Working in the world of business can be fraught with difficult choices. Each day you find yourself in the position to decide. Do you take on this client instead of that one? Should you bring up your concerns in a meeting or keep them quiet to avoid tension? Then there are choices which come naturally. Deciding to leave a company which doesn’t value your hard work is simply a matter of choosing what’s in your best interest. Breaking out of the typical business pathway can take a lot of courage for the average worker. Entrepreneurship is not for the faint of heart but staying where you don’t belong is never the right choice.
Getting the recognition for helping lead a business towards growth is always deserved. Once you realize that getting that honor is continually a few steps away, it’s easier to bow out and build a brand of your own than try and stick a thankless position out. Kevin Williams, co-founder and CEO of TekConnX, found use for his services elsewhere. “I’m an Army veteran – a medical specialist. Once I got out of the Army I got into exterior building restoration. I did that for a number of years, learning the business from the ground up. I just got tired of people promising me they would honor my contribution to the growth of their organization. It always seemed to fall on deaf ears. So I crossed over to IT and started learning about the industry, again, from the ground up. I said to myself – enough of making millions of dollars for other organizations. I ended up getting let go from my last employer and at that point I decided that I would start my own business. I called a dear friend of mine and over a meal we had a business plan written out and the whole ball of wax. Our business was up and running in about a week.”
Williams got TekConnX rolling in a short amount of time. “We’re a technology company. We provide IT services primarily in the realm of Audio/Visual design. We design and build AV collaboration solutions that companies are now using a lot more of to cut down on travel and be able to communicate in a more timely fashion with their employees that are either in a local area or spread out throughout the country – or even the world. They can open up documents on their laptops or iPads and connect anytime, anywhere, with anything in real-time and discuss the issues at hand and make decisions instantaneously and sign documents. We design, install, and maintain these systems for companies all over the world. We also have a social media practice where we design and build social media listening rooms for marketing and federal organizations to help them make educated decisions. We also have a security division which is where we build and design LED lighting solutions that have an embedded security system inside that has detailed analytics. Those are the primary practices we have at TekConnX.”
Now in the driver’s seat of his business, Williams has advice for anyone looking to start a business. “Just jump. Jump in. If you know in your heart of hearts that starting a business or wanting to own a business is really what you want to do, and you’re good at what you do then go. I started my business with no money and no credit cards. Align yourself with the kind of resources that will help you effectively run your organization. Don’t give up, never quit, and never listen to the naysayers. Haters are everywhere. Hateration Nation is alive and well. Stay on your knees if you’re a praying person. Stay faithful to yourself and to your organization. Before you know it – you’ll begin to have repeat business. Before you know it, your company will begin to grow. Don’t focus on the money. Focus on the delivery of service and the money will come.”
Aligning yourself with the right people can be the difference between your business thriving or just barely surviving. Being in the right location such as the DMV area can be a huge boost as well. “This is a very robust federal area. From a federal perspective, the landscape is unbelievable. From a commercial perspective there are a lot of large organizations that are right here. They drive businesses all over the world. It’s a melting pot with a lot of entrepreneurs here…from all over the world. They all have different backgrounds and different ethnicities. This is one of the best places on the planet where you can do business.”
CEO Chat Podcast
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Thanks to Kevin Williams for this interview. Visit TekConnX to learn more about his company and connect with Kevin on Linkedin.