My name is John Seiffer, and I’m called The Small Business Coach because I’m only 5ft 6. Obviously I couldn’t make it as a comedian, so I had to find another line of work.

The truth is, I’ve never had a real job. Now that the term “serial entrepreneur” has enough cache, I guess it’s safe to come clean. I think it’s important to know where people are coming from – especially when you only meet them electronically.

My History of Becoming Completely Unemployable

I’ve been an entrepreneur since 1979. That’s when I opened my first company. It’s the only one that didn’t make money. By 1993 I had become a Remote Control CEO. Something my friend Ron Hart would call an Extra-preneur. It refers to someone who runs a company from living in a different place: kind of like an ex-patriot. To do this, you have to run the company so well it can thrive without your personal presence. In other words, you’ve developed systems for the organization to capture the skills of the people and infuse them throughout the company, so it can keep growing.

In 1994 a client of mine recommended I look into coaching because, she said, I was a natural at it. I’d never heard of it before, it was a brand new profession back then. But when I checked it out, I found I liked it and was good at it. Since then I’ve been coaching and helping other business owners to do what I’ve done – systemize their companies so the organization becomes a support to getting what they want, rather than a hindrance.

For a while in the late 1990′s, I was also pretty involved in the coaching profession. I helped found the International Coach Federation and served as Treasurer and in 1998, as President. It now [2006] has over 9,000 members world wide.

Since 2002 my wife and I have been small time real estate investors. At one point we had 12 units – 8 single family homes and 2 duplexes. Now we’re down to 8 and half are on the market. [UPDATE: sold our last rental house in April of 2007. The market where we are invested (New Haven CT and McKinney TX) is down much more than the statistics indicate.]
In 2003 I turned over the reins of Video Rental Services to my wife who runs it remotely as I did. Does that make me a Remote Control CEO once removed?

I’m also an angel investor in a couple small companies. The Black Sheep and Mobile-Shop. If you’re at all into tools, don’t click on that last link. You’ll want to buy one!

Why Blog?

1. I like to write. It’s a personal fault, but it helps me clarify my thoughts and gives me the impression someone cares about what I have to say. If you care, please make a comment.
2. I’ve learned something from over 25 years of starting, running, buying, and selling companies. Stuff I wish I’d found somone to teach me way back when. It feels good to pretend someone to whom this matters is actually reading it.
3. I can’t find the stuff I write. You know how computers are. My paper files are worse even though I use Paper Tiger. The web is very searchable, and accessible. The blog allows me to invent some organizational structure so maybe I can find stuff.
4. There’s a chance I’ll find a client, or a partner, or an idea for my next endeavor. This would be more fun than the other reasons, but in my rational moments I don’t hold out much hope. However, I’d be less than honest if I didn’t tell you it was part of the motivation. Slap me (with an email ) if I get too self-promotional.