Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Speaker A: Welcome back to Create wealth through Franchising podcast and Kim Daily tv. In my studio today, a fellow New Englander. His name is Sean Kelly. He is a franchisee of Second Family. He lives in Natick, Massachusetts. Sean, welcome to the studio of Kim Daly tv.
[00:00:17] Speaker B: Thanks, Kim. Pleasure to be here.
[00:00:19] Speaker A: It is a pleasure to have you. A fellow New Englander. So we're gonna go all the way back to the beginning of your story. What was happening in your life when you answered the call to franchising?
[00:00:31] Speaker B: Yeah, so I had been working in the corporate world for, gosh, decades. Lots of jobs in strategy, operations, finance. And the last company I worked for had a reorg reduction in force. And so my job, along with lots of others, got eliminated. I decided at that point to take a bit of a step back. My kids were a little bit younger at the time, and I said to my wife, like, maybe it's a time for me to think hard about for the next chapter of my career.
What is it that I want to do? What's important to me? And so I started to really just explore and think about what's important to me, what really gets me excited. And started to think about corporate versus small business ownership. And the longer that I sort of explore those opportunities, I started to think more deeply about small business ownership because I liked the idea of, number one, being my own boss. Number two, if I'm going to bet on something, bet on me, take a chance on me. And number three, the flexibility, not to say small business ownership is easy because it's really hard, but to basically, for me to determine my own flexibility, for me to be able to understand when I can spend time with my kids, et cetera. And so that's around that time that I said, you know what, as I'm exploring and thinking about different opportunities, let me think about small business ownership. And then I got that call, that franchising call, and said, hey, hey, you might be a good candidate for franchising. So I took the call and started to go down that path.
[00:01:57] Speaker A: So somebody, what, a franchise consultant reached out to you, what, via LinkedIn or something?
[00:02:01] Speaker B: Yeah, reached out via LinkedIn and got me at the right time. And I said, you know, maybe this is an opportunity. I had thought about starting a business or buying a business, and then franchising became something that was a little bit sort of like in the middle of those two and something that I started to really say, okay, there's value here and maybe let's explore this further.
[00:02:21] Speaker A: So prior to the consultant reaching out was franchising even, like something on your mind or you just never even crossed your mind that this was an option for you.
[00:02:29] Speaker B: You know, I had dabbled with the idea of, hey, like, franchising or not franchising, but I hadn't done a lot of research on it, hadn't really gone deep on it. And so it wasn't until this point in time to get this call that I really started to just get more familiar with it, start to do the research and start to think about where there could be specific opportunities for me.
[00:02:47] Speaker A: Yeah, that's good. I think a lot of times, Sean, people dismiss franchising because they think, number one, they need prior business ownership experience, which isn't true. They need a million dollars. Right. And then sometimes I think people think, you know, franchising, like, is Jersey Mike's in Subway. Thank you, but no thank you. I don't really want to be in food. Right.
[00:03:05] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:03:05] Speaker A: Right. So did you have any of those misconceptions?
[00:03:08] Speaker B: Well, it's funny because my very first job when I was in high school was working at McDonald's. And so I worked for, you know, a franchise in New Jersey, where I'm from. And, and so that was my, that was my original impression of franchising. And so to your point, like, that.
[00:03:23] Speaker A: Wasn'T on your radar?
[00:03:24] Speaker B: No, it's like Chick Fil a and what you know, down the street. And those are all fantastic franchises, but not for me. And so I, once I got past that, I realized, okay, there's actually a lot of businesses out there that are franchised. And so you start to see. And it's not just food service.
[00:03:38] Speaker A: Yeah, there's so many options.
And therein lies the need for someone to help you because you don't even know what. You don't know about the options that are available. So when you started to learn from the consultant about franchising, what were some of the characteristics of franchise ownership that appealed to you? That now that you've said yes, you're living those truths like you're in business for yourself, but not by yourself. Those things compared to if you had gone out on your own.
[00:04:05] Speaker B: Yeah, I think the, the idea of having like a set of best practices, a set of, I'll use the word playbook, almost like, here's what other franchisees have done in our business that have been successful. Like, you're not starting completely from scratch. You have like a guide.
Then the ongoing support. It's as you're going through, it's the weekly touch ins, the check ins, and the Sounding board. Hey, here's what I'm seeing in this market. Are you seeing something similar in other markets and really learning from that and having that just support mechanism that I can always go to, I can pick up the phone and say, hey to the founders of our company or to other support team. Hey, here's what's going on.
What have you seen in this scenario that you could give me some advice on? And that's just huge. When you're, when you're an owner of a business that you're not out there completely on your own is huge.
[00:04:55] Speaker A: Yeah, that's what I was going to ask you. Right, right. So knowing what you know now, looking back, imagine if you were just a pure entrepreneur out there on the island.
[00:05:03] Speaker B: It's. I think I'd get there. It would just take me a heck of a lot longer and there'd be a lot more sleepless nights because. Right. It's like all the things that I would have had to figure out that the team at Second Family gave me, like, here's, here's where to start, here's where to focus. Here are the activities you should be doing. I would have had to figure all that out on my own, which would have just set me back even further.
[00:05:28] Speaker A: Totally. Okay, let's talk about the conversation between you and your wife. So you sit down with your wife and like, okay, honey, I'm thinking about not going back to my job. Like, how does the conversation go? Was your wife like supportive from go, or was she more risk averse than you? Like, really? Should you get a job? Like, walk us through like that? Let's give it, give us a peek into your living room when that conversation went down.
[00:05:51] Speaker B: I'm blessed to have a extremely supportive wife. So when I, when I found myself in this place of not having a job, my initial inclination was, I'll just go get another job. And I had some offers lined up, some other opportunities, and my wife going through that, turned and said to me, like, you just don't seem excited. Like, what's the. Almost like, what's the hurry? Why don't you take this opportunity to take a step back and think about what you really want to do and be thoughtful about it. And so amazing, amazing advice from my wife. And luckily she's fully employed, so she had a job that we could rely on for that steady income and the benefits and all that, all that goes with it. And so I had her support.
And then when I came to the franchising discussion, I think her initial inclination was kind of like really, like what's this all about? Didn't quite, didn't quite understand it. But then as I, as I explained Second Family and I explained what it's all about, then I think the light bulb went off for her and she was like, okay, I get it, I get it now. And so I think it was, it was probably less about the small business ownership or franchising, but I think it was more about the business of Second Family and what we do that helped her really get on board and then she got excited for me.
[00:07:03] Speaker A: Okay, so now it's a nice segue into. Let's talk about why did you select Second Family? I'm sure you looked at a few different options. So what were the characteristics of this business for you? Thinking about the skillset you had coming in, the passions that you had. Like when she was like you weren't happy looking at jobs, like where did you think you were going to be happy when you looked at Second Family? Like how did you make that connection?
[00:07:28] Speaker B: Yeah, so for me, a lot of it at that time and still to this day was all about mission and purpose. I wanted something in my career that I could just be personally motivated by and the companies I worked for were fantastic, but I just didn't have that connection. And so I was looking a lot in like education as well as healthcare, just cause those are places that I have personal stories, personal connections. And so interestingly enough, as I'm going through this whole exploration process, my mom actually got sick and she spent weeks in a hospital, weeks in a rehab facility and being discharged. And so my sister and I literally lived this scenario of taking care of a loved one and trying to figure out how to age in place and how to get her into a good place. So as I'm going through exploring businesses and then this happens with my mom, it was almost like serendipity that said, like, wow, this is something I can personally relate to, personally have lived. And I'm not a salesperson, but I recognized that in order to be a good small business owner, I needed to have some sales capability. And when I thought about this business, I said, I can sell that. Not in a like a salesy way, but like I have a story, I have something I can relate to that when I'm sitting down with a family, I actually have something that I can draw back on my own experience that would be relatable. And so then it's just kind of like you connect the dots and it was okay, this is the right place for me.
[00:08:58] Speaker A: Okay, I'm gonna stop you right there because you're moving back and forth.
There's like a shadow.
[00:09:05] Speaker B: There's like a gleam of light coming through. Of course, the one time of day this happens as well.
[00:09:10] Speaker A: I think if you keep leaning forward, like right where you are right now. I don't see it. Okay, I know when you're talking, though. Oh, no, now it's back. So go to the.
[00:09:19] Speaker B: You want me to just stay here?
[00:09:21] Speaker A: Move to your left a little bit here. Yeah, keep going, keep going.
[00:09:25] Speaker B: Oh, there it is.
[00:09:26] Speaker A: That's right in the center of your face.
Yeah, so that's better. But it's shadowed on one side. But it's better than it being right in the middle. It's okay.
[00:09:34] Speaker B: One time of day this happens.
[00:09:36] Speaker A: It's okay.
[00:09:37] Speaker B: It's real. You want me to, like, put something over it or.
[00:09:40] Speaker A: No, no, no. I just. I don't want the shadow going right across your face. So if you stay right where you are and try to keep that side of it, even if you're moving, I think you'll be all right.
[00:09:50] Speaker B: I'll stay as long as I'll just.
[00:09:51] Speaker A: Do, like a little hand signal.
[00:09:56] Speaker B: You need me to redo anything?
[00:09:57] Speaker A: No, we'll. We'll edit this part out and we're going to continue. Okay, so that. Because that was a great answer. Okay, so, Sean, for those who may not be following along, like who may not know what second family is, can you give us a little like 30 second elevator pitch on what your franchise actually does?
[00:10:12] Speaker B: Absolutely. So Second Family provides non medical care to seniors in their homes. And so. And homes can mean lots of things for families that could be someone who's in their childhood house, it could be an apartment, it could be independent living, assisted living.
Wherever a senior is, our certified nursing assistants are there to provide care which ranges from companion care all the way up to personal care with someone who needs assistance on a 24x7 basis. And so we employ both certified nursing assistants as well as registered nurses to provide that level of care in homes for seniors.
[00:10:51] Speaker A: So good. Such a needed service.
[00:10:53] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:10:53] Speaker A: And when did you make the decision to join Second Family? How long ago it was?
[00:10:58] Speaker B: It was almost a year ago. So we're coming up on a year because I made the final decision in like, the January, February, March time frame of last year. So it's literally one year ago.
And you know, I mentioned before about, like, that personal connection, and that was a big driver. But then as I also, like, looked at the market and saw just the aging population and how much of a need there is for these types of services.
Then my personal side and my business side kind of came together and said, yeah, this is the right opportunity for me.
[00:11:28] Speaker A: It's so common. It's a lot of the people who are interested in the senior care space have that personal experience with a grandparent or a parent.
So a couple of questions, just because I know they come up, the listener may be following along thinking, well, what's your medical background? How did you feel confident that you could step in and run this type of a business? I thought I heard you say you were in strategy before in your corporate career.
[00:11:53] Speaker B: Yeah, I didn't have any medical background.
So as the business owner, I don't really need to have the medical background. That's why we have on our team registered nurses and certified nursing assistants who are all trained, qualified, competent to be able to deliver care for their families. I think the biggest skill that I can have as a business owner is empathy and compassion and be there to answer questions for our families. And you know, I've learned throughout my career it's not always about what you know, but it's about the people around you, surrounding you on your team who you can help to find the right answer. And oftentimes that's much more powerful than the answer coming from me.
[00:12:34] Speaker A: That's so good. And then the other question, it's a perfect answer. The other question that often people think from the sideline that keeps them sidelined from a business like this is the liability. A lot of times people are like, oh no, there's going to be too much liability. And I'm like, well, what if that's an assumption that you're making? There are ways to mitigate that liability. So can you speak a little bit to that? Because maybe you had those same ideas before you joined.
[00:12:56] Speaker B: Of course, yeah. I mean, we, we carry insurance for our employees to cover us on, on damages that may happen in the workplace, Both from the, from a client perspective as well as from our workers themselves, workman's compensation. So yeah, that's a concern, of course, sure.
[00:13:12] Speaker A: But mainly, like, I think what people are worried about is like the caregiver mistreating someone. And I think that when you really look at the training and the procedures that are in place by these franchises, unless you're not hiring according to those procedures and doing, you know, following the well traveled path, your liability gets really, really minimized. Correct?
[00:13:35] Speaker B: Yeah, absolutely. We spend a tremendous amount of time on screening and hiring our caregivers. And at Second Family, we have something called the grandma guarantee, which basically says if someone is not the right person to take care of my own grandmother or mother or father, whoever the case may be, then I'm not going to hire them. And that's something that universally we use throughout the second family organization as a filter on how we think about hiring the right caregivers. But it's not just that. So we want someone who's compassionate, someone who's qualified, someone who has certification so they've had the training, they've had the background check, so to speak. We conduct our own background checks to make sure that they're the right fit.
So there's a lot of work and time and energy that goes into finding the right caregivers for our team.
[00:14:19] Speaker A: So a year into this, Sean, tell us some of the personal growth, professional growth that you've gone through over this first year. At the time of this recording, It's January of 2026. So you mentioned you're coming up on your one year anniversary. I'm sure it's been a very foundation building year. The first year business ownership is. There's a lot of growth curves to go through even in a franchise. It's not all, you know, rose colored glasses. So tell us a little bit about, you know, what you've grown through and what now, what you're looking forward to moving forward into your second year.
[00:14:51] Speaker B: Yeah, it's like you said, it's a lot of been foundation building. So my goal to get through the end of the year was like, okay, have a good strong team in place, have started to build relationships with people in the market so that as we think about potential referral partners, at least I've had some of those initial conversations.
And so I'd say this as a small business ownership, as a franchisee, ups and downs, there's a lot of ups and downs, like very high highs. Like hey, when you're helping a family and taking care of a family, it's like nothing warms your heart more. Right. It's amazing. But then you get that like last minute cancellation that you're scurrying to find a backup care for. So it's those ups and downs that you just kind of have to find a way to go along and keep your even keel, so to speak. So that's been a new learning for me. I'm using new skills. So as someone who worked in strategy, operations, finance, I never really had to do much sales and marketing and that's probably where I spend a large majority of my time these days on getting out into the market, building relationships, looking for referral partners. And so I've actually enjoyed it. And I go back to the reason I started this, the reason I'm in this market is, is because for me it's so relatable. And so when I'm having these conversations, it doesn't feel like I'm selling in marketing, it just feels like I'm having a conversation to get to know someone.
So those have been great skill building exercises for me to build those new skills.
But it's really just that whole idea of like when you're a small business owner, you're always working, you're always on, like there's all, you always gotta answer the call. Right. At least for now, in the future I hope to have a bigger team, that there'll be someone else answering that call. But for now, at least, I'm still answering those calls.
[00:16:31] Speaker A: Of course. How has this decision changed your personal life? The dinner conversation you have with your wife, the time and relationship you have with your kids compared to if you had just dived, you know, dove back into another corporate job.
[00:16:47] Speaker B: Yeah, it's interesting because my kids now I think are more perhaps engaged in what I'm doing. I came out of the office, I have a home office and I came out the other day and my son's watching, looking at my website and looking at a video I had on there and I'm like, what are you doing? I'm just checking out your video. It's like, okay. So it's like they're, they're more.
[00:17:05] Speaker A: Did they give you any tips?
[00:17:07] Speaker B: They were asking me like, hey, how'd you get the video overlay? Because, you know, for our YouTube channel. So it might have been for a different reason. But needless to say, when they see, when they see like an article about me show up in our local newspaper or they see people calling and asking questions, I think it's, I think it's just a higher level of interest and engagement because I'm helping everyday people, people, neighbors, friends, family. Right. We're helping, we're helping. And I think they see that and I think they're probably too young to say pride, but I think they're just maybe a higher level of interest.
Certainly with my wife now just, you know, more conversations around the dinner table about, you know, some of the things that I encounter on a day to day basis. And I didn't mention before, my wife is a human resources professional, so she, she knows what it's like to deal with the people side of the business. So she's my, my best consultant. The best person for advice is that I can go ask my wife how, how I might handle a given situation.
[00:18:03] Speaker A: It's so good. You know, when you dare to pursue your dream, you change the whole dynamic in your family.
[00:18:10] Speaker B: Unbelievable.
[00:18:11] Speaker A: Forever. There's a statistic out there that this, the children of entrepreneurs have like some way higher likelihood of going on to become entrepreneurs themselves. It's my story, it's many of the people I've interviewed. It's their story too. And now it's going to be your kid's story because they, they don't do what we say, right, dad? They do what we do.
They see us and that's what they do. We are their role models. So it's so great when people come to me as a consultant and say, I want to build a legacy. I'm like, you know, by passing on a business, I'm like, look, the pressure to pick the right business that's going to be relevant in 20 years, like, it's too big. The legacy you leave to your kids is that you had a dream and you dared to pursue it. And you waking up to live your dream every day, to be in control of your destiny every day, to be able to be there at little league or soccer or dance or whatever it is, that's the legacy. Because that's what they see on a day to day basis. It's so good and it's very real. So I want to now go back to, you're a very wise wife, recognizing that you just didn't seem passionate about your, you know, pursuing another job and to how you're waking up today a year later in your business. Do you feel like you made the right choice even if you're not yet making the kind of money that you want to be making? And all the things are perfect because it's a, it's a work in progress. Right. But do you feel like the passion element is there because you're waking up and doing this for yourself?
[00:19:40] Speaker B: Yeah, I think so. I mean, it's, it's probably too soon to, too soon to tell. And people oftentimes congratulate me or want to recognize what I've done. And I'm always like, hey, no touchdown celebrations for me just yet. Like, I haven't quite gotten there yet.
I'm in the early stages and I'm hard, admittedly, I'm hard on myself. So I, I want to be successful. I want to take this to a place where it's an actual viable business and not Quite there yet. Right. We're still early in the, in the, in the dance. But needless to say, when I wake up in the morning, I have a different level of, of passion. It's, it's less about, less about a job and it's more about just, it's almost like the new normal of my life. This is my life now. And, and it's like, it doesn't feel like work necessarily. It just feels like who I am and what I'm doing and it's, and it's like, and probably because I'm always, I'm always thinking about what I can be doing that it's always, always on. But at the same time, I'm not working 100 hours a week, but I am always thinking about work. So it's a matter of I'm still able to coach my kids basketball teams.
In about an hour from now, I'll be going to my son's middle school basketball game. So those are all parts of the reason why I decided to be a small business owner. So I could still do that and I'm still doing that.
If I chose to, I could probably work more hours. But you know, I think it's important for me at least to have that balance. But to answer your question, yeah, I mean, when I wake up in the morning, it's just a whole different way of thinking about, about what's going on in my life and where, where I need to be that day and what I need to be doing and meeting and helping people every day is, is something I really take pride in.
[00:21:12] Speaker A: I love that so much. And I think that you. Look, I've met thousands of people over 20 plus years of being a franchise consultant and you know, everybody's like, I want to leave corporate America and I don't, I want to invest in a franchise and I don't want to work really hard. And I think that what happens when you're waking up working for somebody else's dream, it's so much resistance in telling you who to be, where to be. You're not getting to choose. But when you choose you by investing in yourself and investing in a business, it's different resistance. I'm not going to say that it's like, you know, effortless right from go, but it is effortless in that because you're waking up for your own dream. And so that idea that like you're going to just invest in a business and be absent, that's not what you're going to want to do when you fall in love with your dream for your future. And you find a franchise partner that has a vehicle that's going to enable you to go live that dream. You're going to want to be present right now. Yes. Obviously, the goal is to put systems and people in place so little by little you can step back. But that's earned through time.
And great businesses are built through great leaders. And you don't get to become a great leader until you've been on the trenches. You've built a foundation. So, I mean, everything you're saying is just. It's so. It's inspiring.
Mean, I know the people listening to this are just. I know I'm inspired. I love the story. I could hear this story every single day and never get tired of it. Because this is the American dream. This is what everybody around the world wants. Right? The American dream is a dream for freedom. It's a dream for unlimited wealth. It's a dream for prosperity. That's what we're doing when we follow our dreams and when we leverage the proven systems of a franchise. We're just mitigating some of those startup risks. Not all the risks, but we're mitigating some of the startup risks. And we're entering into this business ownership conversation. Not alone. You're not on an island. You're partnering yourself with people who've been there. They have a track record. They have systems and tools that you're going to take and you're going to add your powerful dreams and your powerful mindset to. And that's what's going to set you free to go live that dream. I think it's amazing. I'm so happy to meet you. I hope to have you back on my show in a couple of years when you are actually living the dream that, that you set out to just start to build right now. Sean, it's really. I know you're going to get there.
[00:23:31] Speaker B: Thank you. Fingers crossed it gets there. It'll be a lot of hard work in the trenches, like you said, but hopefully we'll get there.
[00:23:36] Speaker A: It's so good. So, in parting, I ask all of my interviewees. So for those people who may be on the sideline right now, who are you? A year and a half ago, Right. Maybe they're caught up in a reorg. Maybe they're working in a job that right now they just have no passion for. Right. They're waking up. They're a cog in the wheel. They're on the tread, a hamster on the treadmill. Whatever you want to say or in the wheel. Whatever you want to say, speak to those people right now from the vantage point of a year into your business, having made the brave, courageous decision to leave that life and invest in yourself. What advice do you have for those listeners?
[00:24:12] Speaker B: Yeah, the biggest thing for me is finding your why. Like, why are you. Why are you working? What are you doing for work? And what gets you excited, what makes you passionate?
What could you see yourself doing that it wouldn't feel like work?
And maybe that's franchising. Maybe that's starting a business. Maybe that's another corporate job. Whatever it is, be true to yourself on your why, because that's what's going to carry you through those low points when things get tough. You need to have that why of why am I doing this? What's important to me?
And when you do get those high points, that's what makes it even sweeter, because you're so invested in believing it so much. And so spend some time thinking about what's important to you personally. And if you want to make that connection between what's important to you and your career, then be true to that and follow your dream, follow your passions, follow what's important to you and figure out where the right. Where that right where that right journey might lead you. And if it ends up enfranchising like it did for me, then hopefully it can be successful. But it all comes back to following your why.
[00:25:15] Speaker A: I love that advice. Okay, this is your call to action for those who are on the sideline, because you know Kim Daly is going to help you find that why. Because we begin with the end in mind. And as Sean said, it all begins with a big, strong, powerful why. We got to know why we want to do this and what we want to build. So don't stand out there on your own trying to figure out what's the right franchise. What can I afford? What do I qualify for? That's why Kim Daly is here and my services are totally free for you. Sean, did you ever pay your franchise consultant?
[00:25:44] Speaker B: Nope.
[00:25:45] Speaker A: No. We get paid like recruiters by the franchisors to offer this awesome service. Basically, you can think of me like a warm lead generator. Sean, would you love to have a warm lead generator in your business?
[00:25:56] Speaker B: I would love that, yes.
[00:25:59] Speaker A: That's what franchise, particularly a free one.
That's what we do for the franchisor. So you never pay me any money. I'm blessed to be paid by them. So don't make that the limiting factor. I can't afford Kim daily. Yes, you can. My service is totally free and I am not pushy. I'm here to help you explore the options, not push you into it. You get to decide, yes or no whether this is the right path for you. So if this is your time, please follow the link in the description right now. Sean Kelly, thank you so much for being our special guest today and for inspiring us all.
[00:26:32] Speaker B: Thanks, Kim. Appreciate it.
[00:26:34] Speaker A: Nice to meet you. And until next time, please don't forget that my name is Kim Daly, and I want to be your franchise consultant and your daily mindset coach.
