WEBVTT
1
00:00:00.111 --> 00:00:05.936
In this video, I'm talking to over 1000 home service business owners inside of the HomeWorks community.
2
00:00:06.297 --> 00:00:10.761
This is usually just reserved for inside of HomeWorks membership.
3
00:00:11.061 --> 00:00:15.445
However, I want to share with you what we do on a weekly basis inside of the mastermind.
4
00:00:15.725 --> 00:00:20.970
And there's some great questions today about how to hire your team and do training using videos.
5
00:00:21.370 --> 00:00:32.598
We also talk about how to build a culture that is not just based on compliance, but is also built on having goals oriented with your employees and having great one-on-one meetings.
6
00:00:32.918 --> 00:00:34.879
So without any further delay, let's jump into this.
7
00:00:34.960 --> 00:00:39.463
And if you'd like to be part of this mastermind, feel free to join at home.works.
8
00:00:39.983 --> 00:00:42.185
This one's from Katura Roland, Supreme Green.
9
00:00:42.245 --> 00:00:43.987
We are a fertilization and weed control company.
10
00:00:44.007 --> 00:00:48.531
When we first started years ago, the majority of our service was fertilizing with seven spray cycles per year.
11
00:00:48.591 --> 00:00:52.395
More of our business is shifting to just weed control on non-grass properties.
12
00:00:52.575 --> 00:00:54.496
This is causing a huge scheduling imbalance.
13
00:00:55.117 --> 00:00:58.799
the workload doubles or even triples during the odd number spray cycles.
14
00:00:59.059 --> 00:01:09.124
It's almost to the point that we need another employee just for the odd number cycles, but that doesn't seem realistic for everyone to only work six on and six weeks off all year.
15
00:01:09.144 --> 00:01:09.964
What do you suggest?
16
00:01:10.325 --> 00:01:14.507
So first off, I would challenge this assumption because every time I have thought this, I've been wrong.
17
00:01:15.307 --> 00:01:18.248
Um, and so this is a limiting belief that I have had in the past.
18
00:01:18.268 --> 00:01:22.750
And that is, if I have a crazy work schedule, someone, most people don't want to work it.
19
00:01:23.310 --> 00:01:29.892
And I would agree with you that most people don't, but there are a lot of people out there, especially right now with the labor market, the way it is depending on your market.
20
00:01:29.912 --> 00:01:39.176
But like for most of us, if you put up a job ad that says, Hey, you're working two months of the year, you're working four months, you're working one week off, one week off, uh, one week on, one week off.
21
00:01:39.896 --> 00:01:42.559
there are people that it works perfect for their schedule.
22
00:01:42.980 --> 00:01:47.806
Now, most of us as business owners, we like to offer full-time jobs and we think that everyone wants a full-time job.
23
00:01:47.866 --> 00:01:52.772
When the reality is people's life situation, sometimes it would be perfect to have six weeks on six week off.
24
00:01:53.733 --> 00:01:53.953
Um,
25
00:01:54.976 --> 00:01:56.378
Like it'd be perfect for them potentially.
26
00:01:56.718 --> 00:02:07.130
And so I would put, first off, I would, before you change the business model, I would just challenge that assumption and put a job hiring, an ad up that says you're going to wait six weeks on, six weeks off all year round.
27
00:02:08.312 --> 00:02:10.775
And you're going to work crazy amounts of hours during the six weeks on.
28
00:02:12.070 --> 00:02:13.230
And some people are gonna be fine with that.
29
00:02:13.270 --> 00:02:28.733
You might put that person on salary too, and they're okay with that because they are like, hey, I wanna work really hard, and I'm gonna go to a different state where my family's at, and that's where I'm gonna hang out with them, and I'll come back and I'll work here, and I can make more money here, and then go to a lower cost living state and stay back with my family.
30
00:02:29.193 --> 00:02:30.534
That might be something that someone would do.
31
00:02:30.794 --> 00:02:37.395
So I would first challenge the assumption, because I say it mostly not at you, Ketur, but every time I have ever thought,
32
00:02:38.155 --> 00:02:47.084
I need to change my business because the scheduling of the team, every single time I have just posted a job ad that states, here's the parameters of this job.
33
00:02:47.445 --> 00:02:47.985
And it's weird.
34
00:02:48.566 --> 00:02:49.547
There are people that want that.
35
00:02:50.208 --> 00:02:57.475
In fact, you are now competing in a market where no one else is like most other companies are not offering six weeks on six weeks off year round.
36
00:02:58.236 --> 00:03:03.278
They're offering eight months, 40 hours a week for eight months of the year, for example.
37
00:03:03.719 --> 00:03:13.763
So you're actually, even though you're, the amount of people you're going after might be way smaller, the amount of people looking for that type of schedule might be smaller.
38
00:03:13.944 --> 00:03:16.385
The amount of businesses looking for that schedule also lower.
39
00:03:17.045 --> 00:03:18.546
So I would first challenge the assumption.
40
00:03:18.886 --> 00:03:26.452
And secondly, I would look very hard at scheduling to see, can we move these slightly in left and right directions?
41
00:03:26.532 --> 00:03:40.962
And even if we had to give people discounts, or even if we had to sub out certain of these cycles to be able to get certain parts that might not be as integral or important, I don't know what kind of sprays you're putting down.
42
00:03:41.482 --> 00:03:49.325
But like you, you have spraying of certain chemicals, maybe some of those you sub out just so you don't have to increase the amount of capacity of the business to the highest level.
43
00:03:49.605 --> 00:03:57.928
Cause if you could say, Hey, I only need like for three weeks, three times a year for three weeks, I need like tons, like double the capacity.
44
00:03:58.368 --> 00:04:03.269
That's when you don't want to go out and buy trucks, get equipment, hire people for the highest period of the year.
45
00:04:03.649 --> 00:04:06.871
You would rather have it where you sub out those periods.
46
00:04:07.351 --> 00:04:11.032
And I would also say, I think you could schedule it in a way where this is still possible and
47
00:04:11.472 --> 00:04:16.274
By moving people out a week, moving people back a week, and trying to spread this demand out as much as possible.
48
00:04:16.514 --> 00:04:24.998
Or even more importantly, I would move your seven spray cycles to accommodate the four times when you know you're going to be spraying the weed control.
49
00:04:25.278 --> 00:04:26.198
Again, I don't know your market.
50
00:04:26.238 --> 00:04:26.618
I don't know.
51
00:04:26.819 --> 00:04:27.079
I know.
52
00:04:27.519 --> 00:04:38.303
It just – this was always a limiting belief for me around hiring and then also a limiting belief around the fact that I thought all these – like when we did treatments back in the day, I always believe these treatments have to be done this week.
53
00:04:38.663 --> 00:04:39.344
When it's like, look –
54
00:04:40.164 --> 00:04:47.929
If I can take other jobs and reduce budget hours of other services and then move the cycles left and right, i.e.
55
00:04:48.269 --> 00:04:52.711
a week before, a week after, and make sure that during those times I have left budget hours of other work.
56
00:04:52.992 --> 00:04:57.174
So basically what you have here is you have multiple budget hour capacities.
57
00:04:57.694 --> 00:05:00.116
And so it happens that this one's way above budget hour capacity.
58
00:05:00.376 --> 00:05:03.958
And so I would take away from other areas of the business during those weeks.
59
00:05:04.819 --> 00:05:06.760
For example, there's no installs happening that week.
60
00:05:07.280 --> 00:05:13.602
I think some of those things you might have already done, so I would first go to the lowest hanging fruit, which is just change your job ad and you might be surprised.
61
00:05:13.982 --> 00:05:15.622
Will Kelly from Military Lawn Cuts.
62
00:05:16.123 --> 00:05:21.644
Number one, how do you mentally navigate the guilt of stepping away from day-to-day operations to focus on architect mode and personal growth?
63
00:05:22.264 --> 00:05:30.987
I struggle with the first one in, last one out mentality, and I'm looking for the right thought process to handle the concern of what my team might think when I'm not physically present in the office each day.
64
00:05:31.607 --> 00:05:35.090
Yeah, so I abide by the first one, first out mentality when I'm in growth mode.
65
00:05:35.530 --> 00:05:42.035
If I'm in profit mode, and once the location is stable and there's profit sharing, that's when I feel like I can step out.
66
00:05:42.396 --> 00:05:43.336
That's just me personally.
67
00:05:43.477 --> 00:05:44.077
I'm not saying...
68
00:05:44.597 --> 00:05:49.421
I still struggle with this to some degree, but I also know that I work on the weekends, I work at night.
69
00:05:49.741 --> 00:05:50.602
I work all the time.
70
00:05:51.203 --> 00:05:54.826
And when they leave, they're usually turning it off a little bit more.
71
00:05:55.486 --> 00:05:55.986
And so...
72
00:05:56.727 --> 00:06:04.514
That's how I justified it first because I just have to make sense of the fact that I know I'm working way more hours later and there's another shift that happens.
73
00:06:05.095 --> 00:06:07.857
That was how I first did it because I struggle with this too.
74
00:06:08.378 --> 00:06:15.364
And then now it's a matter of creating incentives to where it is in their best interest to make sure that the business is taken care of.
75
00:06:15.864 --> 00:06:18.686
And they start to see the benefit of me stepping away.
76
00:06:18.946 --> 00:06:25.089
The best ideas, like literally last week, a huge promotion and like change in the team structure was when I was away.
77
00:06:25.609 --> 00:06:33.394
And that's when I have the most time to focus on like rebuilding systems, talking with AI, figuring out how things need to be changed.
78
00:06:34.254 --> 00:06:41.158
There's something about flying too that's just like you're locked away in this tube, 30,000 feet above, and you can think about more broad things.
79
00:06:41.799 --> 00:06:51.179
them having a understanding as to why that helps the business, but also having a vested interest with profit sharing or their comp plan being tied to the vested interest of the business is a big one.
80
00:06:53.613 --> 00:06:57.795
Number two, I took your feedback on last week's mastermind and concluded that leadership is our biggest constraint.
81
00:06:57.815 --> 00:07:05.658
We have four new late managers that are in either different roles or have different team members or have team members that report to them now for the first time.
82
00:07:06.098 --> 00:07:08.599
What are some tactical ways to grow and develop my team's leadership?
83
00:07:08.879 --> 00:07:14.482
I brought them to a leadership conference this offseason with Sam, G, and Dan Ralphs a few months back.
84
00:07:15.382 --> 00:07:20.324
I am having each listen to the Audible book, How to Win Friends and Influence People.
85
00:07:20.504 --> 00:07:23.605
What else would give us the best leadership growth results?
86
00:07:24.046 --> 00:07:28.287
I'm a big fan of Jocko's book, Leadership Training and Tactics.
87
00:07:28.567 --> 00:07:32.549
The best leadership book that I've ever read that is super tangible.
88
00:07:32.689 --> 00:07:37.371
I will also say nothing beats alignment of goals when it comes to management by far.
89
00:07:38.071 --> 00:07:43.715
And so if you don't know what each of their goals are and you don't know how them winning in the business aligns with that, that's where I would start.
90
00:07:44.495 --> 00:07:54.502
I'll have a video coming out on this in June about how I do my one-on-ones with managers, how I make sure that we have a goals-oriented structure instead of a compliance-oriented structure.
91
00:07:54.522 --> 00:07:59.025
Because compliance and correction is the fastest way to be able to get done what you want done in the business.
92
00:07:59.286 --> 00:08:03.208
And that's why most of us will operate through checklists, SOPs, and those things are important.
93
00:08:03.529 --> 00:08:05.110
But if you have compliance and correction,
94
00:08:05.770 --> 00:08:11.934
in your culture without having goals being aligned, then you have high churn at the management level.
95
00:08:12.575 --> 00:08:18.499
And so there's a video I have coming out in June when I'm starting to talk more about my business and how I do my stuff.
96
00:08:19.239 --> 00:08:25.204
And this is one of the most important things I think once you have mid-level managers is yes, you need compliance.
97
00:08:25.244 --> 00:08:26.144
Yes, you need correction.
98
00:08:26.164 --> 00:08:31.308
Yes, you need SOPs and standards and checklists and audits and quality control and
99
00:08:31.508 --> 00:08:35.230
But if you just have those things without goal alignment, that's when you have a lot of churn.
100
00:08:35.390 --> 00:08:44.916
It's expressly shown at the leadership level because technicians sometimes will actually thrive or adopt or really enjoy having a structure of compliance because they like structure.
101
00:08:45.176 --> 00:08:49.679
They like, do these things, do this checklist, follow this script, do these things.
102
00:08:50.439 --> 00:08:51.980
It gives safety to them.
103
00:08:52.000 --> 00:08:55.442
As leaders, if they're a talent, they like more autonomy.
104
00:08:55.702 --> 00:08:59.204
And so just telling them what to do and just telling them if you don't do this, you get in trouble.
105
00:08:59.444 --> 00:09:00.385
If you do this, you get rewarded.
106
00:09:00.725 --> 00:09:02.226
Just that alone is enough.
107
00:09:02.506 --> 00:09:06.367
I have found it most beneficial to have long tenured leadership.
108
00:09:06.407 --> 00:09:13.210
And in order to have long tenured leadership, I need to ensure that I know what their goals are and then that the goals of the business align.
109
00:09:13.350 --> 00:09:17.372
And that's usually going to be through compensation, but also could be things like time off.
110
00:09:17.552 --> 00:09:19.693
Like some people, time off is way more important to them.
111
00:09:20.333 --> 00:09:21.773
flexibility, way more important to them.
112
00:09:22.013 --> 00:09:23.894
Have a company truck, way more important to them.
113
00:09:23.954 --> 00:09:28.195
So I need to know what their goals are, and then I just align the goals of the business with theirs.
114
00:09:28.435 --> 00:09:41.558
I've just consistently seen the people that build the biggest businesses have low churn at the leadership level, and they're willing to work with their leaders to make sure that their leaders' goals are aligned with the businesses, and the goals of the business are aligned with that of their leaders.
115
00:09:41.818 --> 00:09:47.139
And I've been very blessed in that category in terms of leadership, a tenor, and not having churn at that level.
116
00:09:47.973 --> 00:09:52.578
All right, so if you're wondering how you can be part of the mastermind, this is for all members of Homeworks.
117
00:09:53.018 --> 00:09:57.543
So every single week or two, we will hop on a call, answer all questions from the members.
118
00:09:58.223 --> 00:10:06.392
And the reason we do this is because at Homeworks, we actually guarantee you'll grow your business by at least 10% in revenue or profit in the first 12 months.
119
00:10:06.732 --> 00:10:14.116
And on average, that number is actually 38, over 38% of the amount that people grow their business in the first 12 months of joining the software.
120
00:10:14.516 --> 00:10:28.003
But the reason we do the mastermind and we had the Facebook group and we do our onboarding sequence the way we do, and I'm on those calls, is because what we found is you can get all the features in the world, but if you don't use it, it's not going to impact the business.
121
00:10:28.323 --> 00:10:37.866
And so when we made the guarantee around growing your business by at least 10% in revenue or profit, we realized we'd have to give more coaching and training of using the tools.
122
00:10:37.906 --> 00:10:46.609
But also when you grow really quickly, there's other constraints around leadership and labor and hiring and creating systems and operations.
123
00:10:46.690 --> 00:10:53.452
And so that's really what we try to cover on the mastermind and inside the group to be able to make sure that as someone grows, they don't actually grow.
124
00:10:53.852 --> 00:11:03.277
completely reduce the business or go bankrupt just because a fast growing business, even if it's profitable, can go bankrupt if things like accounts receivable aren't held in check.
125
00:11:03.737 --> 00:11:05.318
Training your team isn't done right.
126
00:11:05.338 --> 00:11:07.138
You're not able to hire great employees.
127
00:11:07.479 --> 00:11:11.300
And so these are a lot of things that we cover inside the HomeWorks Member Mastermind.
128
00:11:11.561 --> 00:11:14.262
So if you want to join, that's how you'll get access to these calls.
129
00:11:15.456 --> 00:11:19.959
Jeremy from Klein Lawn Care and Snowplan, what are some good ways to show employees that you appreciate them and care?
130
00:11:20.159 --> 00:11:24.162
Should you be doing this differently with people that have been with you for long term versus new hires?
131
00:11:24.602 --> 00:11:25.243
Great question.
132
00:11:25.343 --> 00:11:31.427
I think for newer hires, one of the ways to show that you appreciate them and care, yes, there's the little things, and those things are important.
133
00:11:31.827 --> 00:11:43.098
If you're more of a gift-giving type of person and your love language is gift-giving, you're usually the type of person that is like, got to go buy them ice creams and pizzas and do them at breakfast in the morning.
134
00:11:43.118 --> 00:11:44.099
And those things are good.
135
00:11:44.179 --> 00:11:44.699
Don't get me wrong.
136
00:11:44.739 --> 00:11:45.740
They are 100% good.
137
00:11:45.960 --> 00:11:47.622
For some people, that just seems so weird to them.
138
00:11:47.642 --> 00:11:48.943
It's like, just show up and do your job.
139
00:11:49.384 --> 00:11:52.466
Everyone is different in terms of how you give thanks.
140
00:11:53.327 --> 00:11:57.989
And show appreciation is usually the way you like to be shown appreciation and given thanks.
141
00:11:58.469 --> 00:12:04.012
So just be careful with that because a lot of us are money motivated as entrepreneurs or you're trying to get a bad situation.
142
00:12:04.032 --> 00:12:06.093
So you start a business because of that.
143
00:12:06.193 --> 00:12:10.735
The way that you show thanks to people is like, all right, I got to give him more money or I've got to give him a bonus.
144
00:12:11.415 --> 00:12:13.478
Sometimes that's not actually their motivation.
145
00:12:13.538 --> 00:12:15.681
And so understanding what their motivation is, is really important.
146
00:12:15.842 --> 00:12:25.496
In my opinion, if you have showed them the right level of care and appreciation, I will also say a personalized appreciation and care is always more impactful
147
00:12:26.357 --> 00:12:28.999
than broad strokes of appreciation.
148
00:12:29.159 --> 00:12:34.764
Giving money really fast is probably the most expensive way to be able to show appreciation.
149
00:12:35.184 --> 00:12:40.108
For example, if you should raise someone's pay by $2 an hour and they're working full-time, that's $4,000 a year.
150
00:12:40.688 --> 00:12:46.113
Now, this came really of reality to me at my shop years ago, my first location,
151
00:12:47.414 --> 00:12:59.501
I remember there was a couple employees murmuring about something, and the team members kind of stood up, and they were like, hey, we know Mike cares because last Thanksgiving and every Thanksgiving, he buys us turkey, ham, pie, and apple cider.
152
00:12:59.822 --> 00:13:02.243
And in my mind, I was like – I'm always so –
153
00:13:05.969 --> 00:13:15.040
worried and anxious about trying to like get higher hourly weights and like P4P and bonus and profit sharing and trying to give them a couple of dollars more per hour on base pay.
154
00:13:15.240 --> 00:13:16.402
That's thousands of dollars.
155
00:13:16.442 --> 00:13:18.805
And here's something that they were talking about that probably cost me 120 to $150 per employee.
156
00:13:18.825 --> 00:13:18.965
And so,
157
00:13:21.508 --> 00:13:28.030
Sometimes just taking dollars and cents that you would otherwise deploy towards base pay or something and be like, okay, should we do dental?
158
00:13:28.270 --> 00:13:29.331
It's not going to cost you a lot.
159
00:13:29.731 --> 00:13:31.072
Insurance, health insurance.
160
00:13:31.452 --> 00:13:32.412
Okay, I can't afford that yet.
161
00:13:32.452 --> 00:13:36.874
Okay, do a health stipend where it's like, hey, I'll cover your gym membership for up to 80 bucks a month.
162
00:13:37.114 --> 00:13:39.335
You just got to submit at the end of the quarter and we'll give you a refund.
163
00:13:39.675 --> 00:13:45.697
These are little things that like help you stand out and they'll make a bigger difference than extra $80 per month on your paycheck and guarantee you that.
164
00:13:46.337 --> 00:13:51.642
Then the next level is when you give them a gift, it's personalized because you know what their goals are.
165
00:13:51.662 --> 00:13:52.702
That's like the ultimate.
166
00:13:53.263 --> 00:13:54.984
It's very difficult to do as you scale.
167
00:13:55.064 --> 00:14:06.414
But if you have 5, 10, 15 people, knowing what their goals are and then directly trying to give appreciation or care to them individually based upon the things that you know they like or the things they're going through is probably the highest impact.
168
00:14:06.934 --> 00:14:09.537
And then random acts of generosity have seemed to be working.
169
00:14:10.798 --> 00:14:13.281
to show that you care so much is really valuable.
170
00:14:13.782 --> 00:14:23.333
Most recently for me, it's like handwritten notes, especially when you're at a certain size where you don't know the team members' names for usually several months until I'm working with you.
171
00:14:23.894 --> 00:14:26.217
That was a huge thing for me at first because I wasn't used to that.
172
00:14:27.298 --> 00:14:28.619
I felt disconnected and I'm like,
173
00:14:29.160 --> 00:14:32.923
I want to show them that I care, but then I also can't be doing one-on-ones with them all.
174
00:14:32.943 --> 00:14:36.945
And I can't be doing their training when there's hundreds of people, you know, over a hundred, I should say.
175
00:14:37.165 --> 00:14:44.270
It was a real, not a struggle, but like a learning curve for me was like, I've got to show my appreciation outside of just one-on-one or direct contact.
176
00:14:44.590 --> 00:14:50.654
And that literally might just be writing a note to them, putting it on their desk and showing that I saw something they did that was amazing.
177
00:14:50.994 --> 00:14:53.256
And that could actually be the most impactful thing.
178
00:14:53.496 --> 00:15:04.563
Because the same way that I feel kind of disconnected or I feel bad that I can't have that same personal connection I did in the past, they also, the level of impact of that note is probably higher because...
179
00:15:05.283 --> 00:15:06.404
They have heard about me.
180
00:15:06.424 --> 00:15:07.545
They've seen videos of me.
181
00:15:07.805 --> 00:15:12.190
They have heard their managers talk about me, but they never have got that connection with me.
182
00:15:12.210 --> 00:15:17.335
And so for me to take that time and show that they are a person, they are not just a number, that means a lot.
183
00:15:17.735 --> 00:15:22.479
And then one thing I've leaned into a lot too recently is doing things for them that they would never do for themselves.
184
00:15:22.760 --> 00:15:23.060
Yeah.
185
00:15:23.180 --> 00:15:26.821
And so this doesn't have to be elaborate, it doesn't have to be $10,000 and crazy.
186
00:15:27.061 --> 00:15:28.942
But for example, I'll just give this one everyone here.
187
00:15:29.142 --> 00:15:37.644
I would recommend, or like what I have done is recent, is it costs $250 for a full detail interior of someone's car.
188
00:15:38.004 --> 00:15:44.686
And they will come, like a mobile detailing company will come, they'll do like the shampooing, everything just like incredible.
189
00:15:45.186 --> 00:15:48.767
Most people don't do that for themselves because it's a luxury.
190
00:15:49.347 --> 00:15:52.788
But it's a $250 luxury that literally you blow their mind.
191
00:15:53.268 --> 00:15:57.690
And so giving those out, I give those now with my thank you cards.
192
00:15:58.370 --> 00:16:01.411
And so when there's something specific and I throw that in there, that's $250.
193
00:16:01.431 --> 00:16:06.912
It'll get them like a full out, completely well done interior cleaning of their heart.
194
00:16:06.952 --> 00:16:08.673
And the people will show up at the office and do it.
195
00:16:09.333 --> 00:16:10.894
And so I would recommend that.
196
00:16:11.194 --> 00:16:14.415
Think things like that that show that you're not just like, here's 250 bucks.
197
00:16:14.896 --> 00:16:16.056
Yes, that's nice.
198
00:16:16.276 --> 00:16:26.581
People will thank you, but they will absolutely remember the one time in their entire life they ever got a luxury thing like that, which is a full out mobile detailing at the office from you.
199
00:16:26.961 --> 00:16:30.743
How does one gain the discernment to realize they may be stepping over dollars to pick up pennies?
200
00:16:31.423 --> 00:16:34.405
Mostly because every single aspect of the business hurts as you grow.
201
00:16:35.325 --> 00:16:40.667
So if we look at liquidity, leads, labor and leadership, all four parts get strained when you have business growth.
202
00:16:41.187 --> 00:16:45.709
But the one that has the most strain is the constraint and all your time and attention should be focused on that.
203
00:16:46.169 --> 00:16:52.912
Any time spent on other things is considered firefighting and you feel good and productive jumping from, okay, I got to do leads.
204
00:16:52.952 --> 00:16:55.193
Okay, now I got to get some leaders.
205
00:16:55.553 --> 00:16:56.753
Now I got to raise price and do liquidity.
206
00:16:56.773 --> 00:17:00.515
And that makes you feel productive, but it's not necessarily the thing that makes the business grow faster.
207
00:17:01.035 --> 00:17:07.801
And so I would say you are tripping over dollars to go after pennies when you're bouncing from thing to thing, mostly for optics sake.
208
00:17:08.321 --> 00:17:13.466
Instead of being like, I know that this one thing, if I just solved it, there will be other things burn.
209
00:17:14.407 --> 00:17:17.770
I will be missing pennies, but I'm focusing on the dollar.
210
00:17:18.270 --> 00:17:25.516
And so everyone says in theory, or it is nice to say, I want to focus on the most important constraint or the biggest domino.
211
00:17:26.417 --> 00:17:32.842
And the reason we don't do it is because that means you can't go firefighting in all the other three categories of business.
212
00:17:33.082 --> 00:17:34.643
So liquidity, leads, labor and leadership.
213
00:17:35.144 --> 00:17:37.465
And I've just recently shifted to one.
214
00:17:37.625 --> 00:17:43.349
I have a video coming out this June, like for the first time, like six years, five, six years that I've shifted to one of those four L's.
215
00:17:43.590 --> 00:17:45.031
And that means other parts might burn.
216
00:17:45.471 --> 00:17:48.193
But I've been focusing on other three parts for the past five to six years.
217
00:17:48.754 --> 00:17:59.142
And so now it's time to focus on this other one, which means six months of probably letting some other things burn that are important, that are really like pressing and whatever, but it's like, this is what I have to focus on.
218
00:17:59.803 --> 00:18:10.772
And I say I think that if you are constantly feeling good by chasing fires in all four of those L's, you likely have not figured out what the constraint is, i.e.
219
00:18:10.832 --> 00:18:13.775
what is the dollar bill that you are stepping over to save pennies.
220
00:18:14.435 --> 00:18:20.159
We are looking at implementing a video training course for new team members that get hired for basic skills, mowing, landscaping, and doing weed control.
221
00:18:20.219 --> 00:18:26.424
We are also looking at implementing this for our orientation process so our regional manager gets their time back, which typically takes about three hours.
222
00:18:26.484 --> 00:18:32.549
And we want to do it in video form, ideally short form, but the hands-on training a little bit longer for orientation.
223
00:18:32.589 --> 00:18:33.789
We would rotate the speakers.
224
00:18:34.843 --> 00:18:38.867
and also ensure they're paying attention by cutting it up into smaller sections.
225
00:18:38.927 --> 00:18:44.393
We want to do a quiz at the end of each section to make sure they have to pass in order to move forward to get hired for their position.
226
00:18:44.794 --> 00:18:50.540
Can you maybe explain why this won't work, or do you think this is a great idea, or am I just wasting my time hiring a videographer?
227
00:18:51.000 --> 00:18:55.204
We just want to make sure that our training is top tier, dialed in, so we're duplicating the systems that we want.
228
00:18:55.785 --> 00:18:58.946
So I will say this, if you use three hours, you'll probably lose most technicians.
229
00:18:59.406 --> 00:19:03.008
I think you could probably get most of the benefit you're looking for in an hour or less.
230
00:19:03.528 --> 00:19:08.130
I don't think you need a videographer a phone with a lapel microphone.
231
00:19:08.410 --> 00:19:15.773
Like spend $100, $50, get a really nice lapel mic that connects to the phone wirelessly or even connected solid.
232
00:19:15.813 --> 00:19:21.035
For example, if you just do a voice note, plug it into your phone and run it up your shirt and have a clip on lapel.
233
00:19:21.535 --> 00:19:27.698
and then just have the video from your phone and sync those two bad boys, you're going to be like 95% of the way there.
234
00:19:28.198 --> 00:19:29.559
Your phone works just fine.
235
00:19:30.139 --> 00:19:32.620
Especially because I think you'll change these videos within three months.
236
00:19:32.920 --> 00:19:35.601
Once we did all our videos and it's like, okay, here's the ones that didn't work.
237
00:19:35.621 --> 00:19:38.022
Now we've changed our type of mower, different type of truck.
238
00:19:38.042 --> 00:19:38.242
Okay.
239
00:19:38.262 --> 00:19:39.243
Now we've changed our process.
240
00:19:39.583 --> 00:19:40.423
Oh, we wouldn't need to change this.
241
00:19:40.523 --> 00:19:43.665
It's like you, you vent, you have to have an iterative cycle when it comes to videos.
242
00:19:43.965 --> 00:19:46.086
Everyone thinks like, I'm going to make this video training and it's done.
243
00:19:46.246 --> 00:19:46.546
No, like,
244
00:19:46.846 --> 00:20:04.274
literally the next week you'll want to change a part of it or you'll add a system or you'll change something or add some equipment add a new service you'll change the way you're doing your uniforms you'll change the way that you're doing the tire pressure like something will change and so the i agree with cutting in small sections i would also say three hours you are going to
245
00:20:05.534 --> 00:20:08.056
suck the energy out of your team for technicians.
246
00:20:08.116 --> 00:20:10.997
If you're talking about technicians, it's going to suck their energy out.
247
00:20:12.038 --> 00:20:18.102
If you do it more of a group environment, mix in hands-on training, you will likely be able to keep them engaged.
248
00:20:18.582 --> 00:20:26.287
But most people that are getting hired for outdoor activity are not the same person that sits behind a computer for three hours taking quizzes and watching videos.
249
00:20:26.507 --> 00:20:31.250
I would strongly recommend any time I hear I want to make...
250
00:20:32.130 --> 00:20:34.992
I want to save my manager time when it comes to hiring.
251
00:20:35.392 --> 00:20:38.354
I almost always have seen that end up being a very rough road.
252
00:20:39.074 --> 00:20:45.618
What I like to think of it is I'm trying to systematize the training, but I need to meet the trainee where they want to be trained.
253
00:20:46.058 --> 00:20:50.781
And for most technicians, if you want them to actually absorb the information, they've got to go out and do it.
254
00:20:51.162 --> 00:20:56.505
I can watch all the videos in the world about mowing grass, but until I get in the mower and I feel the way things are operating, it's tough.
255
00:20:56.525 --> 00:20:56.965
It's tough.
256
00:20:57.045 --> 00:21:04.287
That being said, there's a lot of knowledge that you could probably get in an hour or less, do the quizzes, do everything you've said, and get most of the benefit.
257
00:21:04.687 --> 00:21:11.148
The three hours starts to get where you're going to lose them, but also you're starting to likely train things that are not just like do's and don'ts.
258
00:21:11.228 --> 00:21:15.369
It's more a matter of like feel, and those are usually things taught out in the field.
259
00:21:15.689 --> 00:21:24.852
And that's when I would much more rather have a trainer and trainee relationship, checklists of what they've got to go through, signed off on, bonuses and compensation based upon passing those levels,
260
00:21:27.232 --> 00:21:33.699
There's so much churn in the first three to seven days of onboarding, like just a good team member, whether or not they work out or not.
261
00:21:34.220 --> 00:21:39.486
And one of the best ways to lose a top performer is when they have five job offers, they came and gave you a tryout.
262
00:21:39.766 --> 00:21:41.948
And the first thing you had them do is sit down at a computer.
263
00:21:41.988 --> 00:21:43.110
They dreaded their entire job.
264
00:21:43.990 --> 00:21:46.933
educational career or they dropped out of school because they hated it so much.
265
00:21:47.153 --> 00:21:48.013
They just wanted to be outside.
266
00:21:48.033 --> 00:21:49.114
They wouldn't go out and do work.
267
00:21:49.474 --> 00:21:50.475
So just be careful of that.
268
00:21:50.495 --> 00:21:51.516
I'm not saying it's a bad idea.
269
00:21:51.616 --> 00:21:53.377
I would just shorten it down as much as possible.
270
00:21:53.998 --> 00:21:58.541
And everything to do with how to do the work, I would try to do out in the field.
271
00:21:58.841 --> 00:22:07.047
Everything with safety, protocol, onboarding, payroll, software, equipment, those things are usually can be done in a video format.
272
00:22:07.688 --> 00:22:07.828
Um,
273
00:22:08.328 --> 00:22:10.529
Just be careful with trying to optimize it.
274
00:22:10.709 --> 00:22:15.511
I've just seen more and more of the way more and more I try to compress training, the worse it gets.
275
00:22:15.831 --> 00:22:23.374
The more I try to systematize the training and do it in a way that meets the actual demands of the job, the better.
276
00:22:23.854 --> 00:22:27.856
So completely different story when it comes to admin, for example, because they're sitting on a computer all day long.
277
00:22:28.994 --> 00:22:30.195
Mike DeLugas from Attaboy.
278
00:22:30.996 --> 00:22:33.378
Hey, I know you do not recommend syncing QBO with a CRM.
279
00:22:33.739 --> 00:22:36.642
That being said, how do you run on an accrual basis?
280
00:22:36.702 --> 00:22:40.605
My QBO still syncs with the bank account, so it seems like everything will be done on cash accounting.
281
00:22:40.906 --> 00:22:44.009
Am I wrong about this, or is there workarounds that don't require tons of journal entries?
282
00:22:44.229 --> 00:22:44.429
Yes.
283
00:22:44.549 --> 00:22:49.091
If you are doing your QuickBooks and single-to-bank account, you're doing cash accounting.
284
00:22:49.251 --> 00:22:56.055
For the vast majority of home services and businesses under $5 million, $10 million, I would recommend doing that because it's the simplest.
285
00:22:56.555 --> 00:23:03.558
But if for some reason you want to do accrual accounting, then I would just run the reports of revenue earned inside of HomeWorks.
286
00:23:03.938 --> 00:23:07.360
And that would be like your revenue because your expenses are coming out when they come out.
287
00:23:07.520 --> 00:23:15.082
That being said, things like insurance or software, things that you might pay in advance, especially towards the end of the year, you got to now account for if you're doing accrual accounting.
288
00:23:15.122 --> 00:23:24.904
If you pay for your insurance on an annual basis, you don't get to write that off as an expense in December, for example, depending on how rigid you're being with accrual.
289
00:23:25.304 --> 00:23:26.925
So if you're actually doing accrual.
290
00:23:27.705 --> 00:23:31.546
You would take the revenue side from HomeWorks and that report of earned revenue.
291
00:23:31.626 --> 00:23:43.209
And then you would look at your QuickBooks and have to determine likely doing journal entries also already to be able to figure out things like insurance, payments, any sort of even like paid subscription annually.
292
00:23:43.609 --> 00:23:46.630
Anything like that would have to then also be journal entried.
293
00:23:47.250 --> 00:23:56.118
So for most small businesses, I would recommend if you're an S Corp, an LLC, you typically just cash accounting is usually the easiest unless you have huge projects.
294
00:23:56.678 --> 00:24:03.264
And for example, you do not want to take $100,000 that someone gave you as a deposit.
295
00:24:03.924 --> 00:24:08.308
in December because the work hasn't been started and you don't want to pay taxes on $100,000.
296
00:24:08.448 --> 00:24:10.710
But usually it balances out in the long run.
297
00:24:10.990 --> 00:24:24.601
But once you get like a C-Corp, once you start having huge amounts of inventory, once you start having a ton of payments on trucks and equipment, I'm talking like hundreds of thousands of dollars, then potentially your accountant might push you in the direction of accrual.
298
00:24:26.070 --> 00:24:27.290
Just do whatever your accountant says.
299
00:24:28.051 --> 00:24:30.011
Either way, though, you're going to do some journal entries.
300
00:24:30.452 --> 00:24:37.714
Either trying to journal entry out revenue or you're going to journal entry out expenses if you're doing accrual accounting.
301
00:24:38.054 --> 00:24:38.975
Blackbeard Lawn Care.
302
00:24:39.435 --> 00:24:40.335
Last question.
303
00:24:40.495 --> 00:24:47.358
In your $220K lawn care business breakdown, you mentioned that you never want the worst month to be less than 50% of the best month.
304
00:24:47.838 --> 00:25:04.228
how should northern companies that pre-bill snow removal handle that from a reporting standpoint to eat should we be normalizing revenue monthly for internal analysis and even after doing that we still see winter months fall below fifty percent in our market christmas services christmas nights have been sold during
305
00:25:04.608 --> 00:25:11.454
peak fall cleanup season or risk cancellation from early snow, which creates a direct labor conflict with higher demand core services.
306
00:25:11.975 --> 00:25:19.922
At that time, do you still view that as a structural weakness that needs to be solved with additional services, or is the 50% benchmark not realistic for snow-driven businesses?
307
00:25:20.983 --> 00:25:43.980
okay so i talk about this in the workshop if you go to mikeandys.com workshop it's free when it comes to the 50 percent like that is a a benchmark i've created to as as to which businesses i have consistently be profitable and not profitable home services the ones that sell and actually are able to exit versus the ones that can't and anytime you try to sell anytime you try to
308
00:25:45.901 --> 00:26:01.790
Anytime when for a quarter you lose money, so like usually it's Q1 for most people, they lose money, or any month of the year where it drops below 50% of revenue, that being said, there's so many things you can do besides just adding more services.
309
00:26:02.130 --> 00:26:08.353
Just adding other services could include, like that's Q3, which is adjacent services like Snow.
310
00:26:08.793 --> 00:26:09.714
Yes, you can do that.
311
00:26:10.054 --> 00:26:11.795
You could also create a whole new brand.
312
00:26:11.935 --> 00:26:12.215
That's Q5.
313
00:26:13.536 --> 00:26:17.840
inside the workshop, which is, like you mentioned, adding Christmas lights.
314
00:26:18.820 --> 00:26:24.425
The question becomes, well, if I'm already busy during fall cleanup, why would I even add Christmas lights?
315
00:26:24.545 --> 00:26:25.846
Then maybe that's not a good option for you.
316
00:26:26.046 --> 00:26:33.052
But there's other things you can do, whether it be winter services, whether it be more and better, which is, okay, can you sell anything else in January, February, March?
317
00:26:33.352 --> 00:26:34.233
What could that be?
318
00:26:34.593 --> 00:26:43.741
Could you pull spring rush demand forward for things like cleanups and offer big discounts to be able to get customers on in January, February, March instead of April, May, and June?
319
00:26:43.941 --> 00:26:45.282
Like, no, I'm in a snow environment.
320
00:26:45.563 --> 00:26:46.063
So then it's okay.
321
00:26:46.083 --> 00:26:52.809
Well, can I include inside of my winter services, can I include things like ice melt, shoveling the walkways, and –
322
00:26:53.850 --> 00:27:00.632
the stairs and not do the plowing, for example, or maybe I do plowing as that's adjacent services here, number three.
323
00:27:00.972 --> 00:27:02.813
So I would look through the workshop.
324
00:27:02.933 --> 00:27:05.714
It'll give you five solid ways to fix the off season.
325
00:27:06.334 --> 00:27:17.858
Um, but any home service business that cure, like that is, if you fix that, so many things, good things happen because when you, when you know that every single quarter you make money, you don't have to keep so much cash in the bank during the off season.
326
00:27:18.338 --> 00:27:20.079
And that allows you to have a higher distributions.
327
00:27:20.519 --> 00:27:23.340
It allows you to be able to keep less working capital on hand.
328
00:27:23.560 --> 00:27:26.322
It allows you to have more consistent profit sharing.
329
00:27:26.603 --> 00:27:32.027
So if you hand it off to a GM, if you hand it off to managers, if you give profit sharing your team, it's more consistent.
330
00:27:32.087 --> 00:27:40.395
It's much easier to run a business when you don't have months where you lose money and quarters where you lose money and months where revenue drops by 70, 80, 90%.
331
00:27:42.096 --> 00:27:50.427
And so you have seen, yes, in that video last week, I talked about a business that's doing $220,000 and how they can fix it.
332
00:27:50.867 --> 00:27:56.935
You also, if you watch the Home Service Millionaire channel, you saw me talk to Stefano Narducci doing $5 million in revenue.
333
00:27:57.556 --> 00:27:58.457
And same exact thing.
334
00:27:58.998 --> 00:28:01.120
We got to fix – for him, it's the opposite.
335
00:28:01.140 --> 00:28:04.164
He does tons of snow, and then revenue drops to 80% to 90%.
336
00:28:04.204 --> 00:28:04.905
We've got to fix that.
337
00:28:05.005 --> 00:28:06.306
It doesn't matter what size of business.
338
00:28:06.727 --> 00:28:07.788
It doesn't matter what scale.
339
00:28:08.068 --> 00:28:15.857
If you're going to have quarters where you lose money or you have months where revenue drops by more than 50%, it's very hard to run that business.
340
00:28:15.877 --> 00:28:16.458
Yeah.
341
00:28:16.578 --> 00:28:22.002
And it is a solvable problem that will usually take three to four years to solve because you have to figure out your offer.
342
00:28:22.362 --> 00:28:23.443
When do I pitch it?
343
00:28:23.703 --> 00:28:24.324
What time of year?
344
00:28:24.664 --> 00:28:27.186
What offer do I need to give customers to be able to pull demand forward?
345
00:28:27.386 --> 00:28:32.610
What offer do I need to give them to be able to have a continuity throughout the rest of the offseason?
346
00:28:32.890 --> 00:28:34.251
Winter services is what we call it.
347
00:28:34.731 --> 00:28:36.053
So check out the workshop.
348
00:28:36.193 --> 00:28:36.993
It should be beneficial.
349
00:28:37.013 --> 00:28:41.278
But regardless of the size of business, this is the Achilles heel of every home service business.
350
00:28:41.298 --> 00:28:46.403
That's why the off-season, the book I made, the subtitle is Why Home Services Are a Terrible Business.
351
00:28:46.503 --> 00:28:47.564
It is because of that.
352
00:28:47.784 --> 00:28:48.805
It is the Achilles heel.
353
00:28:49.105 --> 00:28:49.326
All right.
354
00:28:49.366 --> 00:28:49.726
Love you all.
355
00:28:49.866 --> 00:28:50.947
Hope you have a fantastic week.
356
00:28:51.228 --> 00:28:53.169
Look forward to some cool stuff we have coming out in May.
357
00:28:53.290 --> 00:28:55.332
And we will see you on the next Mastermind.
1
00:00:00.111 --> 00:00:05.936
In this video, I'm talking to over 1000 home service business owners inside of the HomeWorks community.
2
00:00:06.297 --> 00:00:10.761
This is usually just reserved for inside of HomeWorks membership.
3
00:00:11.061 --> 00:00:15.445
However, I want to share with you what we do on a weekly basis inside of the mastermind.
4
00:00:15.725 --> 00:00:20.970
And there's some great questions today about how to hire your team and do training using videos.
5
00:00:21.370 --> 00:00:32.598
We also talk about how to build a culture that is not just based on compliance, but is also built on having goals oriented with your employees and having great one-on-one meetings.
6
00:00:32.918 --> 00:00:34.879
So without any further delay, let's jump into this.
7
00:00:34.960 --> 00:00:39.463
And if you'd like to be part of this mastermind, feel free to join at home.works.
8
00:00:39.983 --> 00:00:42.185
This one's from Katura Roland, Supreme Green.
9
00:00:42.245 --> 00:00:43.987
We are a fertilization and weed control company.
10
00:00:44.007 --> 00:00:48.531
When we first started years ago, the majority of our service was fertilizing with seven spray cycles per year.
11
00:00:48.591 --> 00:00:52.395
More of our business is shifting to just weed control on non-grass properties.
12
00:00:52.575 --> 00:00:54.496
This is causing a huge scheduling imbalance.
13
00:00:55.117 --> 00:00:58.799
the workload doubles or even triples during the odd number spray cycles.
14
00:00:59.059 --> 00:01:09.124
It's almost to the point that we need another employee just for the odd number cycles, but that doesn't seem realistic for everyone to only work six on and six weeks off all year.
15
00:01:09.144 --> 00:01:09.964
What do you suggest?
16
00:01:10.325 --> 00:01:14.507
So first off, I would challenge this assumption because every time I have thought this, I've been wrong.
17
00:01:15.307 --> 00:01:18.248
Um, and so this is a limiting belief that I have had in the past.
18
00:01:18.268 --> 00:01:22.750
And that is, if I have a crazy work schedule, someone, most people don't want to work it.
19
00:01:23.310 --> 00:01:29.892
And I would agree with you that most people don't, but there are a lot of people out there, especially right now with the labor market, the way it is depending on your market.
20
00:01:29.912 --> 00:01:39.176
But like for most of us, if you put up a job ad that says, Hey, you're working two months of the year, you're working four months, you're working one week off, one week off, uh, one week on, one week off.
21
00:01:39.896 --> 00:01:42.559
there are people that it works perfect for their schedule.
22
00:01:42.980 --> 00:01:47.806
Now, most of us as business owners, we like to offer full-time jobs and we think that everyone wants a full-time job.
23
00:01:47.866 --> 00:01:52.772
When the reality is people's life situation, sometimes it would be perfect to have six weeks on six week off.
24
00:01:53.733 --> 00:01:53.953
Um,
25
00:01:54.976 --> 00:01:56.378
Like it'd be perfect for them potentially.
26
00:01:56.718 --> 00:02:07.130
And so I would put, first off, I would, before you change the business model, I would just challenge that assumption and put a job hiring, an ad up that says you're going to wait six weeks on, six weeks off all year round.
27
00:02:08.312 --> 00:02:10.775
And you're going to work crazy amounts of hours during the six weeks on.
28
00:02:12.070 --> 00:02:13.230
And some people are gonna be fine with that.
29
00:02:13.270 --> 00:02:28.733
You might put that person on salary too, and they're okay with that because they are like, hey, I wanna work really hard, and I'm gonna go to a different state where my family's at, and that's where I'm gonna hang out with them, and I'll come back and I'll work here, and I can make more money here, and then go to a lower cost living state and stay back with my family.
30
00:02:29.193 --> 00:02:30.534
That might be something that someone would do.
31
00:02:30.794 --> 00:02:37.395
So I would first challenge the assumption, because I say it mostly not at you, Ketur, but every time I have ever thought,
32
00:02:38.155 --> 00:02:47.084
I need to change my business because the scheduling of the team, every single time I have just posted a job ad that states, here's the parameters of this job.
33
00:02:47.445 --> 00:02:47.985
And it's weird.
34
00:02:48.566 --> 00:02:49.547
There are people that want that.
35
00:02:50.208 --> 00:02:57.475
In fact, you are now competing in a market where no one else is like most other companies are not offering six weeks on six weeks off year round.
36
00:02:58.236 --> 00:03:03.278
They're offering eight months, 40 hours a week for eight months of the year, for example.
37
00:03:03.719 --> 00:03:13.763
So you're actually, even though you're, the amount of people you're going after might be way smaller, the amount of people looking for that type of schedule might be smaller.
38
00:03:13.944 --> 00:03:16.385
The amount of businesses looking for that schedule also lower.
39
00:03:17.045 --> 00:03:18.546
So I would first challenge the assumption.
40
00:03:18.886 --> 00:03:26.452
And secondly, I would look very hard at scheduling to see, can we move these slightly in left and right directions?
41
00:03:26.532 --> 00:03:40.962
And even if we had to give people discounts, or even if we had to sub out certain of these cycles to be able to get certain parts that might not be as integral or important, I don't know what kind of sprays you're putting down.
42
00:03:41.482 --> 00:03:49.325
But like you, you have spraying of certain chemicals, maybe some of those you sub out just so you don't have to increase the amount of capacity of the business to the highest level.
43
00:03:49.605 --> 00:03:57.928
Cause if you could say, Hey, I only need like for three weeks, three times a year for three weeks, I need like tons, like double the capacity.
44
00:03:58.368 --> 00:04:03.269
That's when you don't want to go out and buy trucks, get equipment, hire people for the highest period of the year.
45
00:04:03.649 --> 00:04:06.871
You would rather have it where you sub out those periods.
46
00:04:07.351 --> 00:04:11.032
And I would also say, I think you could schedule it in a way where this is still possible and
47
00:04:11.472 --> 00:04:16.274
By moving people out a week, moving people back a week, and trying to spread this demand out as much as possible.
48
00:04:16.514 --> 00:04:24.998
Or even more importantly, I would move your seven spray cycles to accommodate the four times when you know you're going to be spraying the weed control.
49
00:04:25.278 --> 00:04:26.198
Again, I don't know your market.
50
00:04:26.238 --> 00:04:26.618
I don't know.
51
00:04:26.819 --> 00:04:27.079
I know.
52
00:04:27.519 --> 00:04:38.303
It just – this was always a limiting belief for me around hiring and then also a limiting belief around the fact that I thought all these – like when we did treatments back in the day, I always believe these treatments have to be done this week.
53
00:04:38.663 --> 00:04:39.344
When it's like, look –
54
00:04:40.164 --> 00:04:47.929
If I can take other jobs and reduce budget hours of other services and then move the cycles left and right, i.e.
55
00:04:48.269 --> 00:04:52.711
a week before, a week after, and make sure that during those times I have left budget hours of other work.
56
00:04:52.992 --> 00:04:57.174
So basically what you have here is you have multiple budget hour capacities.
57
00:04:57.694 --> 00:05:00.116
And so it happens that this one's way above budget hour capacity.
58
00:05:00.376 --> 00:05:03.958
And so I would take away from other areas of the business during those weeks.
59
00:05:04.819 --> 00:05:06.760
For example, there's no installs happening that week.
60
00:05:07.280 --> 00:05:13.602
I think some of those things you might have already done, so I would first go to the lowest hanging fruit, which is just change your job ad and you might be surprised.
61
00:05:13.982 --> 00:05:15.622
Will Kelly from Military Lawn Cuts.
62
00:05:16.123 --> 00:05:21.644
Number one, how do you mentally navigate the guilt of stepping away from day-to-day operations to focus on architect mode and personal growth?
63
00:05:22.264 --> 00:05:30.987
I struggle with the first one in, last one out mentality, and I'm looking for the right thought process to handle the concern of what my team might think when I'm not physically present in the office each day.
64
00:05:31.607 --> 00:05:35.090
Yeah, so I abide by the first one, first out mentality when I'm in growth mode.
65
00:05:35.530 --> 00:05:42.035
If I'm in profit mode, and once the location is stable and there's profit sharing, that's when I feel like I can step out.
66
00:05:42.396 --> 00:05:43.336
That's just me personally.
67
00:05:43.477 --> 00:05:44.077
I'm not saying...
68
00:05:44.597 --> 00:05:49.421
I still struggle with this to some degree, but I also know that I work on the weekends, I work at night.
69
00:05:49.741 --> 00:05:50.602
I work all the time.
70
00:05:51.203 --> 00:05:54.826
And when they leave, they're usually turning it off a little bit more.
71
00:05:55.486 --> 00:05:55.986
And so...
72
00:05:56.727 --> 00:06:04.514
That's how I justified it first because I just have to make sense of the fact that I know I'm working way more hours later and there's another shift that happens.
73
00:06:05.095 --> 00:06:07.857
That was how I first did it because I struggle with this too.
74
00:06:08.378 --> 00:06:15.364
And then now it's a matter of creating incentives to where it is in their best interest to make sure that the business is taken care of.
75
00:06:15.864 --> 00:06:18.686
And they start to see the benefit of me stepping away.
76
00:06:18.946 --> 00:06:25.089
The best ideas, like literally last week, a huge promotion and like change in the team structure was when I was away.
77
00:06:25.609 --> 00:06:33.394
And that's when I have the most time to focus on like rebuilding systems, talking with AI, figuring out how things need to be changed.
78
00:06:34.254 --> 00:06:41.158
There's something about flying too that's just like you're locked away in this tube, 30,000 feet above, and you can think about more broad things.
79
00:06:41.799 --> 00:06:51.179
them having a understanding as to why that helps the business, but also having a vested interest with profit sharing or their comp plan being tied to the vested interest of the business is a big one.
80
00:06:53.613 --> 00:06:57.795
Number two, I took your feedback on last week's mastermind and concluded that leadership is our biggest constraint.
81
00:06:57.815 --> 00:07:05.658
We have four new late managers that are in either different roles or have different team members or have team members that report to them now for the first time.
82
00:07:06.098 --> 00:07:08.599
What are some tactical ways to grow and develop my team's leadership?
83
00:07:08.879 --> 00:07:14.482
I brought them to a leadership conference this offseason with Sam, G, and Dan Ralphs a few months back.
84
00:07:15.382 --> 00:07:20.324
I am having each listen to the Audible book, How to Win Friends and Influence People.
85
00:07:20.504 --> 00:07:23.605
What else would give us the best leadership growth results?
86
00:07:24.046 --> 00:07:28.287
I'm a big fan of Jocko's book, Leadership Training and Tactics.
87
00:07:28.567 --> 00:07:32.549
The best leadership book that I've ever read that is super tangible.
88
00:07:32.689 --> 00:07:37.371
I will also say nothing beats alignment of goals when it comes to management by far.
89
00:07:38.071 --> 00:07:43.715
And so if you don't know what each of their goals are and you don't know how them winning in the business aligns with that, that's where I would start.
90
00:07:44.495 --> 00:07:54.502
I'll have a video coming out on this in June about how I do my one-on-ones with managers, how I make sure that we have a goals-oriented structure instead of a compliance-oriented structure.
91
00:07:54.522 --> 00:07:59.025
Because compliance and correction is the fastest way to be able to get done what you want done in the business.
92
00:07:59.286 --> 00:08:03.208
And that's why most of us will operate through checklists, SOPs, and those things are important.
93
00:08:03.529 --> 00:08:05.110
But if you have compliance and correction,
94
00:08:05.770 --> 00:08:11.934
in your culture without having goals being aligned, then you have high churn at the management level.
95
00:08:12.575 --> 00:08:18.499
And so there's a video I have coming out in June when I'm starting to talk more about my business and how I do my stuff.
96
00:08:19.239 --> 00:08:25.204
And this is one of the most important things I think once you have mid-level managers is yes, you need compliance.
97
00:08:25.244 --> 00:08:26.144
Yes, you need correction.
98
00:08:26.164 --> 00:08:31.308
Yes, you need SOPs and standards and checklists and audits and quality control and
99
00:08:31.508 --> 00:08:35.230
But if you just have those things without goal alignment, that's when you have a lot of churn.
100
00:08:35.390 --> 00:08:44.916
It's expressly shown at the leadership level because technicians sometimes will actually thrive or adopt or really enjoy having a structure of compliance because they like structure.
101
00:08:45.176 --> 00:08:49.679
They like, do these things, do this checklist, follow this script, do these things.
102
00:08:50.439 --> 00:08:51.980
It gives safety to them.
103
00:08:52.000 --> 00:08:55.442
As leaders, if they're a talent, they like more autonomy.
104
00:08:55.702 --> 00:08:59.204
And so just telling them what to do and just telling them if you don't do this, you get in trouble.
105
00:08:59.444 --> 00:09:00.385
If you do this, you get rewarded.
106
00:09:00.725 --> 00:09:02.226
Just that alone is enough.
107
00:09:02.506 --> 00:09:06.367
I have found it most beneficial to have long tenured leadership.
108
00:09:06.407 --> 00:09:13.210
And in order to have long tenured leadership, I need to ensure that I know what their goals are and then that the goals of the business align.
109
00:09:13.350 --> 00:09:17.372
And that's usually going to be through compensation, but also could be things like time off.
110
00:09:17.552 --> 00:09:19.693
Like some people, time off is way more important to them.
111
00:09:20.333 --> 00:09:21.773
flexibility, way more important to them.
112
00:09:22.013 --> 00:09:23.894
Have a company truck, way more important to them.
113
00:09:23.954 --> 00:09:28.195
So I need to know what their goals are, and then I just align the goals of the business with theirs.
114
00:09:28.435 --> 00:09:41.558
I've just consistently seen the people that build the biggest businesses have low churn at the leadership level, and they're willing to work with their leaders to make sure that their leaders' goals are aligned with the businesses, and the goals of the business are aligned with that of their leaders.
115
00:09:41.818 --> 00:09:47.139
And I've been very blessed in that category in terms of leadership, a tenor, and not having churn at that level.
116
00:09:47.973 --> 00:09:52.578
All right, so if you're wondering how you can be part of the mastermind, this is for all members of Homeworks.
117
00:09:53.018 --> 00:09:57.543
So every single week or two, we will hop on a call, answer all questions from the members.
118
00:09:58.223 --> 00:10:06.392
And the reason we do this is because at Homeworks, we actually guarantee you'll grow your business by at least 10% in revenue or profit in the first 12 months.
119
00:10:06.732 --> 00:10:14.116
And on average, that number is actually 38, over 38% of the amount that people grow their business in the first 12 months of joining the software.
120
00:10:14.516 --> 00:10:28.003
But the reason we do the mastermind and we had the Facebook group and we do our onboarding sequence the way we do, and I'm on those calls, is because what we found is you can get all the features in the world, but if you don't use it, it's not going to impact the business.
121
00:10:28.323 --> 00:10:37.866
And so when we made the guarantee around growing your business by at least 10% in revenue or profit, we realized we'd have to give more coaching and training of using the tools.
122
00:10:37.906 --> 00:10:46.609
But also when you grow really quickly, there's other constraints around leadership and labor and hiring and creating systems and operations.
123
00:10:46.690 --> 00:10:53.452
And so that's really what we try to cover on the mastermind and inside the group to be able to make sure that as someone grows, they don't actually grow.
124
00:10:53.852 --> 00:11:03.277
completely reduce the business or go bankrupt just because a fast growing business, even if it's profitable, can go bankrupt if things like accounts receivable aren't held in check.
125
00:11:03.737 --> 00:11:05.318
Training your team isn't done right.
126
00:11:05.338 --> 00:11:07.138
You're not able to hire great employees.
127
00:11:07.479 --> 00:11:11.300
And so these are a lot of things that we cover inside the HomeWorks Member Mastermind.
128
00:11:11.561 --> 00:11:14.262
So if you want to join, that's how you'll get access to these calls.
129
00:11:15.456 --> 00:11:19.959
Jeremy from Klein Lawn Care and Snowplan, what are some good ways to show employees that you appreciate them and care?
130
00:11:20.159 --> 00:11:24.162
Should you be doing this differently with people that have been with you for long term versus new hires?
131
00:11:24.602 --> 00:11:25.243
Great question.
132
00:11:25.343 --> 00:11:31.427
I think for newer hires, one of the ways to show that you appreciate them and care, yes, there's the little things, and those things are important.
133
00:11:31.827 --> 00:11:43.098
If you're more of a gift-giving type of person and your love language is gift-giving, you're usually the type of person that is like, got to go buy them ice creams and pizzas and do them at breakfast in the morning.
134
00:11:43.118 --> 00:11:44.099
And those things are good.
135
00:11:44.179 --> 00:11:44.699
Don't get me wrong.
136
00:11:44.739 --> 00:11:45.740
They are 100% good.
137
00:11:45.960 --> 00:11:47.622
For some people, that just seems so weird to them.
138
00:11:47.642 --> 00:11:48.943
It's like, just show up and do your job.
139
00:11:49.384 --> 00:11:52.466
Everyone is different in terms of how you give thanks.
140
00:11:53.327 --> 00:11:57.989
And show appreciation is usually the way you like to be shown appreciation and given thanks.
141
00:11:58.469 --> 00:12:04.012
So just be careful with that because a lot of us are money motivated as entrepreneurs or you're trying to get a bad situation.
142
00:12:04.032 --> 00:12:06.093
So you start a business because of that.
143
00:12:06.193 --> 00:12:10.735
The way that you show thanks to people is like, all right, I got to give him more money or I've got to give him a bonus.
144
00:12:11.415 --> 00:12:13.478
Sometimes that's not actually their motivation.
145
00:12:13.538 --> 00:12:15.681
And so understanding what their motivation is, is really important.
146
00:12:15.842 --> 00:12:25.496
In my opinion, if you have showed them the right level of care and appreciation, I will also say a personalized appreciation and care is always more impactful
147
00:12:26.357 --> 00:12:28.999
than broad strokes of appreciation.
148
00:12:29.159 --> 00:12:34.764
Giving money really fast is probably the most expensive way to be able to show appreciation.
149
00:12:35.184 --> 00:12:40.108
For example, if you should raise someone's pay by $2 an hour and they're working full-time, that's $4,000 a year.
150
00:12:40.688 --> 00:12:46.113
Now, this came really of reality to me at my shop years ago, my first location,
151
00:12:47.414 --> 00:12:59.501
I remember there was a couple employees murmuring about something, and the team members kind of stood up, and they were like, hey, we know Mike cares because last Thanksgiving and every Thanksgiving, he buys us turkey, ham, pie, and apple cider.
152
00:12:59.822 --> 00:13:02.243
And in my mind, I was like – I'm always so –
153
00:13:05.969 --> 00:13:15.040
worried and anxious about trying to like get higher hourly weights and like P4P and bonus and profit sharing and trying to give them a couple of dollars more per hour on base pay.
154
00:13:15.240 --> 00:13:16.402
That's thousands of dollars.
155
00:13:16.442 --> 00:13:18.805
And here's something that they were talking about that probably cost me 120 to $150 per employee.
156
00:13:18.825 --> 00:13:18.965
And so,
157
00:13:21.508 --> 00:13:28.030
Sometimes just taking dollars and cents that you would otherwise deploy towards base pay or something and be like, okay, should we do dental?
158
00:13:28.270 --> 00:13:29.331
It's not going to cost you a lot.
159
00:13:29.731 --> 00:13:31.072
Insurance, health insurance.
160
00:13:31.452 --> 00:13:32.412
Okay, I can't afford that yet.
161
00:13:32.452 --> 00:13:36.874
Okay, do a health stipend where it's like, hey, I'll cover your gym membership for up to 80 bucks a month.
162
00:13:37.114 --> 00:13:39.335
You just got to submit at the end of the quarter and we'll give you a refund.
163
00:13:39.675 --> 00:13:45.697
These are little things that like help you stand out and they'll make a bigger difference than extra $80 per month on your paycheck and guarantee you that.
164
00:13:46.337 --> 00:13:51.642
Then the next level is when you give them a gift, it's personalized because you know what their goals are.
165
00:13:51.662 --> 00:13:52.702
That's like the ultimate.
166
00:13:53.263 --> 00:13:54.984
It's very difficult to do as you scale.
167
00:13:55.064 --> 00:14:06.414
But if you have 5, 10, 15 people, knowing what their goals are and then directly trying to give appreciation or care to them individually based upon the things that you know they like or the things they're going through is probably the highest impact.
168
00:14:06.934 --> 00:14:09.537
And then random acts of generosity have seemed to be working.
169
00:14:10.798 --> 00:14:13.281
to show that you care so much is really valuable.
170
00:14:13.782 --> 00:14:23.333
Most recently for me, it's like handwritten notes, especially when you're at a certain size where you don't know the team members' names for usually several months until I'm working with you.
171
00:14:23.894 --> 00:14:26.217
That was a huge thing for me at first because I wasn't used to that.
172
00:14:27.298 --> 00:14:28.619
I felt disconnected and I'm like,
173
00:14:29.160 --> 00:14:32.923
I want to show them that I care, but then I also can't be doing one-on-ones with them all.
174
00:14:32.943 --> 00:14:36.945
And I can't be doing their training when there's hundreds of people, you know, over a hundred, I should say.
175
00:14:37.165 --> 00:14:44.270
It was a real, not a struggle, but like a learning curve for me was like, I've got to show my appreciation outside of just one-on-one or direct contact.
176
00:14:44.590 --> 00:14:50.654
And that literally might just be writing a note to them, putting it on their desk and showing that I saw something they did that was amazing.
177
00:14:50.994 --> 00:14:53.256
And that could actually be the most impactful thing.
178
00:14:53.496 --> 00:15:04.563
Because the same way that I feel kind of disconnected or I feel bad that I can't have that same personal connection I did in the past, they also, the level of impact of that note is probably higher because...
179
00:15:05.283 --> 00:15:06.404
They have heard about me.
180
00:15:06.424 --> 00:15:07.545
They've seen videos of me.
181
00:15:07.805 --> 00:15:12.190
They have heard their managers talk about me, but they never have got that connection with me.
182
00:15:12.210 --> 00:15:17.335
And so for me to take that time and show that they are a person, they are not just a number, that means a lot.
183
00:15:17.735 --> 00:15:22.479
And then one thing I've leaned into a lot too recently is doing things for them that they would never do for themselves.
184
00:15:22.760 --> 00:15:23.060
Yeah.
185
00:15:23.180 --> 00:15:26.821
And so this doesn't have to be elaborate, it doesn't have to be $10,000 and crazy.
186
00:15:27.061 --> 00:15:28.942
But for example, I'll just give this one everyone here.
187
00:15:29.142 --> 00:15:37.644
I would recommend, or like what I have done is recent, is it costs $250 for a full detail interior of someone's car.
188
00:15:38.004 --> 00:15:44.686
And they will come, like a mobile detailing company will come, they'll do like the shampooing, everything just like incredible.
189
00:15:45.186 --> 00:15:48.767
Most people don't do that for themselves because it's a luxury.
190
00:15:49.347 --> 00:15:52.788
But it's a $250 luxury that literally you blow their mind.
191
00:15:53.268 --> 00:15:57.690
And so giving those out, I give those now with my thank you cards.
192
00:15:58.370 --> 00:16:01.411
And so when there's something specific and I throw that in there, that's $250.
193
00:16:01.431 --> 00:16:06.912
It'll get them like a full out, completely well done interior cleaning of their heart.
194
00:16:06.952 --> 00:16:08.673
And the people will show up at the office and do it.
195
00:16:09.333 --> 00:16:10.894
And so I would recommend that.
196
00:16:11.194 --> 00:16:14.415
Think things like that that show that you're not just like, here's 250 bucks.
197
00:16:14.896 --> 00:16:16.056
Yes, that's nice.
198
00:16:16.276 --> 00:16:26.581
People will thank you, but they will absolutely remember the one time in their entire life they ever got a luxury thing like that, which is a full out mobile detailing at the office from you.
199
00:16:26.961 --> 00:16:30.743
How does one gain the discernment to realize they may be stepping over dollars to pick up pennies?
200
00:16:31.423 --> 00:16:34.405
Mostly because every single aspect of the business hurts as you grow.
201
00:16:35.325 --> 00:16:40.667
So if we look at liquidity, leads, labor and leadership, all four parts get strained when you have business growth.
202
00:16:41.187 --> 00:16:45.709
But the one that has the most strain is the constraint and all your time and attention should be focused on that.
203
00:16:46.169 --> 00:16:52.912
Any time spent on other things is considered firefighting and you feel good and productive jumping from, okay, I got to do leads.
204
00:16:52.952 --> 00:16:55.193
Okay, now I got to get some leaders.
205
00:16:55.553 --> 00:16:56.753
Now I got to raise price and do liquidity.
206
00:16:56.773 --> 00:17:00.515
And that makes you feel productive, but it's not necessarily the thing that makes the business grow faster.
207
00:17:01.035 --> 00:17:07.801
And so I would say you are tripping over dollars to go after pennies when you're bouncing from thing to thing, mostly for optics sake.
208
00:17:08.321 --> 00:17:13.466
Instead of being like, I know that this one thing, if I just solved it, there will be other things burn.
209
00:17:14.407 --> 00:17:17.770
I will be missing pennies, but I'm focusing on the dollar.
210
00:17:18.270 --> 00:17:25.516
And so everyone says in theory, or it is nice to say, I want to focus on the most important constraint or the biggest domino.
211
00:17:26.417 --> 00:17:32.842
And the reason we don't do it is because that means you can't go firefighting in all the other three categories of business.
212
00:17:33.082 --> 00:17:34.643
So liquidity, leads, labor and leadership.
213
00:17:35.144 --> 00:17:37.465
And I've just recently shifted to one.
214
00:17:37.625 --> 00:17:43.349
I have a video coming out this June, like for the first time, like six years, five, six years that I've shifted to one of those four L's.
215
00:17:43.590 --> 00:17:45.031
And that means other parts might burn.
216
00:17:45.471 --> 00:17:48.193
But I've been focusing on other three parts for the past five to six years.
217
00:17:48.754 --> 00:17:59.142
And so now it's time to focus on this other one, which means six months of probably letting some other things burn that are important, that are really like pressing and whatever, but it's like, this is what I have to focus on.
218
00:17:59.803 --> 00:18:10.772
And I say I think that if you are constantly feeling good by chasing fires in all four of those L's, you likely have not figured out what the constraint is, i.e.
219
00:18:10.832 --> 00:18:13.775
what is the dollar bill that you are stepping over to save pennies.
220
00:18:14.435 --> 00:18:20.159
We are looking at implementing a video training course for new team members that get hired for basic skills, mowing, landscaping, and doing weed control.
221
00:18:20.219 --> 00:18:26.424
We are also looking at implementing this for our orientation process so our regional manager gets their time back, which typically takes about three hours.
222
00:18:26.484 --> 00:18:32.549
And we want to do it in video form, ideally short form, but the hands-on training a little bit longer for orientation.
223
00:18:32.589 --> 00:18:33.789
We would rotate the speakers.
224
00:18:34.843 --> 00:18:38.867
and also ensure they're paying attention by cutting it up into smaller sections.
225
00:18:38.927 --> 00:18:44.393
We want to do a quiz at the end of each section to make sure they have to pass in order to move forward to get hired for their position.
226
00:18:44.794 --> 00:18:50.540
Can you maybe explain why this won't work, or do you think this is a great idea, or am I just wasting my time hiring a videographer?
227
00:18:51.000 --> 00:18:55.204
We just want to make sure that our training is top tier, dialed in, so we're duplicating the systems that we want.
228
00:18:55.785 --> 00:18:58.946
So I will say this, if you use three hours, you'll probably lose most technicians.
229
00:18:59.406 --> 00:19:03.008
I think you could probably get most of the benefit you're looking for in an hour or less.
230
00:19:03.528 --> 00:19:08.130
I don't think you need a videographer a phone with a lapel microphone.
231
00:19:08.410 --> 00:19:15.773
Like spend $100, $50, get a really nice lapel mic that connects to the phone wirelessly or even connected solid.
232
00:19:15.813 --> 00:19:21.035
For example, if you just do a voice note, plug it into your phone and run it up your shirt and have a clip on lapel.
233
00:19:21.535 --> 00:19:27.698
and then just have the video from your phone and sync those two bad boys, you're going to be like 95% of the way there.
234
00:19:28.198 --> 00:19:29.559
Your phone works just fine.
235
00:19:30.139 --> 00:19:32.620
Especially because I think you'll change these videos within three months.
236
00:19:32.920 --> 00:19:35.601
Once we did all our videos and it's like, okay, here's the ones that didn't work.
237
00:19:35.621 --> 00:19:38.022
Now we've changed our type of mower, different type of truck.
238
00:19:38.042 --> 00:19:38.242
Okay.
239
00:19:38.262 --> 00:19:39.243
Now we've changed our process.
240
00:19:39.583 --> 00:19:40.423
Oh, we wouldn't need to change this.
241
00:19:40.523 --> 00:19:43.665
It's like you, you vent, you have to have an iterative cycle when it comes to videos.
242
00:19:43.965 --> 00:19:46.086
Everyone thinks like, I'm going to make this video training and it's done.
243
00:19:46.246 --> 00:19:46.546
No, like,
244
00:19:46.846 --> 00:20:04.274
literally the next week you'll want to change a part of it or you'll add a system or you'll change something or add some equipment add a new service you'll change the way you're doing your uniforms you'll change the way that you're doing the tire pressure like something will change and so the i agree with cutting in small sections i would also say three hours you are going to
245
00:20:05.534 --> 00:20:08.056
suck the energy out of your team for technicians.
246
00:20:08.116 --> 00:20:10.997
If you're talking about technicians, it's going to suck their energy out.
247
00:20:12.038 --> 00:20:18.102
If you do it more of a group environment, mix in hands-on training, you will likely be able to keep them engaged.
248
00:20:18.582 --> 00:20:26.287
But most people that are getting hired for outdoor activity are not the same person that sits behind a computer for three hours taking quizzes and watching videos.
249
00:20:26.507 --> 00:20:31.250
I would strongly recommend any time I hear I want to make...
250
00:20:32.130 --> 00:20:34.992
I want to save my manager time when it comes to hiring.
251
00:20:35.392 --> 00:20:38.354
I almost always have seen that end up being a very rough road.
252
00:20:39.074 --> 00:20:45.618
What I like to think of it is I'm trying to systematize the training, but I need to meet the trainee where they want to be trained.
253
00:20:46.058 --> 00:20:50.781
And for most technicians, if you want them to actually absorb the information, they've got to go out and do it.
254
00:20:51.162 --> 00:20:56.505
I can watch all the videos in the world about mowing grass, but until I get in the mower and I feel the way things are operating, it's tough.
255
00:20:56.525 --> 00:20:56.965
It's tough.
256
00:20:57.045 --> 00:21:04.287
That being said, there's a lot of knowledge that you could probably get in an hour or less, do the quizzes, do everything you've said, and get most of the benefit.
257
00:21:04.687 --> 00:21:11.148
The three hours starts to get where you're going to lose them, but also you're starting to likely train things that are not just like do's and don'ts.
258
00:21:11.228 --> 00:21:15.369
It's more a matter of like feel, and those are usually things taught out in the field.
259
00:21:15.689 --> 00:21:24.852
And that's when I would much more rather have a trainer and trainee relationship, checklists of what they've got to go through, signed off on, bonuses and compensation based upon passing those levels,
260
00:21:27.232 --> 00:21:33.699
There's so much churn in the first three to seven days of onboarding, like just a good team member, whether or not they work out or not.
261
00:21:34.220 --> 00:21:39.486
And one of the best ways to lose a top performer is when they have five job offers, they came and gave you a tryout.
262
00:21:39.766 --> 00:21:41.948
And the first thing you had them do is sit down at a computer.
263
00:21:41.988 --> 00:21:43.110
They dreaded their entire job.
264
00:21:43.990 --> 00:21:46.933
educational career or they dropped out of school because they hated it so much.
265
00:21:47.153 --> 00:21:48.013
They just wanted to be outside.
266
00:21:48.033 --> 00:21:49.114
They wouldn't go out and do work.
267
00:21:49.474 --> 00:21:50.475
So just be careful of that.
268
00:21:50.495 --> 00:21:51.516
I'm not saying it's a bad idea.
269
00:21:51.616 --> 00:21:53.377
I would just shorten it down as much as possible.
270
00:21:53.998 --> 00:21:58.541
And everything to do with how to do the work, I would try to do out in the field.
271
00:21:58.841 --> 00:22:07.047
Everything with safety, protocol, onboarding, payroll, software, equipment, those things are usually can be done in a video format.
272
00:22:07.688 --> 00:22:07.828
Um,
273
00:22:08.328 --> 00:22:10.529
Just be careful with trying to optimize it.
274
00:22:10.709 --> 00:22:15.511
I've just seen more and more of the way more and more I try to compress training, the worse it gets.
275
00:22:15.831 --> 00:22:23.374
The more I try to systematize the training and do it in a way that meets the actual demands of the job, the better.
276
00:22:23.854 --> 00:22:27.856
So completely different story when it comes to admin, for example, because they're sitting on a computer all day long.
277
00:22:28.994 --> 00:22:30.195
Mike DeLugas from Attaboy.
278
00:22:30.996 --> 00:22:33.378
Hey, I know you do not recommend syncing QBO with a CRM.
279
00:22:33.739 --> 00:22:36.642
That being said, how do you run on an accrual basis?
280
00:22:36.702 --> 00:22:40.605
My QBO still syncs with the bank account, so it seems like everything will be done on cash accounting.
281
00:22:40.906 --> 00:22:44.009
Am I wrong about this, or is there workarounds that don't require tons of journal entries?
282
00:22:44.229 --> 00:22:44.429
Yes.
283
00:22:44.549 --> 00:22:49.091
If you are doing your QuickBooks and single-to-bank account, you're doing cash accounting.
284
00:22:49.251 --> 00:22:56.055
For the vast majority of home services and businesses under $5 million, $10 million, I would recommend doing that because it's the simplest.
285
00:22:56.555 --> 00:23:03.558
But if for some reason you want to do accrual accounting, then I would just run the reports of revenue earned inside of HomeWorks.
286
00:23:03.938 --> 00:23:07.360
And that would be like your revenue because your expenses are coming out when they come out.
287
00:23:07.520 --> 00:23:15.082
That being said, things like insurance or software, things that you might pay in advance, especially towards the end of the year, you got to now account for if you're doing accrual accounting.
288
00:23:15.122 --> 00:23:24.904
If you pay for your insurance on an annual basis, you don't get to write that off as an expense in December, for example, depending on how rigid you're being with accrual.
289
00:23:25.304 --> 00:23:26.925
So if you're actually doing accrual.
290
00:23:27.705 --> 00:23:31.546
You would take the revenue side from HomeWorks and that report of earned revenue.
291
00:23:31.626 --> 00:23:43.209
And then you would look at your QuickBooks and have to determine likely doing journal entries also already to be able to figure out things like insurance, payments, any sort of even like paid subscription annually.
292
00:23:43.609 --> 00:23:46.630
Anything like that would have to then also be journal entried.
293
00:23:47.250 --> 00:23:56.118
So for most small businesses, I would recommend if you're an S Corp, an LLC, you typically just cash accounting is usually the easiest unless you have huge projects.
294
00:23:56.678 --> 00:24:03.264
And for example, you do not want to take $100,000 that someone gave you as a deposit.
295
00:24:03.924 --> 00:24:08.308
in December because the work hasn't been started and you don't want to pay taxes on $100,000.
296
00:24:08.448 --> 00:24:10.710
But usually it balances out in the long run.
297
00:24:10.990 --> 00:24:24.601
But once you get like a C-Corp, once you start having huge amounts of inventory, once you start having a ton of payments on trucks and equipment, I'm talking like hundreds of thousands of dollars, then potentially your accountant might push you in the direction of accrual.
298
00:24:26.070 --> 00:24:27.290
Just do whatever your accountant says.
299
00:24:28.051 --> 00:24:30.011
Either way, though, you're going to do some journal entries.
300
00:24:30.452 --> 00:24:37.714
Either trying to journal entry out revenue or you're going to journal entry out expenses if you're doing accrual accounting.
301
00:24:38.054 --> 00:24:38.975
Blackbeard Lawn Care.
302
00:24:39.435 --> 00:24:40.335
Last question.
303
00:24:40.495 --> 00:24:47.358
In your $220K lawn care business breakdown, you mentioned that you never want the worst month to be less than 50% of the best month.
304
00:24:47.838 --> 00:25:04.228
how should northern companies that pre-bill snow removal handle that from a reporting standpoint to eat should we be normalizing revenue monthly for internal analysis and even after doing that we still see winter months fall below fifty percent in our market christmas services christmas nights have been sold during
305
00:25:04.608 --> 00:25:11.454
peak fall cleanup season or risk cancellation from early snow, which creates a direct labor conflict with higher demand core services.
306
00:25:11.975 --> 00:25:19.922
At that time, do you still view that as a structural weakness that needs to be solved with additional services, or is the 50% benchmark not realistic for snow-driven businesses?
307
00:25:20.983 --> 00:25:43.980
okay so i talk about this in the workshop if you go to mikeandys.com workshop it's free when it comes to the 50 percent like that is a a benchmark i've created to as as to which businesses i have consistently be profitable and not profitable home services the ones that sell and actually are able to exit versus the ones that can't and anytime you try to sell anytime you try to
308
00:25:45.901 --> 00:26:01.790
Anytime when for a quarter you lose money, so like usually it's Q1 for most people, they lose money, or any month of the year where it drops below 50% of revenue, that being said, there's so many things you can do besides just adding more services.
309
00:26:02.130 --> 00:26:08.353
Just adding other services could include, like that's Q3, which is adjacent services like Snow.
310
00:26:08.793 --> 00:26:09.714
Yes, you can do that.
311
00:26:10.054 --> 00:26:11.795
You could also create a whole new brand.
312
00:26:11.935 --> 00:26:12.215
That's Q5.
313
00:26:13.536 --> 00:26:17.840
inside the workshop, which is, like you mentioned, adding Christmas lights.
314
00:26:18.820 --> 00:26:24.425
The question becomes, well, if I'm already busy during fall cleanup, why would I even add Christmas lights?
315
00:26:24.545 --> 00:26:25.846
Then maybe that's not a good option for you.
316
00:26:26.046 --> 00:26:33.052
But there's other things you can do, whether it be winter services, whether it be more and better, which is, okay, can you sell anything else in January, February, March?
317
00:26:33.352 --> 00:26:34.233
What could that be?
318
00:26:34.593 --> 00:26:43.741
Could you pull spring rush demand forward for things like cleanups and offer big discounts to be able to get customers on in January, February, March instead of April, May, and June?
319
00:26:43.941 --> 00:26:45.282
Like, no, I'm in a snow environment.
320
00:26:45.563 --> 00:26:46.063
So then it's okay.
321
00:26:46.083 --> 00:26:52.809
Well, can I include inside of my winter services, can I include things like ice melt, shoveling the walkways, and –
322
00:26:53.850 --> 00:27:00.632
the stairs and not do the plowing, for example, or maybe I do plowing as that's adjacent services here, number three.
323
00:27:00.972 --> 00:27:02.813
So I would look through the workshop.
324
00:27:02.933 --> 00:27:05.714
It'll give you five solid ways to fix the off season.
325
00:27:06.334 --> 00:27:17.858
Um, but any home service business that cure, like that is, if you fix that, so many things, good things happen because when you, when you know that every single quarter you make money, you don't have to keep so much cash in the bank during the off season.
326
00:27:18.338 --> 00:27:20.079
And that allows you to have a higher distributions.
327
00:27:20.519 --> 00:27:23.340
It allows you to be able to keep less working capital on hand.
328
00:27:23.560 --> 00:27:26.322
It allows you to have more consistent profit sharing.
329
00:27:26.603 --> 00:27:32.027
So if you hand it off to a GM, if you hand it off to managers, if you give profit sharing your team, it's more consistent.
330
00:27:32.087 --> 00:27:40.395
It's much easier to run a business when you don't have months where you lose money and quarters where you lose money and months where revenue drops by 70, 80, 90%.
331
00:27:42.096 --> 00:27:50.427
And so you have seen, yes, in that video last week, I talked about a business that's doing $220,000 and how they can fix it.
332
00:27:50.867 --> 00:27:56.935
You also, if you watch the Home Service Millionaire channel, you saw me talk to Stefano Narducci doing $5 million in revenue.
333
00:27:57.556 --> 00:27:58.457
And same exact thing.
334
00:27:58.998 --> 00:28:01.120
We got to fix – for him, it's the opposite.
335
00:28:01.140 --> 00:28:04.164
He does tons of snow, and then revenue drops to 80% to 90%.
336
00:28:04.204 --> 00:28:04.905
We've got to fix that.
337
00:28:05.005 --> 00:28:06.306
It doesn't matter what size of business.
338
00:28:06.727 --> 00:28:07.788
It doesn't matter what scale.
339
00:28:08.068 --> 00:28:15.857
If you're going to have quarters where you lose money or you have months where revenue drops by more than 50%, it's very hard to run that business.
340
00:28:15.877 --> 00:28:16.458
Yeah.
341
00:28:16.578 --> 00:28:22.002
And it is a solvable problem that will usually take three to four years to solve because you have to figure out your offer.
342
00:28:22.362 --> 00:28:23.443
When do I pitch it?
343
00:28:23.703 --> 00:28:24.324
What time of year?
344
00:28:24.664 --> 00:28:27.186
What offer do I need to give customers to be able to pull demand forward?
345
00:28:27.386 --> 00:28:32.610
What offer do I need to give them to be able to have a continuity throughout the rest of the offseason?
346
00:28:32.890 --> 00:28:34.251
Winter services is what we call it.
347
00:28:34.731 --> 00:28:36.053
So check out the workshop.
348
00:28:36.193 --> 00:28:36.993
It should be beneficial.
349
00:28:37.013 --> 00:28:41.278
But regardless of the size of business, this is the Achilles heel of every home service business.
350
00:28:41.298 --> 00:28:46.403
That's why the off-season, the book I made, the subtitle is Why Home Services Are a Terrible Business.
351
00:28:46.503 --> 00:28:47.564
It is because of that.
352
00:28:47.784 --> 00:28:48.805
It is the Achilles heel.
353
00:28:49.105 --> 00:28:49.326
All right.
354
00:28:49.366 --> 00:28:49.726
Love you all.
355
00:28:49.866 --> 00:28:50.947
Hope you have a fantastic week.
356
00:28:51.228 --> 00:28:53.169
Look forward to some cool stuff we have coming out in May.
357
00:28:53.290 --> 00:28:55.332
And we will see you on the next Mastermind.
