What Nobody Tells You About Trading a Boss for a Business with Calvin Denny

0:02Hi, and welcome to this week's episode of the Epic Entrepreneurs podcast where we are all about helping business owners just like you achieve success. So we don't do fancy smancy. We don't do flashing lights. We don't do a lot of things that a lot of podcasts will do. These are just real stories about real people and their entrepreneurial and business experiences. We go into their wins, their challenges, and their learnings. So we hope you enjoy it.

0:36hey there and welcome to this week's episode of epic entrepreneurs and i'm super pumped today i've got calvin denny from atlas mountain contractors so welcome to the show calvin oh thank you i'm really happy to be here thank you for inviting me yeah so what is atlas mountain contractors so basically we're a small collective of independent contractors and i have a three-man crew and we really do a variety of services, but we're kind of focusing on framing repairs. We do a lot of decking. We do floor joist repairs, things of that nature. And we also do metal roofing. So it's a pretty wide scope and we're a newer business.

1:19We've been in business less than a year now and have been enjoying pretty steady growth. So that's been very exciting. so i mean you say you've been doing this about a year what would you do differently if you were starting over today what have you learned in that first year um that's a great question i i honestly i wish i would have well i wish i would have done it sooner that's that's one thing um yeah i prior to this i worked about 10 years in the mental health field and enjoyed the work, but really wasn't making enough money to get myself where I wanted to be in life. And I was very intimidated about starting my own business, but it ended up the process was a lot easier than I thought.

2:09But something I would have done differently is probably set firm boundaries with myself at the beginning, like no working on weekends, putting the phone on do not disturb at night, things like that. Because when you're starting a business and you're seeing growth, it's really hard to kind of separate, you know, that work-life balance. Yeah. You have to, you have to say yes to everything for a while until you figure out what to say no to, right? Absolutely. Yeah. Yeah. So those are great. That's great stuff. So what, what would you say has been your biggest learning so far as an, as an owner and an employer?

2:51I would say just meeting people where they are. No two clients are going to be the same. Some people need a little bit more communication, maybe a little more explanation of what's going on. And some people are very indecisive and it's just about rolling with it and always providing the best service possible to your client. Even if, you know, someone's requiring a little bit more, you know, handholding than maybe would be ideal. But it's projects are very stressful on people. You know, they're spending their money. They have certain expectations that aren't always met with timelines and so on.

3:33So, yeah, that's very important. and just meeting everybody where they are and always just trying to provide excellent customer service regardless of the situation. Yeah, yeah, that's a good point. I do want to go back to something. That's a pretty good leap from mental health to contracting. Tell me about that. It is. So I really kind of got – so I have a bachelor's degree in psychology and I'm a qualified mental health professional, And I've worked in a variety of roles in that field, predominantly in addiction recovery and wilderness therapy. And I bought a house about 10 years ago. And that's kind of how I cut my teeth on contracting.

4:22I bought a foreclosed home. They needed everything from the roof to the floors. I did all of the work myself, kind of trial by fire, did a lot of things two or three times. And then, you know, I started feeling burned out from the mental health stuff and thought I'd try out being a home inspector. So I got licensed and did that for a few years. And there were things that I didn't and don't love about that industry. But it did provide me. I got a lot of excellent education through that licensure process. And maintaining that license and continuing my education, I think, is making me a better contractor.

5:03so that's kind of how the shift happened i i just uh i love working with my hands and i also love being my own boss and uh have kind of always wanted that and it just i needed to have the right circumstances i think to make that happen yeah i think a lot of people don't pull the trigger fast enough i mean yeah it's a pretty it's pretty interesting so what have you what What are some of the misconceptions that you think people have about running a business? I'd say the number one misconception is people think, oh, I'll run my own business. That means I'll make my own schedule. I'll get to take vacations whenever I want.

5:42I'll have more free time. That just couldn't be farther from the truth. It's when you run your own business, it's not that you don't have a boss. It's that you have a million bosses. You know, everybody that you're working with that has expectations, contractors that maybe you sub for and things of that nature, timelines. So it's there's I can't imagine a situation where running your business is less work than whatever you're doing prior. Yeah, it's an old saying that, you know, people give up a 40 hour a week to work 100 hours and make half the money. I love it. Yeah, yeah. So it's, you know, to get to get started.

6:22Well, you said you've been growing. What do you attribute the growth to?

6:28Just it's been word of mouth. I don't have I don't even have a website. I don't really have an online presence. I've been a member of a B &I group for years, and they have helped me tremendously to grow my business. And they send me a large percentage of my referrals. And then at this point now, we're getting a lot of repeat customers. So we're growing that customer base and they tell their friends and that's just kind of how we've grown. And I also, we're also just blessed to be, you know, in an area with a huge need for skilled contractors. There's a lot of growth in the housing market here and not a lot of people to do the work.

7:12So part of it is just circumstantial. Yeah, we did have a flood. So there is some stuff going on there. But, you know, we give a shout out to B &I. I mean, we've been members of B &I groups over the years, and it's been hugely beneficial. So I do think it's pretty easy to refer a contractor in B &I once they understand they can trust you. So, yeah, if you're if you if you're thinking if you're looking for a referral based group, B &I is probably a good thing to check out. Yeah. So you said you got a couple of three guys working with you. What do you what do you look for, you know, in in in team members?

8:01So the guys that I work with, I knew previously and the business really funny as it may sound. it kind of started on accident. I started working as a handyman, got my insurance, and I got a referral to a job that was way too big for me. So I reached out to a couple of guys I knew who I knew were highly skilled and, you know, were undervalued in their current work situation and said, hey, you want to come help do this big project with me? They jumped on that with me. We were kind of vibing, you know, and working well together. And, you know, after that project, we're like, hey, let's keep doing this.

8:39And so got them set up with their, their own insurance and everything and their independent contractors that just, we do everything together. Um, and I'm, I'm looking to add more team members as well, but I just got lucky already knowing, uh, a great crew to jump on with me. Okay. So, so you're just, so you're, you're a group of independent contractors. They're not actually employees. Exactly. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. And that's how you, that's how you're doing it. All right. Well, let me let me do a quick fire round with you. Epic is an acronym. So let me get your thoughts on the letters in epic and the E stands for education.

9:15Just real quick, maybe a sentence or two about each one. What are your thoughts on education? Well, education is very important and it doesn't have to be traditional education in the sense of like going to a university. You know, if you if you want to be a plumber, go work with a plumber and get paid to learn. You know, if you want to set tile, do the same thing. Go work with a tile guy. I think in the trades experience is about as important as anything. Yeah, look, I'm encouraging so many people that if you're good with your hands and that's what you want to do and you want to work with your hands, you should go get a trade.

9:59You should go learn. You know, that's so many young people. I'm like, go into the trades. It's a great business. You're going to make more money than most people. You're going to do well in life. And, you know, it's never going to go away. AI is not going to replace trades. It's just not going to. It's just not happening. All right. What about P for planning? What's your thoughts on planning?

10:21Well, it's super important to know what job is coming up next. And, you know, as things, if something doesn't finish on time, have a plan for how you're going to address that. stay on top of communication with all of your clients. And planning, I'm sure there are ways to streamline scheduling and planning. That's something that I'm still learning. I spend too much time, to be honest, just trying to get my ducks in a row. So that's something that I'm always trying to improve on. Right. So the I is inspiration. So talk to us about inspiration. um well i've i've certainly been inspired by uh you know members of my family and also just people that i've worked with who work with their hands and i just people who uh when something breaks they know how to fix it you know and people who do their own mechanical work and grow their own gardens i'm really inspired by independence and i think that's something that drives me in my business and that I try to encourage everyone, you know, if you think you might be able to do it yourself, give it a try.

11:39Yeah, I remember right after we got married, my wife, we were living in an apartment. She said, you need to call somebody to come fix this thing. And I'm like, why? She said, what do you mean? I can fix it. You know, it's not, I mean, it wasn't that some electrical outlet or something, know, pretty simple. Um, you know, and I was, and yeah, she's like, and then she figured out, well, okay, Bill can fix anything. She didn't, now she doesn't say call somebody. She just says fix it. So it's all right. So that's the way it works out in our family anyway. So what C stands for commitment, obviously to be in business, you got to commit.

12:11So what are your thoughts about commitment? Um, well, like you said, being in business, uh, means you have to commit. So I think that I think if you're going to take something like this on, you have to at least initially be willing to, you know, put the business in the forefront of your life and really be able to focus on its growth. And, you know, having more time for vacations and hobbies and things like that are kind of are earned through sustained hard work. And you're not necessarily going to have that initially. And at the same time, you have to maintain your commitments to your family, you know, and learn to balance your work and your life.

12:58Yeah. Yeah. That's well said. Um, what do you wish somebody had told you before you went in business that, you know, now?

13:11Um, I wish somebody would have explained just how the process works, how to get an LLC, how to get insurance, how to generate leads. It's all, you know, every step of the way I've learned, you know, I learn as I go, but it's really, at the end of the day, it's not all that complicated to start a low overhead business where you don't actually have employees. You have your own tools and your own work vehicle and things like that. I wish I could have just seen it mapped out because it probably would have encouraged me to take the jump sooner. I just, I thought I needed so much money to start up and it really wasn't the case for me.

13:56Yeah, no, I mean, it's not. I mean, you, I mean, you get a federal ID, you get an LLC and you get a checking account and put some money in it and you're, you're in business. I mean, it's not, it's not, it's not, it's not really that hard if you want to, if you want to start a, start a business. I mean, there's a lot more to it to grow a business, but, you know, to get, to get started with a single member LLC is pretty, pretty, pretty straightforward. What would you say to other business people or other people who are, you know, potentially thinking about jumping into business? um i would say if you if you have a skilled trade and maybe you're undervalued at the current place that you work or you're thinking about jumping out on your own i would say do it um it's really not i mean it's it's hugely challenging in so many ways but it's not that hard to get started so i would say take the leap um i would love to connect with people and help them get started.

14:59I would really like to see more small businesses like my own popping up. And I'd like to see, you know, more of my peers enjoying success in this industry. Yeah, cool. That's exciting. So any advice to business owners looking to grow?

15:22um well something that i'm trying to teach myself right now is that there there does come a point where you just can't do it all yourself um that's something i really struggle with is like i want to have my hands on everything i want to make all the decisions and that's not sustainable in order to grow you have to let go of a little bit of that control and trust the people that you work with, put people in, you know, leadership positions who will do a good job and just trust that, you know, that you don't have to do everything. You don't have to do it all. A hundred percent. A hundred percent.

16:01Yeah. If you want to grow at some point, you're going to run into yourself. Absolutely. Yeah. You're, you're absolutely, that's what I tell everybody. You want to know what the biggest problem in your business is? It's you. The biggest problem in my business is me. The biggest problem in your business is you. It's just whoever's at the top. That's what's holding it back. That's all there is to it. So, yeah, anything else you'd like to say about your business or about business in general?

16:31um just uh i guess i just want to express my gratitude to uh the the people that we have worked with in the community and the folks that have trusted us with their projects and and again i want to encourage other people in the community who have thought about starting a business give it a shot and if you have questions about it you can contact me directly i would love to sit down with people and just talk to them about how they could start a really small business that can pay the bills and that they'll get a lot of fulfillment out of. Yeah. So that brings me to my last question, which is basically, how does somebody get in touch with you?

17:11What's the best way for someone to reach out? Just give me a call. My personal cell phone is 828-284-1925. All right. And we'll get that in the show notes for everybody. So give him a call. He can help you with your contracting decks, roofs, all kinds of carpentry. Get out there. It'd be great. Calvin, it's been great having you. Thanks for being on the show. Well, thank you so much for having me. I've really been enjoying listening to your podcast. And until next time, all the best. Bye. Hey, thanks for listening to the Epic Entrepreneurs podcast. Here's three things that you can do. Number one, remember to subscribe to the podcast.

17:55It takes very little effort on your part. It's going to help you and your fellow entrepreneurs. Plus, you guys know how it works. The more subscribers we get, the more cool things we can offer to you. Second, to learn more about growing your business, just download my book, The Coach Approach. It's free for you at giftfrombill.com. That's giftfrombill.com. Hey, and if you'd like more info about growing your business and what we can do to help you grow your business, send me an email directly. Just send it to williamgilliland at actioncoach.com. That's my personal email that I read. No one else reads it first.

18:43It's not screened. It's my real email. Just send it to me. I can't wait to talk to you. Hey, and until then, all the best.