$75K+ Per Month in One Year: All Employees Left!

The video above is the first of a turnaround series I am making.

I flew to Meridian just outside of Boise, Idaho to try and turnaround the location in 48 hours.

Cameron is the owner of the local Augusta Lawn Care location.

Cameron started his business in 2022 but has already scaled it up to over $75,000. However, in the past few weeks he had to fire all of his employees and wipe the slate clean. He is now back on the mowing truck with one employee… that he previously had turned down in the interview process but out of desperation asked him to hop on the mowing truck.

I learned several things from this turnaround:

1.) Own It. Everything is your fault. To some this is daunting. However, if it is your fault and happens BECAUSE of you, it means you have control and can create change. If you blame everything on the labor market, the economy, the customer, the weather, and every other challenge is some external you will quickly become a victim in your mind…. Now things happen TO you instead of BECAUSE of you. You have no power to change your circumstances… like a boat on the ocean you are tossed to and fro at the whim of employees, customer complaints, and politicians. Successful entrepreneurs take ownership of their success, their failures, and everything around them. Employee showing up late? It’s your fault. Customer complaints piling up? It’s your fault. All your contracts cancelling? It’s your fault. Now absorb that punch. It hurts. Now go do something about it BECAUSE YOU CAN.

2.) Strong Leadership. I believe that in the absence of leadership a leader will arise within your organization. Why? Team members crave direction and structure. If you don’t provide structure and leadership you are at risk of your culture becoming fractured and subcultures starting on each crew, division, or department. You must have a strong vision and enforce that vision with clear standards. Not being physically present at the shop/office when a company is in it’s infancy (less than 10 employees) and not having clear management in place will cause a team to quickly deteriorate. Standards will slip. Employees will stop caring and eventually leave. Stop buying into the idea that you can let your business “run on it’s own” when you have new employees, you are growing quickly, and the culture is still young.

3.) Teachable Mindset. Cameron felt like he could only learn from business owners that had massive businesses. He listened more to his uncle that had a $5M roofing company than the franchisees that were literally 10 minutes from his territory (and very successful). In reality, our local competitors and peers are the ones that have the most applicable and actionable learning for us TODAY. It is always appealing to find a successful “mentor”… someone that has the magic pill based on years of experience and millions of dollars in revenue. We have been sold this idea on social media that finding a mentor is the most important part of business education. Although mentors can be helpful, the best (legit) ones are usually too expensive or inaccessible. Why? They are building their empire. A smart entrepreneur will become a sponge and be willing and able to listen and learn from employees, peers, managers, and competitors. This feedback is usually most valuable because your front line team is the closest to your customers and your peers are actively figuring out the things you are working through NOW. It tickles our fancy to think someone 5-10 years ahead of us will be most beneficial for us.

Watch the video. Take notes. Watch it again.

PS - another turnaround video drops later this week… spoiler alert: I wasn’t successful in turning it around in 48 hours.