Dec 3, 2019
There are three million construction companies in the United States. Listen to this episode and learn 7 ways to set yourself apart and build a great business.
Highlights Include:
- My attempt to distinguish myself at a traditional English public school
- 7 ways to distinguish yourself:
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- Pursue Niche Work at Which You are Excellent and Profitable
- Deal with clients you know well
- Work with project partners that you trust
- Maintain high quality efficient construction work
- Emphasize and Demand safety
- Insist on timely payments for all dollars earned
- Have a financial cushion to weather bad times
- What is a niche, and why it’s important
- How to get to know people by committing to long term relationships
- How to give and build trust with your project partners
- How to improve processes so that you can maintain high quality work
- Why a strong safety culture is vital, and how to make sure safety is prioritized
- How to get paid for what you’ve earned by being a “nice squeaky wheel”
- The secret to getting through the next recession:
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- Low Overhead
- Stay Humble
- It’s not what you make, it’s what you keep
Action Items:
- Prioritize, in order of importance, the list of the seven ways to distinguish yourself.
- Pick the most important way.
- Ask:
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- What's working
- What's not working
- In what specific ways can we improve?
- Spend 90 days working on the one that you pick and see how much progress you make.
- After 90 days move on to the next most important on the list
Learn how to clarify your niche: Click this link to download the Target Market Analysis tool
Read a great book: The Construction MBA: Practical Approaches to Construction Contracting, by Matt Stevens
Listen to a great song:
The Headmaster Ritual by the Smiths