# I have no idea .. Im Dead.. Im Lost.. I Need Direction...



## plazaman (Apr 17, 2005)

Guys... i have no idea in what direction i want to head in.... I am not focused. Im drifted..


Currently we run Additions, Remodels, Renovations. Nice.. not steady, not constant, We have an established business for running over 20 years, i have every possible tool, we are setup to do the work, but i don't think the quality leads are coming,, and not constant

Started a Sandblasting business 3 years ago, that flopped , selling equipment

Looking into purchasing sealcoating equipment as my next venture, still skeptical, since i already got burnt with the sandblasting

Also looking to refinance a properties to start flipping houses (Big Step)

I been looking into Government Contract, 


I want to take things up a Notch... I know i need to stay focused on 1 area.

But im unsure of which!


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## ApgarNJ (Apr 16, 2006)

I think the amount of quality leads has gone down for most of us in the remodeling industry doing additions and the other jobs you mentioned. 
I wouldn't stray too far from what you've been doing for 20 years, as that is a big gamble. I wouldn't think of hiring a guy who does driveway sealing to also come in and remodel my bathroom, or vise versa. See what I'm trying to say?

Looks like you might be stretching out just a bit too far in search of the perfect line of work that doesn't really exist.


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## plazaman (Apr 17, 2005)

just to clarify, dad has been doing this for over 20 years. I been in the business for about 4 years. Over the 4 years, we made minor improvements, but its really isnt cutting it. Any new ventures/additional services will be on my part.


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## Heritage (Mar 20, 2007)

ApgarNJ said:


> I think the amount of quality leads has gone down for most of us in the remodeling industry doing additions and the other jobs you mentioned.
> I wouldn't stray too far from what you've been doing for 20 years, as that is a big gamble. I wouldn't think of hiring a guy who does driveway sealing to also come in and remodel my bathroom, or vise versa. See what I'm trying to say?
> 
> Looks like you might be stretching out just a bit too far in search of the perfect line of work that doesn't really exist.


Well said.

If you want, divide and conquer. For example:
-I'm a licensed GC
-I'm also a licensed electrician
-I have sandblasting equipment/experience.

3 Companies:
-Heritage General Contracting Inc.
-Heritage Electric Inc.
-Heritage Sandblasting Inc.

3 different marketing strategies/businesses/demographics etc.

You try to blend the 3, you dilute all 3. Nobody will take you seriously. Like everytime I see Dodge caravans with decals like: "JOE SCHMOE'S PAINTING AND RENOVATIONS SERVICES. 416.555.9561. PAINTING, ELECTRICAL, PLUMBING, MASONRY, RENOVATIONS, CABINETRY, FLOORING...". Yeah right no.

Like the Japanese Samurai - One mind :thumbsup:


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## plazaman (Apr 17, 2005)

very well said heritage.... now the big question... which area should i focus! I dont mind leaving 1 for another


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## S.R.E. (Apr 8, 2010)

plazaman said:


> very well said heritage.... now the big question... which area should i focus! I dont mind leaving 1 for another


Focus on the one that is making you money. In this economy trying to break in to a new market can be tough.


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## plazaman (Apr 17, 2005)

im thinking my first move is to redo my website!


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## SLSTech (Sep 13, 2008)

Nobody can tell you what the golden ticket will be for you, or in your area. That said, just a few rambling thoughts & questions based on info posted...

Website would be top off my list - just a few quick things I see

You have 3 main tabs - GC, Maintenance, Sandblasting
GC - page has a lot of small print, etc... doesn't look inviting - hard to read
Maintenance - "Starting Jan 2010 We will launch our Home maintenance program. Contact for details." (did you ever get that started?)
Sand blasting - most updated pages, has pictures, you are getting out of

Photo gallery, I see some pretty nice work, looks like some higher end (maybe middle income in your area - I don't know)
What is your demographics that you target, your bread & butter jobs, have lots of old referrals (maybe a check on old projects - pick up some new ones)? 

If you have some high end clients, etc... change the word maintenance to Residential Concierge Service


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## plazaman (Apr 17, 2005)

SLSTech said:


> Nobody can tell you what the golden ticket will be for you, or in your area. That said, just a few rambling thoughts & questions based on info posted...
> 
> Website would be top off my list - just a few quick things I see
> 
> ...




SLS, you mentioned "Top off" did you mean of or "off" lol 

That site is crap, garbage, i want to get a whole new professional site done.

i really like the work of 
http://www.graphicd-signs.com/index.htm

they seem to have nice designs. 


i figured let me start with the site first.


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## SLSTech (Sep 13, 2008)

Yah, yah it should have been "of" :laughing:

I would recomend figuring out a direction first & then start gearing your advertisment to that

Does your family or workers have any ideas, suggestions, etc...


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## Tom Struble (Mar 2, 2007)

get Greg Di or Mike Finely to yell at you for a couple of months,they have helped people on here before:thumbsup:


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## plazaman (Apr 17, 2005)

i feel construction will always be the background/ something to fall back on, its probably the site will focus on. any new venture/ service i ever decide to get into, could always be another tab on the page.


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## Mike's Plumbing (Jul 19, 2010)

Hey man, don't sweat it. What your going through is similar to so many people I know. If you don't mind I would like to tell you a story that might make you feel good, it's all I can do because everybody here has given you great advice so I'll give you a different angle on things.

A few months ago I met a lady who had similar problems you have it just wasn't in construction. She was burnt out and had multiple sources of income all of which were just limping along. She was at her wits end and lost motivation for all of it. This, combined with other business associates having similar problems created an environment where she became focused on hiding from the issues she needed to solve. 

One day I had a cup of coffee with her and some great conversation. We did this because on a service call we started talking and she began to cry in front of me. She was so stressed out and I felt compelled to help her....even though I'm not what you would call a good emotional babysitter.

Anyhow, I said "Hey, lets get coffee and talk about things" I had a really slow day and it seemed like the right thing to do. I wish I could say I gave her great advice but I didn't, I just asked some killer questions then became a great listener. As I heard her talk about her issues she began to come up with solutions, the more I listened the more solutions she came up with. When we were done she was smiling again and gave me a hug for just being there.

The funny part is, when I left I didn't give it much thought. I just went about my way thinking she is just another business person who is having a hard time.

A couple weeks ago she called me to put in a extra hose bibb in the back of her house so she could water her garden easier. The lesson I learned from her taught me something about the word "focus"

I went there with the attitude that she would still be a big ball of stress but when I got there it was the opposite.....she was a flaming ball of energy and totally happy. Of course I asked her how things are with her and her businesses.......here is what she did to fix her problems.

She told me that the day we had coffee together was the day she decided to make big changes. 

She got rid of every source of income but one and decided to focus all her energy on one thing only. She explained that she realized that somebody has to be the best and somebody has to be the worst in the market, and others float around in between. Her business was floating around at the bottom. She made a decision to be the best and her brain was fixed on that one goal only. 

Lona did what I always do every day, WRITE THINGS DOWN. She wrote out what she wanted out of her business, she wrote out what she needs to do to get there, she wrote everything down. Once she did that she started pounding things out one at a time until she got what she wanted. Lona isn't quite the best in the market but she is darn close and she isn't done yet. If I was a betting man I would bet on her any day of the week.

The most interesting part was her attitude, it's hard to explain her attitude when we had coffee. It was a cross between low self asteem, anger, and being scared. The new Lona was pure confidence and the attitude of "get out of my way because I'll run you over" was locked in for good. It was crazy to actually see the difference in her, I have never experienced watching the before and after of a person who went through what she did.

This is the power of focus, and determining what you want. I should also mention she chose to get rid of the businesses she didn't enjoy and kept the only one she really loved. It's such an awesome feeling to see a person in their element, totally in perfect harmony, and totally positive. 

Ya know something, I'm uneducated, in fact I can hardly do math but I have learned a few things in life.

First, the human race is unique because the average person is more capable than they would imagine. If you just focued on one thing, something you really enjoy....then you have every bit the opportunity to be the best that ever was. It's a decision, nothing more! 

Second, if you want something just decide what it is and do it...because you will get it. Success is only a decission away.

Have you ever noticed people get exactly what they want.....every time?

It's true, think about it. I have a neighbor who is a irrisponsible bum. Alan is in sales and for him his job isn't his main focus, drinking and going to concerts are top priority. Guess what? He got what he wanted, he goes to concerts every weekend and he sells just enough product to allow him to go to concerts, and he is broke. Alan is 41 and his home is about to be foreclosed....he is still going to concerts, that's his decision.

I know a guy who collects Case tractors, he must have 30 of them yet he is broke. This guy is a supervisor and all I here is him complain about how he is always getting passed up for promotion. Well, it's not his number one priority....Case tractors is number 1. He got what he really wanted, he constantly takes off work and gets in trouble for it, he leaves work to go buy Case stuff, it is his passion and he is broke. If he would put the passion he puts into Case tractors into his job he would tripple his collection and has lots of money left over....but that's not what he wants.

Another neighbor is always complaining about "the idiots" at work, he is an engineer and he is very very smart. His mind isn't in it though, his first priority is buying stuff, this guy buys more gadgets online than any person I have ever met. The FedX guy comes every other day. Guess what, he gets exactly what he wants.....and he is broke and gets passed up for every promotion.

All i'm saying is they focus on what they want and they get it.....all of us get what we focus on.

It sounds like your focused on everything and you can't quite optimize anything. It's very normal for many people. But imagine if you picked something you really enjoyed? What would that do for you? No matter what you pick somebody in that industry is the best, and somebody is making money doing it, and somebody is having fun doing it. It might as well be YOU!

I picture it like this. The road you need to go down is right in front of you but your still in the parking lot driving in circles. Pick the road, any road....and start traveling because you can only go down one road at a time.

Make a decision....focus.....write it down.....knock it out.....and have fun!

Hope that helps, good luck....you can do it!

Mike


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## plazaman (Apr 17, 2005)

wow mike im speechless, thanks for the lengthy response and great story. i'll def take that into consideration. it made me a little more focused now.


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## boydsdodge (Apr 13, 2008)

Mike, great writing, maybe you should become a motivational coach for the bums around you.
Seriously, it was a great lil kick in the ass for me that has a biz that never says no to a customer because we see the jam there in and want to help.
That hasn't been getting any profits in the bank, in fact I am 40,000 in the hole for a three man op over three years.
Thanks I needed that, I am going to build what I like building and passing on what I don't.
I will do everyone a favor by doing that.


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## Mike's Plumbing (Jul 19, 2010)

boydsdodge said:


> Mike, great writing, maybe you should become a motivational coach for the bums around you.
> Seriously, it was a great lil kick in the ass for me that has a biz that never says no to a customer because we see the jam there in and want to help.
> That hasn't been getting any profits in the bank, in fact I am 40,000 in the hole for a three man op over three years.
> Thanks I needed that, I am going to build what I like building and passing on what I don't.
> I will do everyone a favor by doing that.


 
I would like to help them, it's the right thing to do afterall. The problem with helping people is they have to want to do it, I can't make them....ya know what I mean? 

This thread scares me. The title reminds me of the pain I went through in my business when I started. For God sakes don't make the mistakes I made. 

It's hard to get it in peoples heads like my neighbors. People are funny creatures, many people think that to have what they want in life they have to pay a price and that's taught in school, our parents, books, and society in general. With this line of thinking to make a 100 bucks you have to work X quantity long and to make a million you have to work X times a million quantity long. I don't look at it that way, and I don't think that's true. Most problems are in our heads all garbaged up by day to day stuff like putting out the fires we create. We don't "pay the price" but instead "we enjoy the price" Ahhhhh....makes things look a little different doesn't it?

The capacity YOU have and EVERYONE here has is mind boggeling. Think for a moment how mechanically inclined the people of this forum are. A cabinet maker doesn't just make cabinets, he systematically builds steps inside his head and through experience and mistakes has developed skills that creates a work of art, cleaning windows is no different. This work of art was created using our bodies and our minds. The difference between success and failure isn't because of brains, ability, or instinct, the difference is what we do with what we have.

The problem with being a tradesman is we have focused so much with using our hands that we have spent no time developing our "heads" or training our "heads" to deliver success.

Imagine for a moment what would happen if YOU worked on training your head for 90 days straight. The only thing you did was FOCUS on what you want.....do you think you would get it? Of course you would, I would put money on it. The odds are actually in your favor, tradesman who work with their hands are more capable of wealth/success than just about any human alive. 


I'll tell you a secret that I do every day and every night unconditionally, although your gonna think I'm nuts. If you try this for 30 days your business will be so awesome you will never look back. The first hour of your morning and last hour of the evening is your power hours, what you do in this hour will control your whole day and make you sleep with a smile. Treat each day as if were a test and the grade is either pass or fail. At the end of the evening we give ourself a grade, if we fail then correct it the next day because in life each day is a do-over, pretty sweet hey? 

Before I tell you what I do I have to tell you about preparing for the morning, this of course happens in the evening, you have to pick a goal for the day. Start with a small goal, something that you know you can accomplish. What I'm about to tell you needs to be explained by talking about smokers. When a smoker started out they disn't start out saying "I can't wait to become addicted" instead they took there first puff and coughed like a banshee because there mind said "WOW, I'm not going to accept it" then, slowley, over time the mind gave up and it became a habit, the smoker became addicted. 

What you need to do is treat success the same way, force yourself to do things that put you in the right direction, make it a habit, then become addicted. At first your brain will want to push it back, but then it will accept it. Once your addicted to success.....like smoking, it will be impossible to break. now that's an awesome addiction to have hey? 


Here is what YOU do starting immediatelly. Find one small issue in your business you know is wrong, failing, or missing. This is determined in the evening and is to be dealt with ONLY in the morning during the power hour. You MUST go to sleep happy, and not thinking about business at all.

In the morning during the power hour you are going to solve the problem. So start by writing it down on the back of a business card or whatever you have you can put in your pocket. 

First thing you do when you wake up is spring out of bed and clap your hands rub them quickly and say "Ahh yes, this is gonna be the greatest day in my business yet"

Start the hour by looking at the problem your gonna solve, read it ten times so it sinks in. Have it in your mind that your gonna fix it by the time you go to bed. 

Next, always have a book of inspiration. It can be the Bible, Zig Ziglar, Brian Tracy, or Napolian Hill, anything as long as it's POSITIVE. Read it for 30 minutes and get pumped while at the same time thinking of your problem. 

Next, in your mind develop a picture of what success looks like. If your problem is lack of work than picture yourself working and whisteling making a ton of money. Do this for 30 minutes.

That's it! Your on your way to an awesome business. Just do this every day for at least 30 days and it will be a habit. In the first week you will already see the difference. 

For me, when I think of "what success looks like" I do it for 30 minutes while jogging. When I get back home I shower, eat, and hit the road with so much excitement I can hardly contain myself. This, and this alone has saved my business from myself.

After the morning power hour your only job is to think about solving the one problem all day. The key is to avoid anything or any person who is negative. Look at the back of the business card 100 times that day until it occupies your mind full time. Now your only thinking about ONE thing only.

Little by little, day by day, YOU will create the business you want. It worked for me and I promise it will work for you.

Remember Andrew Carnegie, Henry Ford? They are no better at business than you, they are not smarter than you either. It's just that they made success an addiction and they ONLY focused on what they wanted. The power hour gives you that, once you see success because of intense focus you will think this is the greatest economy ever! 

At the end of the evening grade yourself, if you fail then you can't move forward. The next day gets repeated with the same problem.

For me plumbing IS NOT an addiction, being the best plumbing company IS THE ADDICTION. It almost cost me my marriage and family to figure this out. Now days, I'm still not where I want to be but I am very successful, my business is growing by leaps and bounds and the daily journey is more fun that should be allowed. 

Don't make the same mistake I did, you can do it just like me, probably better. I love being addicted.

Sorry for the long post (again) I just really want you to do well, people are destined to success and you have the ability to get whatever you want, it's just that we become addicted to the wrong things. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE help yourself to this, the road I went down was painfull and I wouldn't wish that on anybody. Success is a decision.

Mike


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## Tom Struble (Mar 2, 2007)

jeezz Mike write a book already:blink:


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## Mike's Plumbing (Jul 19, 2010)

tomstruble said:


> jeezz Mike write a book already:blink:


Sorry....I just get excited.:clap:


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## Tom Struble (Mar 2, 2007)

it's cool i was j/k:thumbup:


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## ewingpainting (Jun 2, 2008)

Become a painting contractor. It's easy enough, with low start up. Hell evey other trades man is doing it.


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## J F (Dec 3, 2005)

Have you tried ServiceTragic yet? :whistling


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## bfitz (Dec 30, 2009)

Good post mike ive read those books and they definetly will put a fire in your ass, problem is sleeping at night lol


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