Do You Train Your Team to Think or Just Work?
Every Monday, we hold a short training session with our team. We train on communication. leadership. & mindset. The reason being most tradespeople aren’t struggling because they can’t do the work. They’re struggling because they were never taught how to: Speak with clarity Handle conflict Lead a crew Represent the business professionally These tend to be the issues I see bottling up, either from our exit interviews or customer feed back or when things are misunderstood. Thats why I'm curious: Do you train soft skills with your crew?
What are the best ways to market a cabinet painting business on a budget?
For years I have relied on mostly flyers and word of mouth for my general interior/exterior paint contracting business, I'm starting another off-shoit company to specialize in cabinet painting, given the more specific nature of my targeting is there more efficient ways to advertise my services and grow my brand while being somewhat cost efficient?Milwaukee vs DeWalt Tools, which one?
We’re Lock Nerds Locksmith, a Buffalo, NY-based company that’s always relied on Milwaukee tools. But we’re curious—what tools do other pros trust? We're looking for honest pros and cons between Milwaukee and DeWalt to see if it's time for us to reconsider our setup.How can I re-build my business from ground zero?
Hi my name is Jeremy Lesser, I am the Business Owner/CEO of a small residential painting and home improvements business. I have been in business since 2022. After about a year or so of being in business, I about called it quits and started doing Maintenance Engineering. Well having my own business doing what I love to do the most which is drywall and painting, has been a dream of mine since I first started doing drywall and painting 15+ years ago. I want my business to succeed. I have a perpetual LLC. for my business, so I would like to build my business back and Lord willing watch it grow this time. I have more patience and knowledge in it. How can I build my business with zero income and zero revenue? I have been applying for grants. Please help! Thank you and God Bless. ~Jeremy Lesser~
Scaling a Commercial Cleaning Business – What’s Working for Landing Larger Contracts?
I run a commercial and post-construction cleaning company operating across NYC, Connecticut, and New Jersey. We focus on long-term facility maintenance rather than one-time jobs, and I’m currently pushing to scale into larger commercial accounts and consistent contracts. I’ve been doing direct outreach, building internal systems, and focusing on service quality and retention. At this stage, I’m looking to refine what’s actually working for others when it comes to landing and maintaining higher-value contracts. For those operating at scale: – What has been most effective in securing larger commercial clients? – Are you seeing better results from direct outreach, partnerships, or platforms? – Any specific strategies that helped you move from smaller jobs to consistent contract work? Appreciate any insight from those who have already made that jump.Upsides and downsides of hiring a summer helper?
I am thinking about hiring someone to help me in the busy season and the idea of a high school kid as a summer job sounds like a promising idea. I wouldn't have to pay them a crazy salary, they are like sponges with information and they are typically more physically full of energy. I wouldn't be able to send them on their own, but they could help me get a few more jobs done in a day. I am wondering if anyone has tried this and what would be the pros and cons of doing it?New, Used, or Lease? And WHEN?
As a small business owner it has been nothing short of challenging to build a business from nothing. I came from nothing and have built this thing from the ground up. I didn't have a lot of money. When I first started I couldn't afford company vehicles. I eventually bought used vehicles in the $20K-$30K range and financed them and that was fine until I unexpectedly slowed down and had to sell off my trucks just to survive. Once I rebuilt from the slow down I decided to buy used vans around $9K to $10K cash. Right now I have 6 vehicles. One of those vehicles needs major work done. And the others are all 100K miles or more and I feel like they are just ticking time bombs. I want the reliability of newer, or leased vehicles but the risk intimidates me after my struggles in 2022. Is there a formula for when you should go from paying cash for used, to financing newer/new, and to finally leasing? Is there a revenue metric, a number of vehicles in your fleet, or some other sign that going one route over the other is more advantageous or less risky? Thanks for taking the time to read this and share feedback!When is it time to hire an accountant?
I am wondering at what point some of you guys have hired an accountant? Did you hire one to grow? To maintain what you have? Or are you simply using one to file taxes at the end of the year? I am thinking about hiring an accountant to manage my finances for me and see where things go, but wondering when is the right time.
