The Handyman Startup Podcast

Specializing is one of the best strategic moves you can make as a pro handyman if your goal is to make more money in less time. In this episode, I dive into how to choose the right services to specialize in. There are three criteria you want your specialty service to meet to eliminate unnecessary headwinds. This is especially important if you want to scale your business, but it's also valuable even if you never plan to hire a single employee.

One of the biggest time wasters for handymen is giving free estimates. The only problem is that free estimates have some pretty awesome benefits. In this article, I discuss how to give free estimates without wasting your time.

In this episode, I sit down with Will Lingard of Surry Hills Handyman, a pro handyman with over nine years of handyman business experience. We discuss how he runs multiple businesses by subcontracting work, how he hired his first help, what's important to affluent customers, why being a good person is more important than your skills, and more. Will is a great guy with loads of wisdom to share to help you run a more profitable and enjoyable business. .

Stress is a silent killer. It kills joy and is unhealthy. The more I dive into this topic, the more I realize that high expectations are at the core of dissatisfaction in the modern world. It's the ultimate first-world problem. In this episode, I share several practical tips you can apply today to re-align your expectations with reality and, in doing so, reduce unnecessary pressure and stress while growing your business.

Most people underestimate what they can accomplish in a few years, and drastically overestimate what they can accomplish in a day, a week, or a month. In this episode, I discuss how keeping your expectations LOW, at least in the short-term, will improve your odds of success and make the process of building a business more enjoyable. Winning in business is about winning the mental battle. Here's one way to do that.

I've made a lot of pricing mistakes as a pro handyman. In this epsiode, I tell the story of five jobs that I did that barely made any money. I also share why these jobs weren't profitable and the mistakes that I made that led to me losing time and money. Avoiding pricing mistakes is one of the easiest ways to boost your income as a pro, so this episode should be especially helpful for someone just starting their handyman business.

Will growing a business ever be easy? Maybe for a lucky few, but not for most people. The funny thing is that most people are waiting for it to be easy before they go after it. Or, they are avoiding the challenges that are between them and growth because it's not an easy path. In this episode, I share why you actually don't want it to be easy and some tips for making the journey easier (but still not easy).

Mounting TVs has been a lucrative service for my handyman business. It has a high perceived value relative to install time, so I can easily make $100-$200 per hour. It's a great, low-risk way for a new customer to test my services, allowing me to quickly build my client base. And it's a low-stress, enjoyable job. Since I've mounted over 100 TVs, I've learned some valuable business lessons that can help you make more money with any service you offer. These are essential lessons and can dramatically accelerate your success if you put them to work.

Evaristo Gomez officially started his handyman business in early 2023. Now, just a little over a year in, he shares his journey. In this interview, we talk about how he left his secure job to start his business and gain more control over his schedule, even though he had a three-month-old child. We also share the challenges he had to overcome, his mistakes, and how he estimates jobs. If you are thinking of starting a handyman business, this interview will be both motivating and inspiring.

Credibility is everything when it comes to growing a handyman business. Without it, you will have no customers. Luckily, there are relatively fast and easy methods for gaining credibility quickly. In this episode, I shatter misconceptions about credibility and provide clear proven steps to establish credibility so you can start or grow your business easier