@Fountofwisdom,
I did take over the business after dad died. When he was alive, I went from putting up wood siding to doing his payroll, books, dealing with the accountant, builders and making sure every job site had the supplies they needed. I thought I could handle the business, but back in those days I was still the only female I ever saw on the construction sites and I had a hell of a time keeping my foreman from trying to rob me blind.
The builders were respectful and honest enough, but babysitting my crew, especially the ones who were suppose to be in charge, was more than I could take.
I was only 21 when dad died and I was devistated, so after 2 years of dealing with dishonest employees, I decided to sell the business.
My mind has always been on building a business that would work for me. Real estate has always been my passion, but I've yet to throw myself into it, other than working for a real estate agency for a short time in the states.
I ended up going into the taxi business where I had my own cab for 3 years, which I sold to move to Canada.
I did well with my taxi, but the stress was unreal and for that reason, I have no desire to get back into it.
I attempted an ebay business last year, but between the ecconomy and the competition, that didn't work out either.
I'm still driving towards the real estate, but more on a "flip this house" way. Buy a handyman special, fix it up and sell.
This way it takes me out of the customer service arena and I get to do what I love, which is home improvements.
In the mean time, because of my rural location, I do seasonal work.
Sorry for the long winded post. Once I started explaining what I thought would be a short story, my fingers kept going