Tyler gives an update on his personal home build, from permit headaches and erosion control to layout, equipment, and finally moving dirt. This one gets into the pressure of building your own house, self-performing as much as possible, and turning years of trade experience into a family home.

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Video Version:https://youtu.be/YFG1z032FkQ

Show Notes: 0:19 AI Beyond Productivity 2:37 The Mental Load 5:04 Organizing the Chaos 12:15 Clearer Thinking 21:16 AI as a Mirror 25:21 Getting Your Day Back 29:44 Wrap & Community

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Nick Schiffer

Tyler Grace

Podcast Produced By:

Motif Media

Custom building gets messy fast when every project starts from a blank page. Mike Romanowicz talks through Den, prefab housing, better lead qualification, and what builders can learn from a product-based approach to pricing, systems, and client expectations.

Den Outdoors: https://denoutdoors.com

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Show Notes: 00:00 Productized Housing 00:20 Meet Mike Romanowicz 03:59 Product First, Founder Second 05:45 Building in Public 09:22 The A-Frame Kit Lesson 14:11 The First Product Bet 20:30 Making Better Housing More Accessible 23:40 What Fasten Does 25:50 From Software to Homebuilding 30:17 The Power of Pre-Designed Plans 31:43 Starting From 100% 35:36 Why Customization Gets Hard 40:47 Where the Process Breaks 47:31 The Business Finally Clicked 55:25 How the Prefab Model Works 57:07 Designing Around Real Materials 61:06 What Tech Teaches Builders 66:33 Turning a Website Into a Booking Engine 71:04 Leading With Price 75:16 Cutting Out Bad Leads

Video Version:https://youtu.be/WOyN-PR9mHs

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Harnish Workwear

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Nick Schiffer

Tyler Grace

Podcast Produced By:

Motif Media

Most people talk about AI like it's just there to save time, write faster, or build better systems. This episode gets into the quieter side of it: using AI to organize your thoughts, cut down the mental noise, and get clearer before the day runs you over.

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Video Version:https://youtu.be/NUkdSkNq8QU

Show Notes: 0:19 AI Beyond Productivity 2:37 The Mental Load 5:04 Organizing the Chaos 12:15 Clearer Thinking 21:16 AI as a Mirror 25:21 Getting Your Day Back 29:44 Wrap & Community

Partners:

Andersen Windows

Harnish Workwear

Use code H1025 and get 10% off their H-label gear

The Modern Craftsman:

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Nick Schiffer

Tyler Grace

Podcast Produced By:

Motif Media

AI is not just for writing nicer emails or cranking out generic captions. This episode gets into how builders can use AI, construction software, agents, and connected tools to clean up admin, qualify leads, track money, improve communication, and make the business side less of a mess.

Morgan: https://construction2style.com

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Show Notes: 00:00 AI Is Already Doing the Work 03:47 Where Builders Should Start 06:54 Chat, Claude & Better Prompts 11:32 AI Inside Construction Software 12:35 Agents Are Employees 16:36 Setting Up AI to Work for You 27:49 Connecting Tools & Automating Follow-Up 31:11 Better Communication With Less Admin 37:09 Start With a Brain Dump 49:07 Using AI to Qualify Clients 54:21 Catching Misses Before the Next Job 57:43 Estimating From Real Job Data 61:23 Comparing Bids & Educating Clients 67:41 Why Builders Need to Start Now

Video Version:https://youtu.be/w5XwumOO1cE

Partners:

Andersen Windows

Harnish Workwear

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The Modern Craftsman:

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Nick Schiffer

Tyler Grace

Podcast Produced By:

Motif Media

Working in a family business comes with a lot of pressure, especially when your last name already means something in the industry. Michael Holmes talks through the Holmes legacy, finding his own lane, taking risks, and what it looks like to build something that actually feels like his own.

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Show Notes: 00:00 Who Michael Holmes Is Now 04:53 Growing Up Without Dad Around 10:29 Being the Dad He Needed 18:08 Getting His Dad Back 20:15 Stepping Out of the Family Shadow 29:00 Building Something for Himself 36:07 Hummingbird Hill Blue Mountain 40:15 How the New Division Works 45:16 Media, Builders & Skilled Trades 54:18 Living His Own Dream 60:38 Why Taking Risks Matters

Video Version:https://youtu.be/bAZJ2FTJTLU

Partners:

Andersen Windows

Harnish Workwear

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The Modern Craftsman:

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Nick Schiffer

Tyler Grace

Podcast Produced By:

Motif Media

This Midweek is about what happens when life forces you to step back and ask what all the work is actually for. Tyler talks about loss, family, and building a business that creates enough freedom to be present for the parts of life you don't get back.

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Video Version:https://youtu.be/fALKjhyTuLo

Show Notes:00:43 Time Moves Fast 02:57 A Wake-Up Call 07:31 Making Better Decisions 12:06 Learning From Loss 14:20 Work Isn't Everything 16:43 Building Around the Life You Want 21:10 Don't Wait Until Later 23:37 Let the Business Serve You 29:01 More Than Paying Bills 31:16 Do It Now

Partners:

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Harnish Workwear

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The Modern Craftsman:

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Nick Schiffer

Tyler Grace

Podcast Produced By:

Motif Media

After 400 episodes, the conversation shifts toward what Modern Craftsman should become next. This episode gets into why the show is moving away from surface-level interviews, what kind of guests and stories they want to bring in, and how deeper conversations can create more value than another round of standard industry talk.

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Show Notes: 00:00 A Curveball at 400 02:33 Why the Podcast Is Changing 09:23 Why the Old Guest Model Fell Flat 14:11 The Kind of Conversations We Want 23:41 What We Can Learn Outside Construction 26:48 Who Makes the Best Guests 34:40 The Stories Worth Telling 43:08 The Why Behind the Work 52:28 Why This Matters Now 57:32 Send Us Guest Ideas

Video Version:https://youtu.be/q9yxzp9HVqY

Partners:

Andersen Windows

Harnish Workwear

Use code H1025 and get 10% off their H-label gear

The Modern Craftsman:

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Nick Schiffer

Tyler Grace

Podcast Produced By:

Motif Media

Too many builders are working harder every year without really knowing which jobs are making money and which ones are just eating time. This episode is about using your tax return and a few basic numbers to get clear on what's working, what's not, and where to tighten things up.

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Show Notes: 0:24 Know Your Numbers 5:30 What Work Costs 10:14 Start With Taxes 16:37 Which Jobs Pay 25:56 Spend Less First 33:00 Build From There

Video Version:https://youtu.be/MqUP2ZtGOAU

Partners:

Andersen Windows

Harnish Workwear

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The Modern Craftsman:

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Nick Schiffer

Tyler Grace

Podcast Produced By:

Motif Media

Tyler breaks down the line between being helpful and giving away work you should be paid for. This one is about protecting your time, charging for the planning, and stopping the habit of solving the hardest part of the job for free.

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Show Notes: 0:33 Stop Giving It Away 8:02 Helpful vs Free 16:36 Your Brain Has Value 25:25 Draw the Line 32:26 Sell the Process

Video Version:https://youtu.be/n4BcvhRcZkw

Partners:

Andersen Windows

Harnish Workwear

Use code H1025 and get 10% off their H-label gear

The Modern Craftsman:

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Nick Schiffer

Tyler Grace

Podcast Produced By:

Motif Media

Nick and Tyler look back on the early years of running their businesses and talk through the mistakes, blind spots, and lessons that shaped how they work today. From underpricing and freebies to confidence, process, and figuring things out without a playbook, this episode is a straight conversation about what starting out really looks like.

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Show Notes: 00:00 Looking Back at the Early Years 02:51 Freebies, Ghosting & Early Mistakes 06:17 First Jobs, Permits & Winging It 09:46 The Educational Tax 14:41 Getting Better Gets More Expensive 17:28 Honesty, Pricing & Client Optics 24:50 Ego, Confidence & Early Pushback 29:52 When Your Old Clients Stop Fitting 35:17 What Clients Actually Value 38:25 Why Most Builders Still Lack Process 46:03 The Playbook We Wish We Had 52:34 Why This Work Matters 57:08 Why the Newsletter Exists

Video Version:https://youtu.be/7q6ffiowVOQ

Partners:

Andersen Windows

Harnish Workwear

Use code H1025 and get 10% off their H-label gear

The Modern Craftsman:

linktr.ee/moderncraftsmanpodcast

Find Our Hosts:

Nick Schiffer

Tyler Grace

Podcast Produced By:

Motif Media