A Practical, Step-By-Step Guide for Doing It the Right Way

Most conversations in the notary world focus on how to start a notary business.

• How to grow

• How to get more clients

• How to make money

Almost no one talks about how to stop, and yet, notaries step away from the business every day.

Some are burned out.

Some are discouraged.

Some are overwhelmed.

Some simply realize this season of life requires something different.

All of that is human. All of it is understandable.

What isn’t okay is just disappearing in a way that leaves hiring parties, the public, and fellow professionals confused, misled, or scrambling.

Closing a notary business isn’t just a personal decision, it’s a professional responsibility. And when done thoughtfully, it can be an act of integrity rather than defeat.

Closing is Emotional

First, let’s face the emotional reality. If you’re closing your notary business, there’s a good chance you’re carrying mixed emotions:

• Disappointment

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When I first started my signing company (11 years ago), I made what felt like a logical assumption. I thought the notaries who had been commissioned the longest would be the best at what they did. More years… more experience… better work. Right?

I was wrong.

Dead wrong.

In fact, it often turned out to be the opposite. And that realization changed how I see this entire profession, because here’s the truth that doesn’t get talked about enough:

A notary commission gives you permission to act. 

It does not prove you’re prepared to do it well.

When I was building my database of notaries across the country, I relied heavily on directories. And like a lot of people, I used “years commissioned” as a proxy for quality.

It didn’t take long to see the cracks.

• Missed steps.

• Incorrect notarizations.

• Inconsistent practices.

• Unwillingness to learn (Not coachable)

And these weren’t always brand-new notaries. Some had been commissioned for decades. That’s when I started ...

For years, I’ve believed deeply in raising the bar for professionalism in the notary industry.

Not just through training, and certifications. But through how we actually show up when someone needs us.

That belief is what led me to create Gotary.com and declare it the home of “The World’s Best Notaries.” 

And it’s also what’s led me to make one of the hardest business decisions I’ve had to make in a long time.

I’ve decided to begin a structured wind-down of Gotary. The platform will officially close on December 31, 2026.

This isn’t something I take lightly. In fact, I’m still in the feels about it. 

The Gotary Dream

Gotary wasn’t just another directory.

I built it because I was tired of the nameless, faceless directories that rely almost entirely on SEO to do the heavy lifting, while offering little in the way of accountability, customer support, or real participation in the profession.

I wanted something different.

I put my own name, my face, and my phone number on the platfo...

I want to introduce you to a new way of thinking and being. 

Most notaries are taught to focus on getting reviews for themselves:

• Build your Google profile

• Ask every client for five stars

• Strengthen your online presence

And that advice is not wrong. It’s absolutely correct in many ways. 

But it is incomplete.

If you are building a consumer-facing general notary business, your reviews absolutely matter.

They help strangers trust you. 

They increase your visibility. 

They influence buying decisions.

However, when you begin working with estate planning attorneys, you are no longer operating in the same game.

You are no longer chasing one-off transactions.

You are building relationships with referral sources, and that requires a different strategy.

This is what I call The Review Flip.

Let’s Start at the Beginning: Why Reviews Matter

Just like your prospects search for a “notary near me,” before someone hires an attorney, they usually search online. 

They co...

Lurking simply means being part of an online community where you regularly read and observe but rarely or never post or comment.

I’ve been curious about lurking for a while.

Not in a frustrated way (although I’ll admit, as someone who builds communities, I’ve felt that too) but in a genuine, research-driven way. I wanted to understand what’s actually happening in online groups. How do communities really grow? How do people learn? Why do some speak up and others stay quiet?

So I started digging.

One of the most widely referenced patterns in online communities is something called participation inequality. You may have heard it described as the 90-9-1 rule.

It says: 

• About 90% of members observe but don’t post.

• About 9% participate occasionally.

• About 1% create most of the content.

It’s been observed across professional forums, learning platforms, support groups, social media networks, and almost everywhere people gather online.

In other words, silence is normal....

If you want to expand into fingerprinting, there are a few things we need to START talking about and a few things we need to STOP talking about. 

Let’s stop talking about equipment.

Let’s stop talking about state contracts.

Let’s stop talking about whether your market is “open” or “closed.” 

The real question is this:

Can you execute seven simple things consistently?

Because nothing else matters if you’re not willing to do the work to make it work. 

Fingerprinting is not complicated, but like any service-based business, it is disciplined.

And if you can commit to these seven moves for 90 days, you will create momentum in any state (Yes, every state!!).

Here’s what that looks like…

#1: Build a Real Prospect List (Your Fab 100)

Before you send a single message, you build the list. And not just random businesses. But of organizations that are legally required to fingerprint people.

Think: 

• Healthcare

• Schools

• Staffing agencies

• Security companies

• Licensi

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You are not stuck…

You are distracted.

Every yes in your business comes with a hidden cost, and most notaries are paying that cost every single day without realizing it.

If your income isn’t where you want it to be, it’s not because there aren’t opportunities, it’s because you keep choosing the wrong ones.

Let’s start with a concept most notary entrepreneurs have never been taught: 

Opportunity cost.

Opportunity cost is the value of the next best alternative you give up when you make a decision to do something.

In plain English: when you say yes to one thing, you automatically say no to something else.

There is no neutral decision. There is always a trade-off. 

The problem is, the trade is invisible. There’s no invoice. No alert from the heavens. No warning at all. 

But the bill shows up anyway.

It shows up when the phone doesn’t ring.

It shows up when revenue stalls out.

It shows up when you say, “I’ve been working so hard, why isn’t this moving?”

Your Most Valuable Asse...

Every notary eventually asks the same question, whether they say it out loud or not:

Is this really it?

For many, that question shows up after the excitement of loan signings wears off. For others, it appears when the work starts to feel rushed, transactional, or disconnected from the reason they became a notary in the first place.

That’s why I want to talk about a book that says something important about where this profession is heading.

I recently read From Trust to Transfer by Dean Eason-Williams, and I gave it five stars because it’s practical, honest, and grounded in real work at real signing tables.

 It’s a book about doing the work well.

A Different Kind of Notary Appointment

Estate planning appointments are not like loan signings. They move at a different pace. They carry a different emotional weight. And they demand something different from the notary in the room.

In From Trust to Transfer, Dean doesn’t romanticize this work, but he doesn’t minimize it either. He makes...

One of the most common questions I hear from new notaries and seasoned notary entrepreneurs alike is this:

“How do I make more money?”

It’s a fair question.

It’s also usually answered the wrong way.

The “Right” Answer for Business Growth

Most of the answers focus on the what.

Do loan signings.

Add fingerprinting.

Offer apostilles.

Work with medical facilities.

Perform weddings.

And while all of those can absolutely make money, none of them actually answer the deeper question.

The real difference between notaries who struggle and notaries who grow has far less to do with what they offer and far more to do with how they operate.

The “how” is the engine.

With the right how, you can make almost any what work.

Without it, even the best opportunities fall flat.

That’s exactly why I created the High Performance Notary community on the Skool platform.

Not to push one specialty over another, but to get down to the core question most people never slow down to ask:

“How do I con...

I love a good alliteration so much, I am willing to annoy you with that abomination. I just can’t help myself! 

Okay, okay, So the proper title of this letter really is: 

The Perfect Pivot for a Notary Public. Sigh… 

It’s still true, but not nearly as clever. As a Notary Public and entrepreneur, one of the gifts we enjoy is that the service we provide is often required.  

• Want to buy that house? Get notarized!

• Want to sell that car? Get notarized?

• Want to send your kid to Timbuktu without you? Better get notarized!

But guess what… 

Your notary services aren’t the only ones required for commerce to ensue.  

Fingerprinting is another essential service of our modern economy. 

The enormous increase in remote employees, virtual businesses, and increased security/safety checks, has created a high demand for convenient  fingerprinting services. 

• Want that new job? Get fingerprinted!

• Want to volunteer with those children or seniors? Get fingerprinted!

• W

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