Page 14 of Be Your Anything
“What do you think?” he asks, spinning around the large office space with his arms outstretched.
I already know my opinion, but I look around anyway simply because I know Otto will say I’m being unreasonable if I don’t at least give it a real once-over.
The floor-to-ceiling windows in the foyer of the office, which sits on the fifteenth floor of one of the only high-rise commercial buildings on Wilshire Boulevard in Santa Monica, provide a killer view of the ocean and flood the entry with natural light.
There are about fifteen offices, if I’m counting doors correctly, down a long hallway that spans the length of the building. Lots of glass and open space and modern and…it’s way too big.
“I think it’s beautiful,” I say.
Otto smiles, and I almost feel bad because I know it isn’t going to last.
Almost.
“But we aren’t Google. We need an office space for four people, for the next two years. This is too large for us and will be a waste of money.”
Otto’s face falls. “What?”
“There’s me, Wyatt, you, Owen, and Quinn,” I explain, referring to the business manager and Otto’s assistant. “And Wyatt is going to be working from London at some point. We don’t need this many offices, or this much space.”
“But we’ll be growing soon,” he says, “and if we don’t have a space that can fit us, we’ll grow out of a smaller office within the first two years. If we’re meeting with potential customers, or even if you’re wanting to schmooze the celebs and make connections, we have a brand image we need to maintain.” He spreads his arms out again. “This office does that.”
I cross my arms, one hand reaching up to rub at the stubble on my face. I don’t understand why he’s pushing for this.
For an office building.
Well, I guess I can understand why he feels like hecanpush for this. I’m usually theyeah-that-sounds-greatguy.
A small theatre is available to rent out for a private performance with Maroon 5? Yeah, that sounds great.
You want to send twenty people on a billionaire’s yacht to Catalina? Yeah, that sounds great.
Have a Level Five Whisky Sommelier flown in from Scotland to do a tasting of a Scotch so rare it costs over $50,000 for one bottle? Yeah, that sounds great.
Normally, I’m fine to go along with whatever plans Otto has. That’s just my attitude about most things—take the leap and try something crazy. It’s usually worth it.
Usually.
Butusually, Otto makes legitimately smart decisions. Some of them risky, for sure, but still smart.
Which is why this seems harebrained, even for him.
And I know if I keep up myusualresponse to Otto’s suggestions, if I remain his yes-man, it’ll be something we all regret in the future.
“If you’re concerned about space, the smart thing for your agent to do would be to find us a place with additional offices available in the same building or on the same floor, with people who have leases coming up in the next year or two. Then you can overflow into neighboring offices until we’re large enough to warrant renting something larger or buying a building.”
Otto pouts, crossing his arms.
He can be such a baby sometimes.
“And the whole ‘brand image’ thing? You know I’m not bringing any contacts to an office, so that’s a bullshit excuse you’ve created in your own mind as a necessity because you’re sick of working in a shitty office.”
That statement gets me a glare. It’s a look I deserve, because I know I hit an uncomfortable point he doesn’t want to address, but I’m doing it anyway, because he’s my friend and friends level with each other.
“You told me you wanted to do all of this on your own, without any help from your dad. That means it’s going to take longer and probably won’t be as simple as it would be if you had accepted his interest and financial backing. There will be less luxury and more penny-pinching, but that also means you don’t have to accept his input, which is what you wanted. Now, maybe I’m wrong, but maintaining that independence is probably more important than having a fancy office, right?”
Otto grits his teeth, biting out a short “Yes” in response to my question.
It’s a conversation we’ve only had to have one other time, when he thought buying a plane for our travel needs would be a good idea. Wyatt and I definitely had to talk him down from that ledge, and I’m pretty sure I said some of the exact same stuff back then.
