Dirt Talk Podcast

This week on Dirt Talk, Aaron and Alex talk about the challenges that come with leading a company from the road before making an announcement about a podcast series they'll be releasing. Then, they discuss a question about whether to start a career in the public or private sector. To connect with other people who listen to this show, use and search for the hashtag #betterdirtworld and join in on t...

Jimmy Starbuck is back on the podcast, but this time it's in person. Jimmy runs Starbuck Excavation out of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia and a few weeks ago, we heard the man himself would be stateside and we knew we had to have him back on the podcast. He had no shortage of opinions and strategies to share, and we had a ball getting to chat for an hour. We were also joined by Trevor and Missy Sc...

This week, Aaron and Alex discuss for a second the challenges of recording 4 podcasts in a day before they do a recap on Aaron's recent travel to North Dakota and Ohio. Then, they dig into a question about how lower-ranking crew members can make suggestions to leadership that are more likely to be well-received. To connect with other people who listen to this show, use and search for the hashtag #...

Early in life, Tyson Smith (of TJS Excavation) had lived a common Dirt World story: grew up obsessed with building things in the sandbox and started working in construction before he started high school. But unlike many who end up jumping right into the Dirt World, Tyson's path took a few turns. He went to college on an athletic scholarship and studied computers. He then proceeded to build a caree...

This week on Dirt Talk: Monday Edition, Aaron and Alex talk about making a podcast, Aaron's camera in Africa, and his recent travel to Saudi Arabia and UAE. Then, they dig into a question about why some brands of equipment get unnecessary shade (like LinkBelt!). To connect with other people who listen to this show, use and search for the hashtag #betterdirtworld and join in on the conversation. If...

Fan-favorite Kimo Clark is back on Dirt Talk. When we first chatted with Kimo, he was planning to sell his company Truth Excavation and semi-retire and move on to the next phase of life. But fast forward 2 years, and Kimo's journey has been admittedly winding. Though this conversation starts with Kimo and host Aaron Witt discussing doing 10 burpees every 10 minutes of the conversation, the guys ge...

In this week's episode of Dirt Talk: Monday edition, Aaron and Alex chat about getting negative comments online before Aaron launches into an impromptu book report on the old out-of-print book Foremen: Leader or Drivers? that was published 80 years ago. Aaron gets pretty passionate about the lessons he learned from the book and how we could all apply them to the Dirt World today. Afterward, the gu...

James Devinney is a college-educated PM/Estimator for Evans & Associates Construction Co. in Ponca City, OK... and will be the first to tell you that he doesn't know much. This week on Dirt Talk, host Aaron Witt chats with James about how James learns what his teammates need from him to be successful and how that helps him do his job better. They also dig into what estimators actually do (and don'...

This week's Monday edition of Dirt Talk catches Alex and Aaron discussing gas station food stops and Savannah, GA vs Charleston, SC before digging into questions about emissions requirements in California and some of Aaron's most memorable trips of 2021. To connect with other people who listen to this show, use and search for the hashtag #betterdirtworld and join in on the conversation. If you hav...

We've got a GREAT episode for you today: introducing Taylor White. He's the Director of and handles business development for Ken White Construction in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. He's a second-generation owner of the business and has big plans. We were lucky enough to have him on the pod to talk about his experience in the Dirt World. This week, Aaron and Taylor covered a multitude of topics but spen...

Welcome to the first episode of Dirt Talk of 2022! Thanks to the Dirt Talk community for being a part of this thing and for sharing the podcast. This week, Aaron and Alex talk about the need for equipment to have updated radios and sound systems. Then, they broach a sensitive topic responding to a listener's question regarding racism and discriminatory behavior in the Dirt World. To connect with o...

EPISODE 100! Holy cow. (Pun not intended) Thank you SO much to this dirt-loving community. We can't begin to fully convey how grateful we are to be a part of this with all of you, so we'll just simply say... thanks. This week on Dirt Tak, it's an old-school Q + A with Aaron Witt. He asked the Instagram audience for some questions to address for a podcast, and he was overwhelmed with 100s of solid...

We get a lot of questions about how to actually use social media in the Dirt World, so without further ado... [cue Alex clearing the floor for Aaron to go iso] This week on Dirt Talk, the guys take a moment to reflect on the past year's travel before diving into an actual gosh darn plan that folks in the Dirt World could use to start building their online presence via a website and social media ac...

On this Christmas(ish)-themed episode, Aaron and Alex look back on the past year. BuildWitt has doubled the size of the team, the structure of the company has shifted a few times, but the commitment to the Dirt World (and you) has only been strengthened. So the guys talked about what's happened in 2021 and some of the plans for 2022. The Dirt Talk crew wishes you all a great Christmas holiday week...

This week, Aaron and Alex discuss how the Dirt World can better treat and welcome new people to the industry. Later, they get into how it can be difficult to grow one part of a business to match the success of another and a basic example of the relationship between contractors and subs. To connect with other people who listen to this show, use and search for the hashtag #betterdirtworld and join i...

Anna Johnson is the founder and owner of AQUIP, "the first and only known independently female-owned vacuum truck and environmental products dealership in the United States." In the last few years, she's been burning up the interstates in the Southeast US, building her business from the ground up. Anna was kind enough to swing through Nashville and be a guest on Dirt Talk. In this week's episode,...

Alex and Aaron are gassed after last week's 3-day BuildWitt team meeting, but after a restful week, the fellas are back ready to roll. This week, the DT guys talk about their team meeting and the future direction of BuildWitt, and then talk about how our industry can start reaching students in effective ways, both large scale and small. To connect with other people who listen to this show, use and...

Denzil and Brandon McNeilus are brothers. They're also both executives in the Rochester area of Minnesota. AND they were a part of the family business that sold in the late 90s. Back then, the family business was manufacturing concrete mixers and trash trucks. Now, Brandon is the President of Ready Mix Concrete, and Denzil is the CEO at Sterling State Bank. Even with all those accomplishments, Den...

This week, Aaron and Alex talk about the importance of well-thought-out office space for companies in the Dirt World. Later, they address a few listener questions about how small companies can build good relationships with larger contractors and the question of joining the Dirt World without coming in on "the ground floor". To connect with other people who listen to this show, use and search for t...

Language Warning. The people have spoken, so we've done the impossible and brought Garret Wilson back on the Dirt Talk podcast. He's known for being an expert operator and expert buster of chops. In this episode, he didn't hold back! This week, Garret sat down with Aaron and Alex to discuss working for himself, being true to yourself, and the power of swearing. To connect with other people who lis...

This week on the Monday edition of Dirt Talk, hosts Aaron Witt and Alex Horton talk about the upcoming BuildWitt company meeting in Nashville and equipment training. They then chat about safely knocking over trees (note: they're not experts in this) and why it's important to represent your company/team/group all the time. To connect with other people who listen to this show, use and search for the...

There's often been comments and questions about the BuildWitt Internal Podcast, but since it's just for our team, it's always seemed a little strange and unnecessary to share it with the greater audience. But... after recording this one, Aaron and Alex looked at each other and immediately said, "we should put this episode on Dirt Talk, too". So without further ado, we're sharing the most recent ep...

This week on the Monday edition of Dirt Talk, Aaron and Alex chat about bird dogs and swearing, before discussing how dirt contractors can initially get their name out there and how companies can breed a culture where everyone is more invested in the mission, work, and the care of the equipment. To connect with other people who listen to this show, use and search for the hashtag #betterdirtworld a...

Dan MacArthur is the COO of Berg Construction, an excavation/site work contractor based in Morgantown, PA. They have five specialized divisions, and Dan has had his hand in all of them over the years: commercial, waste management, residential/special projects, paving/concrete, and golf courses. Dan was kind enough to hop on a call with the DT guys and talk dirt and a whole mess of other things. Th...

On this Monday edition of Dirt Talk, Aaron and Alex talk about professional wrestling before discussing questions about project managers, helping people who are a pain in your a$$ to succeed, and why leadership is a skill to be learned and re-learned. They also felt a huge blast from a job-site next door that was kind of crazy. To connect with other people who listen to this show, use and search f...