Out of the Hourglass

In this episode of Out of the Hourglass, Colin and Brian Nolan break down how to pivot when your business misses its revenue targets and winter is around the corner. Learn how to shift from a passive "victim of the market" mindset to an offensive posture using war rooms, pre-mortems, and proactive sales planning. Tune in to gain actionable strategies for keeping your team aligned, protecting cash flow, and maintaining perspective when business and life get messy. 

What if your next opportunity for business growth isn't something you build, but something you buy? Join Colin Nolan and Steven Lawton as they explore how strategic acquisitions can help business owners expand into new markets, increase profitability, and build long-term value. From evaluating potential purchases and navigating deal-breakers to deciding when to buy versus build, Steven shares practical lessons from decades of acquiring and growing businesses. Discover what it takes to make an acquisition work, and why the best deal isn't always about the highest price.

What if your next opportunity for business growth isn't something you build, but something you buy? Join Colin Nolan and Steven Lawton as they explore how strategic acquisitions can help business owners expand into new markets, increase profitability, and build long-term value. From evaluating potential purchases and navigating deal-breakers to deciding when to buy versus build, Steven shares practical lessons from decades of acquiring and growing businesses. Discover what it takes to make an acquisition work, and why the best deal isn't always about the highest price.

In this episode, Kathryn Freeman and Colin Nolan break down the financial number most trades business owners overlook: net profit. They untangle the differences between gross profit, operating profit, EBITDA, and net profit, and share industry benchmarks for roofing, landscaping, and heavy equipment operations. Kathryn and Colin also dig into how owners can use net profit to fund growth, when a bonus or profit-sharing program actually makes sense, and why "no margin, no mission" should guide every profit decision. 

Discover how to navigate generational handoffs, resolve leadership friction, and protect your family relationships while scaling your company. In this episode, three family business owners reveal the practical frameworks they used to transition authority, manage through shared values, and set clear boundaries between the boardroom and the dinner table. You'll walk away with actionable strategies to create succession plans and decision-making clarity long before a crisis forces the conversation. 

Some people wait their entire careers for permission to pursue the thing they actually want. Kosta Kritikos, CEO & President of Aieres Group waited fifteen years until he finally decided to take the leap and it’s changed everything. On this episode of Out of the Hourglass, Kosta shares how First Nick Companies became Aieres Group, a transformation a year and a half in the planning and fifteen years in the making. This is a story of the name, the people, the brand, the culture…  it's all connected.

This is the final episode of our Work Series - a three-part look at how painting companies are rethinking their organizational models.  For Mike Sanchez, owner of Southedge Painting and Contracting in Greenville, South Carolina, the shift from subcontractors to W2 employees wasn't about fixing something that was broken, it was about building a lasting team and culture. Mike walks us through the decision, the commitment it took to stay the course, and what the W2 model has unlocked for his team, his customers, and the long-term legacy of the business.

Andrew Coelho walked into Lancaster Painting for a sales job interview  and walked out with an HR career he never saw coming. In this episode, he shares how curiosity, ownership, and the freedom to fail forward turned an entry-level role into a seat on the management team, and how that same mindset now has him exploring AI, automation, and marketing. It's a conversation about what's possible when leadership bets on someone ,and that someone bets on themselves.

This is the 2nd episode of our Work Series,  a three-part look at how painting companies are rethinking their organizational models. 

What if the right model for your painting business wasn't W2 or subs - but both? That's been the answer for ACP Painting in Maricopa, Arizona for over twenty years. Co-owner Russ Byers and Inside Operations Manager Shell Abbott walk us through how they deploy two different kinds of teams under one roof - the decision-making framework, the financial tradeoffs, and the cultural dynamics that make it all work.

What does it look like to spend 30 years growing inside an organization and ultimately step into the top seat? In this episode, Jon Meyer, President and CEO of Nolan Painting, shares the story of his path from the company's very first estimator to leading an $18.5M business through its next chapter. Jon opens up about the deliberate, years-long succession process Kevin Nolan built, what it's meant to inherit a company in strong shape, and how Nolan Painting is now formalizing that same intentionality through its newly formed Board of Directors. Whether you're thinking about your own exit, your leadership pipeline, or what long-term stability really looks like, this one's worth a listen.