Construction MPa

Building a bigger, better, and more prosperous future with your mind on the past is impossible. You can’t climb a mountain looking downward, and you can’t race a car looking backward. If we want to succeed, our head, mind, eyes, and energy must be pointed in one direction, with one focus… Or we need to move so slowly and cautiously that we run out of time before we reach the finish line.

DISCLAIMER: This Podcast is for Construction Industry Business Owners who want to strengthen themselves, and their Businesses only. If you’re looking for cheesy leadership, business and development advice, watch a TED talk. Because that’s not how we roll.

Mistakes are a part of life. Only people who’ve never tried anything make zero mistakes, which is a mistake in its own right. Life is for living, not dwelling, and we cannot live in the past. We can only live in the moment.

In business, dwelling on the past typically involves missed opportunities, and mistakes on projects, hirings, firings, and clients. It’s important to remember how and where we made mistakes of judgment in these areas so that we can learn from them and be sure not to repeat them. However, that’s where the reflection must end.

No good will ever come from spending too much time in the past, neither good memories nor bad. We cannot get those moments back or erase them from our memory. Just because it worked then doesn’t mean it will work now, or because it failed then, it will fail now. Regret is the ultimate negative trip down memory lane and carries the most weight.

Significant accomplishments require enormous amounts of energy and effort. We cannot afford to waste either dwelling on maybes, what ifs, and should have done’s. One hundred percent of our focus must be on the task at hand if we are to stand a chance.

The most common analogy used to highlight the danger and difficulties associated with spending too much time focussing on the past is driving.

The windscreen in our cars and trucks is glass for a reason. We must see where we are going at all times. Otherwise, it would be impossible to reach that destination… alive, at least. The only time we are not looking through the windscreen toward our destination is when we glance at the small mirror, which enables us to look behind us.

If we reversed this scenario and we could only see through a small section of glass, and the majority of the windowscreen was mirrored, we wouldn’t stand a chance of reaching our destination or even surviving! Our eyes and attention must be focused forward at all times. Only glancing backward is safe and acceptable.

We must learn to leave mistakes, wrong turns, accidents, and flat tires in the rearview.

Interception

The sporting analogy of letting the past remain in the past can is best defined by the position of Cornerback (CB) in American Football. Playing CB in the NFL is tough. A CB must mark an opposing wide receiver with Olympic-caliber speed, who’s running a route only they know, which they’ve practiced a million times.

If a cornerback gives up a touchdown or big play, there’s nowhere to hide. Everyone watching knows that player was beaten. However, NFL cornerbacks excel at their job because they don’t dwell on mistakes or errors. They dust themselves off and go again.

No matter how physically gifted or talented a cornerback might be. If they dwell on mistakes and can’t dust themselves off and go again as if nothing happened, they will never make it in the pros.

An NFL cornerback mentality is optimistic, confident, and aggressive. They move on immediately and think purely about crushing the next play. What’s done is done.

Negative ‘I should have…’ or ‘If only’ thoughts, fears, and worries will not help us get where we want to go. Everything we want from our life is found in the present, then multiplied in the future. The past cannot affect the future unless we cling to it or allow it to slow us down. Life will judge us based on what we do in the moment. It doesn’t care about the past.

Our past is a place we should only visit briefly to think about those people and events we love and miss. Or a place we refer to when we want to learn from previous scenarios, situations, accomplishments, and mistakes. It is not a place we should spend time if criticism, fear, worry, stress, or negativity play a role. We have nothing to gain but everything to lose if we do.

Our past does not predict our future. Our actions, mindset, and attitudes in this very moment do.

Chin up, shoulders back, and march on.

What is the Construction MPa Program vs. Construction MPa Podcast? The Construction MPa Program was the original founding concept, an online course designed to help small business owners in the construction industry by providing insight, and experience gleaned from 20+ years of running businesses, and leading corporate divisions. However, over time it evolved in the Construction MPa Podcast, why? Because small Business Owners are highly skeptical, and only seeing or hearing would be believing. Therefore the Construction MPa Program evolved into The Construction MPa Podcast, and it possess the same ultimate goal, too:

A) Help small business owners strengthen their businesses from the inside out.

B) Provide a home for small business owners to openly discuss the challenges they face in a sales and bullshit-free environment.

The ultimate aim of all things Construction MPa s to deliver content, advice, and experience in areas that most people never talk about. Most business owner leadership content is outdated and not relevant for working-class industries. Blue-collar people and businesses require blue-collar leadership: straight-talking, experience-based fact-driven content. Mindset, attitude, and perspective get overlooked. Helping company owners transition from a job site trade mindset to a business owners mindset takes time, patience, and conscious effort.

Strong businesses require a strong business owner mindset, and that’s what Construction MPa is all about. If you want to know more about the Construction MPa Program, check out: Program Outline Page.

The Construction MPa Program is for Business Owners Only.

“If you want to strengthen your business today. You need Construction MPa.”

The post Back To The Future appeared first on Construction Mpa.

In any area of professional sports, highly penalized teams aren’t successful. Too many fouls, offsides, handballs, and holding calls eventually result in a loss. We need to understand the rules… the laws if we stand a chance of winning, especially if we want to choose which ones to break for our benefit. Our wants, needs, feelings, or interests are irrelevant to laws. Laws operate independently and neutrally. We must respect this reality and use it to our advantage.

DISCLAIMER: This Podcast is for Construction Industry Business Owners who want to strengthen themselves, and their Businesses only. If you’re looking for cheesy leadership, business and development advice, watch a TED talk. Because that’s not how we roll.

In sports, we have the advantage of referees controlling, guiding, and managing the game. In life and Business, we do not. However, we still have rules and laws that must be understood, acknowledged, respected, followed, bent, and sometimes broken.

A famous quote attributed to Pablo Picasso: “learn the rules, so you know how to break them” is a quote to remember. Too many people don’t understand the laws and rules of the games they are playing.

In Business, we think of laws as only relative to taxation, health and safety, or building code. However, the truth is that human laws are just as important because they apply to sales, leadership, innovation, and creativity.

Recognizing the difference between the laws when working on the job site versus running the company working on that job site is essential. The two are not the same. You no longer have the same role or responsibility as your employees. The law says you must understand and know what your people know, but follow the laws and rules of a business owner.

As a business owner, the law says to get the best out of your people, to maximize their working potential, trust, collaboration, and attitude. Regarding clients, customers, or potential clients and customers, it says to respect that they’re top of the food chain and want to work with people they trust, who are reliable and easy to deal with. They need to be the right price and work at the correct standards, but it’s not 100% quality driven. Most employees don’t respect or understand this. They think it’s all about quality and performance only; it’s not.

Nutrition and exercise provide another perfect example of laws and rules at work. What we consume, that quality of what we consume versus what we burn, when we burn it, and for how long is law. 

What our body looks like is a direct representation of our choices of food consumption, quality, and regularity versus what we burn. It is possible to exercise and eat healthily and still not look how you want to look or be as fit. You might have to break the social law and fast or intermittent fast. You might have to eat a low-carb diet, or drink less beer with your friends. 

Breaking socially acceptable laws, or inner laws bout diets and preferences might be the differentiating factor. Becoming disciplined in your routine, sacrificing eating, drinking, enjoying, or doing something with Consistency over an extended period of time might be the only way. 

If you want success in life, your Business, or with your body. Discipline, Sacrifice, and Consistency are the law. All successful CEOs, Entrepreneurs, and Professional Athletes possess these traits. Some naturally, but most have acquired them through will and effort.

If you’re not willing to do what needs to be done and break these laws, the likelihood of achieving success, progress, happiness, or whatever your pursuing is slim. Normal, average, and common work ethics are acceptable but not elite, and the world only pays top dollar for elite.

Elite is rare, people who break these laws are rare, and rare is valuable. If you want to do, have, and or create big things for your Business or your life, you must understand the rules and laws of the game. So you can learn how to bend or break them to get where you’re trying to go!

What is the Construction MPa Program vs. Construction MPa Podcast? The Construction MPa Program was the original founding concept, an online course designed to help small business owners in the construction industry by providing insight, and experience gleaned from 20+ years of running businesses, and leading corporate divisions. However, over time it evolved in the Construction MPa Podcast, why? Because small Business Owners are highly skeptical, and only seeing or hearing would be believing. Therefore the Construction MPa Program evolved into The Construction MPa Podcast, and it possess the same ultimate goal, too:

A) Help small business owners strengthen their businesses from the inside out.

B) Provide a home for small business owners to openly discuss the challenges they face in a sales and bullshit-free environment.

The ultimate aim of all things Construction MPa s to deliver content, advice, and experience in areas that most people never talk about. Most business owner leadership content is outdated and not relevant for working-class industries. Blue-collar people and businesses require blue-collar leadership: straight-talking, experience-based fact-driven content. Mindset, attitude, and perspective get overlooked. Helping company owners transition from a job site trade mindset to a business owners mindset takes time, patience, and conscious effort.

Strong businesses require a strong business owner mindset, and that’s what Construction MPa is all about. If you want to know more about the Construction MPa Program, check out: Program Outline Page.

The Construction MPa Program is for Business Owners Only.

“If you want to strengthen your business today. You need Construction MPa.”

The post Break these laws appeared first on Construction Mpa.

Life is complicatedly uncomplicated. It’s uniquely the same. Individually replicated. The challenge is seeing the overlapping similarities and recognizing the same within the difference. However, it’s a lot easier to say than do. In this episode of the Construction MPa Podcast we will discuss the ultimate example is how to leverage an age-old process and apply it to success in any area of our personal, professional, or physical life.

DISCLAIMER: This Podcast is for Construction Industry Business Owners who want to strengthen themselves, and their Businesses only. If you’re looking for cheesy leadership, business and development advice, watch a TED talk. Because that’s not how we roll.

What do the following have in common:

Each of the above requires a form of structure, strategy, plan, or ideology to grow. Without one of these things being in place, the area in question is dependent upon luck, circumstance, or hope to significantly/successfully progress.

The challenge stems from each of these areas of life significantly varying and having its own accepted rules, which at first glance don’t align. In each of these areas, we follow different norms and make assumptions based on social acceptance. No more!

From now on, we will utilize one process as our ‘foundation’ for progress in each of these areas. A process that is visible across the planet and has been followed with success since we stopped grunting and started speaking. That process is Construction Development.

The process we use to transform an old, empty, or new plot of land into a structurally sound Architectural wonder is the same as the one used to transform a body, business, life, or relationship.

Arnold Schwarzenegger regularly gives speeches to groups of people at conferences about how he was able to be successful in his life and accomplish so much. The first item on the legendary Terminator’s success list is Vision. He articulates that you must have a vision for your life (here’s a link to one of his speeches if you’ve never heard them). We agree with the Austrian Oak 100%.

In our experience, most people don’t necessarily struggle with having no vision… they might struggle with making that Vision clear or concise. Still, they typically have an idea of what they’re trying to achieve.

That Vision could be a jacked body like Arnie, a business like Jeff Bezos, a career like the boss, or a beautiful relationship like their parents. It’s step 2. were they typically go wrong.

Most people who are inspired to build, create or generate something who have a vision just straight into vertically building and directly working on that Vision. Hey, and kudos to them for taking action. The problem is they’re taking the wrong action.

In construction, the first step is to clear the land i.e. the jobsite,

Clearing the land representative of clearing our mind. Removing everything in the way of our building/development and even demolishing old structures in preparation for the new.

Clearing our mind means removing the usual rubbish we focus on or about that isn’t helping us bring our Vision to life. That includes negativity, complaint, whining, opinions, and gossip.

This is loser language, and you wouldn’t have a vision for your future or be reading this if you were a loser. Losing doesn’t make you a loser. Quitting, never trying, or dragging others down who are trying does.

Once you’ve put the time in to get focused on your goal, once your Vision has officially become your magnificent obsession, you’re ready for step 3.

Before we go up, we must go down. In construction terms, we excavate down into the ground until we’ve hit a solid bedroom to support our foundations. In human terms, we dig within ourselves, trying to find the bedrock of our souls.

Everyone likes to think of themselves as having a soul, but no one ever talks about that soul, let alone tries to communicate with it directly. However, we must.

Know thyself is a famous Latin phrase that hits the proverbial nail on the head. Building a structure on a weak foundation is dangerous, but building one on an unknown foundation is stupid.

We know ourselves intimately on a surface level but not much further beyond. Except for attraction, lust, and love, we rarely go any deeper, but we must. If we don’t fully understand who we are, what makes us tick, and why we want this Vision to become a reality.

We risk building something bigger than we can support, handle, or manage.

You are more than a name, gender, race, or religion; once you realize that, you can build anything you want.

We’ve used the word ‘Foundation’ multiple times already. It is commonly recognized that foundations are vital for success in all areas of life. They’re essential in transforming your Vision into a reality.

In construction, a foundation’s strength, its Engineered ability to absorb and dissipate force, determines the size/weight of the building that can be built upon it. A small or weak foundation can only sustain a small structure… or, in our case, a small vision.

This is why we must dig deep and excavate within ourselves first. So we can make way for a foundation big enough to support our Vision. That foundation is the prep you must do in order to succeed. The knowledge, skills, attitudes, awareness, perspective, education, trust, and mindset that will carry your Vision forward.

Where you are right now isn’t sufficient to get you there, your foundation might be decent. You might be a good, experienced, hard-working person, but that’s not enough. You must proactively strengthen your MPa in advance. Change requires change.

Your inner Concrete MPa foundation with determine your future success.

Patience is no longer a virtue, its a unicorn.

In a world of instant gratification, immediate downloads, streaming, and bandwidth, patience ain’t what it used to be, but for your Vision to become a reality, it needs to be.

Mother nature doesn’t care if you’re in a rush and the universe has no sense of time. You’ll have to slam on the breaks, take a deep breath, and accept that your Vision might be perfected in your mind, but it will be a long time before the world ever gets to see it.

Your mind might be able to change quickly, but your habits won’t. Your ideas might form quickly, but the world won’t accept them quickly. You might have all the potential in the world, but the world must be mature, wise, and open to recognizing it. Sometimes, you might have to change, amend, or tackle social norms, which will take longer than you realize.

Patience is one of the most under-appreciated and undervalued success traits. Everything in life that is truly important, lasting, and valuable takes time to create. Love, peace, trust, respect… you get the picture.

Now it’s time to build, construct, expand, grow, or develop.

Weeks, months, or years might have passed between now and that faithful day you decided to turn your Vision into a reality, and that’s ok.

The purpose of your Vison wasn’t to build something that lasted a split second, day, week, or year. I was to create something that forms part of your legacy and that’s worth waiting for.

Whether it’s a Mr. Olympian body, a Skyscraper, a Family, or a Multi-Million Dollar empire, we want to build something that will last.

Legacy matters, and the difficulty of what we overcome makes it worthwhile, it makes it something we’re proud of that we can reflect on without regret.

All of our visions will take different amounts of time to create. Hence, we cannot compare. The only certain thing is that the bigger the Vision, the longer the journey, but the bigger the reward!

Nothing lasts forever. Nothing stays the same. Once you have put in the blood, sweat, and tears and brought your Vison to life, your work isn’t done. To be human is never to be satisfied.

You must re-engineer your foundations if you want more, different, bigger, or better. Your MPa was designed to carry the weight and strain of this Vision, not the next one. 

Just follow the same process, and don’t skip any steps. Today’s success doesn’t guarantee tomorrows. Evolution requires continuous growth, open-mindedness, reflection, patience, and work. 

This process works in constructing buildings, and infrastructure, and it will work in your life, business or in the gym. We must stop racing ahead, and using our current MPa as our foundation, because it’s simply not strong enough. 

Big visions, backed up by hard working, dedicated people change the world. They always have, and they always will.

If you’re reading this, you have the potential to be one of those people.

Go get some!

What is the Construction MPa Program vs. Construction MPa Podcast? The Construction MPa Program is an entirely different beast than the Construction MPa Podcast. However, it was ultimately built with the same end goal in mind, too:

A) Help small business owners strengthen their businesses from the inside out.

B) Provide a home for small business owners to openly discuss the challenges they face in a sales and bullshit-free environment.

The ultimate aim of all things Construction MPa s to deliver content, advice, and experience in areas that most people never talk about. Most business owner leadership content is outdated and not relevant for working-class industries. Blue-collar people and businesses require blue-collar leadership: straight-talking, experience-based fact-driven content. Mindset, attitude, and perspective get overlooked. Helping company owners transition from a job site trade mindset to a business owners mindset takes time, patience, and conscious effort.

Strong businesses require a strong business owner mindset, and that’s what Construction MPa is all about. If you want to know more about the Construction MPa Program, check out: Program Outline Page.

The Construction MPa Program is for Business Owners Only.

“If you want to strengthen your business today. You need Construction MPa.”

The post This Changes Everything appeared first on Construction Mpa.

When we think of fear, we think of people showing physical symptoms. They look and sound afraid, worried, and frightened. However, fear shows up in other ways also. Comments, questioning, doubting, and resistance can also be signs of fear. Fear that you can do something they can’t fear your dedication and commitment will make them look lazy, weak, inferior, or a failure.

DISCLAIMER: This Podcast is for Construction Industry Business Owners who want to strengthen themselves, and their Businesses only. If you’re looking for cheesy leadership, business and development advice, watch a TED talk. Because that’s not how we roll.

Are you cool with being referred to as normal? Are you cool with being referred to as Average? Why?

We think of normal as being acceptable. However, we think of average as being mediocre. Yet, it’s normal to have an average income. It’s normal to weigh an average weight or be an average height.

The truth is that normal and average concerning work, physical appearance, and life in general mean the same thing. It’s normal to have a job, be married, and have a dad bod. They are all average middle-aged characteristics.

Having your own business and hitting the gym every day is not normal. Business owners don’t earn an average income, and people who workout daily don’t have dad bods.

Therefore, people who decide to set up their own businesses and build strong or fit bodies must be considered abnormal.

Another word we could use to describe normal is popular, and another word we could use to describe popular is common. Things that are normal, popular, and common are not considered rare.

We value rare things in our society and devalue common things. We understand this in relation to purchasing things, but we don’t understand it in relation to working value.

When it comes to work, we confuse our personal value with the value of the job we perform, which is wrong. Roles have specific value based upon the rarity of the skill or ability associated with them. Not the personality of the individual performing it.

Yes, the attitude of the person matters. Yes, personality and personability are important. Yes, working hard counts. However, none of these things outrank the overall value of the position concerning its rarity. In other words, if we can easily and readily find another person to perform that role, the role lacks value.

Not the ‘soul’ but the ‘role.’

Rare value stems from rare skills, rare abilities, rare and knowledge. Rare skills, abilities, and knowledge are developed through rare habits and a mindset. Rare is not normal or common.

To become more valuable, we must separate ourselves from the pack. We must become Freakishly obsessed with our goals, achievements, and commitments. We cannot be scared to stand out, think differently, and go against the grain.

Freaks stand out. Freaks can be feared, admired, or shunned; they don’t care! Their sole purpose is to move forward, get ahead, gain and conquer whatever they strive for. Other people’s opinions are irrelevant.

Freaks only respect the opinion of people in their field, those they respect, and those who have done or are doing whatever they’re doing. They don’t care about the ramblings, snipes, or criticisms from lesser average Joe’s.

The masses will always fear what they don’t understand. They will always resist change and try to make those around them stay within their average comfort zone. You are not average. If you were average, you would not be reading this or looking for ways to strengthen yourself, your businesses, or your life. You’re a dedicated Freak who will do whatever it takes.

Know your worth, know your value, and keep your shields up whenever you’re surrounded by the ordinary, average, common pack, because as you now know, they fear this!

Eagles don’t flock, they Soar!

What is the Construction MPa Program vs. Construction MPa Podcast? The Construction MPa Program is an entirely different beast than the Construction MPa Podcast. However, it was ultimately built with the same end goal in mind, too:

A) Help small business owners strengthen their businesses from the inside out.

B) Provide a home for small business owners to openly discuss the challenges they face in a sales and bullshit-free environment.

The ultimate aim of all things Construction MPa s to deliver content, advice, and experience in areas that most people never talk about. Most business owner leadership content is outdated and not relevant for working-class industries. Blue-collar people and businesses require blue-collar leadership: straight-talking, experience-based fact-driven content. Mindset, attitude, and perspective get overlooked. Helping company owners transition from a job site trade mindset to a business owners mindset takes time, patience, and conscious effort.

Strong businesses require a strong business owner mindset, and that’s what Construction MPa is all about. If you want to know more about the Construction MPa Program, check out: Program Outline Page.

The Construction MPa Program is for Business Owners Only.

“If you want to strengthen your business today. You need Construction MPa.”

The post They Fear This appeared first on Construction Mpa.

“The Strength of the Wolf is the pack, and the Strength of Pack is the Wolf.” -Rudyard Kipling

The law of the jungle says there is strength in numbers. Packs, Prides, Flocks, and Swarms. These are wild animals driven by impulse and instinct. Imagine how deadly they would be if discipline, intelligence, and self-awareness fueled them.

Disclaimer: This Podcast is for Construction Industry Business Owners who want to strengthen themselves, and their Businesses from the inside out through. If you’re looking for nicey, nicey leadership, business and development advice. You best you watch a TED talk, because you won’t find any of that here!

Some people like to read, study and grow their perspectives, knowledge, and insight. Some people like to lift, sweat, and grow their biceps, pecs, and shoulders. You rarely find a person who is passionate about both.

The only thing rarer than finding this type of person is finding a group of these people. So rare you might have to get up in the wee 3 am hours and head off to the gym to find it. 

It takes a certain amount of discipline to be a part of the 4am Club and workout every morning. A level of commitment and sacrifice that most people will never understand.

The desire to get stronger, lose weight, get fit, or feel healthy isn’t rare. Executing a consistent plan to achieve it is. Similarly, most people want to be happy and stress-free with successful careers and relationships. Yet, they wait for these things to come to them.

The world of health and fitness has more in common with personal and professional development than we think. Discipline, study, hard work, determination, self-reflection, plus trial and error are the foundation of both.

Health and fitness progress is typically linear. We get stronger rep by rep, increased weight by increased weight. We run further mile 

by mile and faster millisecond by millisecond. 

Personal and professional growth work is not linear. It compounds. We cannot measure our growth so easily. Sometimes, we are not even aware it is working until we can understand or master a scenario or situation that we previously could not.

However, these dynamics change depending upon the environment they are fostered in. A group environment accelerates and multiplies the speed at which gains and growth occur. Plus, the range and depth across the areas they are made.

Environment is a catalyst. Environments create cultures, norms, habits, and perspectives. A positive environment builds, elevates, and strengthens. A negative environment demolishes, lowers, and weakens. Culture can make or break.

A disciplined life rooted in a commitment to physical health and fitness, overflowing with an appetite for personal growth and development, supported and elevated by a dynamic, positive culture, is beautifully dangerous. 

Rare environments, people, and perspectives will never be found in ordinary places. If you want to be extraordinary, live an extraordinary life, and build an extraordinary business. You must possess extraordinary ambition and develop extraordinary skills, habits, and interests. 

Like attracts like. It’s time to find your Pack.

What is the Construction MPa Program vs. Construction MPa Podcast? The Construction MPa Program is an entirely different beast than the Construction MPa Podcast. However, it was ultimately built with the same end goal in mind, too:

A) Help small business owners strengthen their businesses from the inside out.

B) Provide a home for small business owners to openly discuss the challenges they face in a sales and bullshit-free environment.

The ultimate aim of all things Construction MPa s to deliver content, advice, and experience in areas that most people never talk about. Most business owner leadership content is outdated and not relevant for working-class industries.

Blue-collar people and businesses require blue-collar leadership: straight-talking, experience-based fact-driven content. Mindset, attitude, and perspective get overlooked. Helping company owners transition from a job site trade mindset to a business owners mindset takes time, patience, and conscious effort.

Strong businesses require a strong business owner mindset, and that’s what Construction MPa is all about.

If you want to know more about the Construction MPa Program, check out: Program Outline Page.

The Construction MPa Program is for Business Owners Only.

“If you want to strengthen your business today. You need Construction MPa.”

The post This is Dangerous appeared first on Construction Mpa.

Doubt creeps into the mind of every Small Business Owner in the Construction industry in those early years. Because running a business is hard, time-consuming, and thankless work, but don’t quit! Regret is a cancer of the soul and eats away at us over time.

How you feel right now about the challenges you’re facing in your business will pass. The world needs more people like you with the guts to go it alone, and that’s what we’ll talk about on this week’s episode of the Construction MPa Leadership Podcast. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: This Podcast is for Construction Industry Business Owners who want to hear the truth. If you’re looking for nicey, nicey leadership advice? Best you watch a TED talk!

There’s a reason why you set up you’re own business in the first place. You will not be happy going back to being an employee. You’ll get frustrated as you did before, and you’ll eventually resent or hate your boss as you did before. 

Once upon a time, you dreamed of becoming one of those companies that’s a household name and making lots of money. Becoming successful and owning the house, truck, weekend car, and holiday home. 

It’s normal for that level of enthusiasm and energy to diminish as the realities of running the business kick in. That optimism and juice we had at the outset can easily get wiped and taken from us after people go bankrupt, employees cause problems, and we make mistakes that cost us money. 

Once we’ve been in business for a couple of years, we can end up lost, struggling, and at a point where we’re not too sure we want to do it anymore, and we contemplate returning to work for somebody else. 

Running a business is hard, and it’s not for the faint of heart. Most people don’t have the guts to do it. Most people talk a big game but are unwilling to try or take a risk. You were!

Experienced, seasoned business owners get to a point where problems no longer phase them, and they just handle whatever crosses their path. 

They understand that there are only so many different construction scenarios that they will come across. Eventually, they start to see the same issues presented in different ways.

When you’re in the thick of a stressful situation, it’s normal to think ‘I should go back to working for my old company,’ but that feeling will pass. It always does.  

You’ve got it in you to do more, and that feeling rarely disappears. Accepting what other people have to say as right or wrong is difficult. Once you have run your own business, made your own decisions, and lived and died by your own sword. 

Setting up a business is like being an apprentice again. You’re going to get the piss taken out of you, feel lost, and do all of the grunt work. But that’s all part of the process, and you have to do it to master your craft truly.

You need to ask yourself where you want to be in the next 10, 20, or 30 years. 

Look at all the things you can do now, all the things you’ve got. All of the things you don’t like, all the things you do. The flexibility you’ve got, and the amount of money you’re earning. Plus, you don’t have to answer to anyone.

You have your own vehicles, T-shirts, gear, signage, and business cards. Think about how you feel when you tell people what you do and how you feel about giving out business cards for your own business.

Do you think you’d feel the same way giving out someone else’s? Would you feel as proud or enthusiastic? No way!

If it’s getting too stressful, maybe you need to ask yourself what you can do to strengthen your skills, abilities, and knowledge. 

Perseverance is key. Ninety percent of business success comes from hanging in long enough. That’s sometimes all it takes to become ‘The Guy.’ Persistence, thick skin, and that determination matter so don’t quit too soon.

Today’s barriers eventually become tomorrow’s speed bumps, and eventually we barely even notice them.

Sometimes we need to find a new reason to keep it going. We need to get some bigger goals. I want this many people! This car! This truck! You need to figure out how to get some fire back in your belly. 

Get professional help, coaching, training, ad go to events. Your business is your baby, and I’m betting you wouldn’t give up on your blood, so don’t give up on this.

You’ve already done the hard bit, so stick it out, and make it count. Small business owners like you are the backbone of the economy. We need you, so don’t quit!

A) Help small business owners strengthen their businesses from the inside out.

B) Provide a home for small business owners to openly discuss the challenges they face in a sales and bullshit-free environment.

The ultimate aim of all things Construction MPa s to deliver content, advice, and experience in areas that most people never talk about. Most business owner leadership content is outdated and not relevant for working-class industries.

Blue-collar people and businesses require blue-collar leadership: straight-talking, experience-based fact-driven content. Mindset, attitude, and perspective get overlooked. Helping company owners transition from a job site trade mindset to a business owners mindset takes time, patience, and conscious effort.

Strong businesses require a strong business owner mindset, and that’s what Construction MPa is all about.

If you want to know more about the Construction MPa Program, check out: Program Outline Page.

The Construction MPa Program is for Business Owners Only.

“If you want to strengthen your business today. You need Construction MPa.”

The post Don’t Quit appeared first on Construction Mpa.

Business growth eventually becomes the main topic of conversation for all small business owners in the construction industry. However, most business owners don’t understand the growth versus scale difference. Growth without scale equals stress, strain, and failure! In this episode of the Construction MPa Podcast we will talk through some of the ways in which you can scale your business. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: This Podcast is for Construction Industry Business Owners who want to hear the truth. If you’re looking for nicey, nicey leadership advice? Best you watch a TED talk!

The first thing to understand about failing is scaling is that failing it is not the same as failure.

Failing refers to an attempt at something that didn’t work. Failure refers to quitting! Giving up! Throwing in the towel! 

Failing is a normal part of everyday life. It was an essential part of our childhood. We learned most of our physical abilities through the process of failing.

We tried to stand, we fell, we tried again. We repeated this cycle until we mastered it, like walking, riding a bike, and swimming.

Nothing is more normal than trying something we have never attempted before and failing at it. Even trying something we have tried before and failing at it is also expected… Round of golf, anyone? 

Never confuse failing with being a failure. If you’re in the arena fighting for the success of your business, you are not a failure, no matter how many fights you lose.

The definition of insanity is doing the same thing repeatedly but expecting different results.

The only rule of failing is to ensure that you learn when you fail and try something different the next time. It doesn’t have to be a significant tweak, but there must be something.

Granted, sometimes we can do everything correctly and still fail. However, if you study the failed attempt thoroughly, you will recognize this.  

Failing is a fundamental part of evolution. So fail forward, and fail often for however long it takes.

In short, to scale in business, we must fail in business.

Only people who don’t try don’t fail. Failing is part of the process, and it is to be expected and embraced. On the other hand, failure is not necessary and not a good thing. Failure is proof that we’ve quit, and quitters aren’t winners. You don’t have to be perfect in business to be successful. You need to be persistent and learn from your failed attempts. Your ability to get bucked off the bull but get back on that beast again even faster than you did before without regret, blame, or complaint is what matters most.

In this episode of the Construction MPa Podcast, we discuss the failing is scaling concept and explain why it is so vital when strengthening your company.

Enjoy!

What is the Construction MPa Program vs. Construction MPa Podcast? The Construction MPa Program is an entirely different beast than the Construction MPa Podcast. However, it was ultimately built with the same end goal in mind, too:

A) Help small business owners strengthen their businesses from the inside out.

B) Provide a home for small business owners to openly discuss the challenges they face in a sales and bullshit-free environment.

If you want to know more about the Construction MPa Program, check out: Program Outline Page.

The Construction MPa Program is for Business Owners Only.

Join the Pack!

“If you want to strengthen your business today. You need Construction MPa.”

The post Failing is Scaling appeared first on Construction Mpa.

Business growth eventually becomes the main topic of conversation for all small business owners in the construction industry. However, most business owners don’t understand the growth versus scale difference. Growth without scale equals stress, strain, and failure! In this episode of the Construction MPa Podcast we will talk through some of the ways in which you can scale your business. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: This Podcast is for Construction Industry Business Owners who want to hear the truth. If you’re looking for nicey, nicey leadership advice? Best you watch a TED talk!

Growth and scale are intertwined. They are two sides of the same coin, the difference is you can grow a business without scaling incorrectly, but you can’t scale a business without scaling it.

Growth is pressing for more, but more of the same. More of the same works, but only to a specific size or level, which is where the confusion kicks in.

Eventually, if you keep the same company structure, technology, training, and communication, but your company has massively grown, it will bottleneck.

In short, scale is strategic evolutionary growth.

There is no hard and fast rule or example of scalability. It varies depending upon business, industry, and sector.

The examples of scalable areas shown below stem from twenty-plus years of owning and working with small business owners in the construction industry:

These are just some basic examples of areas with small construction companies that can be scaled.

Scaling your business will strengthen your company’s foundational MPa. The higher your MPa, the bigger the company you can build without fear of your foundations cracking.

Growth is essential in business. However, creating that growth in a controlled, managed, strategic and is even more critical. Most companies don’t die of starvation. They die from indigestion.

Program vs. Podcast?

The Construction MPa Program is an entirely different beast than the Construction MPa Podcast. However, it was ultimately built with the same end goal in mind, too:

A) Help small business owners strengthen their businesses.

B) Provide a home for small business owners to openly discuss the challenges they face in a sales and bullshit-free environment.

If you want to know more about the Construction MPa Program, check out: Program Outline Page.

Business Owners Only.

“If you want to strengthen your business today. You need Construction MPa.”

The post Growth versus Scale in Business appeared first on Construction Mpa.

This is one of the toughest career questions to answer. Criticizing and questioning the boss’s decisions, methods, and actions is a right of passage for most employees. However, if we take the leap and set up our own business, we lose the ability to use the boss as a scapegoat! In this episode, we’ll shed some light on what it takes to set up and successfully go it alone.

Disclaimer: This Podcast is for Construction Industry Business Owners who want to hear the truth no matter how much it might sting. If you’re looking for nicey, nicey leadership advice? Best you watch a TED talk!

There is no right or wrong? No, yes, or no when it comes to leaving the security of being an employee and branching out on your own.

However, there are some simple truths that you must ask yourself if you are genuinely considering the question:

If you can honestly answer all of the above questions with ‘Yes,’ then you’re ready, and you stand a damn good chance of succeeding! 

If the answer is no… you’re destined to fail, so don’t even start.

Building your own business is one of the most rewarding things a person can do, but it’s also one of the toughest.

If you’re serious about venturing down the unknown path of business ownership, the only guarantee is that it will be harder than you think, it will take longer than you think, and it won’t happen the way you think.

However, if you push through, build, grow, and evolve, you can create an extraordinary life that no employee can have. The freedom, profits, and flexibility can be outstanding.

Your ability to grow and build a successful business will be directly tied to your ability to grow as a person. What doesn’t evolve becomes extinct.

Business is a serious, highly competitive arena, and only those with a high enough MPa survive! This episode wasn’t designed to scare people off becoming business owners. It was to prepare them for what’s in store or protect them from inevitable failure if they aren’t willing to give it all. 

Program vs. Podcast?

The Construction MPa Program is an entirely different beast than the Construction MPa Podcast. However, it was ultimately built with the same end goal in mind, too:

A) Help small business owners strengthen their businesses.

B) Provide a home for small business owners to openly discuss the challenges they face in a sales and bullshit-free environment.

If you want to know more about the Construction MPa Program, check out: Program Outline Page.

Business Owners Only.

“If you want to strengthen your business today. You need Construction MPa.”

The post Should I set up my own business appeared first on Construction Mpa.

All trades, industries, and services have insider skills, competencies and short cuts, more commonly know as ‘Tricks of the Trade.’ Running a business is a trade in its own right, and there are tricks within this trade also. Tricks that can help you save time, gain time, increase profits, reduce stress, and that is what we’re gong to talk about on this weeks episode of the Construction MPa Podcast.

Disclaimer: This Podcast is for Construction Industry Business Owners who want to hear the truth no matter how much it might sting. If you’re looking for nicey, nicey Construction Leadership advice? Best you watch a TED talk! This podcast is filled with Blue Collar Business Conversation only.

The first trick is recognizing that the trade we’re talking about isn’t the trade service your business performs; it’s the trade of running a business. Being skilled in a trade isn’t enough to guarantee business success.

As a business owner, you must become skilled at making decisions under pressure, decisions that can have significant consequences. Consequences you never had to consider before as an employee.

Managing labor is a fundamental part of running a small business in the construction industry. We get paid for the skills and services our people provide daily.

However, the real challenge kicks in when the clients we depend upon have last-minute requests. Need people or resources the same or the next day, and we don’t have them available. What do we do, what do we say?

Do we hire more, or should we inspire more? Do we ask for more from our people or hire more people? How do we navigate these challenges?

Even if we have enough people, how do we manage them, coordinate the projects, and ensure we meet the needs of our clients? Is it in our heads, our diaries, or do we leverage the nerdy power of a well-structured spreadsheet? 

Business is no joke… but a touch of humor can go a long way. Getting through to our people, increasing standards, and policing quality is tricky. Therefore, a spoon full of humor might make the medicine go down!

This week’s episode of the Construction MPa Podcast answers the above questions and statements. No shortcuts, just 25+ years of experience-based help and advice to help you navigate the minefield that is running a small business in our beloved Construction Industry.

Good luck!

Program vs. Podcast?

The Construction MPa Program is a different beast than the Construction MPa Podcast. However, it was ultimately built with the same end goal in mind, too:

A) Help small business owners strengthen their businesses.

B) Provide a home for small business owners to openly discuss the challenges they face in a sales and bullshit-free environment.

If you want to know more about the Construction MPa Program, check out: Program Outline Page.

Business Owners Only.

“If you want to strengthen your business today. You need Construction MPa.”

The post Tricks of the Trade appeared first on Construction Mpa.