RIGHTs and WRONGs in Business

Taking an inventory every once and awhile is a very healthy thing to do for your business.

Sometimes I get so busy that I forget to stop and smell the roses.

Then the day comes along that I realize there are a lot of loose ends that need cleaning up.

Here is what I discovered recently:

-Subs that are clearly not good fits, however I keep them around for whatever silly reasons. (avoiding the "tough love talk")

-Too much overhead.  I need to cut costs on some items I'm wasting money on.

-Taking on jobs in between jobs to "help" desperate customers out and/or to keep the guys busy.  This in turn, affects my peace and serenity.

-Nice guy routine.....not a good idea.

-Rushed estimates, and not paying attention to "my" numbers.

-Allowing others to dictate my time

-Going too fast.  Looking to the next job before the current one is finished.

 

-I am part of DMU mastermind group

-Overall the greatest subs.

-Amazing customers.

-Starting strong......finishing stronger.

-Consistent work

-Great bookkeeper

-Great G.M.

-I treat my subs with respect and they treat me the same.

-We start the same time everyday.

-Monday morning meetings at my house(eggs/bacon/coffee/fruit)

 

After being in the trades for 21 years and running my business in Maui now going on its 8th year, I would have thought that things would have gotten easier. For the most part they have. Truth is that the last year has been the most challenging which is what lead me to Dirt Monkey University.  According to Markup & Profit by Micheal C. Stone "30% of construction businesses fail in the first year, 57 % fail by the end of the second year, 74% fail by the end of the third year and 90 to 96% fail by the end of the 10 year cycle."

 

That means I have beat the odds so far, however I now know why the 10 year mark only 4-10% is very elusive..........because it extremlly difficult!!!!!!!!

Good news for me is I am a stubborn mule and failure is not an option.

Failure is not what motivates me. It's not giving up when times get tough is what motivates me.

I enjoy finding solutions.  My old boss used to tell me that "everything in construction is fixable." Including me.

 

Have peace in your construction journey.

ALoha

Gabe the general contractor.