Captain’s Quarters First Class | Lights. Legacy. Living.

Christmas season is coming fast, and this week Glo Show Shane joins me to talk about what actually keeps Christmas lighting business owners up at night this time of year.Hiring. Crew capacity. Callbacks. Profit. And whether the people you just hired are even going to make it through the season.Shane recently hired three people and fired all three within a couple of weeks. I’ve had seasons where I hired 25 people, had 19 show up for training, 14 make it to day two, and finished the season with four.That’s Christmas.But the biggest idea in this episode is something Shane is testing this year: stop thinking of your crew lead as just an installer.What if your lead technician was sales first and install second?He walks the property with the customer, confirms the job, spots additional opportunities, upsells the customer, talks to the neighbors, and then helps the crew complete the installation.Instead of sending someone to a $300 service call just to fix something, can they turn that visit into $1,200?Instead of installing a $1,000 Christmas job and leaving, can they add another tree, another roofline, another wreath, or sell the neighbor while they’re already there?We get into:• Hiring slow and firing fast before Christmas season• Using Christmas to identify the A players you want to keep year-round• Why revenue means nothing if the profit isn’t there• Shane’s sales-first / install-second technician model• Paying technicians for both sales and installation performance• Two-man crews vs. three-man crews• When one-man crews actually make sense• Why four-man crews often become inefficient• Keeping service and fix crews from destroying production• Increasing average ticket while you’re already on the property• Whether Christmas companies should offer more than rooflines• Branch wraps, wreaths, garland, and the “gutter slammer” debate• Why roofline-only companies may eventually lose the rest of the propertyChristmas is one of the biggest opportunities of the year to make money, build a stronger team, and identify who belongs in your company long-term.But the season gets ugly fast if your systems, people, and numbers aren’t ready.Glo Show Shane is with Glo Geeks:https://GlowGeeksGang.com---Lights. Legacy. Living. Captain’s Crew. Sink or Swim.Ready to build a real outdoor lighting business?🔹 Work with Captain Matt: https://www.captainmattoutdoors.com/  🔹 See Barefoot Lighting projects: https://barefootlighting.com/  🔹 Learn landscape + Christmas + permanent lighting: https://lightingtradeschool.com/

For the first time in 18 Christmas seasons, I’m putting a cap on how much Christmas lighting work we sell.Not because the leads aren’t there. Not because I don’t want to make money. Because I finally understand that every crew has a capacity, and constantly saying yes to more work has a cost.I’ve spent Christmas seasons waking up at 4 AM, working until 8 PM, answering calls, selling jobs, fixing problems, watching crews turn into Christmas zombies, and trying to squeeze one more job onto an already packed schedule.I’m not doing that this year.In this episode of Captain’s Quarters First Class, I break down what I’m doing differently for this Christmas lighting season and why I think Christmas is one of the biggest opportunities of the year to change the way you run your business.We get into:• Why I’m intentionally capping Christmas lighting sales this season• How I’m calculating actual crew capacity instead of just selling everything we can• Why more Christmas revenue does not automatically mean more Christmas profit• The trap owner-operators fall into when they have to sell AND install• Why Christmas is one of the easiest times to make your first hire• Why seasonal employees can be the perfect way to start building a team• When you should hire installers and when you should hire a salesperson• Why Christmas lighting is easier to train than permanent lighting or landscape lighting• How separating sales, installation, and office responsibilities changes the entire business• Why getting yourself off the ladder can actually help you sell more work• How some of my original seasonal employees eventually helped us become a full-time companyChristmas has built-in urgency. It has nostalgia. Customers already want what we sell.That makes it a great time to make money, but it also makes it easy to convince yourself that you need to take every single job that comes through the door.You don’t.Know your capacity. Build the team. Protect the operation. And stop creating a business that requires you to personally do everything.If you’re still the person answering the phone, selling the job, climbing the ladder, installing the lights, fixing the lights, invoicing the customer, and trying to make payroll, this episode is for you.This Christmas season can be the season you finally start building something bigger than yourself.Now go make some damn money.Lights. Legacy. Living. Captain’s Crew. Sink or Swim.Ready to build a real outdoor lighting business?🔹 Work with Captain Matt: https://www.captainmattoutdoors.com/  🔹 See Barefoot Lighting projects: https://barefootlighting.com/  🔹 Learn landscape + Christmas + permanent lighting: https://lightingtradeschool.com/

Thinking about leaving your job and starting your own business?Before you jump, you need to hear this.In this episode of Captain’s Quarters First Class, Captain Matt breaks down the hard truth most employees, technicians, installers, and tradesmen do not fully see from the outside.Being great at the work does not automatically mean you should own the business.You might be an incredible installer, technician, or craftsman, but running the company means taking on sales, marketing, taxes, payroll, workers’ comp, follow-ups, customer problems, storage, insurance, pricing, hiring, and every late-night phone call after the crew goes home.This episode is not anti-business. It is a real conversation about whether you actually want to be an entrepreneur, or whether you would be better off becoming more valuable inside the company you already work for.Captain Matt talks about:Why business ownership looks sexier from the outsideWhy top-line revenue is not the same as profitThe hidden costs employees never seeWhy amazing technicians often struggle as ownersThe difference between being an entrepreneur and an intrapreneurHow production pay or performance pay can change your careerWhy there is nothing wrong with being an employeeThe real question to ask before starting your own businessThis one is for anyone in the trades, home services, lighting, Christmas lights, landscaping, construction, window washing, or any service business who thinks they are ready to go out on their own.Before you quit your job, make sure you know what you are actually signing up for.---Lights. Legacy. Living. Captain’s Crew. Sink or Swim.Ready to build a real outdoor lighting business?🔹 Work with Captain Matt: https://www.captainmattoutdoors.com/  🔹 See Barefoot Lighting projects: https://barefootlighting.com/  🔹 Learn landscape + Christmas + permanent lighting: https://lightingtradeschool.com/

Most Christmas light installers wait too long to plan their season.They start thinking about product, trucks, crews, storage, marketing, and invoices when the season is already breathing down their neck. By then, they are not really planning anymore. They are reacting.In this episode of Captain’s Quarters First Class, Captain Matt breaks down what Christmas lighting prep should actually look like before the madness starts.This is not about cleaning bulbs or ordering clips.This is about knowing: • What profit number you actually want • Why you want that number • How much one crew can realistically produce per day • How many install days you really have • What payroll, product, commissions, overhead, and marketing are going to eat • How many crews you need to hit the number • How much work you need to sell before the season startsIf you are a Christmas lighting contractor, outdoor lighting company, landscape lighting business, or permanent lighting installer trying to grow your holiday lighting revenue, this episode will help you stop guessing and start planning with real numbers.Whether you are in Albany, Saratoga, Clifton Park, Troy, Schenectady, the Capital Region, or building a Christmas lighting business anywhere in the country, the math does not lie.If you want a bigger Christmas season, you need to know the number before you start chasing the work.Learn more about Captain Matt’s mentorship and training at CaptainMattOutdoors.com---Lights. Legacy. Living. Captain’s Crew. Sink or Swim.Ready to build a real outdoor lighting business?🔹 Work with Captain Matt: https://www.captainmattoutdoors.com/  🔹 See Barefoot Lighting projects: https://barefootlighting.com/  🔹 Learn landscape + Christmas + permanent lighting: https://lightingtradeschool.com/

When a client tells you your lighting design will look like "Disney World," it’s not their fault—it’s yours. In this episode of Captain’s Quarters First Class, Captain Matt breaks down why so many outdoor lighting business owners lose massive jobs to hardscapers and landscapers who don't know the first thing about real lighting design.If you are tired of losing $40,000 lighting jobs to guys charging $12,000 for a handful of front-lit fixtures, you need to change how you sell. Captain Matt explains why it takes more fixtures to create less glare, why a 129-fixture estate looks elegant instead of overwhelming, and how to communicate the true value of professional landscape lighting without relying solely on nighttime demos.Stop letting clients compare your custom lighting design to cheap solar lights or basic wash lighting. Learn how to position yourself as the premier lighting expert in your market and get paid what your design is actually worth.In this episode:Why clients think your lighting design will look like "Disney World"The real reason you are losing bids to landscapers and hardscapersWhy it takes more fixtures to create a softer, elegant lighting effectHow to explain the cost of professional landscape lighting to clientsThe problem with AI mockups vs. real lighting designWhy front-lighting trees and 16-inch spacing looks terribleHow to sell high-end lighting jobs without doing a demo every nightThe difference between a $175,000 lighting design and a $30,000 bidWhy solar lights will never replace wired low-voltage lightingIf your plan is to let clients compare your work to the guy who just throws a few lights against a wall, you are already losing. The money you think you are saving by skipping the education process is costing you massive, profitable installs.Learn how to design it right. Sell the value. And get paid like the expert you are.---Lights. Legacy. Living. Captain’s Crew. Sink or Swim.Ready to build a real outdoor lighting business?🔹 Work with Captain Matt: https://www.captainmattoutdoors.com/  🔹 See Barefoot Lighting projects: https://barefootlighting.com/  🔹 Learn landscape + Christmas + permanent lighting: https://lightingtradeschool.com/