166 | Choose Your Hard: What Buying a Broken Restaurant Taught Me About Building a Business

You can choose two hard things in business the pain of pushing through or the regret of backing off. Now, whether you run a plumbing company, an HVAC shop, an electrical crew, or even a garage door business, you already know exactly what I'm talking about. That permit that doesn't come in, the part that doesn't show up on time, the tech who doesn't answer a phone on the morning of a big install. This past six weeks, I chose the pain, and I want to tell you where it came from.

Because I think it's gonna sound familiar.

Welcome back to the Freedom Blueprint Podcast, the podcast for home service business leaders. If you run a plumbing H E S C if you run a plumbing HVAC electrical or garage door business, you're in the right place. Today we're talking about the two hard things every owner has to choose between. And the six weeks and the six weeks that just taught me that lesson the hard way.

Now, if you're listening on audio right now, I'm not in my usual studio today. I'm standing inside our brand new business that we bought on opening day. Because

I'm standing inside our brand new restaurant on opening day before we unlock the doors. And if you wanna and if you wanna see the place, the whole thing, come find this episode on YouTube because I'm gonna do a walkthrough on it.

Because I'm gonna do a walkthrough a around the whole because I'm gonna do a walkthrough in the restaurant.

So let me take you back. January first of this year, we bought a restaurant. Now we've owned a lot of businesses over the years. So this wasn't so this isn't our first rodeo. So this isn't our first rodeo. But this one

But that one, it went pretty smooth. Not not easy. We had our challenges, but we inherited something you can't manufacture. A full staff of good people. And look, if you're listening to this show, you know what I preach. Your people are your biggest assets. Systems don't run systems don't run your business. People run your systems. So this wasn't me learning that. So this wasn't me learning that.

This was me getting to practice what I preach.

So a few months later after so a few months later, another one comes across our plate. But this one was different. This one was struggling, it was this one was struggling. It was and we looked at it and we made the choice on purpose, eyes wide open. We were gonna buy it and gut it and rebuild it exactly the way we wanted it. And that's when the punches started coming. The remodel drags on.

Then almost every piece of equipment breaks down.

Then almost every piece of equipment breaks down and has to be replaced one after another. And we're understaffed. So now we're hiring and training brand new people while the walls are still coming apart. Speed bump after speed bump after speed bump. And somewhere in there, on about probably speed hump number on about speed bump number, I don't know, ten thousand, I stood in that building. I stood in this building.

running on no sleep, fifteen to eighteen hour days, and I thought to myself, what in the world am I doing?

And then it hit me. Business is hard. Business is a hundred moving targets. Business is never, ever done. But damn, it's fun.

So why? Why choose the hard one on purpose? Why the sleepless nights and the busted equipment and the speed bumps? And honestly, you might be think and honestly, you might be thinking something else too. You've been in the home service business for twenty five plus years. Why in the world are you buying a pizza restaurant?

fair question. And here's the answer. It's not about the pizza. The business isn't this business isn't really about me at all. This business really isn't about me at all. It's about my kids. My daughter Addison. My daughter Addison is working in it full time right now. And my son Zach and his wife Sabrina, when they get back to town in the middle of next year after not being in the when they get back to the middle of next year.

They're going to be running it too. So this is theirs. This is the thing they get to grow. The industry was never the point. The people, the people I'm building it for. That's the point. And I'm not talking about, and I'm not about to hand my kids a mess and call it a gift. I'm going to hand them something dialed in, systems built, running right. I'm not handing them a turd. I'm handing them gold.

And they get to polish it and grow it into whatever they want it to be.

So let's talk about what this actually costs. Because I don't

Because I don't want you to hear this is because I don't want you to hear this and think it was some clean success story. Here's the truth. When you buy something broken and you choose to rebuild it, you're paying two taxes. You're paying two taxes at the same time. You're building the systems and you're building the team all at once with no cushion underneath you. And the team part is the hardest part. Because I could rebuild a kitchen.

I can replace a piece of equipment, but you can't microwave good people. Understaffed means every single day you're hiring, training, and covering the gaps yourself. That's the real cost. Not the money. The money you can plan for. It's the time, the sleep, and the sheer will it takes to hold it together while it's still coming together. And the sheer will it takes to hold it together.

while it's still coming together.

So why do we get ourselves into this? Why does every owner do it? I think there's three reasons. Number one, we fall in love with the finish line and forget the middle is going to hurt. It's no different than working out. Number two, we think we can shortcut the people part that we can rush it. That we can rush it or skip it and we can't. And number three, when it gets hard, we forget our why.

We get so buried in the speed bumps that we lose sight of what we're actually doing this for.

So here's what actually gets you through it. Move number one, choose your hard on purpose. Every path is hard. So stop looking for the easy one. It doesn't exist. Pick the hard that points at something that matters. Pick the hard that points at something that matters. Pick the hard that points at something that matters and own it. Eyes wide open. Pay attention. Move number two protect the people.

Protect the people part above everything else. Hire slow enough to get it right, but never stop hiring. And train like your business depends on it because it does. Your people run your systems. Move number three, when you hit speed bump number ten thousand, go back to your why. Not the finish line, but the why. The faces, the reason, the reason you started. That's the fuel that gets you.

to open the doors. That's the fuel that gets you to open the doors.

So here's the double win. When you push through the hard

When you push through the hard, you don't just get a business that runs, you get a team that knows exactly you get a team that knows they were built to last. And you get to hand the people you love something real. Remember what I said I was afraid of? Handing my kids a turd. Today those doors open and I know I'm building them gold. So here's so here's my challenge to you.

Whatever hard thing you've been circling, the one that keeps the one you keep backing away from, choose it today. Not tomorrow, but today. Take one step at it, take one step at it before you go to bed tonight.

So that's it. Business is hard. Business is a hundred moving targets. Business is never ever done. But damn, it's fun. And today, those doors open for the very first time. So this for me, so this for me today, not tomorrow, today. So do this for me today. Pick the one hard thing you've been avoiding and take a single step at it.

before your head hits the pillow tonight. If this hits home, share it with somebody who needs to hear it and subscribe so you don't miss what's coming next. If you want to see this restaurant, come find this one on YouTube and I'll show you a walk.

Come find this one on YouTube and I'll show you around. Come find this on YouTube and I'll show you around. Until next time, keep choosing your heart and always keep crushing it.