Contractor Evolution (Breakthrough Academy)

On March 11, attend our free web class to learn the proven hiring framework top contractors use to attract and retain A players during a labor shortage. Register here: https://trybta.com/CE-HIRING2025

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/EP195

How are you using AI and automation in your business? Maybe you use ChatGPT for idea generation or have some automated reminders going out through your bookkeeping software or CRM.

If so, that’s great. But the reality is there is a lot more you could be doing. And it doesn't all require in-depth programming knowledge or tech skills.

Today’s conversation is with Tersh Blissett. He’s an AI and automations expert for trades and construction, Host of the Service Business Mastery Podcast, owner of two HVAC companies, and founder of Trade Automation Pros. 

We discuss the five types of automations all contractors need and three of the most clever ways he’s seeing AI deployed in the trades today. 

If you’re tired of monotonous and repetitive tasks but aren’t sure where to start with automations, this episode is a must-listen.

Episode Highlights:

• Get intel from Tersh Blissett, AI and automations expert for trades and construction, Host of the Service Business Mastery Podcast, owner of two HVAC companies, and founder of Trade Automation Pros. 

• Learn the five types of automations every contractor needs to optimize their operations.

• Get tips on how to get started with AI and automations, including three of Tersh’s favorite AI use cases in the contracting space.

00:00-Intro  
01:16-Defining automations  
02:04-Background on Tersh's passion for AI and automation  
06:42-About Tersh  
11:55-Five automations every contractor needs  
12:23-Automated appointment scheduling and reminders  
19:36-Streamlined customer support ticket handling  
24:10-Automated lead management  
25:23-Social media content curation and posting  
30:54-Automated onboarding for new clients  
40:49-Three clever ways contractors can use AI in their business  
54:10-Advice for the not so tech-savvy contractor  
56:52-Connect with Tersh

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP22

As your contracting business grows you’re going to encounter an interesting and complex scenario (and you may have already) that you are recruiting for, and hiring, a role that you know very little about.

Here's a classic example - you’ve expanded to the point where you're hiring for a dedicated full-time office manager. Someone who oversees all the complex administrative elements of your multimillion-dollar contracting business. 

You get (generally speaking) how you want things to look when it comes to business organization, but my question is do you fully understand the intricacies of managing a CRM, or a project management software?  

Have you ever managed five different inboxes while handling all the calls that are coming in?  Have you ever developed all these office processes that make sure that no details get missed.

Whether you’ve gone through this process or are about to, you can definitely see how hard it would be to successfully hire and onboard for this.

Maybe that's why most contractors' first office manager is literally running out the door in the first six months.

There are going to be dozens of roles like the example above as you expand. Whether it be a marketing manager or an executive assistant, the point is that you are going to run into this situation many times in your career and it's going to require you to educate yourself on these roles that you may not understand, but you desperately need.

In this week’s episode we brought back Dr. Ken Keis to share his insights and thoughts on this topic. Dr. Keis has been on episodes in the past and is a foremost expert on Personality Styles and how they relate to leadership.

In this episode Dr. Ken Keis shares: 

• The exact 5 step method that seasoned employers use to successfully hire for roles they don’t understand.
• The right way to research what responsibilities the new role will have (it’s not google).
• Why it’s a bad idea to copy and paste a job description from another company.
• A process that allows you to select for the right skills AND the right personality.
• The big mistake that almost every employer makes when they first hire for a role they don’t understand.
• What you need in place before a new hire starts that fosters loyalty and eliminates frustration.

To watch the full episode and access free resources go to www.contractorevolution.com

If you are are growing, but working like a dog to make it all happen, take our 10 day, Evolved Contractor Challenge to free yourself - http://www.btacademy.com/evolvedcontractorchallenge

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To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP92

To learn more about Brian’s company gfour marketing go to https://www.gfourmarketing.com/

This episode of Contractor Evolution is with Brian Kaskavalciyan, Author of The 7 Secrets to becoming a Wealthy Contractor, Host of the Wealthy Contractor Podcast, and Co Founder of gFour Marketing Group: A relationship marketing firm that helps contractors unleash the power of their customers by installing the industry leading framework for driving referrals.

Before becoming the well known figure he is today, Brian founded Handyman Network which he developed into a national franchise. It was there he began to realize the power of not just referrals, but having a customer base that truly promotes you and reps the brand. So he began to develop a wholistic approach to Relationship Marketing which makes up the framework that he now implements with clients through gFour.

I wanted to go deep with Brian on how to put a referral program on steroids and become a company where our raving customers do a lot of the marketing for us.  If you do good work and take care of your clients you're obviously going to get some referrals organically, but if you're a growing company and want to become more intentional with this all important lead source, there’s actually a ton of stuff you can implement.  Our conversation is anchored in four core areas:

1. How to drive google reviews which boost searchability and position you as the customer service leader
2. Customer Appreciation and how automated post job gifts and notes of gratitude build crazy goodwill in the marketplace
3. We talk about Referral Rewards programs which incentivize clients to actually bring you hot leads
4. And lastly we talk about the all important long term nurture sequence which keeps your brand front of mind and makes you a repeat business magnet.

To learn more about how to put your referrals on steroids, listen to this episode.

Highlights:

• How to drive Google reviews which boost searchability and position you as the customer service leader
• Customer Appreciation and how automated, post job gifts and notes of gratitude build crazy goodwill in the marketplace
• Referral Rewards programs which incentivize clients to actually bring you hot leads
• Long term nurture sequence which keeps your brand front of mind and makes you a repeat business magnet

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To apply for a Breakthrough Academy Business Assessment click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP73

If you’ve ever felt like your profit should be increasing with your revenue, you’re not alone.

If revenue goes up…profit goes up. Right? It’s simple math. It should work like that.

You think if you just work a little harder, push a little more…POOF… you’ll magically crest revenue hill. Economies of scale will kick in and all of the sudden you’ll have the kind profit you’ve always wanted.

But it doesn’t work like that.

If your revenues have been growing, but your profits aren’t matching the same growth rates (or exceeding), then you, my friend, have a very simple problem.

One that is pretty easy to fix if you know what to look for.

Listen to what this husband and wife team did when they found they had the same problem in their $4M landscaping company and how they fully controlled profits from that point out:

• The reason why profits didn't change even though revenue was seriously increasing
• 1 file that CLS implemented which made the biggest difference in their business growth and profit margins.
• The mental struggle with being a contractor vs working in a white collar industry and how to shift your mindset
• How to install a strong leadership team to manage multiple locations PLUS the roles you need to hire and in what priority order
• What advice would Cooper and Janelle have given themselves back when they started
• What it's like to find balance between 60 staff, 3 kids and themselves

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP112

Check Out Ami’s Language Building Blocks Template, Click Here

To connect with Ami message him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/apsanyal/

Learning to write persuasively is a massively underrated skill and not something we’ve spent enough time on this podcast.  

See, there is a scientific process to crafting messages that truly compel someone to:

• apply to your job posting, 

• to fill out the inquiry form on your website, 

• to subscribe to your newsletter
• to award you the contract and not your competitor

The list goes on. Whether you hoping to transact in dollars or just in information, there are certain spots in your business where the exact words on the page really matter.  

The technical term for what I’m talking about is conversion copywriting, and the concept is simple: construct sentences in such a way that makes the reader feel seen and understood and want to interact with you more.  Another way to think of this is “Salesmanship In Print.” 

Ami Sanyal is a marketing strategist, the CEO of The Uncommoners Club (his agency), and our conversion copywriter here at Breakthrough Academy.  I’ve worked firsthand with him over the past year, and honestly can say he’s the most talented person at his craft that I’ve ever met.  

Long story short, if you want to learn how to write job postings that give you an inbox full of resumes, how to write follow-up emails that get excited responses, or website CTAs which get you leads, learning the basics of conversion copy is probably a good idea.  The good news? Mastering this craft is easier and more formulaic than you might think.

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To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP155

If you’ve ever wondered how an Open Book Management business operates and whether or not this model might work for you. You’re in luck!

Open Book Management, or OBM for short, is a business philosophy and system that communicates the entire financial picture of the business all the way down to the laborer in the field. 

The fundamental idea is that every set of hands comes from with a free brain, and people generally play better when your keeping score. 

Our guest today is Ryan Markewich, founder of Creative Roots Landscaping in Kelowna, BC, and a certified Great Game of Business Coach. For the last twenty years, he’s run Creative Roots fully “Open Book” and is here today to tell us about it.

I ask him:

• Does OBM really work? Or is this just another hyped-up business framework?
• How much extra work is it to train employees on the financial reports and KPIs in order for them to truly be “in the game”?
• How do they select future partners from their employee pool? 
• How do they groom them? And what does it actually mean when an employee purchases a tranche of the company?

Open Book Management isn’t for everyone, but if you’ve ever been curious about it, this is a great jumping-off point.

To know more about Ryan visit https://rmark.ca/ and https://www.greatgame.com/about/our-coaches/ryan-markewich

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If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP55

You can find the Building Business Youtube Channel From Job Nimbus here: https://youtu.be/dg25mpaz7eM

If you took a survey of contractors right after the implementation of their first CRM or Project Management tool, many of the responses you’d get would sound something like:

• That was awful
• My head nearly exploded
• Truly the worst 6 months of my life for me and my team
• I never want to go through that again

Technology and software are supposed to make your business life simpler and more efficient.  So why do most entrepreneurs talk about the adoption period like veterans talk about the war or mothers talk about childbirth?  

This whole “tech overwhelm” thing, especially for contractors, is something we’ve been wanting to get some answers on for a while now, which is why we are so excited to have Ben Hodson on the show today.  Ben is the Co-Founder and CEO of JobNimbus which is one of our favorite pieces of contractor software, and we thought who would be better to teach us how to implement technology headache-free, than the guy who builds it.  

We’re fans of Ben and JobNimbus for a couple of reasons. It's super customizable and integrates easily with everything. It's relatively simple to implement compared to other CRM’s and they have a dynamite customer support team that is super hands on. 

So if you’ve purchased a CRM and barely used it, if you’ve been frustrated by your tech stack or lack thereof, or if you’re still managing your business on a spreadsheet but you’re ready to take the leap… this episode is a must listen.

By the end of this episode you’ll know:

• The difference between contractors that struggle to implement new systems vs those that find it pretty easy
• How to use an “I.C.E.” decision making matrix to ensure you select the right CRM to begin with
• How to avoid the common “employee pushback” scenario and foster adoption of any new tech system
• How to identify all of the problems you face in business as one of two factors which then become easier to solve
• The elements of the trades and contracting sectors are ripe for disruption and what you need to be getting ready for
• The things that a serial CEO Ben Hodson wished he had learned earlier when running businesses

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To apply for a Business Assessment with Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP68

Your business is a “For-Profit Entity”.  

Profits are a slippery business though.

Sometimes it can feel like what you made on paper and what is in your bank account don’t quite line up.  

Sometimes top-line growth doesn’t translate to bottom-line growth. 

And sometimes it's only a few expense categories on our P&L that are giving us all the headache.

Listen to the full episode and we’ll show you where and how contractors most commonly destroy their year-end profits

Episode Highlights:

• Why it’s so easy for your overhead efficiency to spiral out of control and the best way to track your overhead deliverables
• The difference between managing expectations in your "Ditch Diggers" vs managing expectations with your more abstract roles
• Managing increasing material costs and why you NEED to take action in your business to mitigate them and not just accept tightening margins
• The two kinds of companies when it comes to addressing inflation and why one thrives while the other fails
• Why writing off big expenses at the end of the year to offset your tax bracket is a bad move
• How your ego can tank your financials if you aren’t very careful

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP127

Austin’s Google Local Services Ads SOP: https://www.basecoatmarketing.com/learn/local-services-ads-for-painters/

Google Local Service Ads are a newish feature from Google that not enough business owners are taking advantage of.  Search ads have become insanely expensive as the algorithm has begun catering to the highest bidders.  Google Local Services Ads (or LSA’s for short) are Google’s answer for the small business owner who simply can’t compete, at least on the pay-per-click front, with national brands or massive lead aggregators.

While you’re not going to scale your entire business on this one lead source, they’re a super easy-to-deploy marketing channel that more or less acts as an extension of your Google Business Profile. Leads that convert at around a 50% close rate for $20 to $50 a pop sounds like a pretty good deal to me. And this can be easily layered on top of pretty much any marketing strategy you’ve got going.

Austin Houser is the owner of Base Coat Marketing, a Digital Marketing Firm for Painters. If you’re not a painter, don’t worry LSAs still apply to you.  Austin has been doing Digital Marketing since 2008, and his team of 25 in-house employees have become known for delivering exceptional results.

Today, we talk about: 

• why lead aggregators kinda suck, and how Google Local Service Ads can be your antidote to effective lead gen online
• Austin gives us a super detailed walkthrough of how to get started with LSAs and a whole bunch of best practices to help optimize them over time.

This lead source is a no-brainer! Get going on them now, and beat your competition to the punch.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Learn how to hire for profit growth with this free download: https://trybta.com/DLEP191 

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP191 

Learn more about Greg and Simple Numbers here: https://www.simplenumberscri.com/ 

We're gonna make an educated guess and say you didn’t get into business because you love accounting.

So when it comes to financial management—budgeting, forecasting, and tracking the right metrics for success—you’d be forgiven for getting a little lost in the jargon and differing opinions on the “right” way to do things.

Our guest on the show today is Greg Crabtree, author of Simple Numbers, Straight Talk, Big Profits!

Greg's approach to financial controls and profitability is refreshingly simple and easy to understand. He distills the confusing world of accounting into incredibly simple metrics and lays out the core areas of business you need to focus on.

If you’re looking for a simple explanation of which numbers you should care about and how to optimize them for business growth, consider this episode your starting point.

Episode highlights:

• Understand why gross margin is your TRUE top line and why revenue is one of the most meaningless metrics to care about in business, according to Greg Crabtree, author of Simple Numbers, Straight Talk, Big Profits!

• Hear Greg’s thoughts on why your income tax paid is actually one of the best KPIs to optimize

• Learn the only two ways to boost labor productivity and get out of the profitability black hole between $1MM and $5MM

00:00-Intro

01:52-Why are finances so hard to understand?

14:49-About the Four Keys

21:30-How should people use and think about the Four Keys?

28:44-Owner's Salary

36:56-Profit

50:52-Labor Productivity

1:02:23-Habits and mindsets

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP177

Get a complimentary SEO audit from Choquer Creative here: https://cal.com/brycechoquer/seo-audit 

Did you get your website built because you knew you needed one? Or did you have it thoughtfully designed and optimized to get you leads?

The truth is that 9/10 of your competition's websites are poorly designed and under-optimized. And if your website just exists to check a box on your marketing to-do list, yours probably is too.

Our guest today, Bryce Choquer, is the founder of Choquer Creative, a web design and SEO Agency that specializes in building websites for trades and construction companies. In this episode, he breaks down the framework he uses to get contractors more leads from their websites.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To apply for a Breakthrough Academy Business Assessment click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP72

Download The Rapid Hire Hiring Funnel Here: https://trybta.com/PCDLEP72

Check out Rapid Hire Here: https://rapidhirepro.com/

As a millennial myself, I take a small amount of personal offense whenever I hear frustrated contractors verbally bash my entire generation (or young people broadly speaking) for their supposed lack of work ethic, chronic ADD, and apparent disinterest in construction and trades.  

I admittedly roll my eyes a little anytime I hear someone throw their hands up in frustration and declare: “These young people I tell ya, no one wants to work these days”.  

If you listen to this podcast, you know this is a recurring theme on the show.  

Having said all that, I also deeply empathise with the business owner whose phone is ringing off the hook with potential customers but can’t seem to hire enough good people.

Which is why this episode is so monumental. Our guest today, Jody Underhill, has figured out how to deliver a literal flood of qualified applicants to almost any contractor.

Don’t believe me?

Listen to the full episode to learn more about all the genius ways Jody has sailed past traditional hiring methods to deliver as many applicants as he needs.

Episode Highlights:

• Why young people aren't responding to trades ads, and what you can do to attract them.
• The statistical results between marketing on social media vs traditional digital job boards
• The exact formula for ad copy that gets high #'s of applicants and sets you apart from the competition
• How to structure your application page and what you need include in your employer brand promo video to get a high level of applicants (hint, it’s not you talking about the company)
• How to run hundreds of video interviews without the interviewer actually being involved
• The statistical difference between using email vs text and which medium brings in stacks of applications

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP141

Welcome back to Contractor Evolution! 

This is episode 3 of the Wealth Builder series. 

Justin Bontkes is the founder and principal of Caliber Projects, a construction management and general contracting firm working on some of the most exciting real estate developments in BC. 

In many ways, Justin is the perfect case study for how contractors can build wealth through real estate investment alongside their core operating business. 

In 14 years, Justin has gone from a bags-on framer flipping houses on the side to leading Caliber’s team of 85 and building over $150 million in low-rise and high-rise projects. 

Through a dedication to constant learning and an eye for undervalued real estate, Justin has grown an award-winning company and amassed personal wealth, security, and freedom for himself and his family. 

In today’s conversation, Justin breaks down the following:

• Why, for contractors at least, the concept of  “diversification” might actually be a bit overrated 
• How to avoid “killing the golden goose” by taking your eye off the ball with your core business as you endeavor into real estate
• Lastly, he takes us through his personal investment strategy, how he analyzes land deals, and where he seeks to ADD value to properties and force their appreciation

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To get the resource bundle we talk about in the episode, click here: https://trybta.com/SOP

No one sets out to run a dumpster fire of a business. 

And yet… we can all admit that, at least occasionally, it feels that way. 

Things tend towards chaos. Entropy is a real thing. This phenomenon is literally baked into the fabric of the universe.

But that doesn’t mean through smart systems, we can’t overcome it and create organizational order.

Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) are arguably the most critical weapon in this battle, and my friend Tom Hughes is back on the show to enlighten us. 

Tom’s a lean manufacturing guru, owner of Lumen Electronincs, and the author of Improvement Starts With I and GREAT Processes - two amazing books devoted to organizational change through SOPs. 

Expect to learn:

• Why “pulling” SOPs out of your team is more effective than “pushing” SOPs onto them
• How using a multimedia approach to SOPs ensures they actually get followed
• Leadership tactics to create a Kaizen culture that continuously improves itself

To know more about Tom and GembaDocs visit: https://gembadocs.com/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP57

To download the Hiring & Recruiting Tactics, click here: https://trybta.com/PCDLEP57

About 2 months ago we put on our first digital Contractor Evolution Summit where we focused on recruiting and hiring.

We had so many questions during the live event that we couldn’t get to them all so here are an additional 9 questions that were too good not to respond to.

By the end of this episode you’ll know:

• Whether you should focus on recruiting "lifers' or also consider people you know will stay only a few years?
• If it’s a good idea to hire someone that aspires to run their own business
• The percentage of annual revenue that you should allocate to recruiting
• How do you get a high volume of applicants from your job ads and drive traffic to your ‘Work With Us’ page
• How to market to people that are already employed but not steal employees from your competitors
• When we recommend personality testing to determine culture/role fit in your company and how it can save you a huge amount of headaches

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP89

To find Lydia on Instagram click here: https://www.instagram.com/drywallshorty/

To watch Lydia on The Build Show click here: https://buildshownetwork.com/go/lydiacrowder

Our guest on the show for this episode is Lydia Crowder (aka Drywall Shorty).  Lydia puts out the best content for the drywall trade on all of the interwebs.  

She’s been a drywall finisher for 20 years, and owns Trinity Drywall in Bozeman Montana.  She started to make educational videos about 3 years ago and today her following has grown to over 1 Million subscribers across her various platforms.  

Our conversation is about what it's like to be a female tradesperson in a historically male-dominated industry and how business owners can attract and retain women in the trades.

To learn more about why you should be pushing hard to recruit women, what they bring to the table, and how to create an environment that attracts them, listen to this episode.

Highlights

• What's it's like being on site as a female tradesperson
• How women in the trades are treated today vs 20 years ago
• 2 Unique qualities tradeswomen bring to the job site
• How to build a work environment that appeals to women and has them wanting to stay for the long haul
• Advice to women thinking about getting into the trades

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP07

How do you turn a one-man mowing business into a $1.5 million landscaping company? Just ask Jason Hoke, owner of A Cut Above Landscape in Colorado.

When he took over the business, he bought himself a job. He was sleeping on a friend's sofa to make ends meet and spending 24/7 onsite or in the office. “I was more like an employee than a leader.” Fast forward five years and he has a team of 20 who service more than 10,000 jobs a year.

Last year alone he saw a 50 percent growth in revenue, and he is about to smash those targets for 2021. He now works on the business, rather than in it (40 hours a week, max).

How? He became a Master Implementer (yup, he was the winner of our 2020 BTA Implementer of The Year Award).

In this episode of Contractor Evolution, hosts Igor Trninic and Benji Carlson sit down with Jason to discuss what it takes to turn a business around and why the traditional way of running a contracting company will no longer cut it.

They ask the awkward questions and give exact examples of how systems and strategies will change your life as a leader.

Oh, this is good. Trust us.

To take the Free 10 Day, 'Evolved Contractor' Challenge to step out of the day-to-day of your business, got to https://www.btacademy.com/evolvedcontractorchallenge

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To apply for a Breakthrough Academy Business Assessment click: https://trybta.com/PCEP61

Aleph Holdings: https://www.alephholdings.com/

This painter crushes it by buying into his competition

You may have, at some point, pondered the idea of supercharging your growth by buying another business.

Entrepreneurs naturally see opportunity all around them - owners that don’t know what they’re doing, older guys trying to get out, young untapped potential rising up.

And to be clear, your intuition isn’t wrong, the opportunity is out there.

What we want to do is make sure you don’t get blown up by the hundreds of proverbial landmines that can lay hidden under the surface of those businesses.

Learn from our guest Jason Paris, who’s built a 10M+ painting empire and shares many of the red flags to watch out for, by clicking the icons below.

Highlights:

• The pro's and con's of buying out other businesses within your industry
• The types of businesses and people you should be looking looking to partner with and the red flags that mark the ones you should avoid
• How to value businesses when you're looking to buy them out
• The internal systems in the seller's business that matter when you are the purchaser
• The buying process from start to finish
• The first goals/systems/structures that you should implement in a business once you've purchased it

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To download Sarah’s Succession Planner and Personal Records Organizer click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP138

What would actually happen to your business if, tragically, you died tomorrow?  

“Hit by a bus” as they say.

Would it unravel rather quickly without you at the helm?  

What financial condition would your family be left in?

Morbid questions… For sure… But ones worth asking.  

My guest on the show today is Sarah Cronin, managing partner of OBEO Planning Group.  She works directly with our Breakthrough Academy businesses on their financial and succession planning, giving her a tonne of first-hand experience helping small business owners wealth plan for the future and protect themselves and their families should the worst happen.

We discuss:

• What can and will happen to your business and family in the case of your untimely death (warning, it's grim)
• Why, for co-founders, dialing in a partnership agreement is the easiest way to limit your downside in the case of death, disability, or disagreement
• How to draft a succession plan so that your wishes are captured and executed properly and not left up to chance.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Grab your free copy of the Max Priorities Pyramid and start sorting your priorities today: https://trybta.com/DLEP186

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP186

How good are you at prioritization in your business?

It’s ok. You can be honest.

The truth is that prioritization seems straightforward, but in reality it’s much more complex than it appears, especially in the context of a business like yours - which is inherently dynamic, ever-changing, and unpredictable. 

Issues come out of nowhere. Circumstances change. People quit. Clients cancel. Unexpected weather roles through.

How are you supposed to get anything done when you’re constantly putting out fires?

Our guests today have some practical strategies that can help.

Harry Max is the author of Managing Priorities: How to Create Better Plans and Make Smarter Decisions. And Wes Bright is his partner at Peak Priorities. They consult with some of the biggest companies in tech, and today, they're going to level up our priority management toolbox in a major way.

Episode highlights:

- Learn what makes prioritization so hard and what systems and tools you can use to get better at it.
- Understand the frameworks Harry Max recommends in his book, Managing Priorities: How to Create Better Plans and Make Smarter Decisions.
- Get practical prioritization tips from two consultants who work with the biggest companies in tech including Apple, Google and Microsoft.

00:00-Intro

01:48-About the book - Managing Priorities: How to Create Better Plans and Make Smarter Decisions

03:56-Why "prioritize" is the most important verb

09:32 - Why we all suck at prioritizing

14:22-About the "false sense of urgency"

22:58-The impact of a clear vision on prioritization

31:24-The DEGAP Framework

42:40-Sorting methods for prioritization

47:45-Ideal rhythms for reviewing goals and progress

52:27-What to delegate vs. what to keep

58:54-Evolving our prioritization systems as we grow

01:03:22-Where can people connect with you?

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply to be a Breakthrough Academy member, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP43

To download this episode's free transcript "Where to Find the Top Candidates" click here: https://trybta.com/PCDLEP43

Welcome back to Contractor Evolution and episode 3 of our Ultimate Hiring Funnel Series.

I want you to think about your current recruiting strategy. How much of it relies on lucking out and having the right person see your posting at the right time? Are you actively recruiting for top talent or passively waiting for a needle in a haystack? 

Making a great hire is impossible if you don't have anyone good to choose from. This is why 90% of the hiring problem is fundamentally "Top of Funnel". 

You can practice your interviewing skills all you want (and we will go over this in the next episode), but if you don't have a great pool of candidates to interview, where does that leave you?

We've all at some point felt the frustration of posting an open position on a job board only to find that a few days later, only a few completely unqualified people have applied. 

This 'hope and pray' strategy has led many lesser entrepreneurs to all but abandon the search entirely, comforting themselves with stories and excuses that often blame lazy millennials, COVID, or government policy. 

But that's not you. As an evolved contractor, you know the promotion of your job ads and your employer brand is the missing link in this all-important chain.

We're excited to have Asad Zaman on the show to speak in-depth on active tactics and promotional recruiting. Asad is the CEO of Sales Talent Agency, an international recruiting agency that has helped acquire talent for over 1,500 companies - some of them you may know: Harley Davidson, SAP, IBM, Salesforce, and Sonos, to name a few. 

Toronto Board of Trade named Asad Toronto's Young Professional of the Year for 2019, and you'll see why in this episode. This guy is seriously dialled. There is a good reason why we chose to bring someone from outside the trades and construction space in for this topic - because the level of sophistication in recruitment, employer brand, and all things hiring - is much more evolved in other industries like tech, where he plays. 

There is a ton that we learned from today's conversation. In today's episode, we explore:

• The three talent pools available to any entrepreneur and why most of us just barely tap into one 
• The way to think with "strategic empathy" and how placing yourself in the shoes of a candidate will lead to way better results
• Some specific ways you as an employer can stand out in a highly competitive market
• The best way to make a compelling offer to your target candidate
• The (incorrect) common belief systems that hold most contractors back
• How to integrate a talent acquisition mindset into your company culture

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP85

To download Breakthrough Academy’s ‘Annual Strategic Planning Template’ click here: https://trybta.com/PCDLEP85

To Connect with Alex Brueckmann click here: https://www.brueckmann.ca/

It is strategic planning time here at Breakthrough Academy. 

Our 500+ members are all reflecting on the year that was 2022 - the highs, the lows, the lessons…and they're using all of that to inform their visions for 2023.

You should be too.  

“Strategy” is another one of these terms that gets tossed around so much it loses some meaning. 

Most entrepreneurs will make mental associations between strategy and other ideas like goals for the future, well-laid plans, or a list of priorities for the organization.

But this still leaves a lot of room for differing interpretations and abstraction.

This episode's conversation is with Alex Brueckmann. Alex is a Strategic Facilitator and the Author of The Strategy Legacy which comes out in 2023.  

After 15 years of fine-tuning his philosophy and process in the corporate world, Alex now gives small to medium-sized businesses access to the tools and techniques that fortune 500 companies use to dial in their strategy and create the clarity and direction teams (large and small) need to get bought in and execute.

To learn more about Alex’s 3 Do’s and 3 Don'ts of Strategic Planning, listen to this episode.

Episode Highlights:

• The difference between strategy and tactics and why NOT to worry about tactics when planning at a high level
• Why celebrating small wins too early can sometimes hurt your momentum
• Why your strategy NEEDS to be tied to emotions, and how emotions propel results more than any other factor
• How to create a strategy that everyone will buy into, not just your leadership team
• Why you shouldn't force your plan forward when things aren’t working, and when it's ok to take a couple steps back
• How to leverage the power of writing to communicate your vision and deflect distractions

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP32

To get the Strategic Planning Quick Tool click here: https://trybta.com/PCDLEP32

This episode is going to be a little different from our typical format.

While a lot of our other Contractor Evolution episodes are more instructional, this one is more of an in depth observation of the contracting and trades industry on a personal level.

Over the last few years, I’ve conducted well over 1000 business assessments, each lasting roughly 2 hours, where I dive deep into the biggest challenges each contractor is facing.

What becomes blatantly obvious over time is that most of the issues I see come back to 3 core problems that are totally preventable.

So in this episode I’m going to lay out (or maybe rant a little) on a few key points:

• General observations after conducting more than 1000 business assessments with contractors
• 3 easy to avoid mistakes that 9 out of 10 contractors are making in their everyday decisions
• The area where a company falls apart when there is no clear vision
• Why being the ‘nice guy’ sentences you the death of a thousand cuts
• The biggest opportunity for recruiting that is sitting right in front of contractors faces but few recognize it
• A rant that most contractors need to hear about where they focus their efforts

• General observations after conducting more than 1000 business assessments with contractors
• 3 easy to avoid mistakes that 9 out of 10 contractors are making in their everyday decisions
• Specifically where a company falls apart when there is no clear vision
• Why being the ‘nice guy’ becomes the death of a thousand cuts
• The biggest opportunity for recruiting that is sitting right in front of contractors faces but few recognize it
• A rant that most contractors need to hear about where they focus their efforts

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP145

Last time on the Wealth Builder series, Matt Wood talked about value investing in relatively low-cost stocks that pay dividends. Companies that cashflow, just like your own.

The other approach, known as growth investing, while more alluring, is also way higher risk. Not better or worse. Just different.

For every friend or acquaintance who struck it rich on Apple, Nvidia, Tesla, or even Bitcoin, there are 10 more quietly sulking and licking their wounds because they bought at the wrong time, didn’t understand the asset, or underestimated the downside.

Value investing is buying for stability and cash flow. Growth investing is buying for the major upside. They both can work, but the approaches are very different.

In this episode, we will show that when it comes to growth investing, there is a standard of excellence to analyzing companies and how well they’re run that real professionals hold to before taking any investment position. 

It’s not roulette… it's a careful selection based on real data and rigorous research.

To help demystify the world of growth investing, we’re joined by Anthony Scilipoti.  He is the President and CEO of Veritas Investment Research. A CPA in Canada and the US for the last 30 years, his team of 28 conducts and publishes rigorous research and analysis on publicly traded companies to help investors understand which ones accurately represent what's happening inside their companies and which ones are hiding behind smoke and mirrors.

Highlights:

• Anthony’s methodology for analyzing companies from the inside out
• He illustrates that accounting is very subjective, and there is a lot more to understanding a company and its potential value than what you see on it’s stock ticker
• As a bonus, Anthony also gives us some perspective on growth stocks and why people invest in expensive companies that don’t push out cash dividends.

Your hard-earned money should be invested in great companies, not just the latest trends.

To find more about Anthony and Veritas Investment Research go to: https://www.veritascorp.com/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP05

Can you run a multi-million dollar contracting business and take six months off a year? That's crazy talk!

But in this Breakthrough Academy (BTA) podcast, 27-year-old contracting entrepreneur Graeme Bouvier gives it to us straight on how he actually made that possible.

Graeme went from struggling to build a drywall business as a med student, while running around like a chicken with his head cut off, to becoming a leader of a $7-million drywall business with 80 employees...all while being able to take six months off to travel and just, well, enjoy life. And all this within a few short years. But how?

Welcome to the rise of the contracting leisure entrepreneur, with Breakthrough Academy hosts Igor Trninic and Benji Carlson, who get down and dirty on how you can win in the contracting industry, become a leader, and reclaim your time.

Kick off your shoes, turn up the volume, and join us in this no BS interview where we dive deep inside the mind of a successful contracting entrepreneur, what works, and what doesn't, and more importantly, why and how.

To access resources, or watch this episode in video, visit www.contractorevolution.com

To take the Free 10 Day, 'Evolved Contractor' Challenge to step out of the day-to-day of your business, got to https://www.btacademy.com/evolvedcontractorchallenge

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PC167 

If you’re getting fewer leads than ever, you’re not alone.

A shifting economy is changing the sales and marketing game for contractors. Gone are the days of accepting a 25% ratio as par for the course. Frankly, you can’t afford it.

According to today’s guest, Kevin Donnelly from Webrunner, it's time to become obsessive about sales efficiency.

Kevin walks us through four ways to increase your lead-to-sale ratio—basically, how you can sell more with less.

Webrunner is a full-service digital marketing agency that only works with contractors. We’ve had them on the show before and, seriously, they know their stuff.

Let’s dive in with Kevin.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP40

Every once in a while, Igor and I like to go through listener questions and really get a grip on the challenges you’re going through daily.

So in this week’s episode of contractor evolution I’ve sifted through a few hundred listener/member questions and selected 5 on leadership.

Based on the conversations I have every week, I believe these are common challenges for most contractor business owners.

In this episode we cover:

• The most critical management rhythms that keep a company growing
• 2-3 Keys to retain superstar employees
• The 2 step process to create raving fans out of your customers
• The recommended percentage of revenue you should spend on advertising
• Which types of marketing should be done in a specific order
• How to implement a culture of accountability without scaring people off

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP146

I’m a month late getting my predictions for the year together. But better late than never. Am I right?

I’ve got 11 spicy takes on what’s going down in our North American blue-collar business universe this year, including:

1. Private equity will _________.
2. Early adopters of_____ will destroy ______ .
3. The Canadian economy will _____ while the American will ____.

Don't miss out on these valuable insights, and prepare for the future with us!

Watch Mike Van Capelle's case study here: https://youtu.be/mShu3DXhTlU

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP47

In a chess match, a player’s first sequence of moves is known as an “opening”.  The opening is a memorized series of 8 to 12 moves that, ideally, sets up the chess game in an advantageous way for the player.  

Execute the right opening and you’ve created some leverage for yourself.  Execute the wrong opening, or make a mistake during it, and you’re fighting an uphill battle.

Now when I say “Master your Opening” what I’m talking about specifically here are the first few minutes of your sales call.  I’ve heard different businesses call sales calls different things. You might call it an estimate, a quote, a consultation, an appointment, a design meeting, a discovery meeting, but for the sake of clarity I’m going to refer to it as the sales call.

I know what you might be thinking.  Aren’t the last 10 minutes the most important?  Aren’t those precious moments when you’re “closing” the most important?  When a pen is being put to paper, or when a deposit cheque is being cut?  

The closing moments ARE crucial, but to me the opening is the most important because it’s what sets up the close.

The customer usually makes up their mind about whether they would do business with you in the first ten minutes, not when they are staring at your quote.

My goal in this episode is to increase your sales conversions by covering a few core principles which I’ve learned including:

• Why the first 10 min of your sales call is more important than the last ten minutes
• The 3 things that you need to accomplish in the first 10 min that will help you close the sale
• 1 little mindset trick to perform before you talk to your prospect
• How to convey likability right off the bat
• The best way to establish a Leader/Follower dynamic during a sales call
• Where to insert trial closes into your sales calls so the customer doesn't ever feel blindsided

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP21

In trades the terms ‘project management’ and ‘project manager’ have become somewhat watered-down. The unfortunate truth is that in our industry most project managers are actually just professional firefighters.

That isn’t to say our PM’s are doing their absolute best, but what they're missing are the fundamentals that make the science of project management what it is in other industries.

If you look at manufacturing, automotive, or oil and gas you'll see their PM's are following a set of guiding principles and best practices that allow them to complete projects of unimaginable scope and still come in on time and on budget.

So this gap is something that our guest on the show today, Paul Atherton, helps address within the companies he coaches for Breakthrough Academy.

Prior to becoming a BTA coach 5 years ago Paul was a professional engineer and project manager for a decade. He has project managed super large construction projects in various countries around the world.

Since joining Breakthrough Academy Paul has worked with over a hundred contractors helping them achieve significant growth and success and one of the cornerstones of his coaching philosophy is the implementation of world-class project management systems.

In this episode Paul shares some highly applicable insights including:

• 2 examples of what great project management looks like
• 3 Questions to ask a P.M. that allow you to determine their level of control over a project
• 5 Systems you can implement with your team that will allow you to hit or beat project deadlines
• The 3 personality traits to look for that make a great project manager
• Common mistakes contractors make when they hire and onboard project managers
• How to leverage a great project management system to set yourself apart from your competition

If you are are growing, but working like a dog to make it all happen, take our 10 day, Evolved Contractor Challenge to free yourself - http://www.btacademy.com/evolvedcontractorchallenge

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP141

It's funny we’ve done almost 150 episodes of contractor evolution, and this is the first conversation we’ve had about the CONTRACT part. Better late than never I guess.

Today’s conversation is with Cian Brennan, Founder and CEO of Quantum Contract Solutions, and it’s all about how to DRAMATICALLY reduce your risk by learning the game of contracts. 

We talk about:

• How to use the termination clause to set some boundaries with the GC and dictate the terms in which YOU can fire THEM!
• Why most contractors make the colossal mistake of believing that can’t negotiate their contracts (guess what, you can and SHOULD)
• Lastly, we talk about tweaking what's called the limit of liability to avoid those business-ending lawsuits

This conversation was SUPER eye-opening and could save you some unimaginable headaches in the future.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP31

You, more than likely, didn’t start your business to stare at quickbooks, reconcile receipts, or painstakingly track every expense down to the penny.  

You started your business because you had a vision, you wanted to lead, and you wanted to create. Being an entrepreneur was the best vehicle for that.  

And while your big picture thinking is critical to success, let’s not forget at the end of the day your business needs to make money.  This part of the equation can be extremely difficult without solid bookkeeping and accounting systems.  You can build teams and process all you want, but if your business doesn’t reliably generate profit, you won’t be playing this game very long.

While this concept is simple enough to understand... it's a lot harder to implement.  Let’s not kid ourselves... tracking financial data really well and using it to make the right decisions requires great accounting infrastructure and the right person to do it diligently.  

The good news is that person doesn’t need to be you. Your responsibility is to assemble the right people around you to get this done successfully. 

The bad news is that a lot of bookkeepers can often be incompetent, unreliable, or straight up shady. And as a busy business owner it can be hard to find the true pros that ARE out there.

To shed some light on this thorny issue we brought Morgan Ray onto the show. Morgan is Managing Partner at Bookkeeping for Trades - a professional bookkeeping firm built exclusively for entrepreneurs in the Trades and Construction space.  

Morgan’s firm has managed the accounting cycle for over 200 trades businesses helping them gain true financial clarity and increased margins. When it comes to bookkeeping for trades, she understands the needs of the market.

In this episode we unpack:

• Why bookkeeping is so frustrating for contractors and why you aren’t alone in thinking it is
• The 2 kinds of bookkeeping and why 1 sucks and the other is pretty fun, but few contractors use it
• What a good bookkeeper SHOULD be doing, and also what they SHOULDN’t be doing
• The crucial security pieces every contractor needs to have in place to avoid fraud, embezzlement, or a nasty call from the tax man
• What good bookkeeping FEELS like to you the business owner, and how to know when you’ve nailed it
• The 3 traits you should be looking for when you hire a bookkeeper

If you are are growing, but working like a dog to make it all happen, take our 10 day, Evolved Contractor Challenge to free yourself - http://www.btacademy.com/evolvedcontractorchallenge

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP118

Check Out Nick Here: https://nickslavik.com/

My guest on the show today is Nick Slavik. Owner of Nick Slavik Painting and Restoration Company, the Chairman of the Board for the Painting Contractors Association, and a minor celebrity in the painting world known for his “Ask A Painter” Facebook live series.

On today’s episode, we try to answer one simple question 

Should you collaborate with your competition? Or protect your trade secrets?

Entrepreneurs have strong opinions when it comes to this polarizing question. And I’ve heard the case made for both sides 100 times.

Many claim it's unwise to share your trade secrets or fraternize with the enemy in any way.  

Others say “there’s more than enough work for everyone” and that connecting with other contractors is the fastest way to compress learning curves and raise the bar for the industry.

Listen to this episode for some answers from Nick Slavik.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP94

To find out more about Baeumler Approved click here: https://www.baeumlerapproved.ca/

Our guest on this episode of Contractor Evolution is Bryan Baeumler.  Star of HGTV’s hit shows Disaster DIY, Leave it to Bryan, Island of Bryan among others.  

Behind the TV Persona is a pretty sophisticated yet down-to-earth businessman with a super diverse portfolio of companies, the largest being his actual construction company, Baeumler Quality Construction, which is on trend to 60 Million plus next year.

We talk about 

• How and why our education system is under serving mechanically minded youth
• The best and worst parts of being a TV star
• Why hiring a CFO was one of the smartest business decisions he’s made and the growth it unlocked
• And I get his honest and unpolished take on what effects (both positive and negative) HGTV shows like his have had on the construction industry.

To find out what really goes on behind the scenes of a celebrity contractor listen to this episode. 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP148

Do you thrive on chaos? Or does it thrive on you?

Is there something about the entrepreneurial journey that attracts the tormented soul?  Or is it the journey of small business itself that causes the discord inside us?

I’m not sure I know the answer, but one thing that seems abundantly clear to me is that if we don’t tame the chaos within, it amplifies itself on the outside. 

Our frantic and reactive energy rubs off on the people we lead.  

Our scarcity mindset causes us to push, drive, and sell at a rate that seemingly no one can keep up with.  

Our incredibly high standards for ourselves and our team exhaust us, as nothing is ever good enough.

My point is this: Chaotic leadership doesn’t scale.  

If you’re in a chapter of your growth journey where you’re:

• tired (like… REALLY tired 😫)
• wondering why you started this thing in the first place 🤷‍♂️
• dealing with ambient anxiety you can’t quite put your finger on 👀
• or your personal relationships are suffering due to the demands of your business…

… then this episode is for you

Jon DeWaal is the founder of Liminal Space, an organization dedicated to helping leaders thrive as they navigate the intensity of organizational, professional, and personal change.  

He’s also the personal coach to one of our co-founders, Danny Kerr, who insisted we have him on, and you’ll see why… 

To find more about Jon and Liminal Space visit: https://www.inaliminalspace.org/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On March 11, attend our free web class to learn the proven hiring framework top contractors use to attract and retain A players during a labor shortage. Register here: https://trybta.com/CE-HIRING2025

Grab your free "goodie bag" of financial management templates here: https://trybta.com/DL196 

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/EP196 

If you’ve made it this far in business, I probably don’t need to tell you that need to budget, track your overhead, and do job costing.

The problem is: nobody ever shows you HOW.

A few weeks back, we co-hosted a webinar with our friend Bob Gauvreau from Gauvreau Accounting Tax Law Advisory to teach 7-figure contractors everything they need to know about managing their finances. We talked about budgeting, job costing, avoiding cash crunches and more.

And today, we’re replaying it here on the podcast so more contractors can benefit from the insights.

This is a must-listen for anyone whose New Year’s Resolution is to get better at financial management.

Episode Highlights:

• Understand the least painful way to track your budgets, job costing, and  overhead—without wasting hours with mind-numbing numbers.
• Get insight into the top 5 cash flow problems to watch out for. Many of these are new in 2024 — but avoiding them is simple once you know what to look for.
• Learn how to take the guesswork out of your financial decision-making, including your financial benchmarks for your specific industry.

00:00-Intro
02:34-About the session
03:47-About our free templates (link in description)
05:24-Why talk cash flow and budgeting?
06:50-About Benji & Bob
08:05-Purpose, Outcomes & Agenda
10:59-Why is staying on top of your numbers so hard?
13:41-Common challenges with financial management
21:41-3 Core Systems of Financial Management
36:23-Industry Benchmarks - Profit Margins
41:20-Margins as you evolve
46:21-Signs you should be worried about your cash flow
51:04-Five Cash Flow Destroyers
59:33-How to implement change
01:07:18-Q&A

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP24

You’ve heard the expression “there’s more than one way to skin a cat”?

Sorry for the graphic intro, but the point is there is always more than one way to get a job done.

The same holds true for scaling your business.  While the growth path for most trades and construction companies follows a similar pattern, there are some entrepreneurs who truly see scaling as one problem with many possible solutions.  

Eric Barstow of Foothills Painting and National Painting Group is one of these entrepreneurs.  Some of you may know him from his huge online painting community called Painting Business Pro, or his massive YouTube following.  Eric has followed the path less traveled by using an innovative partnership model that takes the intense pressure to grow  - most of us are familiar with - and share this load with capable partners.  

I’ll let him break down his actual model, but for you the listener, what we really hope you take away from this episode is that while Eric's model is A-Typical, it WORKS. This guy has done it a different way, so what could a different way look like for you? 

I hope his story helps put the expansion of your business in a new light.  What got you here, won’t necessarily get you where you want to go.  It rarely does.  And being exposed to a completely different approach to business growth could help you creatively problem solve your next few moves in the pursuit of excellence.

Eric has accomplished a tremendous amount as a young guy - his business is doing a very profitable 11 million dollars a year in revenue, and headed for massive growth in the coming years. However, his path to get here has been full of huge challenges and massive setbacks, which he openly shares with us in today’s episode. 

One of the things I really appreciate about Eric is his ability to absorb failures and learn from them in a powerful way. In today’s show, we dive into many of the significant challenges he’s run into, and his greatest lessons coming out of them. 

So let’s dive into both Eric’s unique expansion model and some of the lessons he shares with us including:

• How pursuing multiple opportunities stunted Eric’s growth
• Why Eric doesn’t like the traditional Franchise model to scale
• The unique model Eric has created that has allowed him to scale to 11 million and maintain balance
• Why pursuing fast growth ironically led to a 2 year setback
• How to spot opportunity and why you want to avoid the flashy ones
• The reason setting goals around personal income can lead to failure

To watch the full episode and access free resources go to www.contractorevolution.com

If you are are growing, but working like a dog to make it all happen, take our 10 day, Evolved Contractor Challenge to free yourself - http://www.btacademy.com/evolvedcontractorchallenge

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP168 

And be sure to download your FREE Ideal Candidate Profile & Job Posting Tool here: https://trybta.com/DL168 

To learn more about Logan and The Dream Clean Team, click here: https://www.thedreamcleanteam.net/ 

After wasting countless hours trying to hire good people the old fashioned way—vetting applications, interviewing, probing into skills—for cleaning positions with a shorter shelf life, Breakthrough Academy Member Logan Campbell redesigned his entire hiring and onboarding process using automation, thoughtful job descriptions and streamlined interview processes.

An owner of an AirBnB cleaning company, Logan knows the feeling all too well. His business, The Dream Clean Team, requires a HUGE number of people to get a lot done in a very short time window.

In this episode, he outlines how he set up his hiring process: attracting the right type of candidate, weeding out tire kickers, mass interview scheduling, onboarding, and even retaining A-players through gamification and performance pay.

If you hire positions with higher turnover or seasonal workers, this one’s for you.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP178 

Get Allan Dib's new book, Lean Marketing, here: https://leanmarketing.com/books/leanmarketing 

“Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted. The trouble is I don't know which half.”

Ever heard that saying?

That classic quote from John Wanamaker dates back over a hundred years ago. And, sadly, even with all the new technology, tracking mechanisms and data at our fingertips, it’s still kinda true. At least it is for many contractors.

Our guest today is Allan Dib, author of The 1-Page Marketing Plan and, as of this year, a brand new book called Lean Marketing.

The idea is pretty simple. Marketing creates A LOT of waste that provides zero value to you or your customer.

So, today we’re going to talk about Allan’s 9 Lean Marketing principles that will help you get more leads, more profit, with LESS MARKETING.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP50

To download the Canadian Immigration Roadmap, click here: https://trybta.com/PCDLEP50

Have you ever considered bringing in skilled workers from abroad?

Think about it… you as an entrepreneur can’t find the people you need at home, so the next logical step is to seek help elsewhere. If overcoming the labour shortage and growing your business is something you care about, immigration and foreign worker programs are things you NEED to consider.  And the sooner, the better.  

A surprising fact here in Canada is that our current demographic modelling shows that by early 2030, our population growth will grind to a halt and large scale immigration is likely the only way to fix that problem. Therefore, bringing in foreign help is quickly becoming NOT optional, and this applies to individual businesses and the economy as a whole.

When done correctly, recruiting and integrating foreign workers into your business and community is a win/win. And it's something that you, the evolving contractor, need to have on your radar.

Our guest on Episode 50 of Contractor Evolution is Brooke Finlay, Managing Partner of Whistler Immigration. Brooke is an entrepreneur and a Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant. She and her team help over 200 clients a year navigate the immigration process.  Her firm connects business owners in construction and trades with the international talent and human capital they desperately need. 

Quick caveat. Brooke’s firm services Canada only (except Quebec). This conversation and the trends we discuss are still super relevant for our many American listeners, but we would advise you to find a local immigration consultant.

By the end of this episode, you’ll discover:

• Why the need to bring in help from abroad exists in the first place
• The viability of using immigration as a tool to keep up with your recruiting needs
• What you, as the employer, are responsible for when bringing in a foreign worker
• How much it costs to bring in foreign labour
• The pro’s and con's of bringing in foreign workers
• Success stories of contractors who've brought in foreign workers
  
  

PS - To get in touch with Brooke Finlay and Whistler Immigration, visit https://whistlerimmigration.com.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP174

Get your free budget tool here: https://trybta.com/DLEP174

We all know the standard KPIs we need to track the success of a business. Dollars sold. Dollars produced. Gross profit. Net profit. 

The only problem with these all-important metrics is that they are LAGGING indicators.

We find out about their performance AFTER the activity that drives them has already happened. They tell us whether we achieved the results we wanted, but say little about how to get those results in the future.

This is where LEADING indicators can be instrumental in helping you lead your team.

If you tell your project managers to raise gross profit next quarter, they won’t know how.

But if you tell them to keep their materials expenses below 15% by following a more efficient ordering and purchasing process. 

They actually stand a pretty good chance.

Today, Breakthrough Academy Coach Brayden Russell is on the show to break down how to turn your lagging indicators into leading indicators and orient your team towards success.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Get a downloadable copy of Matt Risinger's Team Building Tactics here: https://trybta.com/DLEP182 

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP182 

Ever wonder how an industry titan recruits and retains top talent?

Before creating his 1.1 million subscriber YouTube channel dedicated to building science, Matt Risinger worked as a recruiter for a national builder, where he learned the tactics and skills he would use to assemble his incredible teams at both Risingerbuild and The Build Show. 

And today, he’s back on the show to teach you how to do it, too. 

We talk about how to get great applicants in the door, tips for behavioral interviewing, the right questions to ask (and which ones to NOT), how to retain talent for the long haul, and how to know when and why to let someone go.

This is a Masterclass in human resources for construction and trades with one of the most trusted names in the industry.

Episode Highlights:
- Learn the tactics and skills Matt Risinger used to build the exceptional teams that allowed RisingerBuild and The Build Show to grow into the industry titans they are today.
- Hear about Matt’s experience working as a recruiter for a national builder earlier in his career and how the experience shaped his current recruitment practices.
- Get Matt’s take on how to know when it’s time to let someone go, and how to approach the conversation professionally.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Get your free guide to Chris Voss' Top Negotiation Tips for Contractors here: https://trybta.com/DLEP179

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP179

Check out Chris Voss' new documentary, Tactical Empathy, here: https://www.amazon.com/Tactical-Empathy-Chris-Voss/dp/B0D83LHHZT 

Today’s episode frickin’ rocks.

The one and only Chris Voss, world-renowned FBI negotiator and author of Never Split the Difference, is on the show to talk all things negotiation.

We cover the mindset, the skills, and the systems you need to be a better negotiator in your contracting business. 

Whether you’re defending your price to a haggling client, driving a hard bargain with a supplier, or negotiating a comp package with a key employee, implementing the tips in this episode will help you get better results.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP37

Where your business ends up in 10 years depends on a few things.  Your effort.  The market.  Your people.  Some luck.  The list goes on.  The other predictor that may (or may not) be on your radar is the quality of advice you get.

Having a true team of “Experts” in your corner can and will have a pronounced impact on where you end up as an entrepreneur.  Consulting with specialized advisors is one of the highest leverage activities available to you. It's like adding 50 yards to your drive without swinging any harder.  

If you haven’t carefully curated the professional advisors that sit in your corner, I promise you, you're leaving dollars on the table.  

Look, you’re more than likely gonna spend a decade plus at this … Don’t you want to maximize the return on your blood, sweat, and tears?   

Good advice is worth A LOT. So in today’s episode we examine the 5 professional advisors that every contractor needs to turbocharge their business.

We’ll be covering:

• The 5 advisors that will significantly impact where you end up 
• At what stages of your business growth do you look at bringing these advisors in?
• What to look for when you are selecting these advisors to ensure you don’t get screwed by the sea of imposters out there.
• Some of the specific frameworks these advisors will be helping you establish
• Where to find the best advisors in some of these areas
• What do you stand to lose by not engaging the services of these specific advisors?

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP158

Do you ever feel misunderstood by employees, partners, vendors, and stakeholders when discussing the future—the vision, the strategy?

That “mental image,” to you at least, feels unbelievably clear, precise, detailed, and exciting. 

How could anyone NOT get this? 

How could you NOT be fired up about this?

Cameron Herold is back on the show to lay out the solution to your visionary woes.

His 2018 book, Vivid Vision, became an instant classic in the small business community because it completely transforms how you approach strategy and visioning in your business through the painted-picture exercise. And today, I get to pick his brain.

Expect to learn: 

• What most of the traditional planning tools like mission statements and one-page plans get wrong
• How to create a painted picture step by step - a super fun and rewarding exercise
• How to roll out your painted picture with your team, turn it into your rallying cry, and reverse engineer the steps to execution.

Cameron’s a great podcast guest; that’s why we had him back; you’re gonna love this one.

To know more about Cameron visit: https://cooalliance.com/

And get 10% off on the Invest in your Leaders course https://investinyourleaders.com/ using the promo code cameronh10

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP152

My guest on the show today is Cameron Herold, best-selling author of 6 books, many of which you’ll know and love: The Miracle Morning, Meetings Suck, and arguably his most popular Vivid Vision.

But today’s conversation is about his latest book, The Second In Command: Unleash The Power Of Your COO, which I am immediately putting on the must-read list for all of you.

Cameron was the COO of 1-800-Got Junk and helped Brian Scudamore grow from just $2 million a year to over $100 million a year. 

He hosts a podcast called The Second in Command Podcast, where he interviews COOs of some of the biggest brands in the world. Shopify, Zendesk, Asana, MailChimp, and the list goes on. 

He’s even built a mastermind group for COOs called the COO Alliance, which is like a breakthrough academy but just for COOs. Super cool.

The book and today’s episode amalgamate Cameron’s wisdom gained through decades of filling, studying, coaching, and writing about the all-important COO role. 

To know more about Cameron and his courses visit: https://cameronherold.com/ and https://investinyourleaders.com/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To apply for a Business Assessment with Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP64

To download “LEAN in a nutshell” click here: https://trybta.com/PCDLEP64

To learn more about Paul Akers click here: https://paulakers.net/

To learn more about Fastcap click here: https://www.fastcap.com/

The average American worker (across industries) outputs about $150/hour worth of value a day.  

Our guest in this episode, Paul Akers, runs a company called Fastcap who’s workers now output $500-$700 a day and are happier than when the company started. He’s been so recognized for his work that he’s been invited to speak and consult with companies like Mercedes Benz, Amazon, and the US Navy.

So what’s his secret sauce?

It’s a concept he stole from Toyota and applied to his business. He tells us only 2% of contractors ever ‘get it’ and he wants to share with those who will listen.

Episode highlights:

• How LEAN production revolutionized the job site and the 8 areas where you can eliminate wasted time, material, costs
• The state of the average job site in North America and why it’s not where you want to be
• How to apply LEAN principles to a contracting business model with specific examples
• The "Quick Wins" you want to start with to see some immediate results
• The best way to retrain your team to see the waste and what needs to happen to create an ongoing culture of continuous improvement
• What to do about the team member that fights the change and get them totally bought in

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP116

Red Stag Contracting: https://redstagcontracting.ca/

Royal Heating and Air Conditioning: https://royalheatingandair.com/

Project Management Resource Bundle: https://trybta.com/PCDLEP116

Do you have Project Managers Or Professional Firefighters?

The answer to this question is so directly connected to your year-end profit it’s not even funny.  

They say: Money Loves Speed.  But what does that really mean?

It means that the faster and more predictably your projects closeout, the faster you can move on to the next project.  Over the course of the year, this means more revenue in the door which means more money to pay for your overhead and pad your bottom line.

The most profitable construction, trades, and home service companies all have on thing in common.  They chew through projects QUICKLY, with fewer hiccups, mistakes, and callbacks than their competition.

So if the Project Management in your business feels chaotic and you want to learn how to fix it, this episode is a must-listen.  Andrew Spear, a high-performance home builder in Summerland BC shares how he used PM systems to scale from an exhausting 2.6MM in 2021 to being on trend for a smooth and profitable 7MM in 2023.  And Chris Collins of Royal Heating and Air Conditioning, a 3rd generation commercial HVAC contractor in Willoughby, Ohio, who’s used PM systems to modernize the business he took over and increase his gross profit from 31% to 42%.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To apply for a Business Assessment with Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP62

You can find Barrett’s Company Cadence Real Estate at: https://www.cadencere.com/

Just 13 years ago, Barrett was working as a bags-on carpenter fresh out of school. 

Since then, he has not only built an extremely successful construction company but has also become a full-blown multi-family developer. 

His company, Cadence Real Estate, which is actually composed of 4 subsidiaries, now owns over 380 Million dollars worth of Real Estate in the Seattle area and is expanding beyond. NBD.

To learn Barrett’s somewhat unique approach to business development click the icons below.

• The 2 core systems Barrett implemented that really moved the needle in his business
• How to run effective Strategic Planning when you run 4 companies
• How to select the leaders and leadership traits for the business you run
• 2 Key lessons learned going from 0 to 380M and what Barrett would change if could start again
• Barrett's strategy for managing capital and investment in a business that has huge swings in revenue
• Barrett's advice to young contractors today and his reflection on opportunity in 2022 sharing similarities to opportunity in 2008

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP10

"Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence win championships."

Toby Woodiwiss, painting contractor extraordinaire, is a firm believer in this philosophy; and the results, well, they speak for themselves.

His business runs like a well-oiled machine thanks to a carefully selected team and investment in the ‘right’ people.

It wasn't always this way. He admits he spent a lot of time (and money), on recruiting, onboarding, and investing in (what turned out to be) complete duds. So what changed?

Woodiwiss sits down with Breakthrough Academy hosts Benji Carlson and Danny Kerr to talk recruitment, personality tests, why investing in your people should be your #1 priority, and, yikes, conflict resolution.

His approach will blow your mind, and make you take a long hard look in the mirror. Don't say we didn't warn you.

If you are are growing, but working like a dog to make it all happen, take our 10 day, Evolved Contractor Challenge to free yourself - http://www.btacademy.com/evolvedcontractorchallenge

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP154

My guest on the show today is Kyle Nitchen. I found Kyle through his substack and newsletter called “The Influential Project Manager” - which is worth a follow, btw.

As a senior project manager for Layton Construction, Kyle has built over 350 million dollars worth of hospital wings, Surgery rooms, and urgent care centers all over Los Angeles.

He writes about all things construction, leadership project management on his substack and today we talk about:

• Why Project Management in the construction industry is as big of a dumpster fire as it is
• How many of the modern tools and methods, from Gantt charts to critical paths, while useful, are incomplete in today's construction environment - and what to do instead
• Lastly, he takes us through the 7 archetypes of effective project managers - a simple but powerful framework to develop your PMs with.

To learn more about Kyle Nitchen: https://kylenitchen.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP157

The labor shortage is not improving anytime soon. This is why smart contractors invest in their employer brands.

Many businesses competing over a small supply of talent drives up its price and gives your would-be employee a sea of options. Ensure your business is the best choice for them by building a world-class employer brand.

How you package and communicate your place of work to potential employees matters more now than ever. 

Our guest on the show today is Andrew Hansen, founder and CEO of Site Partners, A specialized marketing agency that works exclusively with the industrial sector. Over the last 5 years, he’s shifted from helping businesses get customers to helping them find talent.

Buckle up for an employer brand deep dive….

To know more about Andrew and SitePartners visit: linkedin.com/in/andrew-hansen- and sitepartners.ca

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To apply for a Breakthrough Academy Business Assessment click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP78

The Discount Code for 10% off Gembadocs is BTA10. Download the app or visit https://gembadocs.com/ to start your FREE 30-DAY TRIAL!

Also, get Tom’s book for free in multiple formats at https://improvementstartswithi.com/

If you don’t have clear SOP’s (Standard Operating Procedures) for all the things you do in your business you’re in trouble. 

Here’s why:

 - You won’t be able to scale

 - You can’t take a vacation

 - You can’t promote anyone on your team

 - It takes FOREVER to train new staff

 - You field a million questions everyday that suck your time

 - You’ll never be able to take a step back from operations

…the list goes on 

Not having clear SOP’s is why your business is a mess.

BUT if you don’t have them, it’s not your fault.

Because no one told you where to start, how to create them, how to have your SOP’s evolve with the business or WHO IN THE HELL would be creating all of these things?

However, now all of your obstacles are irrelevant. Someone has figured out how to get around all those challenges and more.

His name is Tom Hughes and he’s going to open your mind to the possibility of SOP’s that are highly effective and practically create themselves.

To learn Tom’s brilliant approach to these age old challenges, listen to this week's episode.

Episode Highlights:

• The reason why you can’t predictably grow a business without SOP’s
• How much value SOP's will give to the sale price of the business and peace of mind to the owner
• The 3 keys most owners miss when implementing SOP's that lead to a giant waste of time and money
• How to foster ownership and buy-in from the team by implementing bottom-up rather than top down SOP creation
• How to put SOPs at the point of use to make sure they actually get used instead of collecting dust
• Lastly, how to make the update process easy so that your SOPs grow with your business instead of falling out of date

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To apply for a Breakthrough Academy Business Assessment click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP76

You ever heard that quote about the bumblebee flying? The one that goes, “Aerodynamically, the bumblebee shouldn't be able to fly, but the bumblebee doesn't know that so it flies anyway.”

I feel like Tommy Mello didn’t get the memo that a garage door company traditionally caps around 10 Million.

When he was growing his company, Tommy looked around for inspiring models he could replicate and didn’t find much from the other garage door companies in the market. So instead of accepting industry norms, he looked elsewhere.

And now he’s sailing past 200 Million in revenue and says it’s just the beginning.

Listen to the full episode to learn about the 5 game changers that Tommy attributes to his unusual growth.

Episode Highlights:

• What Tommy & A1 Garage Doors needed to do to go from 800k to 200M
• Where to start when you know you need to dial in your finances but can't afford a CFO
• How to find and work with an integrator if you're the visionary
• The way a 200M contractor thinks and spends their time vs the way a 1M contractor thinks and spends their time
• When, during your growth, you need to start finding advisors, which ones will really move the needle for you, and how to filter out the crappy ones
• What advice Tommy would have given himself in the early years of his business that would have saved him a pile of headaches

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP02

With a diverse workforce ranging from field workers to office staff, is it possible to have a company culture in contracting where all your team is on the same page?

Nestor Tarango runs a multi-million-dollar solar energy company. He has successfully onboarded more than 150 people over the past 12 months alone . . . and his company culture is exemplary.

How? After working in a hostile environment, Tarango decided enough was enough. He stepped outside of the “traditional” contracting mould and built a company that has a performance culture others would kill for.

Tarango sits down with Breakthrough Academy hosts Igor Trninic and Benji Carlson to talk about the mistakes contractors make that result in a toxic culture, recruitment challenges, and takes us through the steps he took to build a culture of uber high-performers.

Can you see the sunshine after the rain? (Admit it, that song is stuck in your head now)

Join us here for real tips from those who speak your language. 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP150

Do you shove off your social media strategy to already busy employees who half-ass it or just don’t have the time? 

Because I certainly have.

When you’re slammed running a business, making Instagram posts can feel a little beneath you. And so the default move is to pawn it off to a junior who inevitably does very little with it.

This is exactly why a fully formed strategy is so important. It gives you something tangible to hand off so that someone else on your team can find success with it.

Jonathan Cor is the founder of Customer Growth - A contractor-focused social media agency. He advises and consults with 7-figure and 8-figure businesses dialing in their social media strategies to deliver actual business results you can measure.

Today we answer a few questions:

• With so many content creators and distractions, is social media still worth investing in?
• What are the ingredients that go into a simple and easy-to-execute strategy?
• What should your posts even be about? Who should be capturing and posting them?

To know more about Jon and Customer Growth visit: https://www.customergrowth.co/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For a free copy of Kyle’s book, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP139

It’s time for episode 2 of our Wealth-Builder Series!

For the growth-minded contractor investing in real estate is an obvious, lucrative, and fun place to put their hard-earned profits.

Making money in trades and construction and investing said money into real estate of some shape or form seem to go together like peanut butter and jam.

This makes sense... You already have the skills, the tools, the know-how, and the contacts to elbow grease your way to wealth.

One of the core components to success here is financing - most real estate transactions involve a lender in some capacity, but getting continuous financing isn’t always easy, especially as an entrepreneur. To have a long and successful career as a real estate investor, you need to “be lendable” - and this is a skill worth learning. 

Kyle Green is the founder of the Green Mortgage Team and is our guest on the show today. 

Throughout his career, he has funded over a billion dollars in mortgages, almost entirely to entrepreneurs.

In today’s conversation with Kyle, we talk about:

• How entrepreneurs can find the balance between being tax efficient with what you pull out of your business while still remaining lendable in the eyes of a bank
• The most common ways contractors majorly screw it up with real estate 
• And lastly, we talk about how rising interest rates are changing the investment landscape and what you can do about it

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To apply for a Breakthrough Academy Business Assessment click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP79

Download your free resources for Project Management Secrets for Rapid Growth here: https://trybta.com/PCDLEP79

A couple months ago we did a Project Management Roundtable with some of our highest performing members in the construction space.  

It was so popular and well received we thought we would release it as a Contractor Evolution episode.

As you no doubt have experienced, most (but not all) Project Managers in construction and trades are professional firefighters.  

This is a problem.  

Under equipped PM’s burn themselves out and eventually hurt morale, but more importantly mismanaged jobs can make or break our year end P&L’s.  

So we put together a live roundtable with Greg Hasler of Hasler Homes and Iain Kent of Eagleview Construction where we discuss their evolution story from chaotic to dialled in.

We dove into the systems that have made the biggest difference, and the personality profile of a rockstar PM as well as where you might find one.  

Episode Highlights:

• 3 PM 'Red Flags' that will tell you things can be improved on
• What makes a great PM (from the perspective of highly effective contractors)
• How to hold PMs accountable to the results they were hired to achieve in your business (including which KPI’s you should be tracking)
• The number of jobs should your PM's be able to manage at one time
• The PM qualifications you should you look for and where to send PMs to learn proper PM systems for your business
• The best way to keep your field crews (and your subs) engaged with the PM systems and actually filling out daily logs (spoiler - yes, it is possible)

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To apply for a Breakthrough Academy Business Assessment click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP71

Nothing in the world of contracting sucks the life out of you or your team like a miserable client. A sorry SOB whose apparent mission in life is to ruin yours.  It almost seems they take pleasure in the process.

What I’m saying is I think we can all agree that avoiding the crazies is in your best interest.  And the sooner the better.

After running my own painting company and talking to over 1000 contractors, I’ve noticed there are a few client patterns that have emerged in our collective experience.

I should mention, this list is by no means exhaustive and if you have your own red flags I’d love you to leave them in the comments of this episode's Youtube video. I read all the comments you guys put in there.

Episode Highlights (6 Key Phrases That Should Raise A Red Flag):

• “Can I help out? And what kind of discount will I get if I do?”
• “We bought the materials already, just charge us for labor.”
• “I could do this myself, I’m just so busy”
• “I’m a realtor and I’ve flipped many houses so I know what things cost.”
• “I have a brother-in-law who does some flooring. Can he be involved?”
• “I’m super busy, do we have to meet?”

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, Click Here

Use The Scrollers To See Dan’s Brand Transformations (srsly cool): https://www.kickcharge.com/portfolio/small-business-rebranding-before-after/

Dan’s Book “Branded, Not Blanded:” https://www.amazon.com/Branded-Not-Blanded-KickChargeTM-Service-ebook/dp/B0BBL1CCJ9

If you’ve ever wondered whether wrapping your fleet of vehicles is worth the cost, this episode is a must-listen.  We’re suuuper lucky to have the “G.O.A.T.” of vehicle wraps, Dan Antonelli, on the show today.  

His agency KickCharge Creative has built brands for some of the biggest home service companies in North America: A1 Garage, Goettl Air Conditioning, and Absolute Airflow, just to name a few.  

Today’s conversation is about outdoor advertising in general but, more specifically, the 5 rules that all contractors and home service business owners need to follow when designing a vehicle wrap that pops and drives results.  We also talk about his new book Branded, Not Blanded. It’s the best book I’ve ever read on branding for our niche.  We’ll link it in the description.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To apply for a Business Assessment with Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP63

To download the Sales Handoff Project Charter and DECA analysis click here: https://trybta.com/PCDLEP63

Misaligned expectations between contractor and client are the route of all evil when it comes to:

• Hitting or missing budget
• Finishing the project on time or way behind schedule
• And creating a happy customer who will refer you for years or not.

Sales handoff is one of the most critical links in the overall chain that is your business’s workflow.  

Get this right and producing the job you sold can, believe it or not, go off without a hitch.  

Get it wrong though and your production team can be stuck in a hellish nightmare for way longer than planned, hurting the project’s profitability and team unity.  

Your sales handoff can seem more straightforward than it actually is though, which is why we’ve got Paul Atherton, one of BTA’s most senior coaches on for this episode.

Click the icons below to learn the 6 things Paul tells us your sales team needs to share with your production team for a headache free job.

• How to prevent "I thought you guys would do this too" from the customer (and end death by 1000 requests)
• What it looks like to set “bumper guards” on the job so things like deadline and expenditures don’t get out of hand
• The common assumptions that will kill your project
• The best way to avoid false promises during the quoting process from being made in the first place
• How to use a Project Charter to insure everything is communicated properly at key points along the project
• Using a DECA Analysis to be able to ask the right questions at the start of the job

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP120

Breakthrough Academy’s annual “Turnaround of the Year” award is given to the entrepreneur who has achieved extraordinary growth despite facing great adversity. 

That's a fancy way of saying it goes to the man or woman who's been through some seriously heavy stuff and come out the other side.  

This year's winner was Stephen Osborne of The Osborne Company.  

And 2021 was not kind to Stephen.  

His father, David, the founder of the company, passed away very suddenly and unexpectedly.  

Infighting amongst siblings ensued, everyone wanting their cut. 

Adding insult to injury, a group of non-construction consultants hired by family members, unbeknownst to him, forced him to step down as president.  

As grief and conflict ripped through the family, the business suffered too: their Net Profit dropped down to 1.7%, and the business was hanging on by a thread.

Fast forward two years, and the Osborne company is on trend to do north of 15MM, with a super healthy 15% net.  The team is the happiest and most functional it’s ever been, and they’ve become of the largest EV charging station installers in the US.

The conversation that follows is about HOW Stephen got through the darkest time in his life, steered his father's company and legacy away from financial ruin, and won the Turnaround Of The Year Award. 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Order Dan’s book here: https://trybta.com/BBYT

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP144

My guest on the show today is Dan Martell. 

Award-winning Entrepreneur. Investor. Author.

Since his new book Buy Back Your Time was released last year, I’ve had at least 10 Breakthrough Academy members ask me to have him on. And when I read it, I understood why. 

Buy Back Your Time is an antidote to the time-sucking and stress-inducing nature of entrepreneurship.  

Through clean diagrams, personal stories, and sage wisdom, he offers a pragmatic and deeply intuitive path to avoid building a business you grow to hate.  A scenario many entrepreneurs sadly find themselves in.

Dan’s life story is wild, and we start the interview there, so I won’t spoil it. But the meat of the interview is focused on the core framework of his book called: The Buyback Principle.  

This was an absolute banger episode, guys. I hope you enjoy it.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP114

To Download Your Built To Sell Checklist, click here: BuiltToSell.com

Ever wonder what your business will be worth when it comes time to sell?

Building a business of actual value - something you can sell for a pile of money - is not (despite what many people think) just a function of hard work and dedication. There’s a strategy to it. A playbook, if you will. And countless entrepreneurs, sadly, don’t read it.

My guest on the show today is best-selling business author John Warrillow.  

John’s 3 books, Built To Sell, The Automatic Customer, and The Art Of Selling Your Business, have, over the years, become something akin to sacred scrolls for the entrepreneur looking to build a business they can cash out of.

Listen to this episode to learn:

• How specialization can keep your service from becoming commoditized. 
• Why charging upfront keeps your monthly cash flow healthier but also boosts the price a potential acquirer is willing to pay.
• And why giving away equity to long-term employees (while often done with the best intentions) usually backfires when it comes time to sell your business.

Full of brilliant insight and decades of experience, this conversation with John Warrillow is a must-listen!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP124

Rhythmical and ritualistic meetings function like the war drums of your business by providing your team with a tempo and a beat to stay in sync with.  Without them, things become chaotic, disjointed, and you find yourself repeating the same conversations over and over.

Brody Funk is one of our amazing Breakthrough Academy coaches and used communication cadences to scale and exit his two businesses, Super Plumber and 360 Comfort.

Today, we dive into five levels of ritualistic meetings:

• Annual strategic planning sessions
• Quarterly reviews
• Monthly town hall meetings
• Weekly L10s
• And Daily Huddles (that must include a “win-the-day” number)

Listen to the full episode to learn how to get your meeting schedule on track and keep your team paddling in the same direction.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP23

Brand has never mattered more than it does right now. People, the public, your customers, are busier than ever. 

Not only that, but the competition for their eyeballs, their attention, has never been fiercer. Between social media algorithms, shrinking attention spans, and an ever-expanding marketplace it can feel daunting for you, the small business owner, to stand out and be remembered.

There is a reason why 1-800-GOT-JUNK can charge $1,000 to haul a load of junk when no one else can.  It’s the same reason why you’ll happily spend $90 for a t-shirt at Lululemon, or why people will line up to spend $4,000 on a simple laptop at Apple. People know, like and trust the brand.

Of course, being the next Lululemon may not be your goal, but if you look around within your industry (whether you’re a Landscaper, Painter, Builder, Roofer, or Sub Trade), there are numerous brands that carry mass influence.  And if they’ve created it, you can too. 

If you’re serious about creating a lasting business, you must. It’s important to look at your brand as a foundation that you build your organization on top of. It’s an investment worth adding to, as a great brand will pay back in dividends over the course of your career. 

To explain the importance of branding, and the process of creating great brands in the contracting industry, we’re joined today by the best that we know of - Noel Fox from FreeBird agency. 

Having worked with Noel for years, both on creating the Breakthrough Academy brand, as well as your favorite podcast, Contractor Evolution, I can promise you that he is the real deal. 

Brian Scudamore, the founder of 1-800-GOT-JUNK will also tell you that Noel is his #1 go to when it comes to bringing an impactful brand to life. Noel Fox and FreeBird agency have created industry-leading brands for companies such as You Move Me, Wow 1 Day Painting, Shack Shine and have been a massive part of the brand development of 1-800-GOT-JUNK as well as those famous lululemon bags you see on every street across the world.

A few key pieces from this episode on brand include:

1. What separates a great brand from an average brand?

2. The thing contractors often get wrong with their own brand.

3. How to leverage your brand for recruiting and hiring

4. How to evaluate your brand the way a world class branding agency would

5. The signs you’ll see when you have a brand that’s working for you

6. A step-by-step walkthrough on how to build a powerful brand on a budget

To watch the full episode and access free resources go to www.contractorevolution.com

If you are are growing, but working like a dog to make it all happen, take our 10 day, Evolved Contractor Challenge to free yourself - http://www.btacademy.com/evolvedcontractorchallenge

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP165 

A changing market can mean fewer leads, slower decision-making, and lower average job size.

While punchy Facebook ads, a decent website, and a Google Business profile may have been enough to get the phones ringing in the past, passive marketing is just not cutting it for contractors in 2024.

According to today’s guest Sam Taggart, now is the time to try one of the most tried and tested methods of “getting in front of your customer” — meeting them where they live. 

Literally.

As the founder and CEO of The D2D Experts, Sam helps hundreds of companies build successful and cost-efficient Door-to-Door Sales teams every year, and today, he’s going to teach us how to: 

• Hire enthusiastic door knockers
• Build your own script using a proven framework
• Design a compensation plan for your D2D team
• …and more.

If you’re door-to-door curious or looking for a more active marketing channel to add this year, this episode is a must-listen.

To learn more about Sam and his door-to-door sales coaching, check out The D2D Experts: https://thed2dexperts.com/ 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP166 

To download our FREE Strategic Planning Tool, click here: https://trybta.com/DLEP166 

Private equity buying up contracting companies is a popular subject lately.

You may have seen Instagram posts and articles about entrepreneurs who’ve struck it rich by selling their businesses to mysterious private equity investors.

But, what does that actually mean?

Today, we’re going to learn what it's ACTUALLY like to sell to private equity investors, from someone who's done it.

Over the course of 30 years, Steve Wheatcroft grew his humble landscaping business called Urban Life Solutions into a 30MM behemoth that - no surprise - caught the eye of private equity. 

After the deal was done in late 2019, Steve remained the CEO for another three years and helped the new ownership scale through more acquisitions to 100 MM.

And in today’s episode, he shares the unfiltered truth about what selling to private equity is really like. 

The good. 

The bad. 

And the ugly. 

And there is plenty of all three. 

Enjoy.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCPE15

Every business owner deals with a number of pain points on their journey to success. Whether that's recruitment challenges, stress and time management, or revenue and sales (to name just a few). Learning to navigate them alone can be tough (if not impossible).

Being able to reach out to others in the industry and learn from their successes (and failures) enables you to navigate those humps.

In this episode of Contractor Evolution, Benji and I have compiled 10 of the most frequently asked questions from contracting entrepreneurs and are stoked to share with you our experiences.

If you are are growing, but working like a dog to make it all happen, take our 10 day, Evolved Contractor Challenge to free yourself - http://www.btacademy.com/evolvedcontractorchallenge

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP53

To get the Contract Checklist click here: https://trybta.com/PCDLEP53

You want to keep your A$$ out of trouble. 

All ventures, big and small, face some form of legal risk and whether you realize it or not, the business of contracting is on the riskier end of the spectrum.

You put thousands of hours of work every year into growing your company, not to mention the millions of dollars that get spent in the pursuit of growth. To do all of that on a shaky legal foundation is like building your dream home on sand.

Because of this, smart entrepreneurs put effort and money behind proactive, preventative legal work, so that they can feel confident that the effort and money they are putting in is working to build something that will last. 

Our guest on the show for this episode is Trent Cotney, Partner at the firm Adams & Reese.  

Trent has been practicing construction law for 23 years and runs a large team of lawyers within the firm that specialize in various specifics of construction law.  He’s written two books related to OSHA defense for contractors and is the General Counsel for the National Roofing Contractors Association. Needless to say, he is the best in the business when it comes to protecting yourself, and all things legal in our industry.

In today’s conversation, we get into:

• Some of the most typical legal risks that a contractor faces and how to prevent them
• What a contractor needs to know about corporate structure and how to protect themselves
• Why when you cut and paste contracts from google you could be seriously screwing yourself
• How manuals and SOP's in your business serve a much bigger function than just getting the work done
• How to cover your butt when it comes to safety on site
• Why you need a crisis management plan and what goes into one so chaos doesn’t break out when things go sideways

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP29

To get the 7 Traits Of An Employer Brand PDF you can download that here: https://trybta.com/PCDLEP29

This conversation is a big one.  If you’ve been following along and listening to our episodes each week you know we’re deeply committed to empower you, the evolving contractor, to build the business you dream of.

We’ve talked about tactics and systems, habits and best practices, but we feel like there is this elephant in the room - which is none of this matters if you feel like your labour pool is evaporating before your eyes.

And no, you’re not crazy, or alone.  Millennials and Gen Zers aren’t as gritty as Gen Xers or Boomers.  COVID has simultaneously increased demand for your services while shrinking the workforce you have to deliver them. If you're feeling the pinch in your hiring efforts right now, pay attention. 

On this episode of the show we are joined by three amazing Breakthrough Academy coaches - Danny Kerr, Thomas Cobleigh, and Ryan Gabel. FYI Breakthrough Academy Is the parent company to this Contractor Evolution Podcast and its where Igor and I work the rest of the time. Breakthrough Academy is a coaching and development program purpose built for fast growing trades and construction companies. 

Because we actively coach over 400 companies right now, and have coached hundreds more over the years, we have a very broad and powerful perspective on these bigger trends in the industry. 

We thought it would be fun to get some of our brightest minds together to discuss this labour shortage, where it came from, and what to do about it.

In this episode we cover:

• The major trends we are seeing right now in the contractor labour market
• A simple solution you can implement today  if you can’t afford top talent
• How to attract top talent and what it means to be an ‘employer brand’
• The culture that attracts great people, how to build it, and how to measure it.
• The 7 Fundamentals you can leverage to become a top employer brand
• The characteristics of a present leader that a team chooses to follow

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP46

To download the Employment Agreement CQT click here: https://trybta.com/PCDLEP46

Welcome to Contractor Evolution and our 6th and final episode of the Ultimate Hiring Funnel series.

Over the last 5 weeks we’ve tried to lay out the fundamental steps involved in attracting and hiring the talent your business deserves.  Building a world class hiring funnel is not an easy thing to do, but nothing important ever was.  And if building a rockstar team isn’t at the top of your priority list, I don’t know what is.

Last week we talked in depth about the interviewing stage, but we aren’t quite done yet. To close this process out we need to talk about the all important Job Offer Call and Expectations Meetings.  

One thing that a lot of contractors struggle with is holding people accountable. Employees make up their own expectations, standards slip, and your frustrations mount. The expectations meeting solves this by clearly articulating the standards at the precise moment when your new employee is the most malleable.

Remember this, you can’t hold the line with someone if you never drew it in the first place.

To walk us through this we’re excited to have James Dale returning to show.  James is the Director of Training and Development at Breakthrough Academy.  He’s hired and conducted expectations meetings for 100’s of staff all the way from labourers to executives. He’s the brains behind the BTA Management System which he and his team of coaches help implement into the businesses of 400 fast growing contractors. 

It also should be mentioned that his fantasy football team is off the chain this year, and he has a black belt in krav maga.

So let's conclude this ultimate hiring funnel series with James Dale where we’ll discuss:

• What's the Job Offer Call and why do you need to conduct one?
• How to get your candidate excited about the job they are about to start
• The best way to reinforce the positive attributes of a new hire while prepping them mentally for inevitable on-the-job coaching
• The prep you need to do BEFORE you go into an Expectations Meeting
• The 5 parts of the Expectations Meeting that allow a really strong start for any new employee
• How to come across as a strong leader a new hire can trust

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP187

Get a copy of Profit First for Contractors here: https://www.amazon.ca/Profit-First-Contractors-Construction-Money-Making-ebook/dp/B07L38J49P

Did you know that the vast majority of construction and trades businesses net less than 5% profit a year?

In case you were wondering—that’s not good.

Our guest on the show today is Shawn Van Dyke, author of Profit First for Contractors and The Paperwork Punch List.

In this episode, we break down the Profit First for Contractors (or PFC) cash management model, including a prescribed framework for implementing PFC in your business right away.

If you change the way you manage your finances, you’ll also change the way you think about money flowing in and out of your accounts. And in turn, you’ll make better decisions that benefit you and your business.

Episode highlights:

• Unpack how the profit-first approach Shawn Van Dyke outlines in Profit First for Contractors produces a powerful and positive psychological change to the way you see money flowing into and out of your business.

• Learn the four most common profit-destroying mistakes that Shawn sees owners make all too often.

• Find out which five bank accounts you need to set up right away.

00:00-Intro

01:35-About Profit First for Contractors

10:31-Why is minimal profitability so common in construction and trades?

15:49-Brief synopsis of the PFC Model

21:05-Five bank accounts you need to set up

31:36-What's the value of the five bank accounts?

47:07-4 mistakes that kill profitability

01:05:08-Connect with Shawn

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP28

To get your free GSR template (for a Project Manager) go to https://trybta.com/PCDLEP28

So if you listen to this show with any regularity, it’s pretty safe to say the organism that is your business is evolving.  And while that’s an exciting feeling, it also brings about a feeling of uncertainty you’re probably familiar with…. Are my people doing what I hired them to do?  Are they an ROI-generating asset for my business?  Or are they just an expense?  Are they executing at the level that I was back when I was doing their job (and a million others)? Or are they a costly piece of dead weight? 

I realize that might sound a little cynical.  Or like we’re assuming the worst.  But I’m sure most of you have had this thought cross your mind at least once or twice.

When your business was small and simple.  This question was pretty easy to answer.  If you hired a laborer to work alongside you, you could see with your own two eyes that they’re completely effing the D.  There’s the door.  Bye!  

But as your company evolves, roles become more complex and nuanced, layers get added to the organizational chart, truly knowing how people are performing becomes less clear.  

So the question becomes…. How do we, as leaders, manage at scale?  How do we make sure our individual team members are executing on their individual goals, so that we as a company hit ours?

To answer this question we brought Dave Stephens on the show.  Dave’s company, Lida Homes is an 8 figure custom home builder and high end renovation contractor.  He runs a tight ship of 24, and specifically in this show we’re going to learn how he uses one on one Goal Setting and Review meetings (or GSR for short) to lead his 5 project managers to create award winning homes and customer experience.  

Over the last 3 years, he’s won the Canadian Home Builders Association’s builder of the year award, and over the last two has received the highest level customer satisfaction award in his Vancouver Island region.  Dave directly attributes this success and recognition to the way he leads his team through GSR.  

His people do their jobs. Extremely well.

In today’s Episode:

1. What a GSR is and why it is important to both quality and growth in your business

2. How to use a point system in your GSRs to create black and white accountability

3. What a contracting business looks like before implementing GSRs vs after implementing GSRs

4. How you can expect your team (especially your PM’s) to respond when you introduce GSRs

5. What a great GSR with a project manager specifically looks like

6. How to have a hard conversation with an employee who is underperforming

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To apply to Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP82

To download the pricing calculator, click here:  https://www.bookkeepingacademyonline.com/pricing-calculator

Other Links Mentioned In This Podcast:

https://likesaccounting.com/

https://www.bookkeepingacademyonline.com/

https://jefflikescleanwindows.com/

http://profitstofreedom.com/

http://adminbootcampadventure.com/

Let’s say that I give you a challenge.

I tell you that you need to triple revenue in your business in 1 year…and if you can’t, I get to take it from you.

You’re probably already thinking, “How do I ramp up EVERYTHING by 3X? It’s TOO MUCH.”

Yeah…maybe you could pull it off, but it wouldn’t be easy…or fun.

Okay pause.

Now what if I told you that there’s a way to accomplish your 3x revenue growth simply by moving 3 VERY SPECIFIC levers forward by 5%,10% and 20%.

That’s it. Just the 3. Nothing else. And the lever you need to push by 20% can be moved overnight by sending 1 email with guaranteed results.

It’s not a pipe dream. When you see it and you run the math you realize it’s entirely possible. It will blow your mind how easy it can be.

Meaghan Likes, a Home Service Company owner and Certified Public Accountant figured this magic formula out and shares it with us in this episode of Contractor Evolution.

Would you like to know what the 3 levers are? Then listen to this full episode for all the details.

Episode Highlights:

• The real reason so many entrepreneurs avoid talking to their accountants and how to approach your accounting in a new mindset
• Why tracking Average Job Size (AJS) is so important and how to increase your AJS overnight
• How much you need to be raising your prices, when to do it, and why you should feel ZERO guilt about it
• If you have a poor Sales Ratio here’s what you can change in your customer experience that often corrects the problem
• The most common reason for high lead slippage, and how to train your team to reduce it in a day
• How to easily 3x your company revenue in a year with 3 simple moves in AJS, Sales Ratio, and Lead Slippage.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP33

To download our Annual Strategic Planning Quick Tool click here: https://trybta.com/PCDLEP33

You could say that there are two groups of businesses out there - ones that put actual thought into where they are headed, and ones that do not. It’s no secret that all high performing organizations in the world put some real brain space into mapping out the future, in order to be able to channel resources and human energy towards achieving intentional goals. 

Our company, Breakthrough Academy - which brings you the Contractor Evolution show - has been ranked among the country’s fastest growing companies for years in a row, and one of our big keys to success has been our rhythmic Annual Strategic Planning process that happens every December. 

One of my favorite quotes about entrepreneurship comes from Stephen Covey, and it goes something like this “all things are created twice - once in the mind, and then in real life”. 

What that means is that everything you want to make a reality - the lifestyle you’re after, the income you want to make, the size of business, specific employes and leaders to have inside of your company, the dialled in CRM, or perfect, beautiful office - will first come to life in your mind, and then be created into reality. 

A great mechanism to allow this creative process to unfold is the Annual Strategic Planning ritual. For years, it has been the arena to reflect, to dream, vision, and create a path for a brilliant future. In today’s episode, the three Directors at Breakthrough Academy come together to give you a peak behind the curtain and tell you about how they go about their Annual Strategic Planning process. 

We have Igor Trninic, our Managing Director, James Dale, our Director of Training and Development, and Danny Kerr, BTA’s Director of Assessment, as we give you a play-by-play of how they plan the future and bring it to reality with extraordinary accuracy. 

On today’s show, we dive into:

• What’s at stake for you personally if you don’t take the time for Strategic Planning?
• Why you SHOULDN’T be planning in a boardroom with whiteboards and laptops - and where to go instead
• How do you know when you’ve got a plan that will work vs a pipe dream on paper?
• The 3 things you should come away with once you’ve completed your Annual Strategic Plan
• The step-by-step process BTA uses when we plan they the next year
• The critical moves that happen immediately after your Annual Strategic Plan that ensure momentum

So let’s dive into Strategic Planning, with Igor, Danny and James.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To apply for a Business Assessment with Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP67

Tradie Web Guys - https://www.tradiewebguys.com.au/BTA

“Create Content” is such an easy thing for some marketing guru to tell you to do. 

But those people are the same A-holes that sit in front of a screen all day and have no realistic clue what goes into running the average contracting company. 

On top of that, why on God’s green earth would you take the time you don’t have to bring in leads when you’re flooded with work already?

I’ll tell you why.

Demand.

Creating a list of 1000’s of people that want to work with you allows you to raise your prices SIGNIFICANTLY.

Demand is the reason some contractors are able to charge 3 to 4 times more than average.

In order to show you how to create that kind of demand (without eating up your entire work day filming selfies) we have plumber turned marketing expert Matt Jones on the show.

Listen to the full episode to learn some stupidly simple things you can do to dial in your content strategy and build your brand presence. 

Episode Highlights:

• What it means for a contractor to have a "Content Strategy" in 2022 and what you can expect for results if you get it right
• An easy way to tell your story in a way that leads to sales (even if you think you’ll be terrible at it)
• How much work it (really) is to produce content as a contractor and the easy incentive to get your team to produce content for the business so you don’t have to
• The communication mediums you should use in 2022 to target an upper-middle-class demographic
• Why it’s a huge advantage to produce content even if you have more than enough work
• The obvious “RED FLAG” mistakes on contractor websites that actively push ideal clients away

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To get Free SOP resource bundle click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP130

Writing Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs for short) is sorta like flossing your teeth.

It's one of those things you know you need to do… but somehow never find the time for.

Five things become damn near impossible for your business without them, though:

1. You can’t deliver a consistent product or service (because everyone does everything their own unique way) 
2. You can’t develop talent (because you have no structure to grade them against)
3. You can’t scale profitably (because nothing is repeatable)
4. You can’t attract or retain A players (because they’re looking for an employer with SOPs to follow)
5. You can’t build a company of value (because written processes are one of the first things a buyer is going to look for)

So why go another day with all your business SOPs inside your head? 

Listen to this episode to learn how Blaise McDonald of MAC Reno and Brett Bernard of ProCor Group tamed the chaos in their business using SOPs.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Grab your free copy of the Four Numbers Exercise to help you 10x your wealth attraction: https://trybta.com/DLEP184 

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP184 

Learn more about Brian here: https://www.thewealthycontractor.com/ 

Running a highly profitable contracting business has two sides of the coin.

You need the profitability skill sets: budgeting, job costing, pricing strategies, accounting best practices, and so on.

We’ve discussed these plenty on the show.

The other thing you need is the “profitability mindset.” 

This has very little to do with spreadsheets and bookkeeping and everything to do with your attitude towards money, your belief and self-worth, and your ability to practice what our guest on the show today calls wealth attraction.

Brian Kaskavalciyan, aka The Wealthy Contractor, is back on the show for the second time to talk about how to clarify your why, get control of your mind and develop the sense of deserving that so many contractors are missing.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To apply for a Breakthrough Academy Business Assessment click: https://trybta.com/PCEP60

Perficut Website: https://perficut.com/

Ballard Inc Landscaping Products: https://www.ballard-inc.com/

If you have ever wondered what it takes to expand into a new market, begin operations in a new city, or even a new state, this episode is a must-listen.  Our guest for this episode is Kory Ballard, founder of Perficut Site Management.  

Kory started as a teenager, borrowing his dad's mower to do his neighbor's lawns and save up for a moped. 

Fast forward a couple of decades, and Perficut would become a massive full-service commercial landscaping company with nearly 200 employees operating in 3 different cities across 2 states.  

Quite recently, Kory sold Perficut to a national site management brand…kind of the dream exit actually.  He now focuses 100% of his time on Ballard-Inc.,  an equipment and accessory manufacturing company for landscapers.  

Kory is a classic entrepreneur: successful enough to retire, but so driven he can’t - at least not yet.

We wanted to have Kory on to share his lived experience. What is it ACTUALLY like to push your brand to its limit and expand into new territories? What is unexpectedly hard about it?  What are the financial implications and risks? How do you choose where to go? How does your role as a leader change?  And What systems make this possible?

Like many things in life, actually doing the thing is many orders of magnitude harder than daydreaming about it.  And that's why this episode is a good one.  Kory gives us the unpolished reality of what it takes to expand geographically.

In this episode we learn:

• How to determine when you've saturated your current geographic market
• What is the best way to pick your next market
• The business systems to you need to have fully functional before you consider opening a new branch
• The financial implications of starting a new branch
• How you as a leader will need to change to lead multiple locations
• The challenges you don't think about when you decide to expand

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP39

A growing company needs people to step up and lead divisions, initiatives and small teams.  

While this may be plainly obvious to you, what is less clear is how to assess whether or not someone has what it takes to step to the plate and be a driving force in your business.

What traits do you interview for before making someone a General Manager, Site Supervisor, or Crew Leader.. or some other leader within?

In this episode Igor and I tackle this question, having completed north of a thousand interviews for a multitude of leadership roles. 

We talk about:

• The three critical traits every leader in your business needs to have
• The specific questions you need to ask during an interview to assess someone’s ability to lead
• How to ask questions the interviewee can’t BS their way through
• What’s at stake if you hire someone without the 3 characteristics
• Examples of people who lack of these traits and how they will show up on the jobsite
• The difference between which traits you can train vs which ones you can’t

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, Click Here

If you’ve ever wondered: 

• How do I set up performance based pay for my Production Managers?
• Is it possible to effectively interview for “coachability”?  (cuz saying “I’m great with feedback” and actually taking it are two different things)
• Or, how do I make my field staff accountable for quality without my direct supervision?

In Today’s episode of Contractor Evolution Igor and I tackle five tricky listener questions head on.  

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP161

Small Average Job-size businesses (or small AJS for short) have a unique set of obstacles to growth that most other contractors never have to confront. If you’re a junk removal business, do landscape maintenance, window cleaning, pressure washing, gutter cleaning, Christmas lights, or are a service plumber or electrician, you’ll know what I’m talking about.

Scaling to a million a year, $500 a time, is no small feat. 

Basic napkin math reveals a lot of jobs for a lot of clients.

Barry Hartman is the co-founder of 505 Junk, a pay-by-weight junk removal business here in Vancouver. Since 2011, he’s worked relentlessly to crack the code on small AJS growth. 

In the last few years, he has. This year, they’ll do 6 million dollars with an AJS of about $866. 

Do the math on that.

If you’re a Small Average Job Size contractor or home service business, there are 4 things you need to master in order to scale.

Listen to this week's episode to learn them all.

To learn more about Barry and 505-Junk, check them out here: https://505junk.com/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP16

How are you managing personalities on your team? Or are you?

We’ve invited Dr. Ken Keis onto the show to discuss his methods for assessing personality, and how you can leverage your team’s innate ability to thrive by leveraging their personality styles in a scientific way.

Dr. Ken Keis is the CEO of the Consulting Resource Group and developed the PSI (Personality Style Indicator) test, which is widely regarded as one of the most accurate personality tests in the world. His research has spanned decades and he regularly consults with companies to enhance the performance of their teams by simply putting the existing employees in the right roles.

Dr. Ken Keis work has significantly impacted a number of the Breakthrough Academy members businesses so it was time that we brought him onto the show to openly share his wisdom with us.

You can find Dr. Ken Keis by contacting the Consulting Resource Group at https://crgleader.com/

If you are are growing, but working like a dog to make it all happen, take our 10 day, Evolved Contractor Challenge to free yourself - http://www.btacademy.com/evolvedcontractorchallenge

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP153

Marcus Sheridan is back! As if writing one of the most celebrated marketing books (They Ask, You Answer) of the last 10 years wasn’t enough, he’s co-authored a new book all about how to CRUSH IT with video content.

It’s called The Visual Sale. Kinda catchy 😉

Two out of every three adults already choose video as their primary information source, and one recent study showed that 96% of consumers look for videos about products and services before buying them.

So the question is… is your business geared for this? Because this is one mega trend you want to be on the right side of.

In today’s episode, you can expect to learn:

• The exact word-for-word Chat GPT prompt to give you your first 50 video ideas.
• The 6 core videos every modern contractor needs to have and why (and how to go make them.)
• And, whether hiring an agency/freelancer or building out the capacity for video in-house is better.

To know more about Marcus visit: https://marcussheridan.com/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To apply for a Breakthrough Academy Business Assessment click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP74

Build A Long Client Waitlist Using These 4 Sales Documents: https://trybta.com/PCDLEP74

When selling to your prospects and customers, do you ever get tired of answering the same exact questions over and over again?  

Are you ever bored by the sound of your own voice, endlessly running through the same talking points, addressing the same concerns, constantly explaining the same process sometime multiple times a day?

What if you could replicate yourself for those conversations? 

You’d both save yourself some time AND you could talk to all the potential clients you’re struggling to get to right now.

Well, guess what. You can. Kind of.

We live in an age where you can create a piece of sales collateral and it will continue to sell long after you’ve created it.

Yet, there’s a lot of testing that goes into WHAT to create.

In this episode, Jamie Overley of Boulder Land Design shares the 4 pieces of sales collateral that she has found are the most effective in getting the sale, and then driving reviews and referrals after the project is complete.

Oh, and she has been booked out over a year for the last 3 years PLUS continued to raise her prices, so something is working.

Learn how this former marketing exec is sailing past the competition with her easy to replicate 4 part process. 

Episode Highlights:

• What consumer habits have evolved into and how to play to the change in behaviour in 2022
• How to make sure that the customer gets the right sales message every time no matter who they talked to
• The red flags that tell you you are doing a poor job communicating your brand
• 4 examples of easy sales collateral that you can create and the details that go into each piece
• Why you should build a 'post project' package and what goes into it to drive referrals and reviews
• Tips for managing a huge backlog of inquires when your sales collateral works too well

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP98

I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but employees tend to be much better at pointing out problems than fixing them.  “Hey Boss, just wanted to let you know that [insert business issue you’re already abundantly aware of here].  We should really do something about that, hey?”

Staff drop problems in your lap as consistently as a golden retriever drops a tennis ball at your feet. 

But what if you could instill a culture of problem-solving within your team?  How much easier would your life be if, instead of you being the single source of critical thinking, your entire team was encouraged and even rewarded for making problems go away on their own?

In today’s episode of Contractor Evolution, I talk about why problem-solving is one of the most critical traits to look for in new hires and even how you can develop it with the team you already have.

Listen to this episode to find out why problem solvers are infinitely more valuable than problem finders.

Highlights:

• Why finding problems is easy
• How to interview to find problem solvers
• How to spot Problem Solvers
• How to instill a culture of problem solving into your current team

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP93

You can find Dr. Ken Keis by contacting the Consulting Resource Group at https://crgleader.com/

Today’s conversation is about Core Values.  

The term “values” comes up a lot these days, but I’m pretty dissatisfied with how surface level the conversations are around it.  

“Hire for values train for skill” 

“Core Values are the foundation of a strong culture” 

“They didn’t align with our values”

You get the gist.  

Now we can all agree values are extremely important and deep, but I always want to get behind the buzzwords and figure out what’s really going on.

In order to find out what really makes a difference we have a friend of the show, Dr.Ken Kies, returning on this episode of Contractor Evolution.  

Dr. Keis holds a PHD in leadership and management and is the president of Consulting Resources Group, a global consultancy focused on team building, leadership, and communications.

In this episode he shares with us:

-Why 80% of the working population is unhappy with their career and the role values play in that

-How to go think about, talk about, and write about your core values so they’re way more than just some 5 dollar words on a poster that no one actually understands 

-And perhaps most importantly, how to assess core values fit in an interview so that you don’t find out the hard way 6 months later that you are indeed not at all aligned

To learn how to define your core values and leverage them for performance (out of both yourself and your team) click on the links below

Highlights

• Why 80% of the working population is unhappy with their career and the role Values play in that
• How to go think about, talk about and write about your core values so they’re way more than just some 5 dollar words on a poster that no one actually understands 
• And perhaps most importantly, how to assess core values fit in an interview so that you don’t find out the hard way 6 months later that you are indeed not at all aligned

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP87

To connect with Buildertrend click here: https://buildertrend.com/

If you listen to Contractor Evolution, there’s a good chance you’re not only an entrepreneur, but you are smart enough to understand that you’ll have big opportunities to cut your costs using software in the next few years.

However, understanding what a software service does vs implementing it are two COMPLETELY different things.

In fact, if you’ve tried getting your team to adopt new tech at some point already, it can easily lead to you wanting to fire everyone, quit the trades, and start a simpler business like building space stations.

All joking aside, it’s not easy to embrace change, especially when it comes to tech.

My guest on the show today is Brett Jones, a Key Account Executive of Data Solutions at BuilderTrend.  

Over the last 3 years, Brett has done over 150 On Site Consultations helping builders, GC, and Remodelers implement BuilderTrend so that it functions at its fullest and delivers the highest possible ROI for the Entrepreneur and their team.

To learn what Brett has observed about the builders that succeed in this area, vs those that don’t, listen to this episode.

Episode Highlights:

• Why so much of the contracting industry hold their cards close and why that isn't working as a competitive advantage anymore
• The Profile of a strong tech implementer vs poor tech implementer (after implementation consulting with 150 Contractors)
• How the contracting industry has changed as a result of tech adoption and the big picture trends that will shape the industry in the next 10 years
• The impact of venture capital in the contracting market and how it’s changing the way contracting companies are being run
• Where Buildertrend is innovating in the contracting space and the big value they will be bringing builders in fintech
• Advice to young entrepreneurs for the next decade - where they should focus their attention for maximum results

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To download your accountability resources and to book a call with Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP162

How does your team function when you’re not watching?

Do they get stuff done on time, as good as if you did it yourself?

Or do they miss deadlines, point fingers and leave clients underwhelmed?

If you’re feeling less like an owner and more like a babysitter, you may have an accountability problem. Your team’s performance is inconsistent, their focus is all over the map, and no one really knows who’s supposed to do what, when.

Back in April, we co-hosted a webinar on staff accountability with the one and only Tommy Mello. His staff accountability secrets were so good, we decided to replay the session on Contractor Evolution. In this episode, he gives away his tried and tested methods of holding people accountable without micromanaging or pointing fingers.

Listen in to learn how you can steal Tommy’s accountability system to create a solid performance culture for your team.

To learn more about Tommy Mello, check out https://homeserviceexpert.com/ 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP09

When Will Brown took over Brown Boys Roofing of Bentonville, Arkansas from his father four years ago, it was micromanaged to within an inch of its life. Will's father could never escape the business...no bathroom break for you!

Fast forward to 2021 and by making one small yet significant change (which he learned from our friend Jocko Willink, thanks Jocko) he has turned his business around. He increased profits from $2 million to $10 million, has a team of high-performing problem solvers, AND he has cut the number of hours he works in half (his wife is a happy camper).

What did Will do to score the ultimate contractor dream of work/life balance? In this episode of Contractor Evolution, Will talks about his journey and proves that getting your life back after starting a business isn't just a pipe dream.

Always read the fineprint: Warning, listening to this episode could result in you running a highly profitable contracting business while you're out having fun on your skidoo or dirt bike.

If you are are growing, but working like a dog to make it all happen, take our 10 day, Evolved Contractor Challenge to free yourself - http://www.btacademy.com/evolvedcontractorchallenge

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP27

Link for Webrunner’s landing page layout: https://trybta.com/PCDLEP27

If you are are growing, but working like a dog to make it all happen, take our 10 day, Evolved Contractor Challenge to free yourself - http://www.btacademy.com/evolvedcontractorchallenge

If you’ve ever wasted money on marketing this episode of Contractor Evolution is for you.

The fact of the matter is that there are a ton of marketing agencies out there that are more than happy to take your money even when they aren’t sure they can get you results.

Want to know how to filter out the great marketers from the shitty ones?

This episode will give you the 6 key questions to ask, as well as what you need to do BEFORE you talk to a marketing agency so you see great ROI when you get the ball rolling.

Episode Highlights:

• What questions should you ask to filter out good marketing agencies from those that are good at BS?
• What are the best marketing strategies for contractors that are working right now?
• What are 2 core elements a great marketing agency can clearly show you a poor agency can’t
• Which marketing strategies are a clear waste of time for contractors?
• How to know when you are ready to hire an outside agency
• 1 increasing marketing trend that contractors need to pay attention to in the next 5 years

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Grab your copy of our IMPLEMENT framework here: https://trybta.com/DLEP189

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP189  

The end of the year is approaching, and that means it’s “hope season” for a lot of contractors.

Your implementation goals are big. You’ve got tech stack upgrades, brand refreshes, and shiny new internal processes on the brain.

But, let’s be real:

If you look back at past years—and all the projects you had planned—how many of them did you actually get across the finish line?

The graveyard of good ideas not implemented for most entrepreneurs is vast.

So how do you break the cycle and actually get sh*t done in 2025?

This episode is a 9-part roadmap that will help you sharpen your implementation skills and turn your great ideas into fully implemented systems.

Episode highlights:
- Learn Benji’s nine part framework for successfully implementing projects—from tech stack upgrades to business systems to SOPs.
- Understand why implementation is so difficult, and how to sharpen your skills as a business owner to get more done in 2025.
- Get fired up and ready to crush your implementation goals next year.

00:00-Intro
02:15-Pick The Right Things To Implement
04:33-Define Your Outcomes
06:34-Don’t Reinvent the Wheel
07:34-Make Foolproof Project Plans
09:04-Delegate, Don’t Dump
12:29-Find Your Milestones and Celebrate Them
13:29-Don't Forget the Change Management Part
15:57-Audit (is what we implemented working?)
17:12-Give People Breaks

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP90

To visit Sales Talent Agency click here: https://www.salestalentagency.com/

If you’re wondering, like I am…

• What effect will inflation and climbing interest rates have on employees and employers alike?  
• How does a recession change the landscape of the labor market?  
• What emerging trends should business owners stay in front of moving into 2023?  
• How do you capitalize on hiring opportunities in a down market?

…Then this episode is for you.

In this episode of Contractor Evolution I’ve brought back Asad Zaman, CEO of Sales Talent Agency and a friend of the show.  For those of you that listened to our Ultimate Hiring Funnel Series, you’ll remember him from episode 3.

Sales Talent Agency is an international recruiting agency, they’ve helped acquire talent for over 1500 companies:  Harley Davidson, SAP, IBM, Salesforce, and Sonos just to name a few.  

I wanted Asad back to talk about the state of the workforce and what we can expect out of the 2023 talent market.  

To learn where big trends are going, what to watch out for, and how to jump on opportunities this year, listen to this episode.

Highlights

• The effects the last 3 years has had on the workforce and recruiting in the trade
• How inflation and a recession will impact the talent market and where to leverage opportunity as an employer
• Why you can't lower the bar for candidates you're hiring, even in a tough labor market
• Why you should never have your top employees asking you for a raise, and if they are, why you’re in trouble
• The reason knowing your data going into a recession is especially important
• The key traits that you should be looking for in your candidates in 2023 and which ones are different from previous years?

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, Click Here

Matt’s Build Show Network: https://buildshownetwork.com/

Risinger Build: https://risingerbuild.com/

The Build Show Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/the-build-show-podcast/id1560010348

My guest on the show today is Matt Risinger.  

Matt is one of the most recognizable thought leaders in the construction space. His Youtube channel, which has over a million subscribers, is dedicated to all things building science, and he’s parlayed that into the creation of an entirely new platform called Build Show Network - Picture Netflix, but all the content is for construction nerds. Pretty awesome! His actual construction company, Risinger Build, is one of the most sought-after in Austin, Texas, where he lives with his family.  

Today’s conversation is about his entrepreneurial journey… Why he chose this industry, how he built his construction empire, and became the household name he is today. He shares some of the life-altering mistakes he made along the way, plus I get his take on the future of residential construction in North America.

I really look up to Matt and deeply admire everything he’s built but, more importantly, the values he embodies. For all his success, he’s one of the most down-to-earth people I’ve ever met. We need guys like Matt, and I consider myself blessed to have gotten to know him a bit over the last year.

Listen to this episode to hear the full Matt Risinger story.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP26

One of our mantras here at Contractor Evolution  - LEADERS ARE READERS!!!  

Lemme unpack that….

As a great leader, you know you don’t know everything.  More importantly, you’re totally okay with that, and you’re actively working to shrink those knowledge gaps and timeframes by tapping into the wisdom and experience of people smarter than you.  

Whatever challenge you're facing right now, someone’s already solved it and captured their learnings for you in a book you can read or listen to.  Thinking that you should have all the answers already is insane.  

So today’s episode is Contractor Evolution’s “Must Read” List

I know you don’t have an abundance of time to sit in a lounge chair, sip chamomile tea and leisurely work through a list of books.  But the fact that your listening to this podcast means you don’t use your busy life as an excuse to not be constantly improving.  So if you can find a spare minute or two, here is what we recommend you dive into.

Now to keep things organized, we’ve structured this list in a particular way

After working with thousands of Contractors, we’ve observed a pretty clear pattern… 

There are 6 key areas in a contracting business that are often under-systemized.  Think of these as 6 areas that are super important but very difficult to master.

1. Budgeting & Financial Tracking
2. Organizational Structure
3. Recruiting and Hiring
4. Training & Onboarding
5. Sales & Marketing
6. Goal Setting & Execution

To help you along your own pursuit of excellence we’ve collected our favourite books in these areas.

Some key highlights from this short episode are:

• 1 (not boring) book on budgeting that has you taking out profit before expenses
• A book that shows you how to structure your team when everything seems chaotic
• Which book to pick up when you want to hire the right people to replace you
• Where you can find information about a top tier interviewing system
• 2 Marketing and sales books that give you gamechangers to implement into your customer journey
• The undisputed most effective book on leadership as voted by Breakthrough Academy members

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP54

To get the Team Event Planning Checklist click here: https://trybta.com/PCDLEP54

The interconnectivity of the individuals on your team is a huge predictor of success.  

When people know and trust each other they’re more likely to collaborate together on important work, they’re more likely to be honest with each other when it counts, and your business will be better for it.  

Your employees need to form deeper relationships than simply “someone I work with” in order maximize productivity and truly love their work; and part of your job as a leader is  to foster this. 

In this episode of Contractor Evolution Igor and I discuss how to breed infectious team culture through better team events.  

We talk about how to plan and execute gatherings and get-togethers that your staff will rave about and thank you for.

By the end of this episode you’ll learn:

• Why quality time off site with your team is so important to the quality of work getting done
• Things you as the leader should consider before planning a team event to get the most out of it
• Dozens of ideas that you can use to create team events that are fun, unique, and have a positive impact on your team, the business and the community
• How often you should be running team events depending on the size of your company
• How much you should budget for team events and what can you expect for ROI
• Some of the positive signs you will notice if you run team events for a year or more that go beyond profit

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To learn more about Breakthrough Academy, click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP181 

To learn more about Duct Tape Marketing, click here: https://ducttapemarketing.com/

If you’ve ever cut your marketing budget when times were tough, this one’s for you.

When you find yourself in the middle of a downturn, leadflow turning to a trickle, customer decision-making slowing to a crawl…something's gotta give. 

And if your marketing budget is just an expense you pay because you think you should, it’s a pretty easy decision. Cut the deadweight.

But according to today’s guest John Jantsch, that might be the wrong approach.

John is the author of Duct Tape Marketing, The Ultimate Marketing Machine, The Self-Reliant Entrepreneur, and more.

And today, we’re talking about how to adapt your marketing strategy for economic headwinds. The market around you may be slowing down, but that doesn’t mean your business—or your marketing—has to.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP25

To watch the full episode and access free resources go to www.contractorevolution.com

If you are are growing, but working like a dog to make it all happen, take our 10 day, Evolved Contractor Challenge to free yourself - http://www.btacademy.com/evolvedcontractorchallenge

Episode #25 of Contractor Evolution is with Kim Larson of All Elements Design. Manage. Build.

Kim is truly one of our highest performing contractors in the Breakthrough Academy Program.  She’s an awarding-winning luxury high-performance home builder in Kelowna, BC, Canada. 

Some people have grit, some have talent.  Kim is one of those rare individuals who has both and she has a story that needs to be heard.

While she enjoys success today (she’s won many awards including Best Design-Build Firm in BC, her waitlist is booked out a couple of years in advance, and she owns a massive portfolio of income-generating real estate), it wasn’t that long ago that she had to decide between feeding herself or putting gas in her car.  

And that’s what I think I love most about her story of perseverance… how close she came to not being the success she is today. And I think that’s the case for a lot of people at the top of their game. Big risk equals big reward  

In Today’s Episode Kim tells us:

• Why it pays to work for free in the right circumstances
• The big picture benefits of never compromising on quality
• The core principles that took Kim from 1 to 10 million a year in annual revenue
• Whether you should you hire for a role before you can afford it?
• How do you maintain quality as you scale?
• 2 key pieces of advice for young trades entrepreneurs

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you'd like to apply for Breakthrough Academy click here: https://trybta.com/PCEP19

Have you ever been frustrated by the fact that your team JUST DOESN’T GET IT?

It’s so clear to you what needs to happen within your organization - what problems need to be solved, what priorities should be front of mind, where the effort of your organization needs to be, but most if not all of this is totally lost on your employees.

Owners frequently overestimate how clearly they are communicating the standards that they have in their mind to the people who need to hear it most.

This is why themes are such a powerful leadership tool for contractors to know about.

Themes are a super process-driven way to make sure your team's action is aligned with that vision that's so crystal clear in your head.

This is why we're really excited to have Ashley Ennis on this episode of Contractor Evolution.

Ashley has previously run a highly successful window cleaning franchise system spanning seven states and provinces with 45 franchisees. Since then Ashley has spent the last four years as a business coach for Breakthrough Academy actively training and coaching 40 contracting home service companies and achieving the controlled growth that they want and they need. 

She uses themes with her Breakthrough Academy members to over-communicate business priorities and make sure that what needs to get done does.

In this episode we dive into a bunch of really cool stuff including:

• How it’s possible to transform your team’s weakest point into its strength
• Why the most effective teams are not the ones that do the most
• The reason it can be dangerous to be the ‘ideas guy’, especially if you are the leader
• How to ‘layer’ themes in the right order so their results compound
• What common mistakes owners often make when they implement their first theme

If you are are growing, but working like a dog to make it all happen, take our 10 day, Evolved Contractor Challenge to free yourself - http://www.btacademy.com/evolvedcontractorchallenge

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.