Mark Wille talks the importance of sharing information and burnout

Mark Wille talks Building Science and talking face to face with clients: Mark Wille is a passive house advocate and contractor. He's been involved in the residential building science scene for years, had a hand in starting the #BS Fridays podcast, and help developed the T-Stud. The conversation drops right into talking to clients about energy efficient homes and the importance of putting in that time face to face when explaining project costs. While he likes to focus on envelope and mechanical, he really just wants the client to pick paint color and sheen. Mike recently completed a Six Star Energy rated home build and the boys meander into the relaxing of national standards for air barrier. Both men agree that we need to do better than the standard. Way better because, it's our legacy. At this point, they get of the path of running a contracting business and get into wall science. by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

47 min listen

Gena Hoyt of Big Dog Construction talks labor shortage and solutions: Today Mike Gena Hoyt, co-owner and co-founder of Big Dog Construction discuss the labor force shortage and what could help to change public perception of the trades and tradespeople to bring more young people to the table. Listen in to hear us talk about the US vs Canada, the good, the bad and the ugly. Gena also talks about being Aron Jones boss, their partnership, and what its like to be a contractor in Grand Manan, NB. by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

59 min listen

What this show is all about: In this first show, Mike will tell you all about his idea and where he plans to take the program. He talks about the schedule and who his first guests will be. by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

9 min listen

Season 1 Finale: 16 Takeaways from 17 Guests: Today Mike reviews what he has distilled as the 16 most important take home messages from his 17 interviews with contractors, consultants, accountants, and authors of the construction industry. He also highlights messages from the 20 topical episodes he produced based on his 16 years as a general contractor. by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

31 min listen

The Contracting Handbook teaser: Show host, Mike Knoche, briefly describes The Contracting Handbook Podcast by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

1 min listen

Casey Finan talks blazing his own path, overcoming sickness: Casey Finan of Finan Craftsmanship is a restoration artist but he would never claim to be a contractor. On ADD…when he first heard of it he essentially looked down on it, like many, like it was an excuse. He now sees building as therapy because it engages all of his senses. Casey says he was a “C” student. School did stimulate him but he was reluctant to pursue trades because of the stigma…in high school the burnouts pursued trades (this was my experience as well). Then he carves his own path in to rehabbing old houses and started an apprenticeship program to pass the torch. In the second installment, Casey “Not a Contractor” Finan tells us how he created a job for himself. Why he can’t be a traditional contractor and why he charges his mom full rate! Value: Integrity- life family, friends, subs, inspectors, and no yelling, why do we accept yelling? Greatest mentor When I ask this question, Caseys reply dives into the by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

63 min listen

You can't know everything: In this episode Mike talks about why you need to do your homework when you take on work that you are unfamiliar with, why not knowing everything can be a strength, why it should never be an excuse, and that you should take on challenging projects! by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

6 min listen

McClain Construction Group: The Contracting Handbook Master Class(Part 2): Drew McClain brings much experience to The Contracting Handbook this week. Coming up through the trades as an electrician and moved on to project supervision after the 2008 housing crash. He has built a long resume of incredible builds with the vision of one day opening McClain Construction Group and building a legacy of his own. I’ve been watching progress on a 30,000 sq foot “French Mansion on the Beach” that Drew is supervising and it’s a beast! There is so much going on you need to go to his handle on Hammr to see it. While Drew wraps up that project, the day has come, McClain Construction Group is a reality. The conversation that unfolds in these next two episodes are, in a sense, what I imagined The Contracting Handbook to be at the outset. It’s a driving conversation between this incredibly knowledgeable and experienced home build supervisor and myself. Asked him to maybe have a few questions for me and by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

53 min listen

Ella Star talks her start up "Plumberella": This week, we meet up with Ella Star, owner and operator of “Plumberella”. She opened the doors of her plumbing business on March 7, yeah, that’s right, two weeks ago. She and I get into what it takes to run a business but, more importantly, living the life she wants to by moving to a place that she enjoys, leaving the company she worked for, and taking the leap of faith to be her own boss. It sounds like she has surrounded herself with a good community of builders and, from where I am sitting, it would appear she’s going straight to the top. by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

60 min listen

Ryan Smith: Are Skilled Trades Endangered?: If that quote doesn’t have your attention maybe the second picture will. It doesn’t matter which trade your in, Ryan Smith has an urgent message. That’s to teach. His passion for his craft, hand cut roofs, is only matched by that of his desire to, well, keep craft alive. It’s not just carpenters, it’s plumbers, electricians, mechanics. The world is growing and the work force is shrinking. I know, “gloom and doom”. Ok, then listen to him weave the tail of how he became an industry leader (I proclaimed that, he’s humbler). Listen to him talk his mastery. It ties right back into him teaching at MT Copeland, an organization aimed at having educational programs for all trades. After we said our goodbyes, the conversation carried on for another 15-20 minutes. We ended up talking mental health and we both want to remind you, it’s ok to not be ok. It’s totally normal. Can you guess what Ryan’s favorite jobsite jams are withou by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

75 min listen

Mike Morley of MGM Construction Bahamas: Mike Morley, owner and operator of MGM Construction and Maintenance, is all about growing his business “in due time”. He’s clearly among the best in Nassau and proudly shares his knowledge with the public with construction technique classes. He’s 31, been on his own for 4 years but started with Mike Sr., his dad, at M&M Construction when he was 12. Mike considers himself a brother to his team and wants communications to be good. Material price fluctuations are even worse where Mike is operating. The added work of updating quotes after time has passed is eating away at time. Mikes advice? Be punctual, good manners, respect, know your trade and you’ll get far! by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

40 min listen

Casey Finan talks ADD and trade denigration: Casey Finan of Finan Craftsmanship is a restoration artist but he would never claim to be a contractor. On ADD…when he first heard of it he essentially looked down on it, like many, like it was an excuse. He now sees building as therapy because it engages all of his senses. Casey says he was a “C” student. School did stimulate him but he was reluctant to pursue trades because of the stigma…in high school the burnouts pursued trades (this was my experience as well). Then he carves his own path in to rehabbing old houses and started an apprenticeship program to pass the torch. In the second installment, Casey “Not a Contractor” Finan tells us how he created a job for himself. Why he can’t be a traditional contractor and why he charges his mom full rate! Value: Integrity- life family, friends, subs, inspectors, and no yelling, why do we accept yelling? Greatest mentor When I ask this question, Caseys reply dives into the eternal questio by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

47 min listen

Michael Anschel and Mike Knoche talk Alaska and World Travels: These guys both spent time on the Yukon River and traveling the world. It's ten minutes of banter that will clearly pave the way for more calls in the future to share adventures. THIS IS A BONUS EPISODE! by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

22 min listen

TCH Update and Introduction Pre- Season 3: The Contracting Handbook host, Mike Knoche, introduces the pod to new listeners and updates the podcast for everyone! by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

4 min listen

Matt Blomquist and Mike Knoche discuss how to set up a home building shop class in your local schools: What did you make in your shopclass? My next guest Matt Blomquist and his students build high performance homes in his shop class. In my talk with Matt, we talk about the guts of a home building shop class and how to set one up where you live. Join us! That’s my guest today on the contracting handbook podcast, Matt Blomquist. He’s a shop class teacher that builds houses with his students. Today we are going to look at what it takes to start and operate a program like this. The idea is, lets get more schools involved and do whatever we can to get todays kids to be tomorrows builders. by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

89 min listen

Sean Francis: Apex Home Design rockets his remodeling biz: Mike asks Sean questions, Sean answers questions. It's a fun conversation about how Sean has achieved a stellar reputation for Apex Home Design. Find out the secrets to Sean's success here! Sean asks our next guest, "how do you find balance between being on all the time and actually having downtime". The eternal question for small business owners because we all know that at times, you don't own your business, it owns you. Note: the zoom call was a little iffy for the first couple minutes but we rolled with it and it clears up. by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

33 min listen

Brittany Farrow talks burnout, running a crew, and her generation!: In the second installment of interview with Brittany Farrow, Mike Knoche asks her to talk about burning out. The question comes up because the first time they attempted to talk on the phone, she was tired and stressed. She has a strategy but still burns the candle at both ends. Her biggest struggle running her business outside of sexism and discrimination...it's running the crew. Not being buddy-buddy, sensitivity, and, then, Mike shows his true colors about his frustration with employees. Having a partner has it's benefits! He does the books, payroll, and the office side so she can focus on the work. The Job Site Speed Round reveals what Brittany appreciates most. Then she runs through her vision for the future of her business. She's positive and a go getter by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

30 min listen

Brittany Farrow of @girls_can_frame talks mentoring, stereotypes, jobsite etiquette, and safety.: Up and coming framer Brittany Farrow, co-owner of BM Farrow Construction, talks business with Mike Knoche. She's a mentors women of all ages to get into the trades and runs a crew of women. Brittany lays out the realities for women in trades where she lives. From blatant harassment, disregard for bad behavior on jobsites, reactions from everyone when women show up to frame, the clients who love her, and how it all began for her. by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

23 min listen

Michael Anschel defines success, knowing he had what it takes, estimating, and surprise topics: In part 2 of the talk with Michael Anschel, Mike Knoche asks Michael to define success. The answer is unconventional. The pursuit of money draws a long dramatic pause from guest and host before Michael rescues the chat by talking about his other business of taking professionals on retreats to make them think hard about what they are doing with their lives. The deep questions don't end here. Michael explains how he decided that he was going to be capable of leading what is now a 15 person company. His story begins with and import export company of ancient instruments while living in China. Listen to this conversation if you want to know the difference between working in your business, on your business, and/or building a company you can let operate while you essentially retire. Michael lays it down "we are contractors, we do contracting, we are not in the trades". Mike reads OA Design Build by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

57 min listen

Season 2: Intro to the Interview Sessions: This is the introduction to Season 2 with a few highlights of the episodes recorded so far. Season 2 of the Contracting Handbook is all about conversations on what ties builders together, who are we what are we, client communication, innovation, inspiration and more. Episodes drop weekly on Monday at 5:30 EST by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

5 min listen

Walk on Plans with Founder Andrew Vanderwoerd: Founder, entrepreneur, and developer, Andrew Vanderwoerd joins Mike Knoche to talk about his new product, Walk on Plans. What is it? It's a full scale projection of architectural drawings on an area where clients and contractors can actually walk through the house they are going to build! We get into the product development, challenges with large format projections, and then how it works. The benefits to builders and clients? Inexpensive insurance that the dimensions of the new home fit the wants and needs of the client. We go in-depth into the potential for implementing 3D components and franchising this innovative new business by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

36 min listen

"Setting boundaries with clients" from my interview on "Remodelers on the Rise": I was invited to talk on my favorite podcast "Remodelers on the Rise". I've chopped up the audio to give you guys a little taste of my talk with Kyle Hunt where we talk about how I set boundaries with clients, what rules I have, how I implement said rules, and then we talk about my world travels a bit and how that influenced my by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

3 min listen

Eric Ruggiero- Biophilic Build: “As humans I think we appreciate things more when we know it was crafted by another human being...by someone who cares and takes pride in their work” Eric Ruggiero grew up in the trades but early on he knew he didn’t want to continue with the status quo of the construction industry. Our dm’s get pretty colorful! Eric is Passive House certified but his belief in healthy, efficient homes doesn’t just mean abiding by that standard. It’s personal. Never having attended college, he self-edifies and has a number certifications. He knows that building takes intelligence, experience and wisdom and sees no reason why contractors and tradespeople should not be seen as professional! Nobody questions the price of the architect, engineer or doctor but they love to try to bargain us down! Certifications earn respect. He quit the union and started his own business with no business experience. We hit on some of his struggles on the office side (eternal struggle for by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

78 min listen

Spencer Lewis of Insider Carpentry: Creating value and a business around his trade: “Your core focus should be how do I create value and then leverage that value” Spencer Lewis is a method man. Whether its his YouTube tutorials or creating a business around his trade, he always checks the boxes to complete the work. He knows how to run his construction company. He is an advocate for sharing trade techniques to ease others into the trades and follows the abundance mindset instead of the scarcity mindset. He started in the trades at 16 with an Amish building crew and continues on until starting his own business 5 years ago. He knows the 70 hour per week grind but does not advocate for it as a long-term objective. I’ll let him explain. by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

84 min listen

Robin Pierson 1st year apprentice Plumber & Pipefitter: Today, you get to meet my friend Robin Pierson, The Plumber Formerly Known As HVAC Warrior Woman, if you don’t already know her, prepare to be charmed and disarmed. Robin story starts in the garage helping her grandfather on cars, a tradition she carries on with her daughter. Like many before her, she had a career that she left behind to become a tradie. She is in her final year of apprenticeship and we hit upon a very cool and recent development in her career. Robin is a self proclaimed “a late bloomer” in terms of thinking about retirement. “Retirement?”, you say? Yeah, I didn’t think about it either for a time. Here’s a reminder. She has been the victim of hyper masculine abuse on the jobsite. I could but couldn’t believe what I was hearing. She’s also been told “why should I teach everything I know, then I won’t have ajob.” Robin plans on increasing the number of women in her union in the years ahead and she’s got great by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

64 min listen

Sasha Kassis- Nomadic Carpenter: Sasha Kassis calls it like she sees it. She works her tail off doing everything from forming to framing by hand in a remote area of British Columbia. Her partner is a mentor in the trades and best friend. She blows off the the stereotypes about women in trades by doing, learning, and being fearless. An advocate for women in construction, an advocate for everyone in construction. by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

55 min listen

Season 2 Guests so far...SHORT TEASER: The Contracting Handbook is back! Well, kinda. In this teaser, Mike Knoche says what's in store for the first six guests in the second season of The Contracting Handbook by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

2 min listen

Aron Jones of Big Dog Construction: Tradesmen to businessmen? Not so fast!: Aron talks about the development of Big Dog Construction. Aron, a self described teacher (checkout his instagram page @bigdogconstruction.gm), describes the various ways he has run construction companies from 16 employees to his current three. He and Mike agree, it took a lot of doing it wrong to get it right. There is so much to listen to here! by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

40 min listen

Aron Jones of Big Dog Construction out of Grand Manan, New Brunswick (Part 2): In the second half of the interview, Mike and Aron talk about the importance of relationships with trade partners, trusting your gut with clients, quality vs. number of employees, the cost of labor and warranties when things go sideways, and a lot more. This episode gets a bit more personal and less like an interview. These guys are going to be fast friends! by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

42 min listen

The contractor-foreman relationship: Framing foreman Marcus @broski_builds on Instagram: This episode is a candid conversation between a general contractor with a crew (Mike Knoche) and a foreman that runs a crew (Marcus Nagtegaal) but we have never met before recording. We talk about the contractor-foreman relationship, the pitfalls of ego in managing employees, the importance of recognizing employees individual skills and letting go of the reins because is just more productive. We also delve into social media and how it's brought he building community together. A must listen for anyone with a foreman that manages a crew, foreman, middle management in any industry, and anyone who wants to hear how we interact behind the scenes in a small construction company. by The Contracting Handbook: Builder & Trades Construction Podcast

50 min listen

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Mark Wille talks the importance of sharing information and burnout

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