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From Marine Veteran To Design-Build Builder In Chattanooga with Sean McNamara, Sol Terra Construction, LLC · Epic Entrepreneurs

• 0:45
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome to the Twin's episode of Epic Entrepreneurs.
• 0:48
  SPEAKER_00: I am Cliff McRae with Active Coach Business Growth Partners, where we work with local business owners to turn big ideas into real scalable growth.
• 0:56
  SPEAKER_00: Today I'm excited to be joined by Sean McNamara with Sol Terra Construction LLC.
• 1:01
  SPEAKER_00: Sean, thanks for being here.
• 1:02
  SPEAKER_00: How are you doing today?
• 1:03
  SPEAKER_01: I'm great.
• 1:04
  SPEAKER_01: Thanks for having me.
• 1:05
  SPEAKER_01: It's a beautiful Chattanooga day here, and uh yeah, all is well.
• 1:09
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, beautiful, beautiful spring day.
• 1:11
  SPEAKER_00: So uh yeah, I'm excited to have you on.
• 1:13
  SPEAKER_00: Let's go ahead and jump right into things.
• 1:14
  SPEAKER_00: So uh for those of you who may not know it yet, you know, who are you, Sean McNamara and what is Sol Terra Construction?
• 1:21
  SPEAKER_01: Uh yeah, I uh my name is Sean.
• 1:24
  SPEAKER_01: I'm a uh United States Marine Corps veteran, uh father of two, uh general contractor focusing mostly on uh residential remodels and small construction.
• 1:34
  SPEAKER_01: Uh I've got a uh bachelor's degree in architecture from the University of Oregon uh that I kind of fold into my my business as a sort of design aspect of that.
• 1:43
  SPEAKER_01: And uh yeah, I've been uh in business for, well, general contracting for uh a little under six months now.
• 1:50
  SPEAKER_01: I've been in construction for about I don't know, five plus years, just always sort of handy before that and liked building things, designing things, and uh that's kind of what led me, uh led me on the path I am now.
• 2:00
  SPEAKER_01: Did a few other kind of subcontracting and uh independent work things before that.
• 2:04
  SPEAKER_01: So been kind of tiptoeing my way into having my own business and now I'm just uh in a full-on sprint.
• 2:11
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, okay.
• 2:12
  SPEAKER_00: So so Sean, real talk.
• 2:13
  SPEAKER_00: What's what's something about running a business that people think is amazing, but it actually is complete BS?
• 2:20
  SPEAKER_01: Uh I think uh, you know, in some ways the kind of myth of uh flexibility and freedom, uh, you know, you you quit you quit one boss just to take on a hundred and uh everybody else has or everybody uh you know you you serve all of your clients, they have their kind of particular needs and quirks and foibles to figure out.
• 2:37
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, so there's a whole lot of uh a whole lot of kind of soft skills in addition to you know the hard skills of whatever service you might be providing that you need to navigate as well.
• 2:48
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, sometimes you might you know uh be playing you know mediator in a sort of uh marriage counseling role, trying to help a husband and wife decide a disagreement on a project or something.
• 2:59
  SPEAKER_01: Um and uh you know uh having your being able to set your own schedule uh is both liberating uh and constraining at the same time because you know it's not a regular 40 hours you can take off when you want in theory, but sometimes that's not a uh you know not a good time to do so.
• 3:15
  SPEAKER_01: And uh if you find yourself uh often fielding phone calls and text messages at times you wouldn't want to.
• 3:22
  SPEAKER_01: So I'd say that's been the biggest challenge, one of the biggest challenges so far.
• 3:26
  SPEAKER_00: So what would you say is the exact moment where you realize, you know, this either could really work or it can completely blow up in my face?
• 3:33
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, yeah.
• 3:34
  SPEAKER_01: Um, well, you know, it it's kind of a been a slow burn for many years.
• 3:39
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, my my time in the Marines taught me that I really uh didn't like being kind of micromanaged uh as a person.
• 3:50
  SPEAKER_01: Um and you know, I always kind of knew I wanted to own a moan business someday, didn't really know exactly what at the time.
• 3:56
  SPEAKER_01: Um left service, uh I really fell in love with my travel overseas with uh you know architecture and building design and construction and things.
• 4:04
  SPEAKER_01: So uh went and got my uh uh went to school, uh studied architecture, uh decided that after a short stint working in an architecture office after graduation, that uh it wasn't a good fit.
• 4:15
  SPEAKER_01: That's kind of a funny story in its own right.
• 4:17
  SPEAKER_01: Um But uh I was working, um, I decided to kind of move over into building things, got into carpentry, and uh did that for a few years.
• 4:27
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but the pivotal moment happened last year.
• 4:29
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, in fact, last Easter, um, I I broke my wrist and uh was out of work for several months and um thought, wow, this is this is a real wake-up call.
• 4:39
  SPEAKER_01: You know, I got mouths to feed, and uh, you know, I can't clearly can't rely on my own two hands indefinitely, you know, for good.
• 4:47
  SPEAKER_01: At some point I'll grow older and just not be able to, you know, lift piles of wood anymore and swing a hammer.
• 4:51
  SPEAKER_01: But uh, you know, even in in the intermediate uh time frame, you know, an injury can put me put me down for a while.
• 4:57
  SPEAKER_01: So it was kind of during that time uh that I decided, you know what, I've been doing this for a while, I've got you know knowledge and skills and credentials, why not just get my general contractor license and uh really pursue this thing I want to do?
• 5:09
  SPEAKER_01: And uh so I did.
• 5:11
  SPEAKER_01: So uh late last year, later last year, did all the things, jumped through all the hoops, uh, got my license, and uh yeah, I hit the ground running um the end of last year, uh moving into this year.
• 5:22
  SPEAKER_00: Nice, nice.
• 5:24
  SPEAKER_00: So, what's what would you say is the most stressful moment you let me do that again, I'm sorry.
• 5:29
  SPEAKER_00: What would you say is the most stressful moment you've had as a business owner, like a you know, how am I going to get through this type of moment?
• 5:34
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, um cash flow planning uh has been has been challenging, you know, in this line of work.
• 5:41
  SPEAKER_01: Um you know, it's not like I sell a product, get paid right away.
• 5:45
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, it's selling a service, and typically it's uh you know kind of an expensive service, and it's a sort of long process service, and so you know, structuring that in a way uh where you know I can get paid up front enough to cover materials and and you know cost of things until the project is done, um, but not really getting kind of not really getting paid myself until the back end.
• 6:10
  SPEAKER_01: And you know, sometimes in construction, oftentimes, really all the time, there's unexpected things, delays, uh, especially when you're doing remodels and you always find surprises there.
• 6:20
  SPEAKER_01: Um that's been one of the one of the biggest kind of like uh man, biggest, biggest stressors and and hurdles so far.
• 6:27
  SPEAKER_01: You know, it's it's getting better now, but but definitely um one of the things that I didn't really expect.
• 6:33
  SPEAKER_01: Um I mean, I kind of expected it.
• 6:35
  SPEAKER_01: I just definitely underestimated it, that sort of cash flow planning and project um planning aspect.
• 6:40
  SPEAKER_01: And just, you know, this was this is a lesson that I've always heard being around design and construction is like whatever however long you think it's gonna take, double it or triple it.
• 6:49
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and sometimes I don't follow, always follow that advice, even though I know it's been proven time and again and I know better.
• 6:56
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but that's been the biggest challenge uh that you know I'm kind of like uh to get through starting out.
• 7:02
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 7:03
  SPEAKER_00: So, you know, if you had to start again from absolute scratch, you know, let's say you had no brand, no clients, and no safety net, what would you do differently the second time around, or would you do anything differently?
• 7:14
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, that's a great question.
• 7:16
  SPEAKER_01: Um I would recommend anybody starting out, you know, definitely um have more money saved up than you think you'll need, uh for sure.
• 7:24
  SPEAKER_01: Um definitely uh, you know, last year, given the you know the challenges of like you know, injury and being out of work for a little bit, um, set me back more than I would have hoped.
• 7:35
  SPEAKER_01: Um that that would be number one, I think.
• 7:38
  SPEAKER_01: You know, however much you think you need, save a little more.
• 7:41
  SPEAKER_01: Um and uh I think you know, uh marketing is important, getting the word out is important.
• 7:50
  SPEAKER_01: Um and so definitely sort of, you know, my website's not complete yet, um, but having having that kind of ready to go before is helpful.
• 8:00
  SPEAKER_01: Just kind of give people a landing plate uh page, a place to go to, um, you know, advertising.
• 8:07
  SPEAKER_01: Um I I wouldn't change this because I'm already doing it, but definitely being a part of some kind of business networking group uh is very, very helpful um because it gives you an opportunity to get exposure to people and a network, you know, and that's the biggest thing.
• 8:19
  SPEAKER_01: You know, it took me a long time in life to understand the value of the phrase.
• 8:22
  SPEAKER_01: It's not what you know, it's who you know, and that's really, really true.
• 8:25
  SPEAKER_01: Uh you could be the most skilled guy at whatever, um, but if if you don't know how to get the word out and nobody knows what you do, and you're not uh getting your services in front of the right people, then it's all you know kind of for nothing.
• 8:38
  SPEAKER_01: You know, you can imagine your great work all day long, but you won't get anywhere.
• 8:43
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, no, definitely agree.
• 8:44
  SPEAKER_00: So marketing, marketing, get that word out there, basically, right?
• 8:47
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, for sure.
• 8:49
  SPEAKER_01: For sure.
• 8:49
  SPEAKER_01: And and just um, you know, be a good person, don't burn your bridges, maintain good networks and and have more uh you know, more money saved up than what you think you'd need, I would say.
• 8:59
  unknown: Yeah.
• 9:00
  SPEAKER_01: Keep things starting out.
• 9:02
  SPEAKER_00: So have you ever thought about quitting?
• 9:04
  SPEAKER_00: And if so, what stopped you?
• 9:07
  SPEAKER_01: Uh sure, yeah.
• 9:08
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, there's definitely days where I'm like, God, what did I get myself into?
• 9:12
  SPEAKER_01: Why why am I why am I subjecting myself to this?
• 9:15
  SPEAKER_01: Um you know, uh, there's there's risks and reward with any path.
• 9:22
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, I I just I'm not really cut out for the nine to five, go do what somebody else tells me to do all day, every day, what to wear, where to be, how to act, um, you know, all the things.
• 9:36
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and that is yeah, I just I never I realize at a certain point in life that um you know time and time and energy are are precious.
• 9:49
  SPEAKER_01: You know, the only two things we really possess in life are our time and our attention.
• 9:55
  SPEAKER_01: And and we can put those towards whatever we choose, you know, making money, spending time with family, you know, studying, doing, recreating, whatever you want to put those things to, but you you really fundamentally only have time and attention, and you could really kind of put energy in that in that third category as well.
• 10:13
  SPEAKER_01: So do I want to put my time and attention and energy uh into grinding someone else's hay and making someone else very wealthy off you know uh my uh precious life essence, or do I want to do that in service for myself and my family and and some kind of you know generational legacy there?
• 10:31
  SPEAKER_01: And I chose that second category.
• 10:33
  SPEAKER_01: Um so that's what it is for me.
• 10:34
  SPEAKER_01: You know, the days that I think about quitting, I think about, well, you know, do I really want to be uh chopping and chipping away in the mill or you know, turning the wheel at the at the grind mill, you know, at the grist mill, or uh, you know, would I rather uh put my efforts towards something I could grow, uh, you know, something that my you know kids and grandkids hopefully could be could be proud of and uh and and one day assume potentially.
• 10:59
  SPEAKER_01: So uh that's really it.
• 11:00
  SPEAKER_01: I just think about going, you know, put putting on somebody else's t-shirt and being told to show up at a certain time and you know, being reprimanded by a grown adult, you know, for being five minutes late because I had to drop my kids off at school or something like that, and just you know, really uh not feeling like I'm I'm in having ownership over my own life, and and that puts me right back in the headspace I need to be to continue on.
• 11:23
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, no, definitely agree.
• 11:25
  SPEAKER_00: So, what would you say is a mistake you made early on that cost you either serious money, time, or reputation?
• 11:32
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, that's a good one.
• 11:33
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I um I'm I'm very I'm more willing to accept a challenge, I think, than than some other people are.
• 11:43
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, you know, I guess if entrepreneurs are kind of more uh risk tolerant than others, you know, for reasons, but I would say um even in the field of building things and construction, you still get a lot of guys that are just kind of like, I'm just gonna do like the bare minimum and I'm just gonna do what I've been taught, and I don't really if it's a pain or a hassle, I'm either gonna charge an arm and a leg or I'm gonna pass it off and say no.
• 12:07
  SPEAKER_01: I'm more willing to say yes.
• 12:09
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and so uh I guess they kind of get into the the nitty-gritty, you know, if remodeling a newer home is a lot different than doing you know, remodeling and repairs on like an older home, like a let's say a hundred-year-old home.
• 12:24
  SPEAKER_01: So um I took a job, a friend of a friend, you know, was kind of just starting out.
• 12:28
  SPEAKER_01: It was like, okay, yeah, I need uh, you know, a project right now, just any project right now, and it just happened to be you know probably the most challenging set of circumstances.
• 12:37
  SPEAKER_01: A hundred-year-old home with old plaster and lath walls and you know, bathroom remodel and new tile and everything, ended up uh you know, trying to get the old tile out and found that there was four inches of poured concrete under the floor uh that I had to chisel out and you know, just all kinds of little things.
• 12:53
  SPEAKER_01: Um I wouldn't say it really cost me reputational damage, but I would have definitely told the guy uh with the knowledge I have now that uh either it's gonna cost more or I can't do this right now.
• 13:05
  SPEAKER_01: You know, come back when you when you have more money for this because it was, you know, it was just uh every little thing opened up like five or six other things, and it just uh it was a project that went way over timeline.
• 13:17
  SPEAKER_01: Um and realistically should have gone more over budget than it did.
• 13:21
  SPEAKER_01: But you know, me being uh reasonable and wanting to stick to my word, I just I kind of kept with it.
• 13:26
  SPEAKER_01: But um yeah, that was that was definitely uh you know a project where I wouldn't say that I bit off more than I could chew, but I definitely bit off more than I was expecting, and um, like I said, would have would have had uh would have set some more realistic expectations with a client.
• 13:40
  SPEAKER_01: But um it uh you know it it still went well.
• 13:45
  SPEAKER_01: But uh that was that was definitely something it's like, man, you could just never really account for everything.
• 13:50
  SPEAKER_01: And that one really um, you know, at the end of it, definitely didn't uh quite make the money on that.
• 13:56
  SPEAKER_01: I was hoping.
• 13:57
  SPEAKER_01: Kind of just broke even.
• 13:58
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but it was a good uh a good lesson to learn, and I'll definitely be more prepared next time.
• 14:03
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah.
• 14:05
  SPEAKER_00: So if someone shouted you for a full day, what would what would surprise them most about how you operate?
• 14:11
  SPEAKER_01: Well, uh I think um that's a really good question.
• 14:20
  SPEAKER_01: Um probably just how many things I'm I'm juggling at once.
• 14:25
  SPEAKER_01: Um you know, timetables, schedules, making sure I have the right material, making sure everything's accounted for, getting things where they need to be, when they need to be there, uh coordinating with subs to figure out you know who's gonna do the work, or am I gonna do the work uh with my own hands, which is still happening more often than I would like uh right now.
• 14:43
  SPEAKER_01: Um, chasing down uh subs that don't call back, you know, things like that.
• 14:50
  SPEAKER_01: Just the constant problem solving.
• 14:53
  SPEAKER_01: And I would say that that's that's really kind of uh the essence of what I do uh in my work is is um I'm really just solving problems all day long, different problems, you know, whether I'm whether I'm hands-on or whether I'm you know coordinating and planning.
• 15:08
  SPEAKER_01: Uh I think it's I think it's that.
• 15:10
  SPEAKER_01: You know, most people go to work and they kind of have an idea of what they're gonna do all day, you know, they kind of have their routines set, they're you know, whether they're you know, medical field and you have your list of patients, you know, or you're um you know working in a factory or whatever, like you kind of have your schedule and your day kind of set.
• 15:26
  SPEAKER_01: Um me, I really don't.
• 15:28
  SPEAKER_01: Um I think that would be uh surprising and kind of a challenge to many people.
• 15:33
  SPEAKER_01: It's just that it's a constant problem solving, and many many problem, many answers to problems, you know, sprout a couple more problems from that that need to be solved.
• 15:44
  SPEAKER_01: So that's that that would really, I think, be the most surprising part for most people.
• 15:47
  SPEAKER_01: It's just how varied my day is and how many things I'm juggling at once.
• 15:51
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah, okay, okay.
• 15:53
  SPEAKER_00: So let's get into the numbers a little bit.
• 15:55
  SPEAKER_00: Let's talk numbers without getting too specific.
• 15:57
  SPEAKER_00: You know, what what would you say was the turning point where things started to scale and you started to really see that profitability in your business?
• 16:04
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 16:05
  SPEAKER_01: Um figuring out kind of what uh what to say yes to and what to say no to, and kind of figuring out, you know, what um really again that time factor of like, okay, this is what I should be charging, versus, you know, maybe this is not what they want to pay, but this is really like kind of my break-even point here, once everything is factored in, and I kind of assume or understand a little bit more about the risk.
• 16:30
  SPEAKER_01: Um you know, until you figure that out, I mean, honestly, as as a as a builder, as a contractor in this kind of line of work, you're you're really um, you know, trade secret here, kind of just throwing out wild numbers and seeing what sticks sometimes.
• 16:45
  SPEAKER_01: Um and uh and just and hoping uh hoping that you get a bite.
• 16:49
  SPEAKER_01: Um but it but until you kind of figure out like, okay, this is what people are willing to pay for this service or willing to pay for that service, you know, in this area or whatever, uh, that can be a real challenge.
• 16:58
  SPEAKER_01: But but that's kind of it.
• 16:59
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, it's really just kind of figuring out um what to say yes to, what to say no to, and and giving yourself enough cushion uh and and not just being able being willing to say yes to anything just because like you need to get a job on the calendar, I guess, if I could if that kind of answers the question.
• 17:17
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah, that does.
• 17:18
  SPEAKER_00: So basically be more selective in what you what you take and what you don't take.
• 17:21
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, selective and and kind of starting to understand um how much certain subs are gonna charge or certain subcontractors gonna charge for certain things, you know, because you need to know that so that you can give an accurate estimate to the client as well.
• 17:34
  SPEAKER_01: That's another big thing.
• 17:35
  SPEAKER_01: Um plumbers, for instance, can vary widely.
• 17:39
  SPEAKER_01: Some some will charge you a whole arm and a leg, some are pretty reasonable.
• 17:41
  SPEAKER_01: So kind of understanding, like, okay, this person's gonna charge this or that person's gonna charge that.
• 17:46
  SPEAKER_01: You know, this is uh this is what I'm looking at, this is my markup, this is what I can present to the client and be able to explain it, um, which is another key part.
• 17:55
  SPEAKER_01: It's kind of getting a little off the track of the question, but communication is huge.
• 17:59
  SPEAKER_01: Um if I could go back and put another you know point on the previous question about what would surprise somebody about my day.
• 18:05
  SPEAKER_01: I think being able to communicate with a client effectively in a way that kind of doesn't freak them out, you know, if if there's changes, if there's updates or whatever.
• 18:13
  SPEAKER_01: Um but yeah, understanding those things and being able to get accurate numbers is really what what hits where the tipping point hits.
• 18:19
  SPEAKER_01: And it's like, okay, I found my stride now, I can I I can kind of do this.
• 18:22
  unknown: Yeah.
• 18:22
  SPEAKER_01: And not feel like that.
• 18:24
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, no, uh communication is huge, man.
• 18:27
  SPEAKER_00: It's just uh you know, I don't understand.
• 18:28
  SPEAKER_00: You know, we we've we've got more ways to communicate now than ever.
• 18:31
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 18:32
  SPEAKER_00: But we have when people communicate, I feel worse or or you know are less effective than ever.
• 18:37
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, I've got people, you know, hire somebody for something, you don't know what time they're coming, what day they're coming, they can't you know you don't even have to make a phone call.
• 18:43
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, all we got is we got to text and email.
• 18:45
  SPEAKER_00: We don't have to pick up the phone anymore.
• 18:48
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 18:49
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and that's that's been the that's like the biggest challenge in the construction field, especially, is like subcontractors that don't call back, um, or people that just that they're not reliable.
• 18:58
  SPEAKER_01: And uh, you know, when that happens, uh, you know, once I can forgive, twice is like, okay, I'm taking you out of the Rolodex now, uh, losing your number.
• 19:06
  SPEAKER_01: Um, yeah, that's that's huge.
• 19:08
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that like just being just being communicative with clients or potential clients or leads and calling back uh puts you above 90 to 95 percent of them out there because so many of them just won't.
• 19:19
  SPEAKER_01: And like you said, we have all these apps and platforms, which uh, you know, God bless the intention of the people who create these things hoping to help streamline this and and um you know innovate that, you know, all these buzzwords that get thrown around.
• 19:34
  SPEAKER_01: But I just I just um I had I had one of those platforms for a minute, like a short minute, and realized like this is more than I need.
• 19:42
  SPEAKER_01: And I just went, you know, got a second phone line and I just text and phone call, and that's it.
• 19:48
  SPEAKER_01: You know, you you message me, you don't get a message automated reply back saying, Do accept messages from Soltera, you know, reply with a yes, you know, all this all this jazz.
• 19:57
  SPEAKER_01: Just like just or AI.
• 19:58
  SPEAKER_01: Or AI, you know, yeah, I just I want people to know they're dealing with a real person who understands their real person concerns, and I think that that's that's a huge thing that's lacking in today's uh market of of buzzwords and technology and and the latest this and whatever is just like you just people just people really want a human-to-human contact, not to get a you know, generic auto-reply text message or whatever.
• 20:22
  SPEAKER_01: So um, I think that's huge.
• 20:24
  unknown: Yeah, yeah.
• 20:25
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 20:26
  SPEAKER_00: So, and and I know you said you were a solopreneur, but uh, you know, this would be hypothetical.
• 20:30
  SPEAKER_00: This next question, what's the fastest way someone can lose their job working for you?
• 20:34
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 20:35
  SPEAKER_01: Um not being communicative, right?
• 20:37
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, not being communicative, uh generally being unreliable, not being where you're gonna be when you said you're gonna be there, you know, just the kind of basic things.
• 20:45
  SPEAKER_01: Um that was uh, you know, we had we had a saying in the Marine Corps, you know, early is on time, on time is late, and late is unacceptable.
• 20:53
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, you know, that got a little bit extreme where it's like, well, we've got to be here 15 minutes prior, but you know, that's for the boss, so you've got to be 15 minutes prior to him, and you actually got to be 15 minutes prior to your boss, and it got a little crazy.
• 21:04
  SPEAKER_01: You know, I'm not to that extreme, but you know, if I say, hey, let's let's set a time frame to be here, be there at that time frame, you know, be communicative, uh, be helpful.
• 21:13
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, don't just stand around on the job site, you know, looking at your cell phone when there's a bunch of you know stuff that could be organized, things to be cleaned up, things that could be done to help us, you know, get out of here on time, um, or just being kind of proactive with what needs to be done next.
• 21:27
  SPEAKER_01: Um these are all huge.
• 21:29
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, you know, and obviously, you know, poor quality work.
• 21:31
  SPEAKER_01: It's like, you know, I'm willing to take on and teach people who are willing to learn.
• 21:37
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that having one, being communicative, and two, having a good attitude and a willingness to learn and work are just the the two most important things.
• 21:46
  SPEAKER_01: You know, whatever you've got on your resume, whatever else you got going on, uh, you can't just show up and do the bare minimum because that that's not the kind of service that I want to provide to my clients.
• 21:56
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, that's not the kind of work I want to do.
• 21:58
  SPEAKER_01: Uh I don't want to uh you know manage people that don't want to be motivated to work well and do the best they can.
• 22:05
  SPEAKER_01: And um, you know, because that's that's really uh my approach to it.
• 22:09
  SPEAKER_01: You know, I don't uh if you want if you want chucking a truck for the bottom dollar, call the other guy.
• 22:14
  SPEAKER_01: Don't call me.
• 22:15
  SPEAKER_01: You know, I'm not advertising here myself as like the cheapest services.
• 22:19
  SPEAKER_01: Um I'm not the cheapest, but I'm not the worst.
• 22:21
  SPEAKER_01: And you know, I want the clients to be satisfied with what they get at the end and uh and really feel.
• 22:26
  SPEAKER_01: Like they've they've really got something uh something really good instead of just you know somebody's balance of uh you know how cheap can I do this job and do it quick.
• 22:37
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, yeah.
• 22:38
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 22:38
  SPEAKER_00: All right.
• 22:39
  SPEAKER_00: So yeah, so we're gonna head into what's called the quick fire round.
• 22:41
  SPEAKER_00: So basically, how this is gonna work, is I'm gonna give you one word, and then I just kind of want you to tell me uh kind of the first thing that comes to your mind, your gut reaction to that word when in regards to running your business, and then expand upon a little bit and and uh you know, give me kind of a reasoning as to why you chose that.
• 22:56
  SPEAKER_01: Okay.
• 22:56
  SPEAKER_00: That makes sense.
• 22:57
  SPEAKER_00: All right.
• 22:57
  SPEAKER_01: Let's do it.
• 22:58
  SPEAKER_00: Perfect.
• 22:59
  SPEAKER_00: First word is success.
• 23:01
  SPEAKER_01: Success.
• 23:03
  SPEAKER_01: Uh well, it means different things to different people, doesn't it?
• 23:05
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, for me, I guess it would just be uh flexibility and not having excessive financial worries.
• 23:15
  SPEAKER_01: Uh you know, I'm not really motivated by money, money, money, and just like want to sleep on a mattress of money, you know, if I have my needs met and a little bit to grow on and uh do some things, do some fun things with.
• 23:26
  SPEAKER_01: Um and I enjoy what I do.
• 23:27
  SPEAKER_01: That's success to me.
• 23:28
  SPEAKER_01: Success to me is uh not waking up every day dreading what's ahead.
• 23:34
  SPEAKER_01: You know, too many years working other jobs.
• 23:36
  SPEAKER_01: I've I've you know I did that, like, ah crap, gotta get up and do this thing today.
• 23:40
  SPEAKER_01: But success to me is um not being burdened by that and being comfortable uh in my life.
• 23:46
  SPEAKER_01: Failure.
• 23:47
  SPEAKER_01: Failure.
• 23:48
  SPEAKER_01: Ah, yeah.
• 23:49
  SPEAKER_01: Uh a good thing to learn from.
• 23:51
  SPEAKER_01: You know, that's that's what failure is.
• 23:53
  SPEAKER_01: Failure is a good thing to learn from.
• 23:55
  SPEAKER_01: Uh fail forward.
• 23:57
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, get back up, get back up, fall seven times, get up eight times.
• 24:03
  SPEAKER_01: Um failure is an opportunity to learn.
• 24:06
  SPEAKER_01: That's how I look at failure.
• 24:07
  SPEAKER_01: Burnout.
• 24:09
  SPEAKER_01: Burnout.
• 24:10
  SPEAKER_01: Not enough built-in vacations or rest time.
• 24:13
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, that's important.
• 24:14
  SPEAKER_01: That's very important.
• 24:15
  SPEAKER_01: Um, people think you got to work all day, every day to make it happen.
• 24:19
  SPEAKER_01: No, you got to take some breaks from time to time.
• 24:21
  SPEAKER_01: You got to set some hours, you got to set some boundaries uh in your life daily and weekly and monthly so that you can kind of pull back, uh decompress, and focus on what's really important in your life, you know, because at the end of the day, um chasing the business goals, it's a means to an end, right?
• 24:38
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, unless you're just one of those people who just like I don't know, loves goals and checklists or whatever.
• 24:43
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I would say to that person, slow down a little bit and uh reevaluate your life a little a little bit, maybe.
• 24:49
  SPEAKER_01: But burnout to me is not enough built in uh separation of work and life and and proper rest time.
• 24:57
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, totally agree with that.
• 24:59
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 24:59
  SPEAKER_00: Next word is scaling.
• 25:01
  SPEAKER_01: Scaling, scaling, scaling.
• 25:04
  SPEAKER_01: Um yeah, a challenge for me right now.
• 25:09
  SPEAKER_01: Challenge uh challenging for me right now, just given kind of the nature of the of uh what I'm doing and how I'm starting out.
• 25:15
  SPEAKER_01: But um processes, proper processes and having the right people in the right places.
• 25:21
  SPEAKER_01: Um that's that's a I think a key to to proper scaling.
• 25:27
  SPEAKER_01: Um having people you can trust where you need them and processes in place to handle uh the common things so that you don't find yourself chasing the same problems, you know, a hundred times a week or whatever.
• 25:40
  SPEAKER_01: Processes and people, the right ones in the right places.
• 25:44
  SPEAKER_01: Competition.
• 25:45
  SPEAKER_01: Competition.
• 25:47
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 25:48
  SPEAKER_01: Um the lone wolf dies starving in the cold.
• 25:53
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I think that there's there really is plenty of work to go around.
• 25:57
  SPEAKER_01: Um, had this in kind of interaction about this with uh a fellow who's no longer in the business networking group that I'm in.
• 26:05
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, because I think that he saw too much overlap between us and and a lot of people in the group even didn't really like working with him or his his service or lack thereof.
• 26:14
  SPEAKER_01: Um but even when another contractor came in the group, he pulled me aside and was like, hey, uh, you know, one contractor to another.
• 26:21
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, you know, do you are you are you comfortable with another contractor being in the group?
• 26:24
  SPEAKER_01: I was like, Yeah.
• 26:25
  SPEAKER_01: You know, I told him what I just told you.
• 26:26
  SPEAKER_01: I said, you know, the lone wolf dies starving in the cold.
• 26:29
  SPEAKER_01: Uh there's plenty of work to go around.
• 26:31
  SPEAKER_01: There's gonna be times where you're too busy and maybe you have a lead you want to pass off to me, or I'm too busy and I have a lead you want to pass off.
• 26:37
  SPEAKER_01: You know, maybe you have a project you need an extra set of hands on, and vice versa.
• 26:41
  SPEAKER_01: You know, I I think in this um uh, you know, in in this environment, in this business, um, there's so much in flux and so many things happening at once um and so many things to coordinate that sometimes you know you gotta have three, four, five, you know, people to call just for one uh one trade or one part of the project.
• 27:00
  SPEAKER_01: And so I think that um being too competitive in the construction uh realm is um maybe more of a hindrance, and you're those people are generally not great people to work with.
• 27:16
  SPEAKER_01: And so I think that um competition, you know, I think keep the C and look more at kind of cooperation or coopetition, maybe.
• 27:27
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, don't sink your business at somebody else's expense, but uh, you know, if you're trying to have the whole pie to yourself, um uh you you're gonna lose it at the end.
• 27:37
  SPEAKER_01: So that's how I see it in my in my line of work anyway.
• 27:41
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, okay.
• 27:42
  SPEAKER_00: All right, perfect.
• 27:43
  SPEAKER_00: I appreciate you getting through that quick fire round there.
• 27:45
  SPEAKER_00: So just a couple last things here.
• 27:46
  SPEAKER_00: What you know, where do you think your industry is going and and what are most people getting wrong about it right now?
• 27:51
  SPEAKER_01: Hmm, yeah.
• 27:54
  SPEAKER_01: Well, this uh this this could be something.
• 27:56
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, I could I could talk for a long time on this.
• 27:58
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, you know, kind of with from a you know my building science background, um the construction industry is really geared towards uh quick and cheap, and there's been trends towards uh you know, this word sustainability that's really kind of been dragged through the mud.
• 28:18
  SPEAKER_01: Uh but the idea is these sort of like high efficient homes, you know, they call it uh passive house is one of the big buzzwords, or uh LEED, which is a L E E D, which is an acronym that I can't remember right now, but it's it's sort of a set of standards for like evaluating how little energy usage a building will have or whatever.
• 28:36
  SPEAKER_01: Um and so uh I guess not to get too technical, too nerdy, but uh things like uh temperature, you know, thermal control and moisture control are big things uh when it comes to a building or comes to a house.
• 28:50
  SPEAKER_01: And the the trend has been to sort of like seal everything off, you know, wrap the house in plastic, seal it all with tape, uh, and then let the air conditioner do 100% of your um you know your moisture and environmental control in the building.
• 29:05
  SPEAKER_01: Um and what this usually leads to is problems down the road with mold, with dust, with with bad health.
• 29:11
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, you know, imagine uh put a straw in your mouth and then put a plastic bag over your head and then just you know breathe through that straw with a plastic bag over your head.
• 29:19
  SPEAKER_01: It would get really uncomfortable really quickly.
• 29:21
  SPEAKER_01: Um and this is essentially what happens to a house over time with the way that we build now, uh, where yes, you need some insulation, yes, you need moisture control, but you really want the exterior walls to breathe so that that moisture isn't just you know funneled through your HVAC system, which inevitably, always, every time, over time, will get gunked up, air filters will for you know will be forgotten to be changed, uh, things will accumulate, mold will happen, uh, and you know, your health, uh, the health, your personal health, and the health of your house will suffer.
• 29:51
  SPEAKER_01: And so I think that that's um uh a huge problem in our you know, just our approach to building houses and and buildings in general uh today.
• 30:00
  SPEAKER_01: You know, it's it's very industry driven.
• 30:02
  SPEAKER_01: You know, somebody, some you know, big corporate conglomerate has a great new product that they really want to sell, so they get you know an army of salespeople to go out there and tell you how great it is and moisture, waterproof, blah, blah, blah.
• 30:13
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, but it really has no bearing on the reality of um of building a comfortable, healthy house.
• 30:19
  SPEAKER_01: Um and then just sort of like you know, throwing things up quick and cheap.
• 30:22
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, so many uh if if I could if I could you know advise somebody who's looking at buying a house in a brand new subdivision, I would say don't uh because those houses tend to be very quickly and cheaply built.
• 30:34
  SPEAKER_01: And when you really look into them, you know, they've they've probably uh skimped on the roof rafters, you know, they're probably not big enough.
• 30:40
  SPEAKER_01: They probably uh didn't properly compact the soil before they poured the footings and foundation.
• 30:45
  SPEAKER_01: And uh, you know, we have a uh uh a relatively new subdivision here in Hickson, which shall remain nameless, but they're nice looking houses uh built in the last year or two, and people are already having foundation and roof problems just you know for all those reasons.
• 31:01
  SPEAKER_01: You want to put up a hundred houses in a year to a year and a half with the cheapest and quickest way possible, you're gonna have problems.
• 31:08
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and so I'd say those two big things.
• 31:11
  SPEAKER_01: So, you know, definitely if you know if you can afford to do it, uh and this is kind of a niche I'm trying to uh trying to get into or trying to focus on here, um, you know, hire a competent builder who has a good, solid understanding of you know building science and principles uh with some design sense.
• 31:31
  SPEAKER_01: And uh that's what I'm trying to bring to the table.
• 31:33
  SPEAKER_01: You know, somebody who can uh help you build your uh a custom house that's not you know outrageously expensive, that fits within your lifestyle and budget instead of just going and buying some uh rapidly depreciating, uh quickly thrown up uh McMansion somewhere.
• 31:48
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I'm actually it's it's funny you say that.
• 31:50
  SPEAKER_00: I'm actually dealing with that now.
• 31:51
  SPEAKER_00: I I live actually in a new uh newer neighborhood here.
• 31:54
  SPEAKER_00: The houses were built in actually 2023.
• 31:56
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 31:57
  SPEAKER_00: Um and uh and they are just like I'm I'm everything's falling apart because I mean I've literally got I've literally got doorknobs that are falling off the hinges, and and I've got uh doors that are falling off frames, and I'm like, this is a brand new house, I shouldn't have to deal with this stuff.
• 32:11
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, you shouldn't, yeah.
• 32:12
  SPEAKER_01: And that's I hate that term contractor grade, though, but that's you know, that's what the what uh the connotation is.
• 32:18
  SPEAKER_01: I guess I'm trying to be more of a uh uh a contractor who's a bespoke home builder than uh uh you know, just like uh, yeah, I built a bunch of spec houses, you know.
• 32:29
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, yeah.
• 32:31
  SPEAKER_01: So that that's uh that's uh a niche I'm trying to uh trying to avoid there.
• 32:34
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that that is a huge problem today with with home building.
• 32:37
  SPEAKER_01: You get this really uh bottom value house at top dollar price.
• 32:44
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 32:45
  SPEAKER_00: All right.
• 32:45
  SPEAKER_00: So, you know, and and and I want you to be as candid as you can on this next answer for this next question, but you know, let's say if a small business owner is listening to the podcast episode with you today, Sean, and uh let's say they're you know and they're having a bad day, you know, they're they're stuck or overwhelmed, and and let's say they're having a bad day, maybe a bad week, or or maybe even just a whole bad start to 2026.
• 33:05
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, we're already through the first quarter, heading into the second quarter here.
• 33:09
  SPEAKER_01: Um, we got prices already.
• 33:11
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah.
• 33:12
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, this this year is flying by.
• 33:13
  SPEAKER_00: I was I was telling my wife the other day, I was like, man, we need to put our Christmas stuff back up probably next month.
• 33:17
  SPEAKER_00: It's gonna be Christmas before you know it again.
• 33:19
  SPEAKER_00: But um, but yeah, what's the piece of advice you'd want to want them, or what's the piece of advice you would give them today if they're feeling stuck over one?
• 33:26
  SPEAKER_00: Just having a bad year.
• 33:27
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, um, man, you know, our our world, our our our modern world is just simply flooded with self-help books and advice and guru wannabes that you know want to tell people how to live their life.
• 33:40
  SPEAKER_01: But uh it really is simple.
• 33:42
  SPEAKER_01: Personal, professional, all aspect of your life.
• 33:45
  SPEAKER_01: Uh put your faith in in the Almighty God.
• 33:48
  SPEAKER_01: Put put God first in your life and everything you do in your first step.
• 33:51
  SPEAKER_01: Uh put God first in your heart, in your business, in your family, and your life.
• 33:55
  SPEAKER_01: Um, that's that's not a promise of of roses, you know, and everything's gonna be, you know, you're just gonna suddenly start making money.
• 34:01
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, but if you're just out there being blown by every wind in the world, you're gonna find yourself uh unhappy, depressed, and nihilistic.
• 34:08
  SPEAKER_01: And that's where most people in the modern life are who have no foundation uh of anything significant.
• 34:15
  unknown: Yeah.
• 34:15
  SPEAKER_01: Put your faith in God.
• 34:16
  SPEAKER_01: That's it, 100%.
• 34:17
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah.
• 34:19
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 34:19
  SPEAKER_00: So what's next for Solterra Construction?
• 34:21
  SPEAKER_00: What should people be excited about coming up in the near future?
• 34:24
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, um looking at uh exploring some partnerships um with a couple of adjacent businesses and seeing where they grow, kind of kind of too early to to really um, I guess, just discuss those seeds or count those chickens yet.
• 34:38
  SPEAKER_01: But um yeah, getting more into kind of moving away from uh repairs and remodeling and more into uh the sort of custom home design build uh arena, more into that.
• 34:50
  SPEAKER_01: You know, the um you know starting with with repairs and and stuff, uh repairs and remodels is was always sort of a stepping stone just to kind of you know build uh build some business credibility and get a get a foot in the door and get exposure to people who uh want those custom uh homes, uh, you know, a good uh design build thing.
• 35:09
  SPEAKER_01: We've got a meeting uh at right after this, actually, uh with someone um in that in that lane and just hoping to grow that.
• 35:16
  SPEAKER_01: That's really what I want to do.
• 35:17
  SPEAKER_01: You know, if you go to you go to a tailor, you get a custom fitted suit, and you love it, and your life is great, uh come to me for a custom fitted home that you're gonna love.
• 35:25
  SPEAKER_01: And that's that's really what I want to do.
• 35:28
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, okay, perfect.
• 35:29
  SPEAKER_00: And finally, what's the best way for someone to connect with you or learn more about what you do?
• 35:33
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, um, right now it'd probably be uh my Instagram at SoulTerraChat, and I think I sent that to you guys.
• 35:40
  SPEAKER_01: I don't know how you post that or if you do in the show links, but uh S-O-L-T-E-R-R-A chat C H A T T.
• 35:48
  SPEAKER_01: Um I'll be getting my website up uh in the near future.
• 35:52
  SPEAKER_01: Um that's SolTerachattanooga.com.
• 35:55
  SPEAKER_01: And um yeah, I've got phone number and email.
• 35:58
  SPEAKER_01: Do you all do you recommend sharing that on a podcast or yes?
• 36:02
  SPEAKER_01: Okay, how about yeah, that's uh my email is build like uh a building, build at SoulTerrachattanooga.com.
• 36:11
  SPEAKER_00: Perfect, perfect.
• 36:12
  SPEAKER_00: All right, child.
• 36:13
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, thank you.
• 36:13
  SPEAKER_00: This has been fantastic.
• 36:14
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you for coming on and sharing your story, your perspective, and really, you know, uh everything about your business.
• 36:19
  SPEAKER_00: I really appreciate you coming on today.
• 36:20
  SPEAKER_00: I think it was great.
• 36:21
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, thanks for the invite.
• 36:22
  SPEAKER_01: I had a lot of fun and uh yeah, looking looking forward to to seeing it when it comes out and uh yeah, wishing you all the the best success in your endeavors as well.
• 36:29
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you.
• 36:30
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah, same year.