Wayne and Rob discuss the 5 things you need to know before getting into the hardwood flooring business. Follow Bona US Professional online: Website: https://www1.bona.com/en-us/professional/ Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/BonaProfessional Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bonauspro/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bonapro.us/
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Hello and welcome to another episode
of On the Floor with Wayne and Rob.
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I'm Wayne Highlander,
National Sales Manager for Bona Adhesives.
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And I'm Rob
Johnson, new lead singer for Nickelback.
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Yeah, you are.
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Oh, yeah, baby, I'm ready.
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You want to roll this? Let's go.
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This episode is
you want to be a four man, huh?
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I'm sick of standing in lines for clubs.
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I'll never get in.
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It's the bottom of the night.
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Dad, we're going to win this.
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Life isn't turned up
just the way I want it to be.
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Tell me what you want.
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I want a brand I want to keep going.
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Yeah. No, no, that's quite a throwback.
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I was going to say you.
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So you want to be a four man?
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A brand new house
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on an episode of Cribs, a bathroom you can
play baseball in the KING-SIZE tub.
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Pretend in me.
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That's it.
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What are you, a poor man, huh?
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You want to be a floor man?
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All right, tough guy.
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You want to start out with the good news?
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Yeah.
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50% of all small businesses start fail.
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Yeah.
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50% we were talking about doing this show,
and I read that.
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I was like, holy crap.
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Yeah, that's amazing.
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Mm hmm. That's. That's an any industry.
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And probably more
so in the restaurant industry.
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Oh, I would think the restaurant's
going to be much higher.
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Yeah, so I said.
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Much higher in the restaurant business.
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Yeah.
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First of all,
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we're out of this episode is some things
that you might want of you need to know
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before you get in for an industry
or you will find out in short order
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before becoming a flooring contractor.
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And there's so many things, man.
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I mean, it's almost overwhelming
and it's almost good.
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There's a way I think God is pretty smart
about how life works.
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When you start out,
you don't know nothing.
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You think you know
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about the flooring business,
but you don't know you
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you have and it's good that you don't know
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because it would be too overwhelming
if someone sat down and listed
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a thousand things you need to do to be
a business owner, right?
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Foreign contractor. Right.
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This is like I think when you get older,
your eyes go bad for a reason.
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You're hearing goes bad for a reason
because you go along, you're happy,
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everything that you put on a pair of glass
that looks that that is fantastic.
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And look, it's really got all these
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things.
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I was better off without the glasses.
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Life, like life
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made more sense without the glasses. Yes.
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So there is so many things and we don't
want people to get discouraged by this.
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But but, you know, this is actually
a tribute to the men and women that are
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in this industry that that have made it
and persevered all these years.
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No one and then you want to go
of your eyes wide open.
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Right. You want to know
what you're getting off into.
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And I think those things are important.
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I'm going to give you a positive
right off the bat.
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You mentioned what I know you're
I guess you were joking, but
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kind of not
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one of the things about this industry
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is that I like the most
about this industry that you are
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that you'll learn in
this industry is the people.
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There are some great people, great,
hardworking, wonderful people
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in this industry.
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And that's kind of
what keeps me interested in it.
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I mean I mean, the people you
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you and I have met and our customers
and our clients and listeners have met
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from around the world that get a chance
to get together and talk to lawyers
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and you just some great people
in this industry, man.
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Honest, hardworking people.
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And that is a big time plus for me.
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And I say the three
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you you know, I think you have to have
the right mentality.
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It's, you know, you're going to
you're hiring people you know what I mean?
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That in itself, working with people,
hiring people to be responsible people is
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is a lot of work.
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Just that alone that we all know how hard
it is to hire people and what have you.
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Let me let me cut in here and let me,
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of course, interrupt you,
but I was waiting for you to stop.
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So you did.
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So I got a little opening
thank you for that.
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Yeah, you're welcome.
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And when you were talking
about the great people
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that you and I have met,
I want to take that a step further.
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If you're going to start a new business.
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And when
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we talked about this show
starting a new business,
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the stuff that I started reading
and search, researching
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and looking into and everything,
I really started
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looking at this
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the way I wish I had started my business
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and not the way that I did
start my business.
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You know,
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that's how I kind of approach this.
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And one of the when you were talking
about all the great people out there,
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and I think just about every one of those
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great people that you're talking about
and it doesn't matter.
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Like you said,
there's hundreds of just fantastic guys
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is if you're going to start a business,
get a mentor
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and anybody including yourself,
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I know would love to be a mentor to
if a guy called you up
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and said, Wayne, I'm thinking of starting
my own business, you know,
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could you guide me?
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I think, you know, you'd be a perfect guy
for doing something like that.
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I think you would love
to do something like that.
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But I think there's also hundreds of guys
in the business.
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I you know, we've had guys on the show
who would say
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that they would do that in a second.
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So don't go it alone.
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Get yourself a mentor.
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About five years ago,
I mentor a guy getting into business
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and actually started his own company
who was in
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pretty bad financial situation
with somebody else and went on his own,
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didn't have much confidence
and is wildly successful.
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Now, that's about it
about five or six years.
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And I'm telling you,
he's he's bought another house.
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You know, he had a small house
he willing to bear out not too long ago.
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He's got a pontoon boat.
He brings his kid out fishing.
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That was never even never even thought
a million years he could do that.
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That's and.
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Yeah.
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And it is more of the greatest
feeling to me.
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Because we guide him
all the way down the path.
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And my wife kind of
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took it upon
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herself to really help him
that on the financial side.
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And so yeah and it has been so cool
so yeah.
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He to see it so does he send you
like a monthly check or a quarterly check?
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How's that work?
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Don't want a damn thing.
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Now, the smile on his face, man.
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And one time he called me up,
he was complaining about being too busy
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and everything.
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I said, hey, you stop right
there, brother.
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Just think about the old days.
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That is not a complaint, man.
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Yeah, that I could complain about.
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Too busy?
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Yeah.
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It's like complain about I get I get so
much cash, it's fallen out of my pockets.
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It's not a complaint.
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Yeah.
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Wonderful guy.
He deserves all the success.
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He gets the the whole family was just
fantastic people, so I'm happy for them.
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But can I stop right now in that?
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And I have to say this
because when you said
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meeting
one of four people and I did as well
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I'm out in California right now
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and I said I mentioned on the show
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a while back that we found out
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I found out at 60 years old,
I have another brother, another sister.
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Well, I met him last week.
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This was your vacation.
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Yeah.
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This is this is this is the Wayne
Highlander, what I did on my vacation.
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Yeah. Yes.
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So they flew over from England.
They lived in England.
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Their whole lives are not here.
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Yeah.
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Not the sister, but the brother
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and his girlfriend
and is cited in his son's girlfriend
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for the and, you know, you meet him
for the first time and who knows, right?
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How has when I go, you know what I mean?
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Because, you know, it's it can be awkward
or whatever or it may not go well at all,
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you know, you just don't know and Rob,
I mean, they were the nicest
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the the best people
I think I spend time around
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and I can't remember when I absolutely,
thoroughly enjoyed it.
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And it was
it just could not have been any nicer.
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So did they know you're dead now?
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They were adopted
when they were six months old,
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so they never did they kill
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somebody.
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He did a DNA test
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because they knew, you know,
all he knew was
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his biological dad was probably
in the Air Force that he was American.
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That's all right.
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But he did a DNA test,
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got a match with my cousin,
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and that started the whole ball rolling.
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So, yeah, he's a you know,
he was conceived when I was a month old.
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So we were very close to the same age and
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but super wonderful guy.
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And so still funny man.
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I mean, and his son,
he brought his son with him.
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And his son
is one of the quickest with this guy.
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I mean, he is just it was a
it was a wonderful, wonderful week.
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So yeah, that's amazing.
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Yeah, that's pretty cool.
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So how do you turn out, though?
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I mean, he's your he's your half brother.
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Yeah. Does he look like you.
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So much like my dad?
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That is mind boggling. Whoa.
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I mean, it's staring at you.
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Look at a picture side by side.
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It's the same.
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It's unreal.
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Me and my three brothers,
we have, you know, I have
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I have three brothers,
four of us over here.
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And he looks like a more
than of all four of us guys, so. Wow.
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Yeah. So it was very cool.
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But yeah, when you said we talk about
and I was talking about meeting
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great people,
I have to share that with you.
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So anyhow.
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So successful guy.
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You're very in successful guy
and his son is very successful as well
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and in the motion picture industry
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and wow you on very well
and are just wonderful people.
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So anyhow,
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a business plan
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putting together a great business plan
because here's what I think happens
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and when you just said what you remind me
of something that when you
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when you were speaking a few minutes ago
before I interrupted you with my story
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I think sometimes people start
start in business twice.
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I think they they get in business
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and then they realize, oh okay
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I didn't know exactly what I was doing
and let me start again
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type of deal, you know what I mean?
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You got to start
then then you go get a mentor after
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you get a few years in and realize,
oh, man, maybe I'm over my head or
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this is way too often
I thought I was going to be.
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And then they got this stop and let's,
let's now let's try to do or they written
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and then they start reading.
Then they start.
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So rather than go through all that,
where are you going to build this?
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And you realize I didn't know
anywhere near what I thought I did.
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Yes, I know how flaws, but I got a plan.
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Then they started learning
how to to start a business.
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But as you said, get a mentor,
getting a mentor from the beginning
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to guide you in this because a
lot of people get out of the industry
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now you find someone is 65, 70 years old.
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They're getting out of it
or they're getting up in age.
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When my being a mentor, I think is
the number one smartest thing you can do
242
00:11:38,964 --> 00:11:41,600
is you said we both know
great guys that have mentor people
243
00:11:42,835 --> 00:11:43,369
I think you
244
00:11:43,369 --> 00:11:46,439
have to then start with a business plan
and what am I all about?
245
00:11:46,439 --> 00:11:47,440
What are my goals?
246
00:11:47,440 --> 00:11:48,641
What do I want to get out of this
247
00:11:48,641 --> 00:11:51,110
other than just give up everything
and go to work?
248
00:11:51,110 --> 00:11:53,746
What what is it
that I want to get out of this business?
249
00:11:54,480 --> 00:11:59,118
Because it affects your whole lifestyle
and maybe you don't have that mentality
250
00:11:59,552 --> 00:12:02,521
that you want, that
you know, that lifestyle because you
251
00:12:02,922 --> 00:12:06,692
typically will work way more than a person
that doesn't know their own business.
252
00:12:07,359 --> 00:12:11,664
Not always the case, but even even guys
and say, Oh, I only work four days a week.
253
00:12:12,932 --> 00:12:15,601
If you really look at those guys
that say that,
254
00:12:15,601 --> 00:12:19,138
they put in 25 years,
you know, I mean, and it got to a point
255
00:12:19,138 --> 00:12:22,842
where they can do that and they've
figured out I can charge more money.
256
00:12:22,842 --> 00:12:23,042
And I
257
00:12:23,042 --> 00:12:25,010
and these are the jobs
that make me the best money
258
00:12:25,010 --> 00:12:27,780
and now I've got my costs down
and these days, blah, blah,
259
00:12:28,080 --> 00:12:32,551
and I can do this lifestyle,
but most of them don't start off that way.
260
00:12:33,052 --> 00:12:35,755
Most of them it's trial and error
and learning different things, by the way.
261
00:12:35,755 --> 00:12:37,256
And maybe they get to a point in your life
when they,
262
00:12:37,256 --> 00:12:39,959
when they when they're, you know,
they don't have kids anymore or whatever
263
00:12:40,659 --> 00:12:44,196
but typically you will work
a ton more hours.
264
00:12:44,196 --> 00:12:46,966
And anybody
that's working a real nine to five job,
265
00:12:47,800 --> 00:12:49,502
so getting a great business plan
266
00:12:51,103 --> 00:12:52,571
getting a mentor.
267
00:12:52,571 --> 00:12:53,539
Older
268
00:12:55,808 --> 00:12:56,642
when you started
269
00:12:56,642 --> 00:12:59,311
your business,
did you write up a business plan?
270
00:13:00,212 --> 00:13:03,482
No, I, I didn't know what a business plan
was when I started this.
271
00:13:03,883 --> 00:13:04,550
Okay.
272
00:13:04,550 --> 00:13:06,385
Because I'm right there with you.
273
00:13:06,385 --> 00:13:07,753
Did not
274
00:13:08,320 --> 00:13:11,157
I did not have a business plan.
275
00:13:11,157 --> 00:13:14,460
Our business plan was beaten by both.
276
00:13:14,460 --> 00:13:16,095
Left my dad. We all right.
277
00:13:16,095 --> 00:13:16,996
We're out of here.
278
00:13:16,996 --> 00:13:19,765
We're going to go start our own gig.
279
00:13:20,032 --> 00:13:22,334
Our business plan was
we went over to the county
280
00:13:23,068 --> 00:13:26,172
and we signed up a business
name and got a tax
281
00:13:26,172 --> 00:13:29,375
ID number, and now we're sanding floors.
282
00:13:29,975 --> 00:13:30,576
Yeah.
283
00:13:30,576 --> 00:13:34,079
Did you have anybody finance you.
284
00:13:34,079 --> 00:13:36,081
I'm like, I know who had a finance me.
285
00:13:36,115 --> 00:13:37,917
It was 1980. Bill.
286
00:13:37,917 --> 00:13:40,186
Okay, exactly.
287
00:13:40,186 --> 00:13:40,853
Yeah.
288
00:13:41,053 --> 00:13:46,292
Peter and I took everything we had
bought the equipment that we didn't have,
289
00:13:46,292 --> 00:13:49,929
the truck, the whole thing
all completely out of pocket.
290
00:13:50,396 --> 00:13:54,133
And, you know, you're already behind
the eight ball, you know.
291
00:13:55,100 --> 00:13:56,769
So you,
292
00:13:56,769 --> 00:14:00,706
I look back at things and man
we talking about doing this
293
00:14:00,706 --> 00:14:04,410
and you really start investigating
and everything this business plan.
294
00:14:04,977 --> 00:14:08,914
Okay, take the time to sit down
295
00:14:08,914 --> 00:14:11,984
and write an amazing business plan.
296
00:14:12,518 --> 00:14:15,988
And I'm going to tell a story
and it might take a little,
297
00:14:16,322 --> 00:14:18,591
little time
and I know you don't like my long story.
298
00:14:19,058 --> 00:14:21,093
Oh. That's not true at all.
299
00:14:21,093 --> 00:14:21,994
Okay,
300
00:14:24,029 --> 00:14:24,697
I used to work
301
00:14:24,697 --> 00:14:28,267
for a distributor,
a big time player, major distributor
302
00:14:28,267 --> 00:14:31,370
that eventually, few years
back, kind of went out of business, but
303
00:14:31,370 --> 00:14:35,040
they were one of the biggest distributor,
wood floor distributors in the world.
304
00:14:35,741 --> 00:14:37,142
That's not such a long story.
305
00:14:37,142 --> 00:14:40,379
So the next one, I wanted to say
306
00:14:40,379 --> 00:14:41,614
no, go ahead.
307
00:14:42,548 --> 00:14:44,683
So the guy that I work for,
308
00:14:44,683 --> 00:14:47,553
he was a vice president,
and he ran the opening division,
309
00:14:48,621 --> 00:14:50,756
and he tells me his plan one day he goes
310
00:14:51,891 --> 00:14:53,692
I'm going to start my own gig.
311
00:14:53,692 --> 00:14:54,526
Okay.
312
00:14:56,161 --> 00:14:57,897
He goes, You want to come with me?
313
00:14:57,897 --> 00:14:59,732
And I'm like, What are you going
to you know, what do you mean?
314
00:14:59,732 --> 00:15:00,666
You start your own thing?
315
00:15:00,666 --> 00:15:04,403
He goes, It's going to be,
you know, we're going to sell direct
316
00:15:04,937 --> 00:15:09,742
we're going to be a distributor
to wood floor contractors.
317
00:15:09,742 --> 00:15:13,245
And, you know, so and I said, yeah,
you know, sounds kind of interesting.
318
00:15:13,245 --> 00:15:17,016
And, you know, sometimes you're looking
for a ground-floor opportunity.
319
00:15:17,016 --> 00:15:19,685
So I thought, yeah, this is it, you know?
320
00:15:19,685 --> 00:15:21,353
So I grabbed it.
321
00:15:21,353 --> 00:15:22,321
What's it is?
322
00:15:22,321 --> 00:15:24,223
They asked one thing for my father.
323
00:15:24,223 --> 00:15:25,991
Yes. No.
324
00:15:25,991 --> 00:15:29,194
Was it
no kind of alarm bells going off at all
325
00:15:29,194 --> 00:15:33,832
when he started this business
and he picked you as a partner that.
326
00:15:33,966 --> 00:15:35,401
Oh, no. No, no, no.
327
00:15:35,401 --> 00:15:38,037
He did not pick me as a partner. Okay.
328
00:15:39,071 --> 00:15:41,573
He thought I could be a key employee.
329
00:15:42,141 --> 00:15:43,008
Oh, okay.
330
00:15:43,008 --> 00:15:45,444
There was no partners tips. Okay?
331
00:15:46,078 --> 00:15:51,050
He he knew what I was good at,
and that's what he wanted to do.
332
00:15:51,317 --> 00:15:52,084
Okay.
333
00:15:52,551 --> 00:15:56,255
I was actually part of his business plan.
334
00:15:57,156 --> 00:15:58,791
His cousins,
335
00:15:58,791 --> 00:16:02,761
who owned a couple of mobile stations,
they owned a couple of gas stations.
336
00:16:02,761 --> 00:16:03,462
Okay.
337
00:16:03,462 --> 00:16:06,999
They were also investors
and part of his business plan.
338
00:16:08,567 --> 00:16:14,573
So he comes into the office
one day, and he goes Hey,
339
00:16:14,907 --> 00:16:17,743
I got the financing, the business plan.
340
00:16:18,510 --> 00:16:20,112
I said, Can I see it?
341
00:16:20,112 --> 00:16:23,882
I go, You actually went to a bank
and handed them a piece of paper
342
00:16:25,417 --> 00:16:27,519
and he goes, Yeah, that's how you do it.
343
00:16:27,753 --> 00:16:28,587
I was like, Oh,
344
00:16:28,587 --> 00:16:32,324
I wish I thought about asking the bank
for money when we first started.
345
00:16:32,424 --> 00:16:32,725
Right
346
00:16:34,593 --> 00:16:37,963
I started reading through
this business plan, and like I said,
347
00:16:38,030 --> 00:16:41,367
he talked about the position
I was going to do.
348
00:16:41,367 --> 00:16:43,802
He talked about the position
his sister was going to do
349
00:16:44,103 --> 00:16:46,605
and her background in bookkeeping
and this and that.
350
00:16:46,605 --> 00:16:49,441
And the other thing
his cousins would sales
351
00:16:49,842 --> 00:16:54,580
he had projected sales he had
I mean, this business plan was
352
00:16:54,913 --> 00:16:58,751
what was going to happen
over the next five years of this business.
353
00:16:59,084 --> 00:17:02,788
How he saw starting me going
354
00:17:02,788 --> 00:17:05,257
I mean, I'm reading through this going
355
00:17:06,458 --> 00:17:08,427
he should do this for a living.
356
00:17:08,427 --> 00:17:11,430
He should just run around
taking little guys like me.
357
00:17:11,430 --> 00:17:12,097
You want to start
358
00:17:12,097 --> 00:17:16,201
or you want to start their business,
help them write a business plan.
359
00:17:17,102 --> 00:17:20,305
You really start
looking into the whole business plan deal.
360
00:17:20,672 --> 00:17:22,508
You know, there's all sorts are great.
361
00:17:22,508 --> 00:17:27,646
Suggest gins and templates and all
sorts of stuff where all of a sudden
362
00:17:27,646 --> 00:17:31,450
it opens up your mind
to how far you want to take that business.
363
00:17:31,450 --> 00:17:35,454
But right away it opens up financing.
364
00:17:36,055 --> 00:17:39,425
And I think that's probably why
so many businesses fail
365
00:17:39,425 --> 00:17:43,796
if they don't have a good financing
good backing behind it.
366
00:17:44,263 --> 00:17:46,832
But this guy's story was
367
00:17:48,100 --> 00:17:49,234
unbelievable.
368
00:17:49,234 --> 00:17:54,173
I mean, we were buying delivery trucks,
warehouse is rent and warehouses.
369
00:17:54,440 --> 00:17:56,508
Yeah, it was serious.
370
00:17:57,209 --> 00:18:01,447
And it was all from his business plant.
371
00:18:01,447 --> 00:18:04,616
So this is one I want to tell everybody.
372
00:18:05,184 --> 00:18:07,419
If you want to get into the business,
373
00:18:07,986 --> 00:18:10,422
this is definitely the way to go work.
374
00:18:11,190 --> 00:18:12,691
Really.
375
00:18:12,925 --> 00:18:15,461
Just talk to your mentor.
376
00:18:15,494 --> 00:18:19,531
Talk to somebody who's we find somebody
who's written business plans.
377
00:18:19,531 --> 00:18:24,002
Look at these templates and this is going
to be the first thing you do.
378
00:18:24,636 --> 00:18:26,872
Because if I had to do it over again,
379
00:18:26,872 --> 00:18:29,341
this would absolutely be
the first thing I would do.
380
00:18:30,242 --> 00:18:33,412
Yep. We all know that we're good
contractors
381
00:18:33,412 --> 00:18:35,914
and love sanding
and installing and everything,
382
00:18:36,448 --> 00:18:40,719
but it's the business side of it,
the financing side,
383
00:18:40,719 --> 00:18:44,490
what's going to keep you going,
working with banks, things like that.
384
00:18:45,524 --> 00:18:47,259
So he had a great business plan.
385
00:18:47,259 --> 00:18:50,863
So amazing, amazing business plan.
386
00:18:50,896 --> 00:18:54,333
Got everything that he wanted
from banks and financing.
387
00:18:55,067 --> 00:18:57,803
And so how did that turn out now?
388
00:19:00,139 --> 00:19:00,572
Right.
389
00:19:00,572 --> 00:19:03,075
It all sounds amazing. Okay,
390
00:19:04,209 --> 00:19:05,644
first year,
391
00:19:06,011 --> 00:19:07,579
unbelievable.
392
00:19:07,579 --> 00:19:10,582
Second year we had four stores.
393
00:19:12,050 --> 00:19:13,952
I was doing DIY
394
00:19:13,952 --> 00:19:16,321
clinics for homeowners on Saturdays.
395
00:19:17,089 --> 00:19:19,324
We were selling to contractors
396
00:19:19,424 --> 00:19:24,363
we were like a distributor
that sold direct sold to contractors.
397
00:19:24,763 --> 00:19:27,933
We were cutting deals with finished
companies, flooring companies.
398
00:19:28,300 --> 00:19:29,968
We were taking over the world.
399
00:19:29,968 --> 00:19:33,338
I mean, like this, like
400
00:19:33,872 --> 00:19:36,408
we were a juggernaut.
401
00:19:36,508 --> 00:19:38,577
End of year three.
402
00:19:38,577 --> 00:19:39,945
Bankrupt
403
00:19:40,879 --> 00:19:42,447
locally.
404
00:19:42,814 --> 00:19:44,583
Bankrupt.
405
00:19:44,650 --> 00:19:46,451
Bankrupt at year three.
406
00:19:46,451 --> 00:19:47,853
Year one was amazing.
407
00:19:47,853 --> 00:19:50,822
Year two we quadrupled in size,
408
00:19:51,957 --> 00:19:54,860
which leads me to my next one
409
00:19:57,095 --> 00:20:00,065
start, slow and small.
410
00:20:00,065 --> 00:20:01,033
Okay.
411
00:20:01,266 --> 00:20:04,336
I mean, this guy had the business
plan, he had the backing,
412
00:20:05,404 --> 00:20:08,507
but he
wanted he wanted everything to quick
413
00:20:10,242 --> 00:20:11,944
he wanted it all to quit.
414
00:20:11,944 --> 00:20:13,745
And it was coming really out.
415
00:20:13,745 --> 00:20:16,682
I'll tell you what, really, really killed
the business
416
00:20:17,149 --> 00:20:19,618
was the money
that he spent in advertising.
417
00:20:20,619 --> 00:20:24,156
We had we had to tell you,
I was in a television commercial
418
00:20:25,657 --> 00:20:26,358
back really.
419
00:20:26,358 --> 00:20:28,660
We had he was running TV ads
420
00:20:29,494 --> 00:20:33,465
constantly, sun full page,
half page newspapers.
421
00:20:33,498 --> 00:20:33,832
Right.
422
00:20:33,832 --> 00:20:34,666
I mean,
423
00:20:35,434 --> 00:20:37,736
he was cranking and we had stores
424
00:20:37,736 --> 00:20:41,473
in New York, Massachusetts, Buffalo.
425
00:20:41,740 --> 00:20:45,210
And we were we were taking over the world
just like that.
426
00:20:45,210 --> 00:20:46,411
Like I said.
427
00:20:47,012 --> 00:20:49,314
And by the second year, he had quadrupled.
428
00:20:49,848 --> 00:20:51,850
And it was the advertising that did it,
429
00:20:53,085 --> 00:20:55,587
but it was also the advertising
430
00:20:55,587 --> 00:20:58,090
that eventually dragged him down.
431
00:20:58,624 --> 00:21:00,859
Brought him down while.
432
00:21:00,859 --> 00:21:03,495
Third year, third year, bankrupt, done.
433
00:21:03,595 --> 00:21:05,130
Gone. Wow.
434
00:21:07,032 --> 00:21:07,866
And I just remember
435
00:21:07,866 --> 00:21:11,403
thinking to myself
when it was all over as a year
436
00:21:12,404 --> 00:21:14,940
spot that ground-floor opportunity baby
437
00:21:18,810 --> 00:21:19,978
you don't have a bell.
438
00:21:19,978 --> 00:21:22,814
So I'll give myself a bell on that one
439
00:21:23,448 --> 00:21:27,085
because I remember you know,
things are going really good.
440
00:21:27,085 --> 00:21:31,023
And I said to Pauline,
I sat down with her and I said, listen,
441
00:21:31,657 --> 00:21:34,059
I really think
442
00:21:35,494 --> 00:21:37,929
I really think this is a way for us to go.
443
00:21:37,929 --> 00:21:39,965
This is a ground-floor opportunity.
444
00:21:40,565 --> 00:21:44,069
I'm going to be one of his key guys,
not a partner, but
445
00:21:44,536 --> 00:21:47,306
you know, a key guy to the business and
446
00:21:48,540 --> 00:21:50,008
show man.
447
00:21:50,008 --> 00:21:52,177
It was it was like a tornado, man.
448
00:21:52,210 --> 00:21:55,914
I mean, it just started up, kicked over.
449
00:21:55,914 --> 00:22:01,053
But what really got him going
was this amazing business plan.
450
00:22:01,086 --> 00:22:04,356
I was reading through this going,
oh, man, this is brilliant.
451
00:22:04,690 --> 00:22:06,825
This is definitely the way to start.
452
00:22:07,426 --> 00:22:09,261
So for anybody thinking about
453
00:22:10,462 --> 00:22:12,464
doing this, two things
454
00:22:13,699 --> 00:22:15,901
start small and slow,
455
00:22:15,901 --> 00:22:19,071
put together an amazing business plan.
456
00:22:19,071 --> 00:22:22,741
If he had stayed smaller, you know, like
I always thought
457
00:22:22,741 --> 00:22:26,078
if we had just kept the one store
for like three
458
00:22:26,078 --> 00:22:27,779
or four years,
459
00:22:29,214 --> 00:22:31,249
things could have been,
I think, much different.
460
00:22:31,450 --> 00:22:34,820
But he wanted
461
00:22:34,820 --> 00:22:38,824
huge expansion, and you've
probably seen it with some floor guys.
462
00:22:38,824 --> 00:22:40,359
They start out
463
00:22:40,359 --> 00:22:43,261
one or two guys, maybe one or two trucks,
and the next thing you know that
464
00:22:43,261 --> 00:22:48,400
you know, they and I don't think
we see it as much now as we did
465
00:22:48,900 --> 00:22:52,771
maybe back in the nineties
where guys wanted 20 trucks.
466
00:22:53,672 --> 00:22:57,776
I want 40 guys, I want 20 trucks,
I want to go, you know what I mean?
467
00:22:58,276 --> 00:22:59,778
Yeah, yeah.
468
00:23:00,278 --> 00:23:03,014
Well, I think also, you know,
you have to look at
469
00:23:03,548 --> 00:23:06,618
what what are your strengths
in that going into a business like this?
470
00:23:06,618 --> 00:23:07,652
What do you do? Well,
471
00:23:08,887 --> 00:23:10,789
and stick with your strength
472
00:23:10,789 --> 00:23:13,825
and you know your means.
473
00:23:13,825 --> 00:23:16,828
Guys know its limitations,
as they say, and
474
00:23:17,996 --> 00:23:20,432
I think that's a
that's a big part of growing the business.
475
00:23:20,432 --> 00:23:26,071
But I think you really have to realize
how much work is in owning a business.
476
00:23:26,505 --> 00:23:28,774
If you're going to go down that road.
477
00:23:28,774 --> 00:23:32,611
That's why a lot of guys stay employees,
and I've never knocked it.
478
00:23:32,611 --> 00:23:35,881
I think it's a great option,
probably a much better option
479
00:23:36,415 --> 00:23:38,917
for a lot of people
than owning your own business.
480
00:23:38,917 --> 00:23:41,520
There's not a knock on
anybody in the slightest.
481
00:23:42,754 --> 00:23:44,322
It is very, very difficult.
482
00:23:44,322 --> 00:23:46,825
You have to have a certain mentality
to own your business.
483
00:23:47,492 --> 00:23:51,763
And a lot of people probably would have
been better off working for somebody else.
484
00:23:52,898 --> 00:23:53,832
It is a whole.
485
00:23:53,832 --> 00:23:57,102
So I was raised well,
486
00:23:57,936 --> 00:24:00,272
you know, the whole family thing
487
00:24:00,272 --> 00:24:02,574
was never work for anybody else.
488
00:24:03,842 --> 00:24:04,709
Never
489
00:24:05,644 --> 00:24:07,746
near a Johnson you're self-employed,
490
00:24:07,946 --> 00:24:10,482
never work for anybody else.
491
00:24:11,383 --> 00:24:14,219
So I was like the first generation
492
00:24:15,020 --> 00:24:17,222
to go work for somebody else.
493
00:24:17,222 --> 00:24:21,493
And I started telling other people
in the family, like, this is really nice.
494
00:24:21,693 --> 00:24:23,962
You. Yeah, because that bell.
495
00:24:24,296 --> 00:24:25,297
Is not that bad.
496
00:24:25,297 --> 00:24:27,966
I really don't understand
why my dad was so against it.
497
00:24:27,966 --> 00:24:29,701
I go, I kind of like it.
498
00:24:29,701 --> 00:24:35,340
And my brother, he did the same thing
and the last I think it was like
499
00:24:35,340 --> 00:24:39,544
last Thanksgiving, him and I were laughing
like, yeah, I remember dad.
500
00:24:39,811 --> 00:24:40,545
I mean,
501
00:24:40,579 --> 00:24:45,083
my dad would preach that to us every week,
you know, never work for anybody else.
502
00:24:45,083 --> 00:24:46,751
You always work for yourself.
503
00:24:46,751 --> 00:24:50,589
And my brother and I were both joking,
like, I don't know about that, man.
504
00:24:50,589 --> 00:24:54,226
I mean, I kind of like working for
somebody else, you know?
505
00:24:54,226 --> 00:24:57,095
I want to circle
back to know your strengths,
506
00:24:58,363 --> 00:24:59,064
you know,
507
00:24:59,064 --> 00:25:01,833
that's really something
that you have to look at.
508
00:25:03,134 --> 00:25:04,803
And I, I mean this.
509
00:25:04,803 --> 00:25:08,940
I know you do, too, and it's not just know
your strengths, but what are you
510
00:25:10,775 --> 00:25:14,246
Are you a job site coordinator
or are you a foreman?
511
00:25:14,279 --> 00:25:15,347
Are you a craftsman?
512
00:25:15,347 --> 00:25:17,516
Are you a salesman
or are you a bookkeeper?
513
00:25:18,917 --> 00:25:19,751
You know what I mean?
514
00:25:19,751 --> 00:25:21,786
There's a lot of things
that need to happen
515
00:25:21,786 --> 00:25:24,422
when you start your own
wood floor business.
516
00:25:25,023 --> 00:25:27,225
Maybe you're in. Yeah. Right.
517
00:25:27,826 --> 00:25:28,026
Yeah.
518
00:25:28,059 --> 00:25:32,330
If you're a craftsman, well, then
you better get some involved with somebody
519
00:25:32,697 --> 00:25:37,736
who's a bookkeeper or a salesman
or you know what I mean?
520
00:25:37,736 --> 00:25:40,171
Because it's tough for
521
00:25:40,939 --> 00:25:43,375
and and we both had to do it.
522
00:25:43,375 --> 00:25:45,010
You had to wear all of those hats.
523
00:25:46,011 --> 00:25:46,344
Some.
524
00:25:46,344 --> 00:25:47,913
I love where you like me.
525
00:25:47,913 --> 00:25:53,184
I loved going out,
shake people's hands, doing the estimate.
526
00:25:53,418 --> 00:25:56,054
That was I was the sales guy.
527
00:25:56,254 --> 00:25:58,890
You know, I love doing that.
528
00:25:58,890 --> 00:26:03,562
Some people are great in operations,
which has nothing to do with sales,
529
00:26:03,895 --> 00:26:07,732
which has nothing to do with sanding,
finishing floors or installing floors.
530
00:26:07,732 --> 00:26:09,301
Right. There's a lot of different hats.
531
00:26:09,301 --> 00:26:10,035
So if you want to go
532
00:26:10,035 --> 00:26:13,171
into a business for yourself,
what I would say to myself is, okay,
533
00:26:14,039 --> 00:26:15,006
how do you feel like doing?
534
00:26:15,006 --> 00:26:17,709
How do you feel about doing
payroll every week?
535
00:26:17,709 --> 00:26:18,376
Right.
536
00:26:18,543 --> 00:26:21,146
How do you feel like about doing the books
every week
537
00:26:22,380 --> 00:26:23,381
and the billing?
538
00:26:23,381 --> 00:26:25,717
How do you feel about doing the billing
and the estimating?
539
00:26:26,384 --> 00:26:30,755
There's a lot of ads right there,
so then are you
540
00:26:30,755 --> 00:26:34,893
the is going to be going to work
if that you got to hire people to do that.
541
00:26:35,060 --> 00:26:37,896
So that's something that it's
another thing that you're hiring people
542
00:26:39,631 --> 00:26:41,967
so then you got advertising,
543
00:26:41,967 --> 00:26:45,770
you know, on is a lot of you know, there's
so many then you got to doing the taxes
544
00:26:45,770 --> 00:26:49,674
and then you so so much
so that you love doing hardwood floors.
545
00:26:50,475 --> 00:26:53,211
Well he's got nothing at all
to do with owning a business.
546
00:26:53,878 --> 00:26:57,082
So you know,
you have to marry the two together
547
00:26:57,082 --> 00:26:58,683
and where do you fit in that
548
00:26:58,683 --> 00:27:02,654
and I what happens to a lot of people
that love doing hardwood floors bigger,
549
00:27:02,654 --> 00:27:05,590
they get the farther away
from going for it. They get
550
00:27:05,590 --> 00:27:06,558
you know what I mean?
551
00:27:06,558 --> 00:27:08,893
They'll get to the point
where they can hardly touch floors anymore
552
00:27:09,494 --> 00:27:11,229
and they get it because they love floors.
553
00:27:11,229 --> 00:27:12,364
And for some people, that's great.
554
00:27:12,364 --> 00:27:14,499
They're for because in there for them,
they're growing.
555
00:27:14,499 --> 00:27:17,302
And then that's going your direction.
556
00:27:17,302 --> 00:27:18,303
That's fine.
557
00:27:18,403 --> 00:27:22,173
But I think you just like you said,
you have to down and get a business plan
558
00:27:22,173 --> 00:27:26,244
and really understand where this is going
to go and what are the goals in ten years
559
00:27:27,212 --> 00:27:29,581
because there isn't a safety net.
560
00:27:29,581 --> 00:27:32,384
You know, there's a lot of people
that there isn't the benefits
561
00:27:32,384 --> 00:27:35,553
and everything that, you know, as you know
and I know we've all had friends that,
562
00:27:36,121 --> 00:27:38,857
you know, they get every weekend off
and they get four weeks off here no matter
563
00:27:38,857 --> 00:27:42,894
what happens, you know, they're taking
four weeks off or six weeks off, whatever.
564
00:27:43,194 --> 00:27:45,463
Much more difficult to do that
when you're a business
565
00:27:45,463 --> 00:27:47,999
for some people for something was not,
you know what I mean?
566
00:27:48,299 --> 00:27:51,603
But most people think they oh,
you work for yourself.
567
00:27:51,603 --> 00:27:53,371
You can take vacation when you want.
568
00:27:53,371 --> 00:27:54,205
It's usually the.
569
00:27:54,205 --> 00:27:54,606
Yeah.
570
00:27:54,973 --> 00:27:57,308
Yeah. No, no, I know.
571
00:27:57,909 --> 00:28:00,512
I've had this conversation with many floor
guys,
572
00:28:01,513 --> 00:28:05,583
the toughest week of the year,
the two toughest weeks of the year.
573
00:28:05,850 --> 00:28:09,487
Or the week before you go on vacation
and the week after the vacation.
574
00:28:09,487 --> 00:28:09,988
Yeah.
575
00:28:10,021 --> 00:28:13,091
And during the vacation,
you're just dreading
576
00:28:14,125 --> 00:28:16,294
what's about to hit you when you get back.
577
00:28:16,294 --> 00:28:16,961
Yeah.
578
00:28:18,129 --> 00:28:18,596
Yeah.
579
00:28:18,596 --> 00:28:21,599
So we don't
we don't want to discourage anybody,
580
00:28:22,033 --> 00:28:25,904
but I think that, you know, it's just,
like you said going it is wide open,
581
00:28:26,271 --> 00:28:26,671
you know,
582
00:28:26,671 --> 00:28:29,007
are you a salesman or you're bookkeeper,
you're a craftsman
583
00:28:29,007 --> 00:28:30,542
or you're project manager?
584
00:28:30,542 --> 00:28:34,179
All these different things
can get a mentor before you get started.
585
00:28:34,512 --> 00:28:35,880
What were you
586
00:28:37,182 --> 00:28:38,149
I was a craftsman.
587
00:28:38,149 --> 00:28:40,719
I was going to say,
I bet you were the crash.
588
00:28:40,719 --> 00:28:41,252
Yeah.
589
00:28:41,252 --> 00:28:45,056
And you know, when you asked me,
did I have a mentor
590
00:28:45,223 --> 00:28:47,392
or did I have financing
or anything like that,
591
00:28:47,392 --> 00:28:50,395
all I knew was
I knew I wanted to make $2 and said,
592
00:28:50,395 --> 00:28:53,798
if I just said if I say a square foot,
that's what I knew
593
00:28:54,733 --> 00:28:56,968
because that at time in 1982
594
00:28:57,569 --> 00:29:00,605
that's
where the guys were making a lot of money.
595
00:29:00,605 --> 00:29:02,107
That's when they were charging.
596
00:29:02,107 --> 00:29:03,074
That was it. That was my goal.
597
00:29:03,074 --> 00:29:04,409
I didn't know why I wanted that.
598
00:29:04,409 --> 00:29:08,613
No, that didn't make any sense as far
as my overhead or those type of things.
599
00:29:08,613 --> 00:29:11,416
We did fine because, you know,
we were small and whatever.
600
00:29:11,883 --> 00:29:15,186
And then but,
but from there I learned the business.
601
00:29:15,186 --> 00:29:20,091
I didn't learn the business until about
five or six years in the financial side.
602
00:29:20,158 --> 00:29:23,027
To wrap my head around all of it,
I felt like, okay,
603
00:29:23,595 --> 00:29:25,697
now I know why I'm doing things
a certain way.
604
00:29:25,697 --> 00:29:27,999
Now, my bills make more sense to me.
605
00:29:29,167 --> 00:29:30,568
I've had to put a number out there.
606
00:29:30,568 --> 00:29:32,737
They have a reason
why so wants a discount.
607
00:29:32,737 --> 00:29:35,039
I know exactly what my costs are.
608
00:29:35,039 --> 00:29:38,276
I know exactly if I could afford
to give this guy a break or not.
609
00:29:38,877 --> 00:29:40,411
More times, not
610
00:29:42,447 --> 00:29:43,414
so and so.
611
00:29:43,414 --> 00:29:46,351
This was the business plan
you would walk into the bank with?
612
00:29:46,985 --> 00:29:49,320
Pretty much, yeah. This Mike.
613
00:29:49,921 --> 00:29:51,823
Can you give me 30 grand this is.
614
00:29:51,823 --> 00:29:54,192
Yes, this is what I want.
615
00:29:54,192 --> 00:29:55,860
So if you tie in this show
616
00:29:55,860 --> 00:29:58,263
and some of the other shows we do
and listen is criticism
617
00:29:59,164 --> 00:30:02,700
we had on another show and he talks
about what your real costs are
618
00:30:03,868 --> 00:30:06,471
and then not to mention
then we get into the crap inside of it
619
00:30:06,471 --> 00:30:09,140
there's a clean
the shows that we've had with
620
00:30:09,841 --> 00:30:12,710
with a John number and
621
00:30:14,245 --> 00:30:15,547
Howard Brickman
622
00:30:15,647 --> 00:30:19,050
you know what I mean so those
all those skill sets all those knowledge
623
00:30:19,317 --> 00:30:22,053
that that you have
then buying the right tools
624
00:30:22,053 --> 00:30:24,422
in the sequence is
that's going to make you the most money.
625
00:30:25,323 --> 00:30:27,559
There's a lot
it's like as a matter of fact,
626
00:30:28,059 --> 00:30:32,130
you said to all three years of the
our podcast in there,
627
00:30:32,530 --> 00:30:36,134
there's a college degree
on the following business.
628
00:30:36,367 --> 00:30:39,204
Really, if you look at the fire
629
00:30:39,204 --> 00:30:42,373
safety
class, you talked about finishing classes
630
00:30:42,373 --> 00:30:46,177
and a recent class that we've done in
so many different people
631
00:30:46,177 --> 00:30:50,448
that we the guests that we had
on the topics that we we talk about.
632
00:30:51,449 --> 00:30:53,818
I mean, it was much as you
and I joke around, but I mean,
633
00:30:53,852 --> 00:30:57,655
look at we've had between the two of us,
we had 80 years of experience
634
00:30:57,655 --> 00:31:02,126
in this business,
80 years plus so you know there's,
635
00:31:03,928 --> 00:31:05,029
there's a lot we.
636
00:31:05,029 --> 00:31:08,466
Truly are
the juggernaut of food for our podcasts.
637
00:31:08,900 --> 00:31:10,501
Oh of course.
638
00:31:10,501 --> 00:31:13,504
The juggernaut baby. Yes.
639
00:31:13,738 --> 00:31:17,876
So anyway, like I say, we don't want to,
we don't want to discourage anybody.
640
00:31:18,243 --> 00:31:22,580
But I think if you start if you're going
to start with this is what I want to do.
641
00:31:22,981 --> 00:31:24,349
Look at the whole picture.
642
00:31:24,349 --> 00:31:26,351
There's something you don't jump into
real quickly
643
00:31:26,351 --> 00:31:28,386
without sitting down and being honest.
644
00:31:28,386 --> 00:31:30,922
And I think also being honest
with yourself.
645
00:31:30,922 --> 00:31:33,458
You know,
I'll tell you what a guy that I knew
646
00:31:33,458 --> 00:31:36,060
was going to fail in this business, and
647
00:31:37,562 --> 00:31:39,864
I feel bad about it,
but I knew this guy was going to fail from
648
00:31:39,864 --> 00:31:42,367
the very beginning is when he showed up.
649
00:31:42,934 --> 00:31:45,303
We only had a couple of years
of experience doing floors.
650
00:31:46,838 --> 00:31:49,474
He showed up with a brand new trailer
651
00:31:49,474 --> 00:31:52,543
brand new sea and a brand new van
that his grandmother bought for him.
652
00:31:53,478 --> 00:31:54,746
And I thought,
653
00:31:55,413 --> 00:31:57,482
things don't come that easy, brother.
654
00:31:57,482 --> 00:31:58,416
Not my work.
655
00:31:58,416 --> 00:32:01,352
You got to have some skin
in the game. Yes.
656
00:32:01,352 --> 00:32:04,222
And in two years.
You got to have some skin.
657
00:32:04,422 --> 00:32:05,456
Yeah. Yep.
658
00:32:05,456 --> 00:32:09,294
I just think that he thought it was going
to come much easier than it did,
659
00:32:09,894 --> 00:32:12,730
and he thought he went off
to start hiring people real quickly.
660
00:32:13,164 --> 00:32:16,200
And, you know,
661
00:32:16,634 --> 00:32:18,970
he didn't last long in the
in the business, so.
662
00:32:19,003 --> 00:32:21,572
Well,
you know, that probably leads to another
663
00:32:22,273 --> 00:32:24,943
another one about
if you're going to start your own business
664
00:32:25,576 --> 00:32:28,546
they probably didn't have a lot of passion
for the business.
665
00:32:28,546 --> 00:32:30,615
He probably thought, this way
I can make some money.
666
00:32:31,449 --> 00:32:34,419
Well, it's funny,
you know, I'm glad you just said that.
667
00:32:34,852 --> 00:32:37,588
Because there is a camp
that gets in this business
668
00:32:37,989 --> 00:32:40,591
that that are like, okay, me, I have a
669
00:32:40,591 --> 00:32:44,696
I have a degree in business or whatever
or I've had business in the past.
670
00:32:44,696 --> 00:32:47,365
I know how to run businesses
and they get into our business
671
00:32:47,999 --> 00:32:51,602
and they realize this business
is not like a lot of other businesses.
672
00:32:52,203 --> 00:32:53,838
You know what I mean? Yeah.
673
00:32:53,838 --> 00:32:57,008
There's so many variables in this business
is a very tough business to be in.
674
00:32:57,508 --> 00:33:00,178
So I have seen that model, too,
where people come in
675
00:33:00,812 --> 00:33:02,747
and just think, Oh, well, it's a business.
676
00:33:02,747 --> 00:33:05,216
I I know how to run a business. Yeah.
677
00:33:05,283 --> 00:33:08,619
And then I have the knowledge
and the technical part down
678
00:33:09,087 --> 00:33:10,221
and I've seen them fail.
679
00:33:10,221 --> 00:33:14,225
But on the flip side of that, Rob, we both
seen people that are in this business
680
00:33:14,859 --> 00:33:18,262
that maybe own retail stores
or got in the form business
681
00:33:18,262 --> 00:33:20,898
that don't have a background in Florida
and then exceptionally
682
00:33:20,898 --> 00:33:24,535
well because they are good business people
you know what I mean? Yes.
683
00:33:25,470 --> 00:33:29,607
They are the people that they
probably hired, especially your craftsmen.
684
00:33:30,108 --> 00:33:32,643
Yeah. You find a good, passionate guy
685
00:33:33,945 --> 00:33:34,379
nice.
686
00:33:34,379 --> 00:33:37,515
You get you get something to build up.
687
00:33:37,515 --> 00:33:39,684
So so opening up
688
00:33:40,518 --> 00:33:44,722
I seen a I seen a thing on on Facebook
where someone says
689
00:33:44,822 --> 00:33:47,392
LeBron
James would have been one of the best
690
00:33:49,293 --> 00:33:51,796
wide receivers in the NFL
691
00:33:51,796 --> 00:33:52,663
at six foot eight.
692
00:33:52,663 --> 00:33:55,066
And all the tools that he had,
he would have been one of the best.
693
00:33:55,933 --> 00:33:58,236
And I'm calling BS on that.
694
00:33:58,236 --> 00:34:01,806
Maybe, maybe not there
have some wide receivers that don't look
695
00:34:01,806 --> 00:34:06,077
like anything that are great
because they have a you know what I mean?
696
00:34:06,077 --> 00:34:09,647
They have a toughness about him, a mental
toughness about him and different things.
697
00:34:09,647 --> 00:34:13,718
They whatever their their strength is,
they play their strengths to the you know,
698
00:34:14,018 --> 00:34:14,318
I don't know
699
00:34:14,318 --> 00:34:17,822
if LeBron James can come across
and they they'll take it from Ray Lewis.
700
00:34:17,855 --> 00:34:18,956
You know what I mean?
701
00:34:19,290 --> 00:34:20,391
He's a big guy.
702
00:34:20,391 --> 00:34:22,560
He looks like
the guy doesn't mean anything.
703
00:34:22,927 --> 00:34:26,464
So you get on the floor business,
you might be, you know,
704
00:34:27,065 --> 00:34:30,635
very poor, not have anything
and become very successful
705
00:34:30,735 --> 00:34:33,438
because you have the mental toughness
and the drive and everything to do it.
706
00:34:33,871 --> 00:34:36,841
So you might come from a college
background,
707
00:34:36,974 --> 00:34:38,709
what have you that you're you know.
708
00:34:38,709 --> 00:34:40,978
So I guess what I'm getting at is
709
00:34:40,978 --> 00:34:44,282
it comes down to the drive that you have,
the passion that you have
710
00:34:44,682 --> 00:34:47,485
and the decisions,
the choices that you make.
711
00:34:47,485 --> 00:34:49,020
I think there's room for everybody,
I think.
712
00:34:49,020 --> 00:34:52,990
And the good news about this is
I do think it's a wonderful business.
713
00:34:52,990 --> 00:34:55,893
I do. I love the foreign business.
I always have.
714
00:34:55,893 --> 00:34:59,497
I think there's like I said, there's
so many great people in this business. And
715
00:35:00,798 --> 00:35:01,833
so find your way,
716
00:35:01,833 --> 00:35:04,402
but just find out what your strength is
if you're going to do this.
717
00:35:04,936 --> 00:35:06,971
And and there you go.
718
00:35:06,971 --> 00:35:10,108
So all right.
719
00:35:10,741 --> 00:35:13,711
We also to Rob
and he doesn't want to touch it.
720
00:35:14,078 --> 00:35:14,846
Yeah, man.
721
00:35:14,846 --> 00:35:17,715
You got to have a powerful message.
722
00:35:17,782 --> 00:35:20,251
You got to have a powerful message.
723
00:35:20,785 --> 00:35:23,187
And to go with that powerful message,
724
00:35:23,921 --> 00:35:27,091
you have got to be powerful
in social media today.
725
00:35:27,992 --> 00:35:28,793
Okay.
726
00:35:28,893 --> 00:35:32,730
It goes right back to our Erica
Kitty episode, how social media.
727
00:35:32,730 --> 00:35:34,031
Didn't talk more about it.
728
00:35:34,031 --> 00:35:38,302
Absolutely no go goes into that
led episode with Erica Kitty
729
00:35:38,870 --> 00:35:43,207
and and she talks very much
about how important and so and
730
00:35:43,407 --> 00:35:47,178
and also like you say your core values
what you stand
731
00:35:47,178 --> 00:35:51,048
for and don't advertise to the masses
find your niche you know what I mean?
732
00:35:51,048 --> 00:35:52,049
What makes you different
733
00:35:52,049 --> 00:35:54,118
if you're going to get into business
I think you have to have
734
00:35:54,785 --> 00:35:57,021
and I'm maybe I'm
stealing your thunder here I don't know
735
00:35:57,021 --> 00:36:00,191
but you have to have what makes you
different than the next guy.
736
00:36:00,558 --> 00:36:03,227
Why would I hire you
instead of all the other tech guys
737
00:36:03,327 --> 00:36:05,463
that are in my same city?
738
00:36:05,463 --> 00:36:07,198
What makes you special?
739
00:36:07,198 --> 00:36:09,767
What makes you the guy that I should hire
everybody else
740
00:36:09,834 --> 00:36:12,036
you better know what that is.
You better have the answer to that.
741
00:36:12,470 --> 00:36:14,605
You better know someone to ask you
that question. Why?
742
00:36:14,605 --> 00:36:17,041
And that should be your core value
and what you believe in.
743
00:36:17,475 --> 00:36:19,844
So didn't somebody ask you that.
744
00:36:20,711 --> 00:36:22,914
Like my my father law?
745
00:36:22,914 --> 00:36:24,982
I had no answer as a young kid.
746
00:36:25,283 --> 00:36:25,650
Yeah.
747
00:36:25,650 --> 00:36:28,019
And I was eating the eating lunch
with him.
748
00:36:28,019 --> 00:36:30,121
Neil, why would I hire you
749
00:36:30,121 --> 00:36:33,591
and I told them all the thing, everybody
says, Oh, well, I'm good at what we do.
750
00:36:33,591 --> 00:36:34,525
We have great tools
751
00:36:34,525 --> 00:36:37,562
we have over it kept saying,
you're boring me, you're boring me.
752
00:36:37,762 --> 00:36:39,564
The next guy told me the same thing.
753
00:36:39,564 --> 00:36:40,531
Why would I hire you?
754
00:36:40,531 --> 00:36:42,466
Tell me why and how are you?
755
00:36:42,466 --> 00:36:44,135
And I had no answer for him.
756
00:36:44,135 --> 00:36:45,336
And it really made me sit down
757
00:36:45,336 --> 00:36:48,272
and think, what makes me more different
special than the other guy?
758
00:36:48,873 --> 00:36:51,209
And when you come up with that answer,
759
00:36:51,209 --> 00:36:54,378
that is a very powerful way to go, go,
go to work every day.
760
00:36:54,845 --> 00:36:57,014
So that was it.
761
00:36:57,014 --> 00:37:00,218
That was pretty cool
that he asked you that
762
00:37:00,551 --> 00:37:02,787
because that gave you
a completely different mindset.
763
00:37:03,387 --> 00:37:04,922
Yeah, I married his daughter.
764
00:37:04,922 --> 00:37:06,090
He see the writing on the wall.
765
00:37:06,090 --> 00:37:08,025
He knew how she was going to support her
766
00:37:12,396 --> 00:37:12,964
okay.
767
00:37:12,964 --> 00:37:16,367
But, you know, we did that social media
one with Eric
768
00:37:16,400 --> 00:37:20,371
can't see anybody starting a new business
go back and listen to that one.
769
00:37:20,738 --> 00:37:24,508
But didn't we do a TikTok one with Aaron
Chiefs?
770
00:37:25,743 --> 00:37:26,677
Yep, yep.
771
00:37:26,677 --> 00:37:29,347
We did one on TikTok with him
and also Josh Hanson.
772
00:37:30,181 --> 00:37:32,350
That's definitely one because I remember
773
00:37:34,252 --> 00:37:36,254
Lenny Hall heard that
and he's like, Great.
774
00:37:36,254 --> 00:37:38,522
Now I got to go out and start a TikTok,
you know, oh,
775
00:37:39,857 --> 00:37:44,462
so, man, that social media
and someone, you know,
776
00:37:44,462 --> 00:37:48,933
so many of us are floor guys, you know,
we like doing the floors and everything.
777
00:37:49,267 --> 00:37:51,702
We, you know, some guys are.
778
00:37:52,003 --> 00:37:52,703
And actually,
779
00:37:52,703 --> 00:37:55,640
now I think when you look at
some of the really successful guys in this
780
00:37:57,441 --> 00:37:59,543
they're powerful on social media.
781
00:37:59,543 --> 00:38:00,544
Yeah. Yeah.
782
00:38:00,544 --> 00:38:03,080
And the surprising
thing that I learned from
783
00:38:04,181 --> 00:38:07,985
the sheaves kid was how tough that is.
784
00:38:08,786 --> 00:38:09,620
Yeah.
785
00:38:09,720 --> 00:38:12,623
Erin, she's a. Long
that takes to do. Well.
786
00:38:12,623 --> 00:38:15,326
I'm going to I want to
I want to say something about that.
787
00:38:15,960 --> 00:38:17,395
All right.
788
00:38:18,729 --> 00:38:20,598
I think to a point,
789
00:38:20,598 --> 00:38:23,668
I think also there can be a negative
backlash to that
790
00:38:24,402 --> 00:38:26,771
is I wonder
now I'm starting to see so much
791
00:38:26,771 --> 00:38:30,808
and I wonder the amount of time
that's put into that into social media
792
00:38:31,309 --> 00:38:33,678
if you're really getting that investment
back out.
793
00:38:34,312 --> 00:38:37,882
I, I would I'm starting to really wonder
that I'm questioning it it now.
794
00:38:37,915 --> 00:38:41,252
I'm not saying, you know, for, for certain
for sure some people do,
795
00:38:42,053 --> 00:38:45,556
but for others
I don't know what is really doing for them
796
00:38:45,556 --> 00:38:47,158
is it really reaching the core core
797
00:38:47,158 --> 00:38:49,560
audience that they need to meet
and what have you,
798
00:38:49,560 --> 00:38:50,928
the amount of time they put into it.
799
00:38:50,928 --> 00:38:55,132
And as we did a show not long ago
in the past, we realize the number one
800
00:38:55,132 --> 00:38:59,236
reason that you hire someone is
is a referral from someone that you did.
801
00:38:59,603 --> 00:39:01,872
So the amount of time
you put in social media,
802
00:39:01,872 --> 00:39:03,974
the amount of time
you do these type of things,
803
00:39:03,974 --> 00:39:06,544
if you had done one more thing
for their customer on a job
804
00:39:07,211 --> 00:39:11,315
center, flowers do something extra to do
one more thing that no one else does.
805
00:39:11,482 --> 00:39:13,918
Would that be a better investment?
806
00:39:13,918 --> 00:39:14,418
You know what I mean?
807
00:39:14,418 --> 00:39:16,554
Then then the solution made all of us
helps me
808
00:39:16,554 --> 00:39:18,989
because like we said,
the number one reason people hire somebody
809
00:39:19,357 --> 00:39:21,759
is they get referred by a friend
or someone they trust.
810
00:39:22,593 --> 00:39:26,230
So I think that's another consideration
as I'm seeing more social media
811
00:39:26,230 --> 00:39:30,735
is making me question that a little bit
more than than, than in the past. So
812
00:39:32,069 --> 00:39:34,138
while there you go.
813
00:39:34,638 --> 00:39:36,540
That was right from the horse's mouth.
814
00:39:36,540 --> 00:39:40,411
Everybody,
I think you that's a Wayne is right there.
815
00:39:40,811 --> 00:39:43,147
Well. You know what?
816
00:39:43,147 --> 00:39:45,549
I'm a sales guy, so I'm easily sold.
817
00:39:47,251 --> 00:39:48,552
You got me thinking.
818
00:39:48,552 --> 00:39:51,222
You do have me thinking on that one.
819
00:39:51,222 --> 00:39:51,689
There you go.
820
00:39:51,689 --> 00:39:53,524
Think about when you said send flowers.
821
00:39:53,524 --> 00:39:55,693
I'm thinking about that
822
00:39:55,693 --> 00:39:57,995
contractor
that came to a school up in Toronto.
823
00:39:58,829 --> 00:40:02,166
And two weeks after everything's done,
he sends two people a plant.
824
00:40:03,667 --> 00:40:05,169
And now that's Toronto.
825
00:40:05,169 --> 00:40:07,671
He's the plant guy in Toronto.
826
00:40:07,671 --> 00:40:10,040
And he said, I have people, I'm
827
00:40:10,040 --> 00:40:13,911
doing estimates,
and they're asking me, do I get a plant?
828
00:40:13,911 --> 00:40:16,080
You know, is this enough money
829
00:40:16,080 --> 00:40:17,748
because so-and-so got a plant?
830
00:40:17,748 --> 00:40:18,916
He goes, It's hysterical.
831
00:40:18,916 --> 00:40:21,752
He goes, I'm not getting jobs as we do
good work.
832
00:40:22,052 --> 00:40:22,787
I do.
833
00:40:22,953 --> 00:40:23,587
I'm getting jobs.
834
00:40:23,587 --> 00:40:26,223
Because I give a plant
and I'm the plant guy.
835
00:40:26,824 --> 00:40:29,960
One of the students turns around
and he goes, Oh, my God,
836
00:40:29,960 --> 00:40:33,664
you're the plant guy I've heard about you
people have talked and me but.
837
00:40:35,433 --> 00:40:37,568
So he he found his niche.
838
00:40:37,568 --> 00:40:39,670
He found his niche, man.
839
00:40:39,670 --> 00:40:41,172
Yes. There you go.
840
00:40:41,372 --> 00:40:42,273
Okay.
841
00:40:43,107 --> 00:40:43,474
All right.
842
00:40:43,474 --> 00:40:47,511
Rob, I think there's a lot for people
to to to consider.
843
00:40:48,145 --> 00:40:50,681
And even if you've been around,
844
00:40:50,681 --> 00:40:53,717
an old guy is like you
or I been around for a long time.
845
00:40:53,717 --> 00:40:56,620
I think there's something in there, too,
for you
846
00:40:56,620 --> 00:40:59,089
to maybe just think about.
847
00:40:59,089 --> 00:41:01,392
So there you go.
848
00:41:01,392 --> 00:41:03,360
Rob, I appreciate it.
849
00:41:03,360 --> 00:41:05,463
And you're a pleasure, buddy.
850
00:41:05,463 --> 00:41:05,963
Good to see.
851
00:41:05,963 --> 00:41:08,365
Hey, I'll talk to you
down the road for sure.
852
00:41:08,365 --> 00:41:11,502
Um, this has been another episode
of On the Floor with Wayne.
853
00:41:11,502 --> 00:41:14,839
Rob, please
stay tuned for another episode of.