← The Deep End with Eric Triplett
The Deep End with Eric Triplett
S2-E30: You Don't Have a Goal Problem, You Have a Priority Problem
00:46:05
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Eric Triplett
Welcome to the Deep End with Eric Triplett, the pond digger. This is the show for contractors, tradesmen and entrepreneurs who want more from their business and from themselves. Eric brings decades of experience as a seven figure contractor with expertise in leadership, sales systems and the discipline it takes to build something real. Shaped by years in the aquatics world, his insights are rooted in precision, craftsmanship and performance. If you're done skimming the surface and ready to go deeper, it's time to dive in.
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Rockstars, It's Triplett here. Welcome back to the Deep End. This is where we're going to go below surface level thinking. We're talking depth, discipline and diligence. You know, how we do it around here. Because that's exactly what it takes to build something that really matters. And today's episode is pulled straight off of one of our TWT weekly Compass calls. And I'm telling you right now, this one, this one hits in a certain way. I'm pretty vulnerable about this as I was traveling through things and how goals and priorities can shift and change when you find more clarity in different parts of your life. And I share that with you right on this. So priorities and goals is the main topic. And I'm going to be real with you. Most contractors, they do have a goal problem. You know, they don't have targets set in place. I really believe that with the right target set and goals and the priorities set in place to get them, you know, that's where the real clarity happens. And everybody says that they want more, they want more money, more freedom, more team members and less stress. But they typically don't have any specificity. And when you actually look at their calendar, the contractor's calendar that wants all these things and you look at their habits and you look at their follow up, it tells a completely different story. Because if everything is important, then nothing is. I know you've heard that before, but
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in this call, I break down the
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difference between goals and priorities and how they've shifted for me and some of the ways I'm seeing things and how I'm learning, you know, things that I didn't know that I needed to know so I can get to the next level and how it changes your new priorities. It's like how you schedule is actually exposing the truth.
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Okay.
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In your life, in your business. And when you have clarity around this, you learn how to take back control by focusing on the things that actually move the needle. So this is one of those episodes where you might feel a little called out.
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Okay? And again, I'm Being vulnerable.
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I'm calling myself out, and hopefully you feel that as well. But if you lean into it, it
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might be exactly what you need to
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move the needle forward. So let's get into it.
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Well, let's jump into priorities. We'll. We'll just flip on this real quick. I'm going to just share some personal experiences with you, and then maybe we can all kind of learn from there. So in basically December, I booked out my year pretty heavily. I had, you know, March. I was going to be gone almost the entire march. Like, the entire march, Right. So I ended up canceling one of the shows because I was setting priorities because being home is a priority. And the most I really go away is like, you know, seven to 10 days. When I went to Japan a couple times, I'm gone for 10 days. It was hard on my wife. But, you know, when I set these priorities, beginning of the year, it was built around goals like, hey, I want to grow the podcast business. I want to grow my sponsorship business for. For that. And then, you know, I want to grow my personal business, and I want to do all these things, right? So I booked it out, and it's interesting how some. Some priorities can change. And I have struggled with the fact of, like, well, you set this as a goal, and now it's not a goal anymore, what's happening, right? And I'm actually speaking from stage here in Pittsburgh for LCR Media, Naylor Taliafera's group. And that's why some of the guys aren't on the call, because they're. They're here with me in Pittsburgh. But I want to share a couple things because I've been talking to these guys about this. So I. I've gone through my personal, professional, and financial goals for the year, right? And, you know, something really interesting happened that I. I don't feel like sharing publicly here, but something really interesting happened to me seven to ten days ago that completely changed my financial goal for the end of the year in a. In a really profound way. And I was like, wow, that goal doesn't really work for me anymore. I'm going to do something different now. And I haven't filled it in and made the change of it yet. You know, and as I sit here and look at this right now, one of the. One of the things that we did early in the year, I shared with you guys, I went to 10x360 with Cardone Ventures, and we really poured into the business side of things. And, you know, when I got home, I may or May or may or may not have already said this, but when I got home, my priorities suddenly shifted again because I had. I knew things now that I didn't know before then. You know, sometimes you just don't know what you don't know. And so when I came back, I had a different belief lid. I had a different ceiling. My mindset had changed a little bit, and it opened me up to reevaluate these goals. And, you know, one of the things that, that I'm understanding through visionary and, you know, like, you know, the visionary type skills, right? What am I looking for? Manifestation, like that kind of stuff. I do believe in manifestation. And so some of the things that I'm learning now is to. To help the manifestation process is to constantly be thinking about the goals. Most people will write down their goals like this. I mean, I have them with me in pa, right? I didn't leave them on my bed stand at home. They're with me all the time. So I could be looking at them all the time. Right. And so March is different for me now because I went somewhere in February to get better at who I am. And now, now I. Here I am traveling. I was in Las Vegas, and then I came home for a week, did the 4x4x48 challenge, and then straight out to San Antonio, Texas, which is amazing, by the way, spent St. Patrick's Day on the Riverwalk. It was really cool. But the reason I went to Texas was to develop some. Some of my priorities and some of my goals and help. Help motivate me in that area. But even that changed a little bit because of what I'd learned in February. And so what I want to talk about is your goals. In fact, we should be. We should be thinking about our goals all the time, right? That's why I have them with me in the morning and the night. We should be looking at them. And I want you guys to be able to feel like you can pivot on them because it's really crystal clear to me. My, My financial goal for the 2026, it. It's got to be different. There's no way it's going to stay that way right now. And I don't feel bad about that. I just feel like, hey, priorities changed. I have to change this goal. I'm going to pivot and. But it's still on trajectory to elevate and become better, you know, better, better. So I'm talking to a room full of guys, and they're the same way. They're not setting targets. They don't have goals. They don't know, you know, anything about their employees and what their employees want out of life. And mindsets all jacked up, which is priority. Like, priority should be mindset. One of the guys I was talking to today, I wasn't even speaking from stage, but I had to interrupt and go up on stage and talk about this because he basically said, hey, well, I, you know, money is not a real motivator for me. We don't need a whole lot to live right? That's what he said. That's his mindset. And I was like, whoa, I have a problem with this. I have a really big problem with this. And so when I went up, I said, you learned this in school. You were indoctrinated by your school. And he's like, I was homeschooled. I'm like, okay, perfect. When your mom went to school, she was indoctrinated by something or someone or grandma. And then she taught you this stuff. And as you grew up, you know, you, you were told, hey, we don't need that. We can't afford it. Money's not important to us, you know. And so, mindset wise, here he is. He just broke a million dollars for the first time in his business. And I told him, you, you can imagine what I said, mj, I'm sure you know. I said, welcome to purgatory.
- [08:42]
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I said, welcome to Purgatory. He was like, oh, God, like That's, that's not inspirational, right? That's, that's not helping. But I, I basically said, like, you know, you went through really hard work to get to the spot. Now it gets harder. Now you got to change who you are, because what got you to a million won't get you past three. And so one of those things, this is the same guy that had the mindset thing. He's like, money's not that really important. I said, well, you're going to lose employees. You're going to, you know, I told him, this is how much money you need to try and make per guy per day. He's like, I can never do that. That's like a mindset thing, bro. Like, your priorities are. You should set priorities to your mindset. Set priorities to your vision. Set priorities to your goals. And I've also talked a lot about core values this week. And while I've had core values for years and, you know, I talked to him about when Melody first started working for us, you know, six years ago, five years ago, how long? But she's like, let me check. Okay, bye. In how many months? MJ's been with us for a long time. And so. But she saw right from the get go the, that we had some core values. And I've hired and fired off those core values for 15, 20 years. But now my priorities have, My priorities have shifted now because now I know something that I didn't know before when I went to Cardone Ventures 10x360. And one of my core values now is alignment, because I really looked at their core values and went back to my core values that have been running for 15 plus years. And I realized that we can have all these core values and not be aligned. Like, I never aligned my company. I never aligned my team members, right? And so now for me, in my business, the way it's built out, I know I need alignment with people. Like, we need to still have all these great core values, but we also need to be aligned. And so some of the core values that I had in the past, they still are stacking in there because one of mine's character, like, I want characters important to me, but it wasn't specific enough. And so we need specificity to get what we want. So even though character's, I think a great, A great core value, character could maybe mean a little bit different to Austin than to Phillips, than to Tootle. You know, that. What is character to you, Phillips? You know, like, oh, I want to do. I want integrity. I want this but to grow our business and to help us achieve our personal, professional and financial goals. Like in Natalie Dawson's book Teamwork, we need more specificity. So like accountability is a characteristic that I really want. I want someone who we can hold accountable. Right. And disciplined is something, is a characteristic I want really out of someone, an inspiration, you know, I want someone to be inspirational. That is a characteristic that I'm looking for people I want to be inspired by my team and I going to work really hard to inspire my team. And so those become our core values. So there's another little pivot that I've done and the reason I made priorities to topic for the day is because I'm learning now as I get more gray that those core values are really, really important and they should be evaluated and make sure that they're aligning with what you're having. Right. So Tootle, if he's a one man operation, he should still have some, you should still have some, some core values up there. I think what I was thinking was in Texas, something happened. Oh, I'll tell you what happened in Texas. And I think Tootle will get a kick out of this. So now that I've reevaluated my core values, I've set my priorities, I've set up some personal, professional financial goals and I'm willing to like continue pushing and make pivots along the way like I did with the one year financial that I told you about. But there was a moment when I was at Sponsor Games, which was a really cool event by the way Phillips. I wish you could have been there. So I'm at Sponsor Games and there was a company that was there at Sponsor Games that was giving away a sponsorship, you know, a glamorous sponsorship. And we were there learning how to pitch those brands and we're learning what to say to the brands and how to research the brands and so we could get sponsors and for our podcast and our construction teams and for our wildlife restoration, you know, rehabilitation center. How can we get sponsors for that? I know like, I know better now how to do that and how to acquire those things because I was at that event. Here's where the priority shift happened. So, and this is a squirrel moment for me because so we're there and this company is called Lulu, not Lululemon, but Lulu. And they, they publish books for people like they like help you get it done. And what was really cool that I hadn't, I thought about this, but it was really a slap in the face is that, you know, the book I have. I have at least two books that are in the pocket. They're like 80% done. You know, we're stuck on legal, and we're stuck on photos and maybe some hand drawings or something like that. We're really just stuck right there in those spots. 80 to 90% done. And I was like, if I get the sponsorship, you know, and so I had to pitch them, and I almost didn't pitch them. You know, like, I almost had a chance to, you know, we had to go back to hotel, do the video, pitch it to them that night, and then they would see it the next day, and then we would. You know, someone would win as part of the game, and I wasn't going to pitch them. And then I. The reason is my priorities, because I had this squirrel moment, and here's where it gets interesting. And it's cool that MJ's on the phone because she's. She's helped me with the books. She's seen them. She knows what I'm, you know, she knows how much effort we've put into them. And as much as I'd love to see them finish it currently, I know it would be a squirrel moment because I would probably come home and go, like, hey, I got sponsorship from Lulu. We're going to do the book now. And my team is so amazing. They'd be like, okay, if that's what you want to do, you tell me. Well, let's go. Let's jump. How high? Let's go. But it is a distraction from the other personal, professional financial goals that I want to accomplish this year, right? And then their marketing part of their piece is they're like, hey, look, this is a tool. This is not a product. You're not going to buy this. You're not going to finish this book and sell it for $15 and, you know, make all this money and be rich. Right? It's. But. But if that is like a business card, that. That book is the new business card. That book is the new asset. It's the new tool that you. From when, you know, you. You know how often I'. Stage, I'm here in Pittsburgh right now doing it. But, you know, you had books there at the end to be like, oh, this guy's a legit. He's official. It gives credibility. All these things start to build up. And while I think that's an important factor, and it does align with one of my goals right here, if I really look at it, because one of the things I want to do is, you know, establish TWT as a serious community. Right. And that book would help to do that. So see the conundrum I'm in right now, so I need to really make sure. But what I did when I was there, luckily, this girl, she pitched them and she was amazing. She did the most amazing pitch. I learned so much from her, and I was like, wow, that was amazing. But I think right now, if I went home and just started working on that book, that would. That would be a little bit misaligned with the priorities I need to set in place to get where I need to be. And so I used my core values, I used my ppfs, and I used the little priorities I have along the way to really make a decision that night to be like, this is not the right move. And I think as entrepreneurs, we get caught in this mess where we're, you know, you see these squirrel moments, you see the opportunity, and we're just bouncing around and. But we don't have a roadmap of, you know, why are we doing what we're doing when we're doing it? Does that make sense? So it's like, I was like, I got. They're going to be on my podcast for sure. I think they're a great company. I'd like to use them at some point, but it's probably six months down the line. And I had this other moment where, you know, we were shooting video and we were shooting content for brands that were there. So we like, sure Mike's was there. Even though I'm an EV guy. Sure Mike's was there. And I've used that shure mic before. It's a very good mic. In fact, I ordered one for on the fly I could use on my phone. But we had this timeline to film content for them, which was very fun for me. It was cool, but, you know, it took me like an hour and 15 minutes. That was our timeline. An hour and 15 minutes. Shoot the content, create the content, upload the content, get it ready, you know, and I was like, how much would they pay me for this? You know, here I am trying to get sponsors, but my priorities were really clear. And this is why I want you guys to know, because 10x3 16, February, March is already locked in. I've already got sponsor games paid for, hotels are already paid, flights are already scheduled. And now I'm here, I'm going like, if I got five or six sponsors and I was working with them at this level, you know, I don't know that that that would tick the needle. Financial for My financial goal, I think it would distract me from the other parts of my financial goal. So by me having such strict priorities at the moment, it was a real shocker for me to go, like, I have to be careful because I don't want to establish. Even though, you know, some of that money would be cool, it's not enough money to have that umbrella big enough for all my team to make their dreams come true as well. So it was. It was a real twist for me. So I'll give you an example. The. The video that we shot was 59 seconds. It took us an hour and 15. It wasn't even done. It was, like, almost good. I just sent it because we were out of time. And while it turned out fun and everyone laughed and it was a. I think. I think it was done really well and fun, it wasn't perfect yet. So I would have had to spend more time with that. Then I would have had to post it, then I would have had to, you know, make sure they approved it. And then I'd put it up, and then I'd have to respond to all the comments on it. And then now I'd be, you know, online, trying to, like, do all this stuff for, what, $5,000 or, you know, you know what I mean? Like, I know because of my priorities and my goals and my core values, I have to be real careful not to get caught in that trap. So we can use these core values and goals as our North Star, as long as they're not sitting in one of your drawers inside your house, or as long as they're not, you know, sitting by the bed stand when you're. You're not. You're out of town. You know, you have to really align yourself with these in order to make the right decisions along the way. So that's what I wanted to throw out there to everybody. I want to see if it gives you any insight on what you have. And things can change. Like, Austin had some priorities this weekend. Now he's hurt. So. And Phillips has gone through some stuff, and he's had priorities, and now he's had to completely pivot because, you know, hopefully Austin's going to rebound faster than Phillips. But, I mean, this is. This is what we're up against. So I'm going to leave it open to you guys. What do you guys want to talk about?
- [21:23]
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Phillips
Priorities I guess for me I've been trying to really priority stack lately so I can try and get as much done with what's set to do next. Being kind of stuck in my own mind I guess I've been trying to, to figure out how to be most productive and I just hit me real hard when you said like yeah, if you go do this video and this stuff is that really align with your values and culture that you built and, and want to build your future on. So I guess just for me my brain has been clicking a lot in crowds of future pacing. What standards do we need to hold to they'll make sure we get the right sponsors, that we get the right next connections. Yes, that's definitely what's been popping through listening today.
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Eric Triplett
So listen Phillips, this is, this is interesting because the real factor for me in shooting that video is like they're not going to pay me enough money to hit the target. So my professional goal for this year is to make 250,000 revenue per employee times 12 employees at 3 million. That's my target. Right. And my target set way beyond that. But in 12 months this is where I need to be and I know that, that, that the 250 RPE is the way to do this. And so I'm just, we're pressuring, you know, everything that MJ and I are sending out in bids, like we're pressuring to get hit that number, right? And I just know that, you know, If I'm getting 12 people a day shooting out there to make $1,250 a day, then I'm not going to make that happen when I'm shooting this video for someone so I can make, you know, $3,500. I know that all that time and energy that it's going to take for me to make the $3,500, if I put all that time and energy into this, you know, into my CRM, that's got $250,000 worth of bids waiting to happen. If I put the same amount of time it took me to do that video into that CRM, then I would convert some of that 250,000, and it would be, well, far and beyond the $3,500 I would make for that. So by setting the targets, I know my target, daily target is so critical. I know that that would take me from that daily target, and so, boom, pivot to where I need to be, Priority shift to there.
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Phillips
That was a deep knowing your numbers and really staying with your finger on the pulse. So, you know, that's a huge difference to think of it that way, too. And I think that's also what Tracy and I have been talking about, is that it's like, yeah, social media is important to do, but it's always 10 times more valuable to talk to the actual clients, get them on the phone, and create the conversation.
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Eric Triplett
Here's the thing. Here the thing, Phillips. When I was at that event. This is crazy, because I'm at the event and. And everyone, almost everyone there, wanted to just quit their job and be a content creator and make, you know, 150,000, 200,000 a year just because they shoot video for Lulu or they shoot video for, you know, whatever. I mean, they were trying to pitch. Indeed, they're trying to pitch. All these other companies are dream brands to work with, but these people don't. They're not trying to run a $12 million construction company. They're just, I just want to shoot video. I want to. Like, the one guy was a chef, and he just shoots video in his kitchen, and he's going to make six figures this year.
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Chris
Lost your sound?
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Eric Triplett
I can still hear him. You can still hear me?
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Phillips
Yeah.
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Eric Triplett
Okay, so he's. He's gonna make six figures this year so he can quit his job. And he's so excited. You Know what I mean? Like a, I can't shoot video all day, you know, in a, in a studio on something and make six figures. I just, it's not enough. I'm trying to figure out how to pay all my employees six figures, let alone, you know, make it for me. You know what I mean? I try to get 12 people six figures. That's what I'm trying to do. And it's not going to happen from me shooting video by myself in a room. So I. Here I am, you know, a businessman. These people are content creators. It's very different dynamic. And that was a shocker for me. I was like, I'm in a different room right now. I still loved it, but it was, I was in a different room.
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Phillips
Definitely different dynamics, for sure. Just being cool with that 150k when that's just what you want one of your employees to have part of. So, yeah, that is a big difference. Oh, my gosh.
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Chris
Triplet.
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Eric Triplett
Yeah.
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Chris
When you were working, talking with Lulu, did they talk about the compounding effect of the books? No.
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Eric Triplett
I mean, that's something we'll probably catch on the, on the podcast. But I'd love to hear your thoughts
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Chris
because I just wonder. I know that YouTube has been incredibly successful in building your brand. Right. I wonder if the books, I wonder how they stack up in just as an example. Right. I know that the timing may not be right for the books, but I'm just wondering what the long game is on them because they do build credibility. And I mean, I'm just, I would be just curious if, if there was any. I'm sure there's data on it. I was just curious if that's something that Lulu would have data on.
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Eric Triplett
They didn't present it to me yet, but I'm sure. So. But here's something very interesting. Okay. How much do you think it take cost a book to make? Maybe ten dollars. Let's say it's ten dollars. Just this. Don't take a wild guess. It's a ten dollar book. So I found out about Justin Moore. I ordered his books. $10, it's $15 or $18, right. I ordered it online, it lands on my doorstep, I start to read it. Then my buddy Naylor sends me one of his books. He's like, bro, I sent you the book. I'm like, oh, cool, thank you. And I didn't go like, I already got one. I just like, dude, thank you, I appreciate that. I take that book, I put it in the mail, sent it to Texas to someone that I Know that could use the book, right? And then I spend a thousand dollars to be in his competition to his sponsor games. So I fly out and of course he pitches me. I gave him another thousand dollar deposit for some coaching that I can't afford quite yet. But I got a deposit into there because I got too many other things going on right now. But when I landed there, this is sitting on the desk, right? This is sitting in my spot where I was sitting down, okay? And then my brother's like, I got one for my brother. I got another one in Texas I sent to someone else. I already bought a bunch of these. I got several of them given into me. Now I have two more. I still have mine at home sitting in my studio. If I was in my studio, it'd be right there. So now I have these two books and I'm going to give them to someone else, right? And I'm going to go like, you should probably look into this, follow him on Instagram. And so it's, that's, that's the compounding effect that you're talking about is certainly there. But here's the thing. One of the coaches in the group, he has like subcontractor coaches. His business is not big enough to where he's just paying all of his, his people and they just are doing sponsor games and coaching. He has a coach that does other things. I said, I had lunch, I had dinner with him on the, on the Riverwalk. And it was interesting because I said I had, these are all my assets. I got two books almost ready. I got this or that. He's like, well, how can we help you with sponsor games? I'm like, I don't even care about your sponsors games right now, dude. I don't, I don't want to, I don't want to try and make a hundred thousand just like what I told you. I don't want to try and make a hundred grand with someone. If I could just mention them on the podcast and call their name out and you know, shoot a little bit of content, that would be cool. But I don't want to, I don't want setting up a studio and like spending all this time to make 3, $500. I'm trying to run a, you know, $12 million business. And our whole conversation changed everything. He's like, tell me about your business. And I was like, okay, this is when I found out he's a different style coach, right? And he was very interesting to me. He helped me see some priorities that I hadn't Seen yet. Remember how I said you don't know what you don't know. So he's like, tell me about your business. He's looking at my Instagram. He's like, what's going on here? I don't see how to get to the, I don't see how to go from your sponsorship stuff to the podcast. What are you trying to do on the podcast? What's this jobber button? I mean, like, that's how people spend money with me if they want the work. And like, he's just like asking me all this stuff. He's like, what's the data here, what's the data there? I'm like, I have no idea. You know, I'm not sure how to do that. What CRM are you using? So he's like doing all this stuff. So he gave me this like cool little free one hour audit, like while we were sitting there having dinner. And he exposed a lot of things that, I don't know, I just didn't know what I don't know, right? And so when I showed him all my assets, he's like, wow. I mean, you got the book, you got the podcast, you got the Instagram, the YouTube. You got like, you have all the stuff you need. You just need to get it to where it's clicking for you. He's like, and you're doing webinars. I'm like, yeah. And he's like, we gotta, we gotta automate that webinar so where people don't have to see it at 4 o' clock on Thursday. They should be able to watch it at one in the morning when they get off work and they're at the airport waiting. They should be able to do it whenever. So he, he like sees all the, he sees the whole mapping of it all. And so, you know, now I got to get to a point where I can do that because I'm not learning that from Cardone Ventures. You know, it's like it's not all in one spot. You know what I mean? I, I'm working with Cardone Ventures, I'm working with LCR Media, I'm working with the sponsor, Magnet, and now I want to work with Doc Williams and I want to, you know, everything that I touch, I just have to get the ROI and build and build and build. And so that's the compound effect of that book. I guess I went the long way around it. But yeah, here's two more. Who wants one?
- [33:15]
Are you a contractor looking for growth training and to level up your Contracting business. If so, join the TWT Contractor Circle. It's our free Facebook group where like
- [33:26]
minded professionals go to share insights of success, strategies for growth and a place to find some accountability.
- [33:33]
In fact, we have a powerful accountability call every Friday with a live Q
- [33:38]
and A session at the end.
- [33:39]
And whether you're seeking advice, collaboration or just a supportive community, this is a
- [33:44]
place for you request to join today
- [33:47]
and start building a valuable connection with me as well as our amazing network of contractors. Tango Whiskey Tango. That's TWT Contractor Circle on Facebook.
- [33:57]
I'll see you on the inside.
- [33:59]
Now back to the show.
- [34:01]
Hey. Hey.
- [34:02]
Listen, quick reality check. Your calendar does not lie. So if your results aren't where you want them to be, do not change your goals, change your priorities.
- [34:14]
Did you get through that book yet, Chris?
- [34:16]
Phillips
It has been with me everywhere I go on job sites trying to make sure that I catch up and read what I can and definitely been digging into this thing. So it's been in the work truck with me everywhere. I unfortunately I'm a slow reader apparently because normal people might have finished it by now, but I'm still working on that bad boy.
- [34:39]
Eric Triplett
Okay, well, Austin wants to read one. He's like, I'll do it.
- [34:43]
Phillips
Get it.
- [34:44]
Eric Triplett
Because he wants to grow like a side aquatic business is part of his personal professional goals. He wants to do reef tank like cultivations and stuff like that. There's a very real possibility that he can get some sponsorships from different, you know, PNW customs and things of that nature. And then Anna just popped on. I sent her one of those books as well because she has her community. So can you imagine this 10 book that I, I paid 15 for it. He made $5 profit and then he gave me three more. I've already sent them to people that they're going to spend money with him at some time someday. And that's the really cool part. I got to witness the asset aspect of what that book means. I got one. Dude, it's even autographed. Bro, I got it autographed. Let's go.
- [35:36]
Chris
I guess the point of my question, triplet, was is it worth holding off on your book or is it going to be long game? Is it going to make more sense to get that thing out?
- [35:49]
Eric Triplett
It's a great question and I'm glad you've challenged me on that. I think what has to happen first is if we align the assets the way they're supposed to go and we automate a couple of things that would take work off of Melody's plate and off of my plate. Then, then things are happening. I'm not losing things to the cracks. We're growing the coaching company at the same time we're growing the contractor company. And then, then that would be the time where I could dive into the book.
- [36:20]
Chris
Got it.
- [36:20]
Eric Triplett
Yeah.
- [36:21]
Chris
You gotta tighten everything up first and that'll make room for that.
- [36:25]
Eric Triplett
Yeah. Because if I get this book opened up and I start to open the floodgates and everything's coming in and we can't capture it, it's like a. Then the book's a total waste. Absolutely.
- [36:34]
Chris
I understand. You're adding another component without organizing all the ones that are already in place. That makes sense.
- [36:41]
Eric Triplett
Yeah. Yeah. So I mean, hopefully I can do that in say six months. Hopefully that'll be the case. But there's, there's just a lot of work to do and include the, the contractor sales secrets book will go first and then the second one will be undergravel section. Undergravel section Grid secrets. And that, that would help my, that would help my pond business grow. Right.
- [37:06]
Chris
So yeah, that looks like a whole business in itself to me. But that's just me.
- [37:13]
Eric Triplett
Yeah. Well, you know, a part of this is, is getting with these with the PPFs and me working with the team and having interview processes better. Like I've already talked to you guys about my interview processes are better. Will hire the right people on the team to make stuff happen so they'll relieve me of. Of stuff and we can focus on that. Because even right now, if I had this book done, I'd have to pull Melody away to do on a marketing campaign so we could really market it and then she would be pulling away from the other aspects that she's helping us organize and create in the SOPs and the job descriptions and the hiring. Like she'd have to take energy away from that and then the floodgates open and we're all just like falling off of a 10 foot wave in Ocean, you know, in Dana Point. And I've done that. It's not pretty, bro. I don't want to do that again.
- [38:03]
Contractors, if you're sick and tired of not making enough money, you might suck
- [38:08]
at sales and you don't even know it.
- [38:09]
Or worse, you suck at sales and you actually think you're good.
- [38:14]
Before you get upset with me, I
- [38:16]
sucked at sales too. And for a long time, here's the difference. I pulled my head out of the sand and I forced the change. That's why I know what you're up against and how you too can turn
- [38:27]
things around for you and your family. I'm not going to sugarcoat it.
- [38:31]
I got really uncomfortable. I trained hard. I studied books and podcasts, videos, courses,
- [38:38]
role playing, and I took guidance from
- [38:40]
mentors and coaches while spending thousands of dollars.
- [38:43]
Dollars.
- [38:43]
But trust me, it was all worth it.
- [38:45]
I mean, I turned my struggling company
- [38:47]
into a profitable seven figure construction business. I put together a list of the critical sales techniques that I use to flip my business from surviving to thriving.
- [38:58]
And I call it my contractor sales secrets. I want to share the list with
- [39:01]
you with no, no expense. Just to get you moving in the right direction. It's my way of contributing and giving back to my community. Community and the construction industry that I
- [39:10]
know and I love.
- [39:11]
The list is available to you@contractorsalesecrets.com I promise you, with these sales secrets, some
- [39:18]
grit and discipline, I know you can
- [39:21]
dramatically change your life.
- [39:23]
So stop what you're doing right now
- [39:24]
and go to contractorsalesecrets.com that's contractorsalesecrets.com.
- [39:34]
melody, if you're still there, I'm curious how you feel about that. Are you, like, relieved? Like, oh, God, thank God he's not coming home to do the book. We got too much to do already. I got to stay focused. Yeah. I am relieved that we're not going to go hard on the book. Yeah. Because we're going hard on so many other things right now. So. Yeah. And those things that we're going hard on right now will fix the pipeline and then we can move and pivot and go hard on something else. I think, I think it's mandatory to grow TWT and to grow our construct. I mean, if I use this book as a. The pond one, the under, under gravel. No one's, no one's released the information. Like I will release it. Right. No one's done that. And that book and it just becomes a funnel. Yeah, funnel. It's an asset. Business asset. And my wife would be really busy with that, with that funnel. Right. I think that one's hung up on photographs. And my wife's really specific, like, you gotta get all these photographs. I'm like, yeah, she has most of it because she sent me, like, what she has. So.
- [40:47]
Chris
Yeah, I can see that as a. It's a very visual process.
- [40:52]
Eric Triplett
Yeah, there's.
- [40:53]
Chris
There's a lot of technical, too. I got a lot of stuff from Nate years ago
- [40:59]
Eric Triplett
on the suction group part.
- [41:01]
Chris
Yeah.
- [41:03]
Eric Triplett
Yeah.
- [41:04]
Chris
I'm more excited. I'm excited about the book.
- [41:06]
Eric Triplett
It won't Be delivered like I delivered. Won't be delivered as such, as I will deliver it. That's what. I know this for a fact. I have great stories and early photo, you know, early photographic documentation of the process of where I learned it and how and like, all that stuff. My only sad part is my mentor who helped me with this passed away since. And that's probably my. A big regret for me.
- [41:33]
Chris
I don't remember his name. He was the Whitewater guy, correct?
- [41:35]
Eric Triplett
Yeah, Mike White. Our health is important, people.
- [41:40]
Chris
Some good podcasts with him.
- [41:44]
Eric Triplett
All right, well, let's close it out, people. I'm still in Pittsburgh. I got. I got a whole room full of contractors that are waiting for me, and they're probably eating lunch right now because, you know, on the Beast coast today.
- [41:55]
Phillips
Good luck on that on stage thing. Wish I could see it. Dude. Gonna crush it.
- [41:59]
Eric Triplett
Thank you so much. I. I was. I. I've already been on stage twice. I got one more. One more stage. A walk up today, but I'm totally rogue today. I have no. Like. Like I am right now. I'm just. I was rogue. I had no. We just did triage. Like, what's your problem? What's your problem? What's your problem? What's your problem? And then I just ripped, you know, for an hour or two different occasions. And we've had some dark conversations in the room with these guys. It's a. It's a smaller inner circle type thing, so it's been good. It's been real good. I'm ro. Are you recording it? He's recording it, but it's part of his inner circle thing, so I don't know. I don't know if he'll give me access to. Yeah, but the. The first one I did was pretty fun, and I went pretty deep on these. On the stuff that Natalie Dawson taught us and told them about the book Teamwork, so. All right, guys, I'm gonna go. I really appreciate everyone. I'll see you.
- [42:58]
Attention all pond professionals. Are you looking to elevate your business, connect with industry leaders and stay ahead of the curve? The Pond Professionals alliance is your gateway to a thriving community dedicated to excellence in the pond and water feature industry. The PPA offers exclusive networking and training events designed to help contractors like you level up your business with a heavy focus on community education and support, ensuring you have the resources needed to succeed with your water feature business. If you're a pond professional, get active in the PPA's vibrant Facebook group, where hundreds of water feature specialists share insights, advice and opportunities to help your business. Don't miss out on the chance to be a part of a community that values integrity, innovation, and collaboration. Visit pond professionalsalliance.org today to learn more and become a member the Pond Professionals alliance, where community meets opportunity.
- [44:02]
Come on now.
- [44:02]
I told you I was gonna get
- [44:04]
vulnerable on that one. And if that one didn't exactly land for you might wanna run it back and have another listen. Maybe you got distracted when the parts that really are the call out parts hit you. So run it back if you don't feel like it really made a difference. Cause I think that it can if you. If you find a way in. So, look, this isn't complicated, but it's not easy either. You don't build a great business by being busy. You build it by being incredibly intentional about what actually matters and what moves the needle. Your priorities are either building your future or they're slowly stealing it from you. Let that one hit you. Okay, so I want to leave you with a question. What are the three things you're going to protect this week?
- [44:48]
Not talk about, not think about. Not wish you did. Not write it down and ignore it.
- [44:53]
But what will you protect? This. This week.
- [44:55]
Okay.
- [44:56]
Because your future isn't built by what you say you want. It's built by what you defend with your time and your energy and your attention and what's in your calendar.
- [45:07]
Okay?
- [45:08]
So I hope this thing hit. And if it did hit, please share it with someone on your team. Another contractor, someone that you love, someone who needs to hear it.
- [45:17]
Okay?
- [45:18]
And if you're ready to go deeper, join us on a live compass call. We do it every Friday inside the TWT contractor circle over on Facebook. You can find the the link in the show notes and you can join us. We're doing this every single Friday.
- [45:32]
Okay, that's it for today.
- [45:34]
Until next time. Stay focused, stay disciplined, and keep digging deeper. I'll see you on the next.
- [45:46]
Sam.