Last year, I decided to go back to full-time consulting as opposed to working for someone else’s company. After talking to an immigration attorney, I began the arduous process of starting a business in Spain - not autonomo (freelance) - a Sociedad Limitada. Agility for All, S.L. was born with a labor that I can only imagine rivals the toughest actual birth. 

All along the way I kept saying, “I am starting a consultancy to help organisations perform at their best; and I am stuck in the quagmire of Spanish bureaucracy and Catalan politics.” Those around me could probably attest to the fact that I said “Let me get my hands on the government and help them sort themselves out” more than a few times. I may have just said it again last week, if I’m being honest.

PANDEMIC PROBLEMS

But let’s get back to the meat of the story. At the time this decision was made, I also still had property in Washington, D.C. In December 2019, I made arrangements to go back to the U.S. at the end of March. I would say goodbye to my staff and clients, empty a fully furnished house, and get it ready to be put on the market some time in April. I created a backlog of items. Each backlog had subtasks. Everything was prioritized; and over the next three months some of those priorities changed. The backlog continued to be refined.

“I would apply the skills I teach to others and manage this remotely.”

As the COVID-19 pandemic began to unfold in Europe, I started to question my timeline. As it expanded to the U.S. and I witnessed the lack of national response, I became even more worried. I decided to change my tickets and escalate my timeline. Instead of traveling at the end of March, I would travel on the 13th. I changed my tickets on the 10th of March - and on the 11th, the U.S. announced a travel ban. I was exempt as I’m a U.S. citizen, but I would have been traveling back to the U.S. with no travel insurance (they wouldn’t issue it for COVID-19), no U.S. health insurance, and potentially no place to live if I couldn’t return to Spain. I made a very quick decision to cancel that travel as well. I would apply the skills I teach to others and manage this remotely.

PHASE 0: PLANNING

I took my original backlog, adjusted for the new business model, and put together a Kanban board - a tool to track the work through to completion. The list of tasks was daunting, but not impossible. I set out to find reliable people on the ground to execute the in-person tasks, and coordinated the legal and financial activities with the realtor. The planning phase was less than 24 hours. 

PHASE 1: PACK AND LABEL

On 15 March, the first on-the-ground warriors began to execute what we called “Operation Indra Has a House to Sell but is in Spain”. I wrote a detailed list of what needed to be packed and then finalized with the international shipping company and sent it off to a dear friend on the ground in DC coordinating the efforts. It read a bit like a story, as I didn’t want people who were donating their time to have to guess my intent. 

I organized the instructions based on the layout of the rooms. I’m thankful I have a great memory for detailed recall. The list defined the definition of done for the task at hand. In just a day, all of my personal effects were packed, and the household goods and furniture to be shipped were labeled with sticky notes. A final walk through (Review) was done via video so that I was aware of how everything was situated and I could sign off. Phase 1 was complete. All items moved to the Done column.

PHASE 2: PREPARE TO SHIP

Phase 2 was more complicated. The original plan was to have an open house and invite the community to come in and buy any items that they wanted; and then donate the rest. With the virus having a bigger and bigger impact on Washington, D.C., this plan didn’t seem so prudent anymore. Instead, I called a removal company and arranged for a pick up of everything not labeled for shipment. They scheduled the pick up for 4 days later. 

Another team went to the house in advance,  double checked the ship list, and marked everything else for donations. Again, if there were questions, they would send a photo via WhatsApp. The removal company came in and cleared out the house in 3 hours. They provided a donation receipt and planned to drop everything off at the charity shops with which they worked. The on-the-ground team did a walk through with me via video (Review) again to ensure all of the items were checked off. Phase 2 was complete. All items were moved to the Done column.

PHASE 3: SHIPMENT DAY

At this point, the contractor with his list of tasks came through and started touch-ups and patch work to ensure that the house was in good condition for the real estate listing photos. He worked alongside the timeline for the international shippers, who arrived the day after the donation team. However, he was juggling other jobs in other cities, trying to stay ahead of his own business tasks with the uncertainty of the pandemic restrictions. 

On shipment day, in a matter of hours, they packed all of the artwork, wrote the shipping documents, and drove off with my life in a container. Another friend was onsite to work with the shipper and ensure everything was properly labeled and packed. And again, any resulting questions were sent via WhatsApp or video. Phase 3 was complete and the house was ready to be cleaned, photographed, and listed.

The real journey was just beginning. And there were roadblocks and bottlenecks ahead. Find out how I dealt with them next week, in the second part of this story.

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About the Author:

INDRA A. BOOKS

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