self emplyment  income doesn't reflect support lifestyle you cleary enjoy (nothing wrong with that btw, as long as you pay your taxes) then you could face serious problems, for me i ended up bankrupt due to tax debts that i had not caculated properly, or seeked specailst tax advice on because i thought i knew it all. And to add insult to injury HMRC will argue that black is white if they can get away with it, and it becomes profitable for them. They have the law on thier side to support  thier interpretation of your tax affairs regardless. So i wouldn't put that you do cash in hand work on a foum if i was you mate.

[Stoots]

I dont there is anything wrong with buying the latest gear and brand new vans on finance etc as long as you realise its not the best decision from a business point of view.

Nothing wrong with wanting the best gear, some spend there money on hobbies, holidays.

I must admit, i like the idea of new vans and gear eventually, but ill only do it once the important things have been done first and that to me is increasing profits.

If you can afford it and you want it, buy it, afterall  thats what we all graft for to have nice things.

Thing is Adam most of us dont consider window cleaning equipment to be nice things, I buy what I genuinely need to make my
working day as comfortable and profitable as possible, when it come to the things I enjoy then I dont mind wasting a few quid.

I hear you .

But it seems some of us do consider window cleaning equipment to be nice things. ( I think you mentioned before some see it as a hobby)

Some seem to enjoy spending money on new gear so each to their own.

I must admit I'm a bit of both.

All my gear is functional not extravagant but now and again I will splurge a bit just to keep it interesting.

I bought an slx18 last month, i didn't really need it but fancied one.

[dazmond]

I have to admit Dazmond, its a nice feeling when everything 'comes together' isnt it.

Recently since getting over my depression, my business is really starting to come togther again and its a good feeling. I had been a sufferer of depression for 9 years and worked simply to pay the bills (just about) and that was it.

Most days i found it hard to even get out of bed for days at my peak suffering, and early on i tried to take my life twice, before i met my good and lovely wife debs and now have two lovely kids 5 and 7 years old.

All this was from loosing my very lucrative commercial window cleaning business and house and ex misses and tax investigation, it wiped me out pre 2008.

Just a word of advice Daz, dont brag or blow your trumpet too much, HMRC do and will have people checking forums like this and if your reported self emplyment  income doesn't reflect support lifestyle you cleary enjoy (nothing wrong with that btw, as long as you pay your taxes) then you could face serious problems, for me i ended up bankrupt due to tax debts that i had not caculated properly, or seeked specailst tax advice on because i thought i knew it all. And to add insult to injury HMRC will argue that black is white if they can get away with it, and it becomes profitable for them. They have the law on thier side to support  thier interpretation of your tax affairs regardless. So i wouldn't put that you do cash in hand work on a foum if i was you mate.

Im not that paranoid marc.....do you honestly think HMRC are gonna come after me for getting a few quid for pub and club gigs?(i dont declare my xmas tips either BTW).......... ...sod em!they get enough of my money as it is!