Small talk is a part of each of our lives. It’s defined by Wikipedia as ”polite conversation about unimportant things.” On most days, we all engage in some form of small talk, whether in public or in our jobs, and most of us have our go-to questions at the ready, just in case some small talk breaks out. One of …
Is There a Market for Quality?
Give the people what they want. George Jessel Obviously, as a small business owner, we must follow the advice of George Jessel, and give the people what they want. If we’re trying to sell something that no one wants, there’s an oversized chance that we we’ll quickly find ourselves out of business! Unfortunately, too many businesses point to this quote …
Employer or Employee; Which One am I?
As children, we were taught that once we started working, we had our choice of either a blue or white-collar job. For as long as we can remember, that was the norm. You went to school and got a white-collar job, or you skipped school and started working right away at a blue-collar job. We could be a worker, or …
3 Things
What the hell am I supposed to do when this happens? When we’re out there inspecting, running our business, we’re going to be asking the “what do I do now” question a lot. There are always going to be unusual situations popping up, and we’re the one left trying to figure out what to do next. Things happen to us …
6 Steps to Growth
Starting and running a small business can be both extremely rewarding and extremely frustrating. While we can find business success, the stark reality is that almost 75% of new small business ventures won’t survive past the 2-year mark. Today we will discuss six of the most important things to remember to give us the best chance of getting into that …
Crawling vs. Walking
I consider myself to be extremely fortunate. I (somehow) ended up in a career that I really enjoy, that allows me to help others and that helps me provide for my family. I started doing home inspections in 2000, and soon thereafter started teaching other home inspectors (and Realtors) about our industry. I’ve helped inspectors in many different states start, …
Hurt Yourself. The Pain of Becoming Experienced.
As business people, we are subject to scrutiny by our potential clients. They’re often probing and prodding, looking for insight into whether we’re an inspector they can rely on. Much of the time, the first thing they look for is experience. When did you start doing your job? Clients want to know how long we’ve been practicing our craft. When …
Become the Authority
I am fascinated by the possibilities of digital marketing. It enables us, as small business owners, to vastly extend our marketing reach without breaking the bank. However, the sheer number of options available to us can seem overwhelming: Facebook, TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, the list goes on and on. I’ve spent a good bit of time researching the various marketing methods …
Can I Keep Growing?
People stay where they grow. Seth Godin As I was driving home from an inspection the other day, I heard this quote in a podcast featuring marketing guru Seth Godin. During the conversation, the host asked Seth his opinion on the current situation in employment, where it seems almost impossible for businesses to retain employees. While managing employees is a …
Self-Inflicted Wounds
Self-inflicted wounds. I recently wrote a post about this very topic. But the more I’ve thought about it, the more I realized that there was still much to be said about a problem that many of us, no matter our industry, suffer from. Regardless of where we inspect or how long we’ve been at it, the more we think about …