In part two of a four-part series, “MDP Mindset”, Richard and Laura show why the people you hang out with could actually be sabotaging the success of your plumbing business and what you can do to avoid that pitfall.
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3 Golden Nuggets
- Family Ties. Your family will always have an opinion on your success. It’s important to overcome the reliance on their approval, and do what’s best for your business.
- Friend or Foe. You might notice that as you start your plumbing business, you have less in common with your friends. Surrounding yourself with like-minded people will go far in helping you achieve your goals.
- Great minds think alike. But so do dumb minds. Putting yourself in rooms that challenge and motivate you is vital to succeeding.
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Show Notes
Some people are eagles. What do eagles do? They soar. They have vision and see things differently. If you’ve gone off on your own and started a plumbing business, you are an eagle.
Family Ties
[10:56] We’ve established that you are an eagle. But that doesn’t mean you came from a line of eagles. Your mom, dad, or siblings don’t necessarily have the same vision and fortitude that you do. This can manifest itself in these relatives not quite understanding what you’re doing, or questioning your choices.
It’s not that they don’t believe in us or don’t think we can do it; they just want to protect us from getting hurt or failing. Unfortunately, having those questioning voices so close to you can rub off. It’s important to limit the time you spend with the naysayers, or at least limit the amount of impact they have on your mindset.
If your family member doesn’t have the same vision or goals as you, it’s going to be a tough to go work together too. We’ve seen brothers, fathers and sons, and everything in between. They can definitely succeed, but having the baggage of a whole life together can definitely impact the working relationship.
Taking over a family business and changing the way everything is done can be hard to stomach for the older generations. But it is key to your business’ success moving forward.
The Friends You Have Matter
[19:00] When you’re first starting off on your own and ready to hire plumbers, who do you think of first? The friends you worked with at your previous job seems like an obvious first hire. But hire-er beware! Going from friends and coworkers with an employee mindset to now having to run your business may cause friction with your newly hired friend.
Many of our old friends think that owning your own business means you have no worries and a ton of money. They may not understand the pressure of making ends meet, making payroll, or striving for that next step. Regardless of their background, education level, or your relationship with them, they just can’t relate anymore.
You’ve graduated to an entrepreneurial mindset and have in a way left those still in the “worker mentality” behind. You may realize, “Huh. I don’t belong in this circle any longer,” and that’s ok. It doesn’t mean you still can’t be friends, but it may be time to surround yourself professionally with more like-minded people.
Your Group Should Motivate You
“You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with”
– Jim Rohn
“If you’re the smartest person in the room, you’re in the wrong room”
[27:24] We like the friend groups we’re in. That’s why we’re in them. But if they’re not challenging us or motivating us, what purpose do they serve? In order to grow, you need to surround yourself with people who push you to be your best, learn more, and strive for greater.
Being the smartest in the room is fun. You know exactly where you stand and have control over the room. But this won’t help you grow. It can be intimidating to enter these rooms with smarter people and realize that there is more you have to learn, or even that there’s something you don’t know. Thoughts like ‘That’s new information’ or ‘I haven’t thought about that’ are indicators you’re in the right place.
You may be satisfied staying in the rooms where you know the most and where you have always been, but if you keep doing the same thing you won’t grow; so choose wisely.
Richard’s Call To Action
If you want to learn more about numbers that matter and how to best run your plumbing business, why not schedule a free 30-min strategy call with us? Let’s talk about your goals and where you want to be this time next year, and we’ll help you create a path to make that happen. Schedule your free strategy call here today!
