The Handyman Startup Podcast

In this episode, I had the opportunity to interview a handyman from across the pond – Will Lingard. Will is a great guy who shares helpful tips and insights based on his nine years in business as a professional handyman. Here’s a sample of what we discuss in this interview: What’s important to affluent customers How focusing on sustainability helps his business What he enjoys about his business How he deals with customers who say he’s too expensive How he runs multiple businesses by subcontracting jobs How he hired his first helper Why business isn’t always a straight line Why being a good person is more important than your home repair skills And more. HS054 – Pro handyman from the UK shares his story – Interview with Will Lingard About Will Lingard Will lives in the United Kingdom and owns and operates Surrey Hills Handyman. Will used to work with a company that set up outdoor PA systems. Although he loved the work, it involved a lot of travel. He wanted to be closer to his family. When his father-in-law recommended becoming an electrician, it sparked the idea of starting a handyman business. He quickly jumped online, found Handyman Startup, devoured all the content, invested in my courses, and launched his business while providing services from a small sedan. That was over nine years ago. Today, he enjoys a profitable business that gives him freedom, flexibility, and a sense of agency. The post Interview with Will Lingard – Pro Handyman from the UK appeared first on Handyman Startup.

Owning a business has many benefits. It gives you more control over your time. It gives you certain freedoms that employees will never have. It gives you the potential to make a LOT more money. And you get to make all the decisions. The possibilities are limitless. However, those benefits have a cost, which is often higher than what you’re led to believe on social media. Am I saying it’s not worth it to grow a business? Hell no! It’s worth it. Even if you don’t achieve your ideal lifestyle, building a business challenges you, forces you to learn valuable skills, and builds character like nothing else. However, if your expectations are too high, you’ll either burn out or give up trying to reach them. As I’ve said many times before, business is a mental game. If you can win that game, you can win at business. If you lose that game, it doesn’t matter how much money you make; you will lose. In this episode, I discuss a critical part of winning that game—managing your expectations. In the last episode, I discussed why high expectations are a recipe for constant stress and dissatisfaction and why intentionally lowering your expectations will reduce stress and help you be more effective and joyful. In this episode, I talk about how. Listen right here or on your favorite podcast app! HS053 – The power of low expectations part 2 – Simple tips for less stress and more fun Podcast Transcript I’d hate to lower your expectations, but that is the episode’s goal. Welcome to another episode of the Handyman Startup podcast. My name is Dan Perry, and today, I’m going to talk about managing your expectations. In the last podcast, we talked about why and the power of low expectations. Today, I want to talk a little bit about how to do that. So back in 2010, way back in 2010, this is 14, almost 15 years ago, after another boring day at work, my friend recommended a book called The 4-Hour Work Week. At the time, I was living in a three-bedroom home that I had purchased a year or two earlier. I lived about two blocks from my office, and I hated my job. I was so disappointed with what a 9:00 to 5:00 turned out to be. I mostly sat at a desk all day in a big open room with five other desks and five other engineers working, and then my boss was right across the room from me. And there were some good things about my job. I mean, I got to do some cool stuff with engineering, and it leveraged my skills. I was pretty good at it, but I just felt stifled. So, I read that book my friend recommended to me, and I remember being unable to put it down. Right after that first chapter, it hit a nerve. I sat on the couch and read it until my eyes turned red. Once I couldn’t read anymore, I put it down, picked it up again the next day, and I think it took me about two days to read that entire book. And this was a pretty big turning point in my life. I didn’t know that at the time, but it was because ever since that moment, I couldn’t be satisfied living an ordinary, boring nine-to-five lifestyle. I knew something else was possible. I had a clear definition of success, and I wanted it now. I didn’t quit my job right away because I needed the money and didn’t know what to do, but that book amplified my distaste for my job. It was like sticking a salty knife into an already festering wound. It made the experience of working my job worse. And as a result, I eventually quit my job. After a while, I started getting worked up and depressed and had some health issues. I started a handyman business a few months after I quit my job. Since then, I’ve grown that handyman business and done well there. I created a YouTube channel, this podcast, my blog, online courses, and all these wonderful things that bring me income and give me more freedom than most people have. I’ve also helped many people in the process, which is awesome. I regularly get emails from people thanking me, which is awesome. And on the one hand, I’m thankful for that. On the other hand, I think that content, specifically the four-hour workweek and a lot of the content you find on YouTube or Facebook about growing a business, I think it can be toxic. The reason is that it anchors your expectations so high, as I discussed in the last episode. If you haven’t listened to that, I recommend listening to that first before listening to this episode. Now, for some people like me, I couldn’t sleep at night living a mediocre life after realizing what was possible because I fell for the arrival fallacy that once I got that, then I would be happy. The need it created to reach a certain level quickly caused me a lot of stress and disappointment. I beat myself up when I didn’t achieve amazing things. I lost sleep over silly things that don’t matter. I was imprisoned by the idea that it was impossible to be happy without passive income, and I sacrificed a lot of time to get there. I eventually succeeded. I’ve done some cool stuff, made great money, helped a lot of people, as I mentioned. If I had to do it all again, I might not change what I did, but I would definitely like to adjust my expectations in the process. And my perspective and my mindset. I could have enjoyed the journey much more, had less stress, and who knows, I maybe would have done even better. So with this episode, I want to share a few ways that you can manage your own expectations. So hopefully, you can enjoy the process of growing your business more and not get so caught up beating yourself up if you’re not making progress as fast as you’d like or if things aren’t happening as quickly as you’d like. Before we do that, let’s just briefly cover what I covered in the last episode. I talked about the power of low expectations. I talked about why high expectations are the perfect recipe for disappointment, stress, giving up, and really failing to enjoy the wins along the journey. I talked about two major factors that amplify this, which are social media plus human desire. We always want more, no matter how good we have it. And then social media anchors our expectations even higher than they would already at an unrealistic level. We see amazing results without the work. It creates unrealistic expectations. But low expectations are actually more effective in many ways in many areas of life. Because if you have low expectations and you exceed them, you get to delight in small wins. It makes it a little more fun. It makes it easier to accept failures and hard work. It makes setbacks not as devastating and less stressful because you’re expecting them. It makes you willing to put in effort for less, which usually leads to better outcomes. In some cases, I wouldn’t say always putting in more effort for less makes sense, especially when it comes to pricing. I want to be very clear about that. You guys know my mindset on pricing your services high enough to make a profit. Anyway, low expectations keep you in the game for long enough for small wins to compound. A good example of this is Warren Buffett. Interesting fact: he made 99% of his wealth after the age of 65. He’s like 92 now, I think. But that’s because of compounding. Small wins compounding year after year after year. He hasn’t outperformed everybody every single year. He’s just been playing so damn long that he has amassed so much wealth that he is the sixth wealthiest person in the world. So, ultimately, low expectations can be very helpful. And it’s all about being realistic in the short term and optimistic for the long term. Working hard consistently. It’s not about throwing your hands up and giving up. It’s about embracing that work as part of life, no matter how well-off you are. So do the work and don’t expect the world. Don’t expect it to be easy. Don’t expect to get to some point where you’ll be endlessly happy all the time. As much as it is hard to do that because it’s so ingrained in human nature, let’s talk about some tips to help with that a little bit. In this episode, I’m going to explore some ideas for managing your expectations. This is probably more of an art than a science. This probably isn’t going to apply to everybody. Some people probably need to increase their expectations. I think this podcast is more created for those who are wired similar to me, where you want it all now. You tend to be impatient. You tend to stress yourself out trying to strive for these unattainable ideal outcomes. So, hopefully, in this process, you can start appreciating more of what you have right now. You can embrace the struggle along the way. And maybe even go further than you would have otherwise. And the way that I see this, there are two parts to this equation. First is being optimistic about the long term and realistic about your short term results. So first, you have to have a tasty enough carrot to pursue to keep you motivated enough to continue to put in the work because it’s difficult to invest effort into something if you’re not optimistic about the outcome. Now, Warren Buffett, for example, again, I talked about him building 99 % of his wealth after the age of 65. He was still very wealthy even when he was 30. I believe that when adjusted for inflation, he had $10 million when he was 30. However, I want to bring up Warren Buffet again because he had a plan. He didn’t just take super high-risk bets consistently and keep winning. He took very low-risk bets. He practiced value investing, which he learned from Benjamin Graham. So he would find companies that were underpriced, buy them, and then hold them for a long period of time. And then, he leveraged the psychology of the market and how it acts irrationally, how people buy when they should be selling, and how people sell when they should buy. And he stuck to that process, mostly for the last 60 or, yeah, over 60 years now. And that’s how he amassed his wealth. But He had that vision. He had that carrot that he was going after, which was very clear, and he was playing the long game. And I’m not really saying that Warren Buffet is s

In “Same as Ever,” Morgan Housel shares how, for the last 150 years, on any given day, the stock market went up only 50% of the time. Yet, over any given year, it rose 68% of the time. And even better, over any 20-year span, growth was seen 100% of the time. With this, he illustrates that you often experience failure or loss in the short term. But, if you stay in the game long enough, you’ll almost certainly see a gain. It’s like playing poker when you’ve stacked the deck in your favor. You’ll lose a few hands but eventually come out on top. The key is to stay in the game long enough. Which is also true for growing a business. As I’ve said before, growing a business is hard. And it’s not for the reasons many people think. It’s not so much about coming up with some brilliant revolutionary idea or having the IQ of Einstein. 99% of the tasks you perform when growing a business are easy – at least, no more difficult than a typical job. The real challenge is winning the mental game: Dealing with the pressure of making decisions amidst constant uncertainty, staying motivated without a boss breathing down your neck, maintaining focus, and pushing through when things get hard. If you can win that mental game, chances of success are high. So, let’s talk about one critical aspect of doing just that, which is managing your expectations. With this article (and podcast), I aim to convince you that keeping your expectations low is one secret to winning the mental game. I’m excited about this concept because I believe if you take it seriously, it can… Improve your chances of success Improve your experience of growing a business Improve your results Lower your stress levels and even make you happier. Listen to the podcast version of this article here, which includes extra content. Listen right here or on your favorite podcast app! HS052 – The power of low expectations First, let’s talk about… How to ruin your day even when you’re winning. Many of us start our businesses for more freedom and control so that we can enjoy our lives. However, entrepreneurs often end up with a business that consumes their minds, even in their free time. They want freedom, and what they end up with is constant stress. I don’t think that’s the case for everyone, but it’s more common than ever. Its cause is a combination of several factors. For the sake of this article, I’ll focus on two of them that I see as most relevant. #1 – Good old human desire We always want more. No matter how much we have, we want more. The funny thing is how we fool ourselves. We think that once we achieve our next goal or acquire a certain amount of money, we will finally be happy and content. Yet, most billionaires are still out hustling for more. That’s because of a well-known feature of our psychology, the arrival fallacy. No matter how much we have, the goalpost keeps moving further into the distance. You may think you’ll be content once your business generates consistent income. Then, when you get there, you realize you’d like to make a little more money and work fewer hours. Once you accomplish that, you realize you want to take it even further. If this goes on for long enough, and you work hard enough, you may eventually build a multi-million dollar business. And when you get there, you’ll probably want more. Is this bad? Not necessarily. It’s just human nature. The problem is when you try to do too much too fast and when you expect instant amazing results. That’s when you get hit with constant disappointment, even when you’re doing well. And that’s where the second factor comes into play… #2 Social media Social media is amazingly effective at stoking desire. We see all of these people doing amazing things, and it anchors the expectations for our own lives. Social Media distorts our perception of reality. Since everyone shares the best of their lives, we constantly see people doing better than us, and we rarely see the struggle that got them there. Everywhere you look, someone is better looking, making more money, and having more fun than you. This is especially true for entrepreneurs. Hundreds of successful entrepreneurs online make millions per year and live amazing lives (at least, that’s what they show). Then, they tell you that you can do the same. They stoke your desire and anchor your expectations at a super high level. For example, you may see someone running a multi-million dollar business offering to teach you how to do the same. They usually make it look easier than it is and imply that you can get results fast, essentially anchoring your expectations much higher than reality. Sure, with their help, you may get there faster and easier. However, getting there will still take years of struggle, hard work, and failure. In reality, following in their footsteps is ten times harder than it seems, and success is nowhere near guaranteed. Those super successful people have been at this for at least a decade and often started in a better situation than you. Yet, our minds don’t think through all of this. We see the big houses, fancy cars, nice tans, pretty women, and lots of fun, and we think, “I gotta get some of that.” Then, since we see so much of it, we feel that NOT having it means we are a failure or that getting it is much easier than it is. Again, this anchors our expectations higher than reality. It’s the ultimate first-world problem. Then, these high expectations lead us to think results should and will come faster than is possible for most people. So, we try to do too much too fast, fail to meet these expectations, and still feel terrible even when we are making progress. High expectations are a mental parasite. They slowly eat away at your confidence, joy, and willpower. Results usually take longer than you’d like, whether you are trying to lose weight, build muscle, or grow a business. Many days, weeks, and months will seem like failures, and you’ll have no perceptible progress. You’ll often feel like you’re going backward. The problem is that if your expectations are unrealistic, you’ll think you’re doing something wrong. You’ll be tempted to give up and try a faster and easier way. In your search for gold, you’ll dig 100 shallow holes with nothing to show. In your search for physical health, you’ll jump from one gimmick to the next as your confidence dwindles. And it gets worse. Even if you are killing it compared to most people, you won’t feel successful if you don’t meet those high expectations. You’ll burn yourself out striving for an unattainable ideal outcome. Often, this leads to people giving up before they break through. Why low expectations are better Charlie Munger (Warren Buffet’s right-hand man) once said the secret to happiness is lowering your expectations. After doing some deep thinking on the subject, I have to agree. If you have low expectations, you’ll be willing to work harder for less. As a result, you’ll experience more progress and the positive emotions it generates. You’ll be delighted with small wins instead of relieved you didn’t fail. Setbacks (which are inevitable) will be less devastating because you’re expecting them to happen. Meeting or exceeding your expectations consistently will boost your confidence, fill you with positive emotions, and keep you in the game long enough to win. The result will be less stress, higher satisfaction, and even more success as your hard work compounds over time. Be optimistic about the future and realistic about the present. Let me be clear: I’m not saying that you should be pessimistic. I’m hoping to convince you to be more realistic about your short-term results. I think it’s equally important to be optimistic about long-term results. For example, you can build a business that gives you a high income, purpose, and control over your schedule. You can build muscle, lose weight, and get closer to your ideal body. You can build stronger and more fulfilling relationships. Just not immediately (and nowhere fast as you’d hope for). If you can maintain a realistic perspective in the short term and keep expectations low, you will improve your chances of success. If anything, this is an argument for being more optimistic because low expectations can be a tool for increasing effectiveness. Will low expectations limit your success? One benefit of high expectations is they get you moving. The idea that you can have it all now with little effort is seductive. It can wrap you in its spell and have you do things you wouldn’t otherwise do. But that is only a short-term win. Getting started doesn’t matter if you don’t see it through long enough to see results. In fact, constantly trying new things and failing can be detrimental to confidence. So, will low expectations limit success? Maybe, but only if you are complacent. I’m not saying to be complacent. You can shoot for big goals and have low expectations for the short term. Work hard, consistently. Lowering expectations isn’t about throwing up your hands and saying, “screw it.” It’s about being realistic in the short term and understanding that there is no free lunch. There is no reliable, fast, and easy way to riches. If you want a better life, you have to work for it. Lowering expectations is about embracing that work is part of life, no matter how well-off you are. So you gotta work hard. Here’s how I define hard work. It’s not killing yourself with long hours or doing hard manual labor until your feet and hands ache. It’s doing the work that moves you toward your goals, even when you don’t want to. Hard work is doing difficult things. Difficult things include pushing through fear, learning new skills, taking calculated risks, and trying new things. Sometimes hard work is taking a much needed vacation. Sometimes hard work is having a tough conversation with someone. Sometimes hard work is looking at the way you are doing things and realizing you need to make a change. Working hard consistently allows you to make progress. According to the pr

As a professional handyman, I’ve completed many jobs that paid well over $200 per hour and some that paid less than $20. In this podcast episode, I share five of my least profitable jobs. Why? Because those are the ones with some of the biggest lessons. Pricing mistakes are common for handymen. Too common. In fact, pricing mistakes cost me over $50,000 in my first year in business. That’s a lot of cheddar. By simply avoiding many pricing mistakes, you can make a LOT more money. This is especially true if you are within your first few years in this business. So sit back, grab a cup of joe, and enjoy a bunch of stories about my epic pricing failures. HS051 – My top 5 LEAST profitable handyman jobs (and the mistakes that cost me big) Resources Mentioned: Free Handyman Business Startup Kit Video course about pricing your handyman services – $100K Handyman Pricing Transcript: Welcome to another episode of the Handyman Startup Podcast. My name is Dan Perry, and today I’m going to share five of my least profitable jobs that I’ve done as a pro handyman. I’ll share what those jobs were, why they weren’t profitable, and the mistakes that I made that led to me losing time and money on those jobs. Now, pricing mistakes are very common during the first few years for most new service providers, and many of them can be avoided with the right insight and approach. Fixing or avoiding these mistakes is one of the easiest ways to boost your income as a pro handyman. I’ll say that again. Avoiding Simple pricing mistakes that almost everybody makes is one of the easiest ways to boost your income and make more money in less time as a pro handyman. If you’re just getting started, I think you’ll find this episode very helpful. And learning from my mistakes can easily save you thousands of dollars over the course of the next year, and potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars over the course of your career. Now, before we jump into the content today, I’d like to mention that this is a monthly podcast. If you’d like to learn more about starting a handyman business that can replace your income, generate over $100,000 per year in profit, and give you more control over your schedule while allowing you to do services you enjoy without having to hire employees, without having to work more than 40 hours per week, then head over to handymanstartup.com/free. There, you can sign up for my free email newsletter where I share updates and exclusive content you can only access if you’re a subscriber. Plus, I put together a free startup kit that you’ll receive once you sign up. In that, you’ll learn 10 profitable handyman services you can start offering right now, common business mistakes that new handymen almost always make and how to avoid them, and my number one marketing strategy for filling your schedule with profitable jobs. So pause this right now, open up your web browser, visit handymanstartup.com/free, and sign up for my email newsletter. It’ll only take a minute, and you’ll be all set to receive that free startup kit, plus exclusive content and updates shared only with my subscribers. All right, let’s jump right into five of my least profitable jobs ever. Now, a quick caveat here. These jobs were mostly done in 2012 and 2013, when I was just starting my business. Since then, we’ve seen inflation total about 35% since then. So $100 back then had the same purchasing power as $135 now. Or to put that a different way, you’d have to have $135 now to buy the same stuff that you could buy for $100 back in 2012. So these prices might be even lower than what you’d expect for 2024. But just keep that perspective when I am sharing the numbers. All right, job number one. This was a painting job that I did for a friend of a friend, and this was the first job that I ever did as a handyman outside of jobs that I’d done for a couple of friends and on my own home. So this is like the first one. And this was for a young couple. They just had a new baby. They’re living in this two-story home, and they needed their upstairs master bedroom painted, the hallway painted, and the guest bathroom painted. They also wanted a baseboard and they had a drywall repair downstairs. They call me; they know I’m just starting my business, and I take all the measurements and exchange pleasantries. Then I go home, and I have no idea how much to charge for this. I called up somebody I knew who was a contractor, and I asked him, How would you quote this job? And he said, Well, painters usually charge by the square foot. So you just find out whatever the rate is in your area, multiply it by that, and you come up with a number for that. The same thing applies to the baseboards; you multiply whatever the rate is by the linear feet, and you charge by the linear foot. For the baseboards, you charge for painting by the square foot. So I’m like, Okay, great. So I sit down, I write it up. I come up with this quote, I think it’s like $900. I can’t remember the exact number. But I thought, Wow, that seems high. Okay, $900 just to paint a couple of bedrooms. It’s almost $1,000 just for some painting and on the baseboards. It seemed high to me. It’s not something I would personally invest in. But anyway, I submit this quote. I do the job, and the job ends up taking me way longer than I thought it would. It took me an entire week to do this project. I was there for eight hours minimum each day, running up and down the stairs, hustling as hard as I could, trying to do really good work, but it was a lot of work. And it took me a full week. If you run the numbers, you will see that there was about $200 or $300 in materials for that project. I think more like $300. So I made $600 for an entire week of work. And if you do the math, that’s only $15 per hour. Plus, I felt rushed and stressed pretty much the entire time I was doing the project. And then, to top it off, the customer didn’t even seem happy about it when I was done. They probably knew they got a serious discount, but they also probably thought it would take way less time, and then I would do it in a day or two like a professional painter probably would have. I didn’t get any referrals from this job. That customer never hired me again. I didn’t make very much money. I mean, it was a pretty bad situation. I didn’t enjoy that. It was my first job. It was early December when I was first starting my business. Now, looking back at that project, I would have charged probably more like $6,000 for a similar project. But realistically, I’d probably turn it down because I don’t like painting jobs. I don’t take on painting jobs anyway. I wouldn’t have even quoted the job. So, what mistakes led to this? What were my mistakes? Now, the number one mistake here was that I was too eager for the job. When I was quoting processing this job, I was thinking, I need to make absolute sure that they say yes to this so I get this job. This is my only job. This might be my only opportunity. And I was thinking irrationally at that moment, processing it as if it was my only opportunity. And if I didn’t get If I were to get that job, somehow my business was going to fail or something. I don’t know what was going on in there, but I was too eager. And whenever you’re too eager for a job, and you need that job, that’s almost always going to lead to bad pricing decisions. Another mistake I made was quoting based on a different business model. I operate a handyman business that provides a variety of small repairs. So I can’t necessarily compete with a painting company that has benefits different from those of working with me. I’m the guy that you call to do everything. I’ll do a wide variety of projects. You only have to call one person. There are other benefits behind that. So, my pricing model isn’t going to be the same. Whereas a painting company is going to hire cheap labor to do that job, so they’re going to be able to make it profitable despite charging a little bit less, maybe charging those rates. Plus, there was a bunch of stuff that I missed out. There were a whole bunch of additional factors that I should have factored into my pricing. For example, sanding the paint, a lot of the prep work that I needed to do, removing the old baseboards, painting the baseboards, the fact that it was upstairs and I had to go up and down the stairs, the fact that they had furniture in there that I had to move around while I was doing the project, which made it way more difficult to work. I think they still had their bed in the middle of the room, so I had to work around that while I was doing this project. So there are all these different factors that should have significantly increased the price, even if I was pricing it based on that different business model. The third mistake that I made was that my pricing was more based on fear versus the numbers that I needed to hit to make a profit. I was too worried about having a good price versus saying, Here’s what I need to charge to run a profitable business. And that’s a mistake that a lot of people make. So that’s job number one, one of my first jobs. Did I learn a lot? I’m not even sure I learned all that much from that job. I learned that I probably wouldn’t take on a painting job like that with their furniture in the house and that if I did, I would probably need to charge more. But I was still pretty new. I wasn’t even sure that that was a pricing mistake as much as I thought it might have been a lack of skill. But it wasn’t a lack of skill. It was definitely how I was looking at that job and the pricing mistakes. All right, second job. The next job I want to talk about was a deck repair that I did. Now, I don’t remember how I got this lead, but I go out there, visit the customer, and they need some deck repairs. Basically, their deck that’s on their second story, the joist hangers are starting to pull away from the ledger board that’s attached to the house. So they’re worried that their deck will fall down,

How would you like to know an easy way to grow a business where… You don’t have to make sacrifices You don’t have to spend much time or make any big commitments. You don’t have to spend lots of money. You don’t have to make any tough decisions. You don’t have to do anything you don’t like, and you can have other people do it for you. You get to do the work you enjoy most daily, plus the freedom and fulfillment of a profitable business. Sound compelling? Of course, it does. But it’s ridiculous. If starting a profitable business was that easy, everyone would do it, competition would quickly outpace demand, and it would be hard again very quickly. Starting a business will always be challenging, as it should be. You want it to be challenging, so the rewards are worth it. But, there are easier ways to start a business than others, and that’s what I discuss in this episode. Listen to the podcast version of this article, which includes extra content. Listen right here or on your favorite podcast app! HS050 – Starting a business the easy way Don’t wait for things to be easy because they never will be I was talking to a handyman last week. He was in a tough situation. He had a full-time job. He was offering handyman services on the side. He was commuting to a different city for his jobs and wanted to build his handyman business full-time in the city where he lived. But he felt there was too much competition and wasn’t sure he could make it work. He also knew that if he were going to make it work, he would need to establish an online presence to generate enough customers to keep his schedule full. So, he started building his website. He got through the first couple of steps but quickly ran into a snag. It was more challenging than he expected, and he wasn’t sure how to proceed. Riddled in uncertainty and frustration, he gave up to find an easier way. As a result, he was no closer to escaping that situation and having that full-time business in the city where he lives. There’s no judgment here. I’ve done the same thing many times. I also admire him for continuing to seek a solution, which is why we were speaking in the first place. But here’s what often happens when trying to grow a business. A task you are doing is harder than you expected. Maybe that’s naming your business, filing for an LLC, building your website, or attracting your first customers. It takes longer than you expected. It’s more confusing. It costs more money than you thought it would. So you start to doubt yourself. You start to lose motivation. You wonder if it’s worth it. You wonder if you’re cut out for this. You wonder if there’s some easier way out there. And you want to give up. Then you start to think, maybe there’s some secret others know I don’t. And so, often, that leads you to give up. Over the years, I’ve consulted with many who run into this roadblock. They want a more profitable business. I tell them a solution, and immediately, I see it on their faces. Their reaction says, “Well, that sounds hard. I don’t want to do that. I don’t know how to do that. I can’t do that. Isn’t there an easier way?” Again, this often leads to giving up or waiting for things to be easy (which rarely happens). So, they consume more information, do more research, and try to gain certainty when the reality is that certainty does not exist. You will never be 100% certain. And yes, maybe there is an easier way to move forward, and you should look for it. But most of the time, there isn’t an easier way, and waiting for an easier way keeps you stuck. If you keep waiting for things to be easy, nothing will change. Business growth happens when you face challenges head-on Almost every time I’ve created significant growth within my business, it’s because I faced a challenging situation head-on. It’s not because I found an easy way or had some advantage. For example, when deciding which business to start, I read several books on career options and how to find my purpose. I desperately wanted somebody to tell me, “Here’s what you should do, man. This is what you’re good at. You should do that.” But nobody could. I had no other option than to stick with the problem until it was solved, which took me months. It was uncomfortable, but I had no choice but to push through until I felt good about a decision. Eventually, I decided to start a handyman business. When I started my business, nobody wanted to hire me because I looked like a teenager. People would disregard me because I looked so young. They assumed I didn’t have enough skills or experience. To be fair, they were probably right. But I still wanted to start my business, and I’d already quit my engineering job. So, instead of giving up, I dove into digital marketing. I studied it. It was hard. I was uncertain if it would work, but it was my best chance. So, I focused on it. I did things that other handymen wouldn’t do, and I thrived as a result. Another time, I didn’t know how to price my services, and I felt like I was wasting my time making way less money than I could be with my handyman services. At the time, I was podcasting, blogging, and running my handyman business. I didn’t have kids then, so I had more time to do these things. But while doing my handyman services, I knew I wasn’t making as much money as I could be. I knew I was underpricing jobs. I spent way too much time figuring out how to quote a job. I had too many gaps in my schedule between jobs. I was leaving a ton of money on the table, but I didn’t know the solution. I searched for advice and couldn’t find a good solution. Eventually, I got to the point where I was like, “Man, I’m not getting anywhere. I’m just spinning my wheels.” So, I had to do something challenging. I stopped podcasting. I cut back on my handyman services and made less money while focusing on figuring out how to price my services more profitably. It took me about nine months, but I ended up writing the first book on handyman pricing. That book sold well over a thousand copies, and I eventually learned even better pricing strategies, which I used to build my pricing course “$100K Handyman Pricing.” As a result of facing the challenge instead of waiting for an easy way, I started making more money as a handyman. I started scheduling my services more efficiently, making more money and less time. I was able to sell these programs to help other handymen make more money in less time. That was a huge breakthrough. But it wouldn’t have happened if I had just kept trying to do the same things I was doing (which was easier). Again, every time I’ve seen growth in my business, it’s because I went through one of those challenges, which was always difficult. Any time I’ve waited for something to be easy, I’ve made little or no progress. And trust me, there have been many of those times. You WANT it to be difficult to grow a business; you just may not realize it yet. Everyone is always looking for an easy way to grow a business. But here’s why you want it to be difficult to start a business… Easy leads to competition. The best example of this is crowded ski slopes. If you’ve been skiing over the last decade, I guarantee your favorite mountain is way busier than it was ten years ago. Many argue that convenience, low-priced season passes, and corporate greed have ruined skiing. Ease is what ruined skiing (at least on Friday-Sunday at major ski resorts). But, when skiing is not easy, it’s far less crowded and, in my opinion, more fun. Just going during bad weather will cut the crowds in half. Or, even better, if you’re willing to get a backcountry setup, you can access fresh powder more consistently. It’s just not nearly as easy. Any challenge weeds out a tremendous portion of the population. With business, you want challenges and obstacles to weed out competition. If starting a business was easy, everybody would do it, and supply would rapidly outpace demand. But that’s actually impossible because there’s a natural balance. As supply increases faster than demand, competition increases, making it more challenging for businesses to stay in business. The people who aren’t willing to make the sacrifices and do the hard things give up, which balances things out. And that’s why it continues to work; it’s not easy. Many businesses work hard to create artificial obstacles to keep people out of their market. They want it to be hard for you. One example of this is contractor licensing regulations. Who do you think is the biggest fan of contractor licensing regulations that limit you from being able to do plumbing, HVAC, or electrical without a specialty license? It’s the people who have a license! They want as few people to have those licenses as possible so they can charge higher rates and make more money. Challenges = Opportunities So, when you hit one of these challenges along your business journey, look at it as an opportunity. It means that a certain percentage of the people trying to start that business will automatically be weeded out, and all you have to do is keep going to gain an advantage. When trying to get customers, you have many options. Most people opt for the easy path and pay for leads. Welcome to the crowds! Enjoy paying too much for leads and fighting for scraps. But if you’re willing to do some things that other people aren’t willing to do, like the things that I teach in Handiman Marketing Machine, you’ll be cruising down a much less crowded and more profitable road. Don’t seek easy. Seek advantages. There’s a counterintuitive truth if you want to make growing a business easy. The easy way to grow a business is to stop looking for the easy way and start looking for advantages. If I were to change that slightly, I would say, “Stop looking for the easy way and start working for advantages.” Looking for advantages is important. You need to find those advantages. But ultimately, you’ll spend more of your time working to obtain those advantages because they won’t be something you st

Mounting TVs can be a lucrative service for any handyman. It has a high perceived value relative to install time, so you can easily make $100-$200 per hour. It’s a great, low-risk way for a new customer to test your services, allowing you to quickly build your client base. And it’s just a low-stress, enjoyable job. That’s why I’ve invested time to promote and specialize in this service. And in this article and podcast episode, I’m going to share five business lessons I’ve learned after mounting well over 100 TVs. And by the way, these lessons apply to any home service. Listen to the podcast version of this article, which includes extra content. Listen right here or on your favorite podcast app! HS049 – 5 Indispensable Business Lessons From Mounting 100 TVs How I Started Mounting TVs I mounted my first TV in 2012 for a middle-aged woman who found me on Craigslist. I was surprised by the request when she called since I’d never mounted a TV before. So when she asked how much it would cost, I blurted out the first number that came to my head. “Seventy-five dollars,” I said with fake confidence. To my surprise, she agreed, and I scheduled the job for later that day. When I knocked at her door, I was anxious (and probably awkward) because I wasn’t sure what to expect. To make it even worse, she sat on the couch, watching my every move as I fumbled with the instructions. It took me well over an hour (about twice as long as it should have), but I completed the project, and she paid me with a smile. At first, I figured this was a fluke job because it was so easy, and I didn’t think many people would pay for this service. I was wrong. A couple of weeks later, I signed up for Service Magic (now called HomeAdvisor) and started paying for leads. I received my first lead to hang a TV shortly after signing up. I quickly jumped on the lead and told the customer it would cost $100 (again, just a number I pulled out of thin air on the spot). The customer said yes, and I put it on my schedule. Later that day (my schedule was wide open), I arrived at this wealthy attorney’s estate and immediately realized the job was over my head. The TV was a gigantic 80″ monster. I couldn’t put this thing on the wall by myself. But I was already there, so I went to work anyway. Once the bracket was attached to the wall, I asked the customer to help me lift the TV to place it on the wall. I felt very unprofessional, but she didn’t seem bothered. Again, she paid me with a smile and hired me for many more projects over the coming years. Again, I felt like this service wasn’t something I could consistently offer. First, I didn’t think many people would need it, and second, I figured that few customers would tolerate helping lift the TV they paid to have installed. Wrong again. Over the next decade, I’d mount over a hundred TVs for hundreds of customers. During that process, I learned several valuable business lessons that can be applied to any home service. Here are some of those lessons. Lesson #1 – Some things can only be learned by DOING. Despite doing thorough research before starting my handyman business, I’d never heard anyone discussing mounting TVs (again, this was back in 2011). This service wouldn’t have crossed my path if I didn’t start my business. Only by immersing myself in the handyman business did I make this discovery. This is true for countless insights I’ve gained by going deep with the handyman business. Another example is marketing. My #1 most effective marketing strategy, responsible for 90% of all leads I’ve received in the last decade, was something I discovered after testing a strategy I’d learned from an online marketing course I took a year earlier. But by immersing myself in marketing and doing it myself, I uncovered gold. That marketing strategy now keeps me as busy as I want to be for my most profitable jobs with virtually no time or money. I would never have discovered this strategy if I had just stayed at surface-level education, such as watching or listening to other people talk about marketing. I had to go deep, immerse myself in it, and do it myself. But many people don’t take action. Instead, they watch YouTube videos, estimate the results they might get, and decide the juice isn’t worth the squeeze. So they do nothing and, consequently, don’t learn anything. When you actually DO something yourself, that’s when you learn. That’s when your perception of the world shifts. That’s when new possibilities open up. When you engage in the world and try things (instead of living vicariously through others), you make discoveries that no one is talking about online, propelling your business and freedom forward. I’ve learned a lot from mentors, and I continue to read books, invest in my education, and learn from others. But, most of my most profitable decisions and discoveries resulted from taking action. So, lesson #1 – Do things. Stop thinking about starting a business and try it. And then stick with it long enough to go beyond having just a surface-level understanding. Stop thinking about raising your prices and try it. See what happens and what insights you gain. Stop thinking about building a website and get to work. Lesson #2 – View competition as a signal, not a stop sign. It’s easy to look at a business idea and get discouraged by all the competition, but when you do that, you’re already beaten. The truth is that there is always competition, but there is also always opportunity. The competition for mounting TVs seems pretty steep. First, Best Buy’s Geek Squad seems to have a monopoly on the service. Then you have Costco, HelloTech, Walmart, Home Depot, and other big players offering the service. It seems impossible for a one-person handyman with a small marketing budget to make any meaningful money from this service. Yet, I continue to generate new leads every month WITHOUT paying a dime to advertise. I could easily get more if I wanted to invest in some advertising. If I were an outsider, I’d assume trying to get customers for this service would be a waste of time. The only reason I know it’s not a waste of time is I’ve seen the reality myself by immersing myself in it (back to lesson #1). When you see competition, view it as a signal that a given service is in demand. Competition indicates that people actively pay for the thing you want to sell. That’s a good thing. Also, you don’t need a 100% market share to make money. You just need a small chunk of the pie. Lesson #3 – Execute the basics first As a new handyman, it’s easy to get caught worrying about small stuff like having the optimal tool bucket, driving the ideal vehicle, or looking stupid in front of a customer because the project takes longer than expected. And sure, those things probably do have an impact. But the majority of your time and effort should be on two things: Doing high-quality work. Offering great service. If you provide excellent customer service and do immaculate work, your customers won’t care if you drive a Honda Accord or if your cordless drill is eight years old. If you take longer to do something right, customers will quickly forget about that extra time and mainly remember your great work. If you mount a TV straight and securely to the wall in the exact spot the customer wants, they won’t care if you use a $30 mount from Amazon. Sure, you may be able to charge more if you can expertly explain the benefits of a full-motion mount, but that is secondary to the main thing, which is doing the job well and being a pleasure to work with. It doesn’t matter how many fancy features or extra benefits you add to the project if you don’t execute the basics. Take the example of having the customer help lift the TV. This is clearly not ideal. Ideally you’d have a helper so the customers wouldn’t have to be involved. But as it turns out, that’s OK. A helper is just an extra benefit that goes beyond the basics. This problem can be easily solved by asking the customer if someone will be available to help lift the TV before you schedule the job. Great communication is one of the easiest ways to improve service. While mounting TVs, I’ve learned that most customers just want me to show up on time, mount the TV so it’s perfectly level, and have the peace of mind that it won’t fall off the wall. Anything else is just a bonus. Lesson #4 – Strive to be the best It pays to be the best. Once you execute the basics, continually level up your game and strive to be the best. Never get complacent. Sometimes, being the best can be as simple as investing in the right tools. If there is a tool that will make me better at mounting TVs, I will buy it. One example is a borescope. This tool allows me to drill a small hole in the wall and then stick a camera in that hole to find studs or see what is behind the wall. Most TV mounting companies don’t have a borescope because it’s unnecessary for 95% of jobs. The magic of this little $200 tool is that it allows me to mount TVs to faux stone walls above a fireplace without drilling 20 holes to find a stud. This makes me look more professional, increases my capabilities and confidence, and allows me to charge a premium. One customer called me to mount TVs in a 100-year-old home with lathe and plaster walls. He tried to get other companies out there, but nobody would touch it. I knew it would be a challenge (I’d never done it before), but I was dedicated to being the best at this service, and I viewed the challenge as a way to differentiate myself. The project took a bit longer than expected (luckily, I charged a premium), but I learned a new skill in the process, and I’m now confident for the next century-old home I encounter. When you commit to a specialty, it is much easier to justify buying expensive tools or honing your skills to become the best. But even if you don’t specialize, always try to level up your game. Lesson #5 – Don’t be afraid to test different marketing methods Many new entrepreneurs are afraid to t

Here’s an inspiring interview with a handyman who started his business just over a year ago. After receiving an ultimatum from his boss, Evaristo Gomez left his secure job as a finish carpenter’s apprentice to grow his handyman business full-time – even though he had a wife and young child at home to support. That takes courage. And his bravery paid off. Today, Evaristo is the proud owner of a thriving business that not only surpasses his previous job in terms of income but also grants him the flexibility to be there for his family whenever they need him. And that’s just a little over a year in! HS048 – Evaristo Gomez Shares His Story After One Year In Business as a Pro Handyman Here’s what we discuss in this episode: Evaristo’s courageous journey – leaving his secure income for a better life. How Evaristo accidentally drilled into a pipe in the wall and caused a leak on one of his first jobs. The challenges of getting started – doubts, fears, and more. How Evaristo estimates jobs. The type of work Evaristo is doing. How Evaristo stands out from the competition. About Evaristo Gomez Evaristo is the proud owner of A Pleasant Handyman Service, which serves residents of Winlock, Washington, and surrounding areas. After buying a 1930s-built home, Evaristo was overwhelmed by his growing list of repairs and lack of skills. When a contractor came in and helped him address the issues, his peace of mind returned. From that moment, he was inspired to do the same for others. So, after working in several jobs in the construction industry, he eventually went out on his own and started his handyman business – where he focuses on bringing a pleasant experience and peace of mind to his clients. And since he’s experienced so much success with his business, he’s been inspired to help others at his church start home repair businesses as well. The post Pro Handyman Shares His Story After One Year In Business appeared first on Handyman Startup.

Credibility is essential to gaining new clients and growing a business. But, this topic is often misunderstood by people new to the home repair business. Pros tend to overvalue certain credibility boosters, like having a contractor’s license or having lots of experience, and undervalue other methods for boosting credibility. This often results in competent people being too scared to start their businesses because they don’t think they can make it work without the proper credentials. Additionally, people often make the mistake of assuming that credibility is some objective truth when, in reality, it is a subjective perception. And because it is just a perception, it can be easily manipulated. Manipulating credibility is one of the main purposes of marketing. This has many unfortunate implications, such as unqualified people successfully selling low-quality services and ripping people off. However, there is a positive side as well. For those who are more than competent to provide quality handyman services yet lack the typical experience or credentials, you can pull the right marketing levers to instantly boost credibility and fill your schedule with profitable jobs. That’s how I started my business. Despite looking like a teenager and having very little home repair experience, I established credibility and built a profitable handyman business relatively quickly. And in this podcast episode, I share how I did that and other powerful ways to build credibility. HS047 – How to quickly gain credibility Here’s what you’ll learn in this episode: How credibility makes everything about growing a business easier and more fun Why credibility allows you to charge more than your competition Four quick ways to boost your credibility – regardless of your experience level or credentials The most powerful methods for increasing your credibility   The post How To Quickly Gain Credibility appeared first on Handyman Startup.

It’s officially spring, which means the busy season for home services is about to ramp up. If you’ve been in business for a while, you already know that the peak season for most home services is during the Spring and Summer, peaking around May through September. If you didn’t know, now you do. So, it’s time to get prepared. In this article and podcast episode, I share four simple actions you can take right now, to not only make more money this summer, but to leverage the busy season to build momentum into the winter. Let’s jump right in. Listen to the podcast version of this article, which includes extra content. Listen right here or on your favorite podcast app! HS046 – Four Simple Ways to Make More Money This Summer #1 – Invest in Good Software A good CRM/field management software is essential to running a professional handyman business. It will make you look more professional, help you provide better service and communication, keep you organized, and more. Basically, It will help you make more money. However, one feature of a good CRM that is particularly useful for building momentum is automated review requests. Reviews are a critical pillar of online marketing for home service. You should always focus on getting more of them. However, it’s challenging to remember to always ask for a review, and even when you do, unless it is super easy, most customers won’t do it, even if they love your services. That’s why automated review requests are so useful. A good CRM will automatically send each customer a text and an email requesting a review with a link to leave the review. That way, all the customer has to do is click the link and leave a review. Plus, they have a nice little reminder to improve their chances of leaving one. Here’s the CRM I use and a list of other good ones. There are many benefits to using a good CRM, so if you’re still on the fence about using one, just do it. You can always cancel later if you don’t think it’s worth it. But the more likely scenario is that you’ll feel silly for not trying one sooner. #2 – Setup/Optimize your Google Business Profile Speaking of online reviews, the first place to focus on online reviews in 99% of cases is on your Google Business Profile. Any online review is great, but a review on Google is the best. You can learn more about Google Business Profile here. If you haven’t already set up your profile, do that immediately. That way, you can link your CRM to your profile and start racking up those five-star reviews. This process only takes an hour to two, plus up to a week to get verified. So do it now. That way, you can establish some reviews while busy this year, making it easier to attract customers during the slow season. If you haven’t updated your Google Business Profile for a while, now is a good time to do that so you can ensure your business information is up to date and spruced up. Spending just fifteen minutes here could lead to several high-quality leads over the next few months. #3 – Dial in Your Pricing Strategy The last thing you want to do is bog yourself down constantly while worrying about how much to charge, if you are charging enough, or if you are charging too much. That wastes way too much mental energy. It also leads to making less money. It’s best to enter this busy season with clarity and confidence – especially with pricing. And the best place to gain clarity and confidence with pricing home repairs is right here. Yes, there is an investment required, but it will easily pay for itself in a matter of days or weeks. Heck, maybe even with your next project. Dialing in your pricing will not just help you make a little extra money, but a LOT more money. It’s not rare for me to see someone double their profits by implementing those strategies. If you’re going to be working hard this summer, you might as well squeeze as much profit out of your hard work as you can – that way, you can invest into growing your business, take vacations, or just feel more secure financially. Don’t step over dollars to pick up pennies. Learn how to profit from your effort. Your customers will thank you, and so will your wife. #4 – Prepare your pitch I’m not talking about learning sophisticated sales techniques or constantly selling things to customers. I’m talking about having a good answer to one simple question: “What services do you offer?” When first-time customers hire you, they may not realize that you offer other services. If they like your services, they will often ask you what else you do. It’s easy to stumble on this if you aren’t prepared. So, spend fifteen minutes or an hour writing down your answer. Think of the main services you’d like to promote. Practice your answer so you are confident when customers ask. Don’t be afraid to mention how you are different than your competitors and who your services are best for. As a bonus, prepare a handout that lists your services and describes the benefits of hiring you. This is a great way communicate what you do and to let customers know that you are interested in working more for them. Don’t just assume they know you want more business. Let them know! Conclusion The busy season can sometimes be overwhelming, making investing time into working on your business difficult. However, by preparing these four things right now (which won’t take that long), you will set yourself up to make more money, look more professional, and have more fun this summer. You’ll also build momentum for your business that will take you into the upcoming fall/winter season. The post Preparing For The Busy Season: Four Simple Ways to Make More Money This Summer appeared first on Handyman Startup.

Every once in a while, I encounter someone who transforms my perspective on what is possible in business. Tommy Mello is one of those people. After reading his book, Elevate, and interviewing him, I find myself waking up early in the morning eager to implement new ideas for my business. If you don’t know Tommy, he is the founder and CEO of A1 Garage Doors, a 200-million-dollar company based in Phoenix, Arizona. A1 Garage Doors is now in 22 states and growing at an insane pace. If you can read Tommy’s books and meet him, you can see why he has succeeded. He works hard, cares for his employees, and constantly seeks knowledge. He consistently maintains a bigger vision for his company and thinks differently than most business owners in the home service industry. It was a pleasure and an honor having him on the podcast. Give this episode a listen, and I guarantee you’ll find something you can apply to grow your business. Here’s what we discuss in this episode… How he went from painting garage doors to building a 200+ million dollar garage door company. The value of asking for help and how to get other contractors to help you. How to increase your booking rate (turn more calls into jobs). How A1 Garage Doors closes 62% of jobs they quote. Insights into his company’s structure and each employee’s roles in the sales process. Why you should offer financing to your customers and how to do it. The tools Tommy uses to run his business. Recommended books and much more. HS045 – Full Interview with Tommy Mellow: How to sell your services, book more jobs, motivate employees, get help from other contractors, and grow a $200 million home service business.   About Tommy Mello Tommy is the founder and CEO of A1 Garage Doors, the largest privately owned garage door company in the nation that does over $200 million in revenue and operates in 22 states. Tommy has been in the home service industry for 17 years. He’s also the host of The Home Service Expert Podcast and the author of two Amazon Best Sellers, Elevate and The Home Service Millionaire. Tommy is a genius at building systems, scaling businesses, motivating employees, and creating a culture that attracts top talent. When it comes to growing a home service business, few can rival his expertise. Books, Links, and Resources Mentioned In the Interview Book a shop tour with Tommy: TommyMello.com/shop Books by Tommy: Elevate and The Home Service Millionaire 7 Power Contractor by Al Levi 10X is Easier Than 2X by Dan Sullivan & Dr. Benjamin Hardy How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie Buy Back Your Time by Dan Martel Al Levi (helped Tommy with his org charge and helped him rebrand) Power BI Chiirp – Text automation for customer followup Rilla – AI tool for recording calls and extracting useful information Service Titan – The CMS Tommy uses with A1 Garage Doors RapidHirePro – Use to recruit top talent Paylocity – Payroll software GoodLeap – Offer customer financing. Notes and Key Takeaways Tommy mentions that he is quick to ask for help and seek people smarter than him, which is a big part of his success. How to create a vision – Whiteboard sessions. Figure out what you need to do to get to your goal. Everybody’s vision should be within five years, and part of the goal should be to sell part of your business. If you don’t sell, your hair will turn gray, and your relationships will suffer. A good CFO can do wonders for your business. 30% of all jobs financed. When a customer finances a project, they are more likely to choose a more expensive option. “When you only give one option, you give an ultimatum.” Give at least three options to customers. Six is ideal. 60% of revenue from service, 40% from installation. Technicians T up the sale of a new garage door, and product specialists close the deal on the phone. After the product specialist explains the options, they say – “do you want to use your money, or do you want to use our money?” Then, present financing options. Closes 62% of jobs they quote. He charges a $39 trip charge (which he’ll waive in some situations). Doesn’t teach his guys much sales. Smile, Listen more, be a good human being. Ask them about their life and work. Doesn’t sell everything at once because it creates sticker shock. First, he’ll get the door working. He’ll fix whatever they need. Then, he’ll try to sell the keypad, bottom rubber, surge protector, etc. The average home service company is booking 43% of the calls; they are at 87%.  To increase it, pay your CSR based on the booking rate (performance pay), have an online chat on your website, and respond instantly to Angi and Home Advisor leads. Pay a CSR to take calls at night. Script: “Look, Mr. Jones. we really want to earn your work today because we know you will tell your friends and family all about us. What is going to take to earn your business?” A1 Garage Doors has its own signature springs called “Max-Life Springs.” Tommy believes all service companies should be developing their IP. He plans to go public and then buy everything. “Roll up the other garage door companies.” KPI for service techs Lifetime Revenue Conversion rate Gross Close – Service to sales Average Review (most guys sit at 4.7) Recall Rate (below 2%) How much did you use for financing? I’ve only captured some of the valuable information Tommy shared with me. I recommend listening to the full episode and investing in his books. The post How to sell your services, book more jobs, and grow a $200 million home service business with Tommy Mello appeared first on Handyman Startup.

You only need to do two things to grow a profitable home repair business. Put in consistent, focused work. Work on the right things. That’s because the handyman business is a PROVEN business model. There are thousands of handymen all over the world already doing this. Simply follow best practices, put in the work, and do that consistently, and as long as your city is big enough to have a hardware store, you will eventually build a thriving business. However, that is MUCH easier said than done. That’s because there are many pitfalls along the way that sap motivation, focus, and time, making it impossible to grow a business. These pitfalls are why competent, motivated people fail to build a business they love. So, in this podcast episode, I discuss four of those pitfalls and how to avoid them so you can finally grow your business to the level you want. If you’d like 2024 to be the year where you finally reach your business goals, then I highly recommend listening to this podcast and taking notes. HS044 – Avoiding Common Pitfalls: Four Reasons Competent People Fail In Business In this episode, you’ll learn: Four reasons competent people fail to grow a business. How your immediate environment determines whether you follow through or give up. How to boost and maintain your motivation over the long term so your business growth becomes a matter of time. How to increase confidence and clarity. How to become a more effective person in general. I’m confident that if you implement the protocols in this episode, you will make substantial progress toward your business goals this year. Links and Resources: Register for the upcoming webinar here. Podcast episode on overcoming the fears of starting a business. How to set SMART goals. The post Avoiding Common Pitfalls: Four Reasons Competent People Fail In Business appeared first on Handyman Startup.

There are many profitable services to offer as a handyman, and one niche you may not have heard about is Aging-In-Place services. Aging-In-Place services are home modifications and improvements that allow aging adults to live in their homes safely and for longer. Examples include installing grab bars and rails, building ramps, improving lighting, and installing chair lifts. Aging-In-Place services first came on my radar about eight months ago when one of my students mentioned it on a live webinar. Ever since, I’ve seen it pop up all over the place. And that’s why I’m excited to bring you this interview with Pat Lund. As the executive director of Age Well At Home, he’s an expert in this field and happily shares how to capitalize on this growing business opportunity. HS043 – How to build a profitable aging-in-place business – Interview with Pat Lund About Pat Lund Pat is the creator and executive director of Age Well At Home – a non-profit business in The Twin Cities, Minnesota, that provides home modification and improvements to help aging adults live in their homes for longer. Pat has a ton of experience in the home service industry, which started when he got a job painting houses to help him get through high school. He later became director of several non-profit programs, including Paint-a-Thon, Meals on Wheels, and A Brush with Kindness. He worked locally and nationally with Habitat for Humanity to implement programs to assist lower-income families in maintaining their homes. About six years ago, Habitat for Humanity wanted him to help create a program to help the aging population stay in their homes, eventually leading to his current venture. Aside from his vast experience and connections, he’s just an overall nice guy who wants to connect with and help others in this industry. Resources Mentioned in the Podcast AgeWellAtHome.org (Pat’s website) National Council of Non-Profits (Help to financing for non-profits) Become a Certified Aging-In-Place Specialist (CAPS training) Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies (home service statistics) Johns Hopkins CAPABLE Notes and Takeaways From This Episode These are great services if you enjoy working with your hands and helping people. The average job size to transform a home is $4,000-$5,000, but just $1,500 in home modifications can go a long way toward making a home safer for seniors. The population of people over 60 is exploding, so the demand and opportunities are growing. Most in-demand services include: Grab bar installation, Ramps, and Chair lifts. Other services: Taller toilets, walk-in shower installation, tub cut-outs, changing appliances, changing and adding lights, handheld shower heads. It can be challenging to gain the trust of seniors, but partnering with their healthcare providers is a great way to establish trust. If you can get them to recommend you, they will trust you. This is hard to do, but it’s well worth it. Advertising in the newspaper, local radio or TV station, and other local media outlets is a great way to reach potential customers. News outlets love a story about someone who had their life improved by some of these services. About 1/3 of referrals come from the kids of the aging adults. Becoming a Certified Aging-In-Place Specialist is a great way to build trust and connect with like minded individuals. Running your business as a non-profit can help build trust and allow you to help people who otherwise wouldn’t be able to afford your services. Aging-In-Place services are easy to learn, but business skills are what make the difference between success and failure. The post Unlocking the Business Potential of Aging-In-Place Services with Pat Lund appeared first on Handyman Startup.

After interviewing Rick McFadden and Bryan Clayton on my podcast – two guys who have scaled their home services businesses, I’ve been thinking a lot about the pros and cons of hiring employees. Is it worth the effort and stress? And since I’m certain I’m not the only one, I decided to write about the topic in-depth. So, in this podcast & article, I’ll dive into the advantages and disadvantages of hiring employees vs running a solo handyman business. I’d love to hear your thoughts as well. Please comment at the bottom of this article to share your opinion. Let’s start with the advantages of each. Listen to the podcast version of this article, which includes extra content. Listen right here or on your favorite podcast app! HS042 – Should You Hire Employees or Stay Solo? The advantages of staying solo #1 – It’s Enjoyable Being a handyman is the most enjoyable job I’ve had, which is why I continue to do it. I get to work with my hands, buy new tools, build relationships with my customers, do something new every day, and customers pay me with a smile. Jobs are short, so looming stress is rare. Sure, sometimes I’m doing something repetitive or boring, or I forget an essential tool and that puts me behind schedule and stresses me out, but for the most part, it’s a great career. I certainly enjoy it more than sitting in front of a computer. #2 – It’s Healthy Providing handyman services is relatively low-stress once your business is established and you get your systems down. Stress is a big killer in America, so this isn’t a small benefit. Providing handyman services is also an active job without being too labor intensive. You get to keep moving all day without breaking your back, carrying heavy loads, digging with a jackhammer, or working in uncomfortable positions for long periods. Lowering your stress and living an active lifestyle not only makes you feel better but it lowers your chances of diabetes, heart disease, and other diseases of modernity. Then, there is the social component of the job. As social creatures, we humans need healthy relationships with others. We also need to feel needed. As a handyman, you get both of these things. Less stress, more activity, and connection with others = better health. #3 – Flexible Schedule As a solo handyman, if you need some time off, you can take it. Your business won’t crumble to pieces while you’re gone. But when you hire employees, the stakes are a bit higher. Other people are relying on you to make tough decisions and put out fires. If you get burned out, you might not have a choice to take time off. You are fully committed. In many ways, that commitment is a good thing. It will keep you motivated and help you push through challenges you otherwise wouldn’t. But that may come with a hefty dose of stress, working long hours, and burning yourself out. Of course, once you get to the point where you have good people around you managing the day-to-day of your business, then you can take more time off. But, there will inevitably be stages where taking a break isn’t optional. A solo handyman business wins regarding the flexibility of your schedule. #4 – It’s easy (relatively) Starting any business is challenging because you not only have to work hard and make good decisions, but you also have to overcome setbacks and win the mental game. However, when comparing the two, scaling a business is clearly more difficult than starting a one-person show. There is more risk, tough decisions, and pitfalls along the journey when employees are involved. As a one-person handyman business, all you have to manage is yourself and the customer’s expectations. #5 – It’s a fast path to profits and more leisure time. Once you get your solo business up and running, which can be done in a matter of months with strategic effort, you can enjoy extra free time and control over your schedule. During the first several years of scaling a business, you will likely need to work hard six or seven days a week. Working solo is also a much faster way to a six-figure income because scaling a business requires investing much of your profits into growth, meaning a longer timeline of several years before you can have a high income, and even then, it will be limited by your motivation to grow. When working solo, any business growth immediately translates to higher income. Overall, a one-person handyman business is a great career with many benefits, but let’s look at the advantages of hiring employees. The advantages of hiring employees #1 – Higher Income Potential One of the main reasons to scale a business is to make more money, and who doesn’t want to make more money? As a solo handyman, you can make a solid income of well over $100,000 per year if you dial in your marketing, pricing, and specialties. But, no matter how well you dial in your business, you’ll always be limited by how much time you can work. If you scale your business and hire employees, the income potential exponentially increases. If you go big enough, there’s no reason you couldn’t make $1M per year in profit, although I’m sure that is rare. So, the income potential is higher, but that isn’t guaranteed, and it often means making less money for several years while you invest in your business to grow it. Growing a business is always a game of delayed gratification. #2 – Passive Income (more leisure time) You can make more money when you hire employees, and that money can be made passively once you get to a certain point. This is more difficult than it’s made out to be in books like “The 4-hour Workweek,” but once you get good systems and people in place, you can take a step back from your business and let other people run the day-to-day. You can go golfing, fishing, or whatever you enjoy doing with that extra time. As a solo handyman, you must always work to generate income. If you enjoy the work, this can be a good thing. I’ve seen handymen work into their late 80s or 90s and love what they do. They have a sense of purpose and connection, which many retirees struggle to find. Consistent movement keeps their bodies and minds younger. And, it provides a supplementary income for retirement. Because of these benefits, many people start a handyman business after they retire! #3 – You can hire people to do things you don’t like As a solo handyman, in addition to providing handyman services, you’ll follow up with customers, schedule jobs, collect payment, shop for materials, estimate jobs, market your business, and more. But once you have a team in place, you can delegate the things you don’t enjoy to people better suited for those tasks – allowing you to work on more challenging (and potentially interesting) problems related to growing the business. You can also outsource tasks as a solo handyman, such as bookkeeping, marketing, and even phone answering. The only challenge is that justifying these expenses is more difficult because they quickly eat into your profits. #4 – You are building an asset you can sell A business with good systems and employees is much more valuable than a one-person handyman business if you ever need an exit strategy. You can sell a solo handyman business, and I’ve seen it done. It’s just not nearly as valuable. #5 – Higher Status While being a pro handyman is an enjoyable and well-paying career, it’s not considered a high-status job in America. However, owning a successful business with a dozen employees is. As much as I’d like to say that chasing high status is a fool’s errand, I can’t help but recall the book Behave by Robert Sapolsky, where he digs deep into this topic and concludes that, in general, higher status leads to better health, longevity, and a sense of well-being. So, scaling a business has some compelling benefits. You can make more money, have more leisure time in the long run, eliminate tasks you don’t like, and potentially get more respect. But are the extra benefits worth the effort? Let’s start with money. It’s hard to argue that having less money is better than having more. Money can solve many modern problems and reduce or eliminate many stressors. For example, a new mother who can afford a full-time nanny will likely be healthier and happier than a mother who has to do it alone. When your car breaks down and you’re faced with a huge repair bill, having enough money can be the difference between a minor inconvenience and something that takes months to recover financially and emotionally. There are thousands more examples like this. So, I think it’s safe to assume that having more money is better. But that doesn’t mean it’s worth the blood, sweat, and tears to attain more money if you already have enough to live a good life. How many people have sacrificed the best years of their lives doing things they didn’t enjoy just to retire rich, bored, miserable, and without a purpose? Chances are you probably know somebody like this. How often do you see someone spending all of their time stressed out about work so that they can afford nice cars and big houses? How much time are you willing to sacrifice with your kids now (when they need you most) so you can spend more time with them later? Again, I think having more money is better than less, but at what expense? So, that leads us to the question – Is the additional risk, time, stress, and effort of scaling a handyman business worth the additional money? If you enjoy the work required to build a business, don’t have kids, and, as Bryan Clayton says, “have a fire in your belly,” I think the answer is yes, it’s worth the effort. But for others, the answer is less clear. Are you falling victim to the Arrival Fallacy? One of the most challenging psychological biases to overcome is the Arrival Fallacy – the illusion that you will attain lasting happiness and fulfillment once you accomplish a specific goal. You know the arrival fallacy is playing its trickery when you think, “Once I get X, I’ll live happily ever after.” So often, people are fooled by the arriva

Hiring employees for your handyman business can be scary, especially if you’ve never managed employees before. That’s why I’m excited to share this interview with Rick McFadden. Rick has managed roughly 300 employees during his corporate career and owns a handyman business in Colorado with nine full-time employees. Rick has a wealth of knowledge about growing a handyman business, but in this episode, we focus primarily on hiring and managing handymen. Here’s a sample of what we discussed… The systems you need before hiring employees for a handyman business. Where to find good employees in the trades. Essential mindset shifts for going from a one-person show to hiring your first employee. The biggest challenges of hiring employees. How to keep employees motivated How to get rid of employees who aren’t a good fit. How to get more online reviews. HS041 – Interview with Rick McFadden – How to Hire and Manage Employees and scale your handyman business to the $1 Million per year level. About Rick McFadden After being laid off from his corporate job in the mortgage industry and discovering that other companies weren’t interested in hiring him, Rick decided to turn his side gig as a handyman into a full-time business. That’s when he found the online courses from Handyman Startup. He devoured the content, took notes, and worked hard. He launched Enhance Property Maintenance in January 2018, generating $108,000 in revenue in his first year. In his second year, he and his two part-time employees generated $178,000 in revenue. By the end of his third year, Rick had three full-time employees. At the time of this interview, Rick’s business employs nine full-time employees and one part-time office manager and is on track to generate over $1 Million in revenue in 2023. Not bad for only six years in business! Rick served as an artillery officer in the Marine Corps and has his MBA from the University of Illinois. Rick’s business, Enhance Property Maintenance, provides handyman, maintenance, and remodeling services in Castle Rock, Colorado (South Denver Area). They focus on showing up on time, doing great work, and leaving their customer’s homes cleaner than when they arrived. Resources Mentioned in the Podcast My ebooks and online courses Rick used to start his business EnhancePM.com (Rick’s website) ZipRecruiter (to post jobs) ADP (payroll software) No Bull Financial (Bookkeeper) Sunshine Admin Services (phone answering service) Randy Stanbury (one of Rick’s mentors) Notes and Takeaways from This Episode Expect employees to take longer on projects than you think. Rick uses Craigslist, ZipRecruiter, and networking to find employees. Hire slow and fire fast. For every three people you hire, you will find one good employee. Nobody is as good as you. Get used to it. Employees can hurt you financially and emotionally. They can hurt you financially by taking longer than you estimated and emotionally by hurting your feelings. Laying off employees can increase your unemployment rates. Provide a verbal warning, then a written warning, and then terminate if they continue not to meet expectations. Document all this and their resignation letter to avoid paying unnecessary unemployment rates. Charge enough to afford to outsource services (bookkeeping, phone answering service, payroll, etc.) Get the following systems in place before hiring (marketing, payroll, workers comp, CRM, Insurance, written procedures, phone answering services). Simply asking for reviews is the #1 most effective way to get more reviews. We talked about much more than I’ve listed here. To get more context, I recommend listening to the entire interview. The post How to Hire and Manage Employees For a Handyman Business – Interview with Rick McFadden appeared first on Handyman Startup.

In this episode, I had the pleasure of interviewing Bryan Clayton – founder and CEO of GreenPal. I loved this interview because Bryan breaks down some essential skills that all entrepreneurs need – whether you have your sights on growing a massive landscaping business or are happy keeping things small. Here’s a sample of what we discussed… How Bryan went from mowing lawns to growing one of the largest landscaping businesses in Tennessee. What Bryan’s most profitable services were and why (one of my favorite parts). How to maintain motivation while working toward big goals. The difference between hard work and difficult work. The best untapped resource to find ideas to grow your business. The importance of leaning on technology to save time, make more money, and “beat the pants off the competition.” HS040 – Interview with Bryan Clayton – How to go from mowing lawns to owning a $10 Million landscaping business (Then selling that business and starting a tech company). About Bryan Clayton Bryan started his landscaping business after his dad kicked him out of the house for playing too many video games. Over the next ten years, he built a small lawn-mowing business into a large company with over 150 employees and $10 Million in revenue per year. That business was called Peachtree. In 2013, he sold his landscaping business and set his sights on an even bigger undertaking – starting a tech company. He is now the co-founder and CEO of GreenPal – an online platform that connects homeowners with local lawn care pros. Both of Bryan’s companies have been tremendous successes. In fact, GreenPal now serves over 200,000 active users. This kind of success if unusual for an entirely self-funded startup. Bryan is passionate about helping other entrepreneurs succeed, which is why he was so gracious with his time by joining me on this podcast. What is GreenPal? GreenPal is like Uber for getting your lawn mowed. It solves the headache of finding reliable lawn care companies for homeowners while making it easier for small landscaping companies to run their businesses. From the homeowner’s perspective, it makes getting your lawn mowed as easy as a few clicks of a button. You submit a job request and then receive several bids (usually five within 24 hours). You can view the business’s reliability rating and reviews and choose which company you want to go with. You then schedule jobs and pay through the GreenPal platform – no need to deal with the contractor directly. From the contractor’s perspective, you can bid on jobs like you would with Angie Leads or Thumbtack, with a couple of key differences. First, you don’t pay for the lead. You pay a percentage of the job if you get it. Additionally, with GreenPal, you can’t take your leads off the platform. You must maintain that customer through the GreenPal platform using their payment and scheduling systems. GreenPal handles all of the scheduling, billing, marketing automation, and more. This is perfect for the contractor who hates dealing with paperwork or creating systems and just wants to mow lawns. However, GreenPal is NOT a good fit for a bigger contractor with their own systems in place for communicating, billing, and scheduling jobs. Resources Mentioned in the Podcast The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People GreenPal.com Bryan’s Instagram: @BryanMClayton Notes on motivation: Bryan mentioned that he wasn’t great at sports and wasn’t the cool kid in high school, but he had a fire in his belly to grow a huge landscaping company. According to Bryan, this was essential. Always start with the end in mind (10 years from now) and work backward from there. Where do you want to be in ten years, and how will your business be a vehicle to get you there? Set small, challenging (but achievable) goals and celebrate them like big victories. Manage your psychology by managing your expectations. You can succeed and still feel unsuccessful if your expectations are too high. Notes on growing a business: Focus time working on your business, not just in your business. Otherwise, you will find yourself in the same place ten years from now. Think like a tech company to “beat the pants off of the competition,” make your life easier, and make more money. Growing a business unfolds like a video game. You start on level one, and at any given moment, your only goal is to get to the next level. What does the next level look like and what do you need to get there? Don’t solve “bowser problems” when you are on level one or two. Getting to the first million is revenue is far more difficult than going from one million to ten million. Business gets easier and more fun once you get past the first million or two. At that point you become more of an allocator of capital. The post How to Grow a $10 Million Landscaping Business with Bryan Clayton appeared first on Handyman Startup.

After ten years of estimating handyman jobs, I’ve learned a few tricks. And in this article, I will share everything you need to know to estimate jobs quickly and accurately. Whether you are looking for helpful estimating tips that will make you more money or just a free template you can use for your first estimate, I’ve got you covered. Let’s get started. Contents: Why estimating is so important How to estimate handyman jobs How to create and send a handyman estimate What to include in a handyman estimate Do you always need an estimate? Free handyman estimate template Five tips for more profitable estimates Listen to the podcast version of this article, which includes extra content and tips. Listen right here or on your favorite podcast app! HS039 – Estimating Handyman Jobs – Proven Tips for Boosting Income Why estimating handyman jobs is so important. The decision about how much to charge is where your profits are made or lost. If you underestimate a project, you lose money and waste time. Overestimating is preferable, but can lead to losing customers. When you compare how much time you spend estimating a project to how much time you spend performing the labor, estimating takes up a relatively small amount of your time. But, your decision in these short minutes (or even seconds) will impact your profitability for the entire job. A small mistake can cost you hundreds and sometimes thousands of dollars. So it’s essential to give this process the respect and attention it deserves. How to estimate handyman jobs (step-by-step) You can use several methods to estimate a home improvement or repair. One example is seen with painters or flooring installers, who often create estimates based on a project’s square footage or yardage. Another example is seen with companies that charge flat rates for projects. A lawn care company may charge $35 per week for a mow-and-blow, or an electrician may charge $250 to wall mount a TV. However, as a handyman, it rarely makes sense to copy these estimating strategies. Instead, it’s usually best to stick with good old T&M (time and materials), especially when first starting. T&M is when you simply estimate how long a project will take you, multiply that by your rates, and then add on the material costs. Basing your estimates on time and materials is the best way to ensure you make a profit and avoid undercharging, especially when estimating your first few jobs. If you ask pro handymen on online forums about how they charge, most experienced pros will say that charging by the hour is a terrible idea and you can make more money with a flat rate or quoting each job. But those pros have been in business for years and have estimated hundreds of projects. Most have forgotten what it’s like to be a beginner, so don’t listen to them. There’s nothing wrong with charging based on time. Most of the pros I consult with make more money using T&M to esimate. Put simply, unless you specialize or have loads of experience, stick with T&M. As you gain more experience, you can utilize other methods. Here’s how to estimate handyman jobs based on time and materials, step-by-step. Step #1 – Assess the project The first step is to thoroughly understand what the project entails. You’ll want to learn things like: What exactly needs to be done? What materials will you need? Is the project area easy to access? Is there anything that could go wrong or be more challenging once you get into the project? Is the customer going to be difficult to deal with? Assessing the project may require a visit to the customer’s home. If you’ve never done a given project before, or if you’re just starting your handyman business, then seeing the project in person is essential to creating an accurate estimate. However, once you gain experience, you may feel comfortable estimating based on pictures sent by the customer or asking the customer some questions. This is how I quote every job now, and I never give in-person free quotes because they eat into my profits. Step #2 – Calculate the cost of labor Once you have a clear picture of what needs to be done, the next step is to figure out how much you will charge for the labor portion of the project. Pro Tip Understanding how much you must charge per hour (or per day) to generate a profit is essential before submitting your first estimate to a customer. Read this article to learn how to do that. Assuming you know how much you need to charge for your time, here’s how to calculate the labor portion of your estimate: Break the project down into steps and write down each step. Visualize yourself completing each step and write down a time estimate for each step. Add up the time (include time for shopping, setup, and cleanup). Multiply the total time by your rates to get your labor. Then DOUBLE it. Why double it? Because of the little quirk in human psychology known as the Planning Fallacy, we all tend to underestimate how long a project will take (usually by about half), even if we have done a similar project. Things always seem more straightforward in your mind. But the reality of doing a project is always more complex. So, I advise any new handyman to take your estimate of how long a project will take, then DOUBLE IT, and base your estimate on that amount of time. Yes, it may be uncomfortable or extreme, but it’s better than underestimating a project and losing money. Pro Tip It’s better to overestimate than to underestimate. If you overestimate, you risk losing the job to a lower bidder, which isn’t fun. But if you underestimate, you are guaranteed to waste time and make little to no money. Unless your main goal is to get some jobs under your belt, you’re better off spending your time on marketing than doing jobs that aren’t profitable. Step #3 – Calculate the cost of materials Here, you’ll determine how much you will charge for the labor portion of the estimate. This process is similar to calculating the labor and goes like this: Visualize yourself completing each project step (don’t forget setup and cleanup). Make a list of materials you will need as you imagine doing the project. Take that list of materials and write down the cost of each item. You may have to do some shopping online to figure out the cost. Total up the materials and then apply a markup. The amount you will charge for materials will be the total cost plus whatever markup you apply. To learn more about the appropriate markup for materials, consider investing in my pricing course for pros. Step #4 – Add it up! Now that you have the labor and materials, simply add these together to create your estimate. It’s important to note that most of your profits as a pro handyman will come from your labor. As a self-employed handyman, your profits should be built into your rates, so there is no need to apply a markup to the labor portion of your estimate. However, you may calculate your profits slightly differently if you run a company with employees. For example, you may calculate the total cost of materials and labor, then apply a markup of 25% to the entire job. But, as a self-employed handyman, it’s usually best to simply calculate your profits into your rates, as I demonstrate here. How to create and send a handyman estimate There are several ways to provide estimates to potential customers, and there is no correct answer for every situation. Sometimes you may give a verbal estimate over the phone. Other times, you may send your quote via text. And in some cases, you may write up a formal estimate, email it to the customer, and have them sign it (several apps make this process seamless). Which option you choose depends on who the estimate is sent to, your relationship with that person, and what the job entails. Recently, a new customer called me to hang two TVs on the wall. I’ve hung hundreds of TVs, so I gave her a verbal quote on the phone. She agreed to the price and scheduled the job immediately. When one of my repeat customers had a drywall repair, he texted me. I had him send me some pictures from there, and we continued our conversation via text. I even sent my estimate via text. Here it is… The customer accepted my quote a hired me. Other times (usually when working for a new customer), I’ll use an app on my phone to quickly create a formal estimate and email it. I never require anyone to sign a contract or estimate because my average job size is so small. The point is that you don’t have to overthink your estimate for handyman jobs. A verbal estimate usually suffices since most jobs are just a few hundred bucks. A more formal, signed estimate is probably necessary when tackling a bigger project like a kitchen remodel. Of course, it’s nice to have the estimate in writing, but if you are dealing with someone who will stiff you, they will stiff you whether it’s in writing or not. Three ways to create a written estimate: Use a smartphone app (BEST) – This is the easiest and fastest method. Writing an estimate this way takes seconds, and you can usually send the estimate right from the app. I recently wrote an in-depth article on handyman software where you can find my recommendation for which apps to use. Use Excel – This is the old-school way, but it still works. If you are just trying to send one or two estimates without downloading an app, this is a good way. Word processor – Microsoft Word or Apple Pages can also work. Any word processor can work. Again, overthinking this isn’t going to land you more jobs. What to include in an estimate What you include in your estimate is far more important than how you create or deliver it. Whether you text your estimates or create fancy written estimates and hand-deliver them with a box of chocolates, the key components are always the same. Essential components of a handyman estimate: Description of work – You want to be ultra clear on what the estimate covers and, often more importantly, what it does NOT cover. Sometimes, all you need is one line of text to d

As I’ve said before, there are several ways to start a profitable handyman business. And while starting your business from scratch is typically the most profitable route, I’d be doing my readers and listeners a disservice if I didn’t explore the idea of handyman franchises. That’s why when a representative of Ace Handyman Services asked if I’d like to interview Colette Bell – VP of franchise development for Ace Handyman Services, I jumped at the opportunity. I immediately saw it as a chance to dig deeper into the costs, benefits, and profitability of becoming a franchisee. Then, when the interview finally came, I was not disappointed. Colette was very generous with her knowledge and time. She was also transparent, even sharing details about how much Ace Handyman Services franchise owners make in profit. And beyond the franchise information, Colette shares some best practices and strategies for any handyman business. So, even if you have zero interest in investing in a handyman franchise, I know you’ll find this interview insightful and motivating. I highly recommend giving it a listen. HS038 – Colette Bell of Ace Handyman Services: The Costs, Benefits, and Expected Profit of Investing in a Handyman Franchise About Colette Bell Colette is the VP of Franchise Development for Ace Handyman Services, a nationwide handyman franchise.  Colette has over 20 years of experience in the handyman business. For 18 years, she was the chairman and co-owner of Handyman Matters (a large handyman franchise) and grew that business from scratch with her husband, Andy Bell. In 2019, Handyman Matters was acquired by Ace Hardware and rebranded as Ace Handyman Services, which (at the time of recording this interview) has 378 territories in 46 states.  Colette is a wealth of knowledge about the handyman business, and I’m excited to have her on the show. What are the benefits of an Ace Handyman Services franchise? One of my focuses for this interview was to better understand what a handyman franchise can bring to the table. Here is a summary of what Colette mentioned in the interview (which you can listen to toward the top of this page). Consolidation of Power – Having 378 franchises can bring some negotiation firepower because of the volume. She gave the example of getting better prices on software, but I can see how this could be helpful in many other areas. Consolidation of Knowledge – Colette explained that one of the franchise’s job is to continue improving systems and roll them out to the territories. While doing this, they benefit from learning from all of their franchisees. So instead of only learning from one business’s mistakes and successes, they can learn from hundreds of businesses to help them make better decisions. Keeping operating expenses low while expanding – Colette explained that one of the challenges of scaling a handyman business is that operating costs can balloon as well, but with Ace Handyman Services systems and software, these costs are limited – allowing a business to scale with lower costs. Emotional Support – Running a business can be lonely. With Ace Handyman Services, you have access to a dedicated business coach you can reach out to for counseling and advice. There are also regional groups where business owners get to meet with each other and discuss problems and opportunities. A Large women owners group – This can be a big plus for women looking to get into the home repair industry. A large group of Vets – Colette mentioned that many veterans get involved with the franchise. How much does an ace handyman services owner make? One of the main things I was interested in during the interview was how much an Ace Handyman Services owner can expect to make. And as you may expect, the answer to that is more complicated than just giving a number. The region someone operates in, how many territories a franchisee owns, how long a territory has been operating, and the effectiveness of the franchise owner are just some of the factors that can influence the bottom line. But Collete was able to provide some numbers. She mentioned that the top 20 franchisees average roughly $852,000 in revenue and operate at about 22% profit. Once you remove about 6% of that profit for the franchise royalty fee and an additional 2% for the national marketing fund, a franchisee can expect profit to be 14% of total revenue. So, if we multiply $852,000 by 14%, you get $119,280. So, the top twenty Ace Handyman Franchise owners generate an average profit of about $120K. To put that into further context, some of these franchisees also collect a paycheck so that profit is in addition to what they pay themselves. Also, some of these franchisees have multiple territories, further complicating things. While this still doesn’t fully answer how much you can expect to make, it provides insight into the upside of becoming a handyman franchisee. Ultimately, further research and analysis will be necessary to estimate profit for the territory you live in. How much does it cost to buy an Ace Handyman Services franchise territory? The benefits that come with investing in a franchise are not free. Colette (VP of Franchising Development) mentioned that the initial cost to start an Ace Handyman Franchise is usually around $128,000 to $204,000, which covers the franchise fees, startup costs, and the first three months’ operating costs. That includes the franchise fee, photo shoots, website setup, in-person training, rent for a physical office (required), necessary computer and office equipment, business licensing, and other costs. However, there are more costs. There are also franchise royalties (where the franchise takes a percentage of the total revenue), the national marketing fund (which adds to the franchises marketing budget), a $499 monthly fee for software and website management, and of course, the monthly fixed and variable costs that come with running any local business. Here’s a quick summary of franchise costs: $70K franchise fee – Covers first ten-year contract for a single territory. After ten years, it’s $5,500 for ten more years. 6% of revenue for franchise royalties. 2% of revenue for the national marketing fund – to invest in marketing for the franchise to further brand recognition. $499 per month for website and software These costs do not include the other costs of starting a handyman business. Also, depending on the time you read this article, this may not be a comprehensive list of costs. What requirements must you meet to become an Ace Handyman Services franchisee? The financial requirements are that you have at least $75,000 liquid and your net worth is at least $250,000. But those are just financial requirements. To be a good fit for the company, Colette mentioned that candidates are what she calls “servant leaders,” meaning they operate from a position of service to their employees and the craftsman they hire. She mentioned that if it’s just about the money for someone, then they should “go somewhere else.” And that makes sense because, from my analysis, if you wanted to start a handyman business and optimize for profit, you’d be better off starting from scratch and doing it without the burden of franchise fees and royalties. However, if you prioritize the benefits of the franchise over pure profit, then I don’t see anything wrong with taking that hit on profit. How can you learn more about starting an Ace Handyman Franchise? Colette mentioned that for those interested, the best place to start is to head over to AceHandymanFranchising.com – where you can learn more, contact the franchise, and see if your territory is available. While there are 378 territories taken, Colette mentioned there are nearly 1,800 territories in the United States. So there are plenty still available. What do you think of handyman franchises? I’m curious to hear your thoughts on Ace Handyman Services and other franchises to help provide further insight to people considering this investment. The post Colette Bell of Ace Handyman Services: The Costs and Benefits of Investing in a Handyman Franchise appeared first on Handyman Startup.

Unexpected challenges and setbacks are unavoidable when growing a business, and if not managed properly, can really fuck up your progress. One day you might feel on top of the world, then BAM, a customer gives you a bad review, you lose a job you quoted, and you find out that your sales are dropping. Or, maybe you are just starting your business, and your enthusiasm gets squashed by realizing there is a LOT more competition than expected. There are endless ways that setbacks can hit, but when these inevitable bad days happen, they can crush your spirit and leave you anxious and stressed. They’ll have you questioning yourself and your abilities and, in many cases, lead you to give up. Overcoming setbacks is one of the two things that make growing a business hard (the other one is showing up to do the work consistently). And, if you can learn how to overcome setbacks without letting them destroy your confidence, motivation, and momentum, then you are infinitely more likely to succeed. The Reality of Setbacks Setbacks are unavoidable in business and life. Period. I don’t care if your name is Elon Musk or Michael Jordan, you’re going to go through some shit at some point, and it will challenge your resolve. No amount of worrying, planning, list-making, mentoring, researching, practicing, investing, or experience will allow you to escape this reality of being alive. Life is fun and interesting, and sometimes it’s really hard. My purpose in highlighting this is not to be pessimistic. In fact, I find it liberating and motivating. It reminds me that I’m not the only one who hasn’t figured it all out. I’m not the only one who loses sleep when my income drops for a couple of months, when a marketing strategy that I relied on stops working, or when new competition enters the arena making my life harder. Embracing this reality is one of the things that helps me get through the struggle. It also allows me to turn my head toward dealing with the setbacks when they happen instead of beating myself up, bathing in anxiety, and spiraling downward. How to Overcome Setbacks and Unexpected Challenges Once you accept that they are inevitable, the obvious next step is to learn how to work through them. I’m 99% certain that there is no way to completely avoid the negative emotions and painful experiences of setbacks. They will always suck to a certain degree. However, I’m equally sure that how you process negative emotions that arise will determine the duration, intensity, and impact they have on you and your business. I’ve found that failing to process my struggles in a somewhat structured way will prolong the suffering, cause me to lose sleep, and lead to poor decisions that hurt myself or others. In the past, I’ve let setbacks destroy my peace of mind and productivity, but over time, I’ve learned strategies for overcoming them so I can move on within minutes or hours instead of days or weeks. So, in this podcast episode, I wanted to share strategies I’ve found effective for dealing with these mental struggles. I hope you find them helpful. Mastering the mental game of business is essential to your success. Listen to the full podcast to learn eight strategies for overcoming setbacks faster and while taking less damage. HS037 – Overcoming The Setbacks of Growing a Business Books Mentioned in This Podcast The Wisdom of Insecurity by Alan Watts Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Persig (I recommend the audiobook) The Obstacle is the Way by Ryan Holiday Cleaning Up Your Mental Mess by Caroline Leaf (useful journaling practice) The Art of Living by Thich Nhat Hanh The post Overcoming Setbacks – Mastering the Mental Game of Business appeared first on Handyman Startup.

Few business mistakes are worse (or more common) than consistently undercharging. You’ve done all of the work to get the customer, they hired you, and then you did more work to complete the project for them. The only problem is that you don’t make enough money to justify the time and effort if you undercharge. You waste your time, and you don’t get that time back. Undercharging makes investing in growing your business, buying better tools, improving your marketing, and having free time to relax nearly impossible. It destroys all the fun and forces you to grind. Every. Single. Day. Even worse, undercharging can cause you to build a clientele based on having low prices, making it even more difficult to raise your rates in the future. The truth is that pricing your services is hard, and there are many pitfalls that are easy to fall victim to. So, in this podcast, I discuss nine pricing pitfalls that are guaranteed to kill your profits and enjoyment in this business IF you fall victim to them. I hope that by sharing these mistakes, I can help you avoid making some of them and, in turn, make more money. HS036 – 9 Pricing Pitfalls That Destroy Profits and Fun Pricing mistakes are common, and you’ll never avoid them completely, but you can avoid many of them most of the time and, in doing so, make more money and have more fun. Like, a LOT more money. Listen to the full podcast to learn what they are. The content in this podcast is taken from my handyman pricing course: “$100K Handyman Pricing.” If you find this helpful and want to learn how to price your services to maximize profits and customer satisfaction, I recommend checking that out. If you like this podcast, you’ll enjoy my article on how I lost over $52,000 by undercharging. The post Pricing Pitfalls – Nine Ways Handymen Leave Money on the Table appeared first on Handyman Startup.

Handymen are well known for their “big or small, we do it all” approach, offering a wide range of services. Many view us as “jacks of all trades, and masters of none.” And this generalist approach has its benefits. You need fewer customers to keep your schedule full, every day is different, and you get to build close relationships with clients. There’s also built-in job security when you can handle a wide variety of projects. However, from a purely business standpoint, it can be significantly more profitable and enjoyable to specialize and limit the services you provide. So in the rest of this article, I will explore the benefits of specializing and compare that to the typical MO of a pro handyman. You’ll find this concept motivating and intriguing, even if you enjoy being a generalist. Listen to the podcast version of this article, which includes extra content. Listen right here or on your favorite podcast app! HS035 – Make Your Business More Profitable By Specializing What does it mean to specialize? In most cases, it means you focus on one specific trade, such as plumbing, electrical, or HVAC. Most licensed contractors are specialists. However, you can specialize even further. For example, an electrician can specialize in home theater installation. A plumber can specialize in unclogging drains or emergency services. A carpenter can specialize in custom door installation or building decks. A handyman can specialize in power washing. With the internet now connecting you to virtually endless people, it’s possible to specialize in a very specific niche and still keep your schedule full. For example, I once met a guy who specialized in trampoline assembly and was making a killing. Here’s a picture of the work truck of a guy who specializes in picking up dog poop. The options are endless when it comes to services you can specialize in. Do you have to limit yourself to that one service? No, not necessarily. Even if you offer a wide range of handyman services, it’s beneficial to choose one or two services to get good at and then promote those to customers. The benefits of specializing Benefit #1 – Expert Positioning When you specialize, you automatically position yourself as an expert, which is helpful for marketing. Being seen as an expert builds trust and helps you stand out. This is especially true when trying to attract wealthy clients. They often have refined tastes and aren’t looking for some weekend handyman who can “probably figure it out.” They want somebody that’s like, “This is what I do!” They want an expert. For example, one of the services I specialize in is TV wall mount installation, and it’s one of the primary services I promote to gain new clients. Simply promoting this service has positioned me as an expert. The funny thing is that customers who hire me to hang a TV will often ask me if I do anything else. I love when I hear this because I know that my marketing worked. Although I am a handyman and do all kinds of services, they see me as a TV wall mounting expert. Most handy people can wall-mount TVs, but customers hire me more often because I’ve chosen to promote it as my specialty. Benefit #2 – Higher Income Potential By specializing, you can make more money in less time. This is true for a few reasons. Customers are willing to pay more for an expert. That’s because hiring an expert implies more certainty that the job will be done well. It’s a form of insurance. Additionally, customers often assume the job will be done better when a specialist is at hand. You become more proficient, allowing you to complete a project in less time and often with higher quality. This is especially important in a competitive area because it will enable you to make more money without raising your prices. You can package your services in more profitable ways. For example, instead of charging based on time, you can charge flat rates. You can also create packages, upsells, and even recurring services. There are all kinds of creative ways to package your services, and specializing gives you the time and focus to develop and test different offerings. You can avoid free quotes, which is an insidious practice that eats into your profits. Of course, you can do all of these things without specializing in one service, but it’s more complex. You only have so much time and mental energy, after all. The simplicity of specializing allows you to get more creative. Benefit #3 – Higher Conversions Whether you are marketing with craigslist, your website, or Thumbtack, you will have higher conversions if you specialize. That means a higher percentage of people that see your ads will contact you. By promoting your specialty instead of general “handyman services,” you stand out from other handymen. Example: Let’s say a customer is looking for a fence repair on Craigslist. They come across a few posts with the following titles: “Local Handyman – 30 Years of Experience” “$10/hr Handyman Services” “Professional Handyman” “Fence Repair Service” Each ad offers fence repair, but which one would you click on? You’re most likely going to click on the most relevant ad, which is the one that says fence repair. This scenario plays out in countless ways on all marketing platforms. The more relevant your business is to the exact service someone needs when searching for a pro, the more likely you will grab their attention and turn them into a lead. Sometimes people are looking for a general handyman and a specialist ad will be less likely to convert, but I’ve found that most people are searching for the exact service they need when looking for a pro to hire. Benefit #4 – Easier to Hire Help As a professional handyman, you tackle various problems that require creative solutions and a broad spectrum of knowledge. Additionally, you need to understand your limits and which jobs to avoid. Hiring somebody who’s equally skilled and trustworthy is challenging. Typically, you will need to pay more for this level of skill. Becoming an all-around handyman takes years of experience or a certain type of person. But, if your business only offers one or two services, it’s much easier to train somebody with less experience. If you specialize in something basic, you can often train a complete newbie in a few days. For example, if you specialize in gutter installation, you could train an unskilled laborer in a matter of weeks, freeing your time to focus on other things. Benefit #5 – Simplified Pricing Quoting jobs can be a serious time-suck. As a new handyman, you’ll find yourself running all over town quoting jobs because you’re unsure which jobs you can handle or what each job entails. Additionally, pricing as a handyman is one of the hardest things to get right. You often have to perform a repair several times and make a few mistakes before you figure out how to price that project appropriately. And as a handyman, you handle many projects, which usually means lots of undercharging. Projects almost always take longer than you expect. Specializing eliminates much of this complexity. There’s still a learning curve, but it’s much shorter because there is less to learn in most cases. Specializing also makes it easier to quote jobs over the phone or email, eliminating the need to travel and quote in person. If you specialize, you will likely develop fixed pricing and easily quote over the phone without visiting customers’ houses. Simplified pricing also makes it easier to hire somebody to answer the phone for you, once again freeing you up to do more impactful things in your business, like marketing or creating systems. #6 – Streamlined Operations One of the downsides of being a handyman is that you need so many tools and supplies, and it’s a constant effort to manage them. Before heading to a job, you will likely need to load or unload certain tools from your vehicle. Unless you have a dedicated trailer, you probably can’t carry all your tools simultaneously. When you only offer one or two services, you can usually carry everything you need on you at all times. You never have to stop and think about which tools you need before leaving your house for a job. You can also have more specialized tools (usually overkill for a generalist) that can save you time and make jobs easier. And you can carry common supplies allowing you to make fewer trips to the store. This streamlines your business, making nearly every aspect of it more efficient. And when you are getting paid for your time, efficiency is a big deal. The Disadvantages of Specializing At this point, you’re probably thinking that specializing is a no-brainer. And it is. But just like everything, it does have some downsides. The first one is that specializing requires more marketing effort to keep your schedule full, and that’s because fewer customers will turn into repeat clients. Compare that with a traditional handyman business, where just a few good customers can keep your schedule mostly full. Your marketing will be more effective if you specialize, but you need more customers consistently. For someone starting their business who is new to marketing, this can make things more challenging. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, though, especially if you’ve implemented what I teach in Handyman Marketing Machine and already have more customers than you need. Another downside of specializing is that you may find yourself getting bored. One of my favorite things about the handyman business is that I’m solving new challenges every day. One day I might be building a new gate. The next, I’m hanging pictures, fixing doors, and installing a stripper pole. The variety you get with a handyman business is not only stimulating for the mind, but it helps avoid repetitive stress injuries. I couldn’t imagine installing flooring every day, for example. And lastly, when you specialize, you are less likely to build close relationships with customers since many will only hire you once. If you like to get close to your clie