Hi all, new to the forum name's Charlie.
I recently had what I fear is going to turn out to be a very stupid idea. I've gotten my A+ cert and Network cert but live in a small town, surrounded by more small towns and am having one heck of a time finding a job.
My previous job was what drove me to get certified in the first place. I had to quit it just to go visit my wife in China while her immigration papers are processing.
The nearest computer repair shop is almost 40 miles away. I had the idea to open up a shop, as I get asked many times to remove viruses, install hardware, many different things. I am seriously thinking about doing this for many reasons, one of which being I could go back to China and visit my wife (stupid paperwork takes a year).
The thing that makes me think it's a stupid idea would be my experience at a computer shop I worked in a few years ago. There would be customers who'd bring in a computer eaten up with spyware/viruses and I'd repair it. The customer would take it home, then call back hours later enraged that they had problems again. A little digging when they brought it back in would show they had been browsing the same sites (PORN). They'd take it, storm out and go tell all their relatives/friends how you and your company were a ripoff and scam artists.
I do not know every single fix for every single thing that can go wrong with a computer. I do not pretend to. I do however take pride in doing the best I can, and I value my reputation. I don't want to get a rep as an idiot that takes people's money.
It seems to me the opportunity is a good one. I have enough knowledge to fix the common problems, and enough common sense to research and THEN fix what I am unsure of. There are no stores nearby, and it seems almost everyone is looking for someone to take a look at their computer. Think it'd be worth the risk of the few people who are gonna be problems? Or should I just keep diggin for that illusive IT job here.
Thanks for any input. I've never owned a business. I would be the only one working in this shop, so I would have no one to turn to if I run across some super mega ultra WHAAAAAAT THEEEE HECK error.
I recently had what I fear is going to turn out to be a very stupid idea. I've gotten my A+ cert and Network cert but live in a small town, surrounded by more small towns and am having one heck of a time finding a job.
My previous job was what drove me to get certified in the first place. I had to quit it just to go visit my wife in China while her immigration papers are processing.
The nearest computer repair shop is almost 40 miles away. I had the idea to open up a shop, as I get asked many times to remove viruses, install hardware, many different things. I am seriously thinking about doing this for many reasons, one of which being I could go back to China and visit my wife (stupid paperwork takes a year).
The thing that makes me think it's a stupid idea would be my experience at a computer shop I worked in a few years ago. There would be customers who'd bring in a computer eaten up with spyware/viruses and I'd repair it. The customer would take it home, then call back hours later enraged that they had problems again. A little digging when they brought it back in would show they had been browsing the same sites (PORN). They'd take it, storm out and go tell all their relatives/friends how you and your company were a ripoff and scam artists.
I do not know every single fix for every single thing that can go wrong with a computer. I do not pretend to. I do however take pride in doing the best I can, and I value my reputation. I don't want to get a rep as an idiot that takes people's money.
It seems to me the opportunity is a good one. I have enough knowledge to fix the common problems, and enough common sense to research and THEN fix what I am unsure of. There are no stores nearby, and it seems almost everyone is looking for someone to take a look at their computer. Think it'd be worth the risk of the few people who are gonna be problems? Or should I just keep diggin for that illusive IT job here.
Thanks for any input. I've never owned a business. I would be the only one working in this shop, so I would have no one to turn to if I run across some super mega ultra WHAAAAAAT THEEEE HECK error.