Wednesday's Woman: Carol Counter

Like so many other people across the nation, Carol Counter found herself without a job a few years back. Rather than rely on unemployment or blame her troubles on the economy, she decided that it would be the perfect time to start her own business. 

“I thought, 'what can I do? What do I like to do? And what would people be willing to pay for?'” she said. 

Counter grew up in Minnesota, then moved in the 1980s to California, where she played oboe with the Sacramento Community Orchestra. She has a wildly artistic streak, and she sang with the Gwinnett Choral Guild for sixteen years. Music is a passion of hers, and although she does not play the oboe anymore, she does still sing.

She has been actively involved with the in the past and hopes to pursue it more in the future. It is her enthusiasm and wide array of interests that makes this Renaissance woman perfect for her current work. 

Before losing her job, she was doing custom cabinetry and closet design. She knew she wouldn't find another job in the housing industry, but wasn't sure where else her skill set would fit in. So many companies were downsizing at the time, and she found that virtually no one was hiring. 

“I thought, well, the jobs are still there,” she said.

If companies were downsizing, surely the work still needed to be done? She considered that she could do odds and ends as a contractor. Eventually, she began her personal services company,

“I have a varied background,” she said, “and I thought that there would be a sweet spot for me to fill in.” 

Her can-do attitude got her first few contract jobs. There is no work she will not do. Need your pants shortened? Someone to sit at your house while you're waiting for Comcast to show up? Too busy to weed your garden?

“You can deal with anything for a few days,” she joked. 

After being turned down for a few odds and ends, she realized that she needed to offer people more confidence in her skills. She is now licensed, insured and bonded. Taking that step opened up many more doors as a “handy woman.” 

She asks prospective clients, “What's on your to-do list that isn't getting done?” If it's something she can do, she'll strike a deal. If she can't, she won't waste their time or money. 

This year marks the first year since 2010 she will be able to pay herself a salary. Up until now, she has been investing her profits back into the company. She's a one-person show, occasionally hiring out contractors for more difficult projects. 

“I could have the paycheck, or have the company I'm building,” she said. “I have something here that is pretty special, and I want to continue with it. I think it fills an interesting little niche.” 

Although she never planned on pet-sitting, she has done some of that, too. She takes care of horses while one of her clients is out of town and has grown to love the work.

In general, the type of work she does is endless and includes things like closet design, balancing checking accounts, picking up dry cleaning, holiday gift returns, event coordinating, scheduling appointments, making custom jewelry and general office work.  In fact, one family-owned business hired her for one day a week in their offices because of the quality of her work.  

It is her willingness to do the jobs that people either don't want to do or don't have time for that has brought her the level of success she has now.  She feels that she grows personally each time she takes on a new job and is always eager to work on new things.  

She believes that when the ladder to success turns out to lead nowhere, it's time to build your own ladder.