Everything They Don't Tell You

Blue Is The New White Podcast: Episode #145   Excited for my guest today. An incredible human who is also a huge advocate of the skilled trades. Neil Thompson is the founder of Teach the Geek. Not in the skilled trades in the traditional sense, but serves the trades in so many ways. Neil has a storied past, getting his masters degree in bio-medical engineering. Really because of the persuasion fro...

Blue is the New White Podcast - Episode #144 We are absolutely privileged and thrilled to extend a warm welcome to our esteemed guest, Steve Snower, the CEO of PartsTown Unlimited. Steve is known for his unwavering commitment to PartsTown's growth and stands as a driving force within the commercial kitchen parts industry. With his visionary strategies and unwavering dedication to fostering company...

Blue is the New White Podcast - Episode #143   We're BACK in action after a bit of a hiatus with an exceptional guest for you today. Someone who I've had the pleasure of knowing for a couple years now. He is a prime example of what success looks like in the world of the skilled trades. Mr Jason Latimer FME, Planned Maintenance Manager at Casper Services joins us today to talk all about his journey...

Today we finally get someone on the show who I've been trying to link up with forever. He's the up and coming talent in MY specific trade, Mr Pat Finley of Commercial Kitchen Chronicles. Pat knew while still in high school that he wasn't going to go to college. In fact, he was certain about it and used it to remain focused on the path he chose, which at the time was electrical. Eventually that led...

We've got another great guest for you today. A mutual connection put us in touch (Elizabeth Moses) If you haven't heard her episode definitely go back and check it out. Nick McIntosh joins us today to talk about his journey through the trades. He figured out he wanted to go into carpentry while he was in high school and hit the ground running. Getting right into the trade after graduating he quick...

Today we've got a special episode for you. We have returning guest… the man who literally found his passion in HVAC after receiving his PhD in Psychology and Neuroscience. Of course, none other than the HVAC Doctor himself. Mr Matt Waxer. If you haven't heard his episode yet, it's number 113 from Jan of last year. Check it out. Joined with him today is another brilliant mind in the industry. Mr Il...

Today we have someone on the show that has only been creating content around the skilled trades for about 4 months, but burst onto the scene. Andrew Brown of Tool Fetch joins us on the show today to talk a little shop about the importance of the skilled trades. Andrew starts us off with a bang telling us the story of how he worked alongside the tradespeople on ground zero after 9/11/01. In fact, i...

Today's guest is another connection from the great Jamie McMillan of Kick Ass Careers. If you haven't heard any of Jamie's episodes yet, definitely check them out. Shawna Peddle joins the podcast today as a 313A/G1 Commercial HVACR Apprentice. She didn't grow up in the trades even though her dad was an industrial welder. At first, she considered being a veterinarian, then went to school briefly fo...

Today Brandon Eckenrode joins me on the show to talk about something near and dear to my heart, as you already know. Brandon works with the Collision Repair Education Foundation, an incredible organization that is doing unbelievable things to lift up their sector of the skilled trades. Brandon took the traditional route, earning a college degree for English and Journalism, but it wasn't long befor...

I've got a couple guests today. One who may look familiar, as he's been on the show a few times now, the great Ken Midgett. The other is his colleague at interplay learning, Dan Clapper. Today's episode has a very specific focus. After we get to know Dan a little bit, we dive right into the importance of how the next generation of technicians learn. We also talk about how we can innovate the forms...

Today's guest is one of the most candid that we've had on the show. He's an open book with an incredible journey through his specific trade. Chris Gutkes from Island Elevator joins us to talk all about the elevator repair industry. We touch on everything from his journey as a 4 th generation elevator mechanic to the benefits and opportunities in the industry, all the way to what entrepreneurship l...

Today we have on another fellow podcaster. Derek Cameron with Inside the Trades and 3805 Productions joins us today to talk all about the image of the trades in todays society. I had the privilege of being on his show not long ago and had a great time. If you haven't checked it out make sure you subscribe and give it a listen. Derek specializes in marketing for blue collar companies, which is exac...

Today we talk to someone I met on Twitter, of all places! Steve Linden owns a company called Two Men and a Striper and shares with us his journey into the trade. I really found it interesting how he was able to take something away from every stepping stone on his journey in order to succeed at what he's doing today. Steve is a great example of someone who didn't know what they wanted to do after h...

Grab Dan's 3 Steps to "Attract and Retain Top Talent" here - https://builtforthetrades.com/3steps Dan is a 2nd generation Tradesman with 20+ years of experience leading multi-million dollar home service businesses. Dan loves helping business owners scale their businesses all while living the life of their dreams, through Leadership Training, Coaching and Mastermind Groups. -- Got an awesome guest...

Today we have another fellow podcaster on the show. One with a similar mission who has interviewed almost as many guests as I have. Keith Williams of Skill Stadium joins us today to talk all about his mission and what he's trying to accomplish in this space. Keith shares with us his true desire to inform people about these wonderful industries and enable the success of many. Even though he hasn't...

The inspirational President of SAM Services and CFESA, Mr. Nick Cribb, joins us on the show today to talk about his journey from living well below the poverty line to becoming the president of a quick growing company and an industry association. Nick's story starts off in the south where he was given little to no direction as to what to do with his life after high school. He was fortunate to land...

Returning to the show today is not only one of my favorite guests, but one of my favorite people in this industry. Ms Jamie McMillan joins us again today to give us an update as to what she's been up to for the past 2 years since last coming on the show. If you haven't caught her first episode, be sure to do that now. What an unbelievable story filled with accomplishment and reward. During COVID,...

Today's guest is Brenden Roscoe. Brenden comes from a skilled trade upbringing. His dad was a plumber, and his mom sold fittings. He knew from a young age that he was going to work with his hands, even though he tried junior college for a minute before dropping out. His goal was to own his own construction company so he set out to gain as many skills as possible by learning masonry, framing, rough...

Today, we welcome BACK to the show, Mr. Ken Midgett. The last time we talked to Ken he was working as a plumbing instructor at the Lehigh Institute. It's through Ken that we first met Paige Knowles, if you haven't heard any of the episodes with Paige, do yourself a favor and find them. If there's such thing as the "Next big thing" in the skilled trades, she's it. Well, a lot has happened since the...

Today we have a guest in a trades adjacent industry. That is, an industry that serves the skilled trades. Zac Garside is the CEO of Power Selling Pros, who specializes in CSR and dispatch training. An often overlooked importance in these industries. Zac shares with us his beginnings and his association with the skilled trades as a boy. His dad owned a locksmith company so he saw first hand the pow...

We're joined today by Nicole LeClair, a Welding Engineering Technologist. Nicole is currently a welding instructor in Ontario Canada Her journey stars in high school where she took several trade related courses like automotive and shop, but never truly considered them for a career. Even though she loved working with her hands. She went the more traditional route and went off to university after gr...

Today, we have a returning guest to the show. Austin Peterson of Backbone Planning Partners. Austin came on BITNW about 2 and half years ago, and was one of my first guests when we were just getting started. He had a lot of great information then about growing up in a blue collar space, and him choosing the white collar route. It was a really great perspective on the right education for the right...

Today we sit down with a fellow podcaster, tradesperson, and business owner. Joshua Gillow joins us today to talk all about his journey from being a farmer to designer of outdoor spaces. Joshua is a life long learner who took his passion for working with his hands and always improving and turned it into a fantastic career from landscaping to designing to consulting. He has got to be one of the mos...

Today we sit down with a fellow listener of the show, reader of the book, and advocate of the skilled trades. Randy Niznick joins us today to talk with us about his journey through the trades and the military. He started at only 13 years old, helping his stepdad in the stamp & die factory. He was fascinated by the machines and what they could do. He then went into the navy where he was a Seabee, f...

On Tuesday I had the pleasure of being interviewed live by Cesar Valencia from  Upstryve.com . He was kind enough to let us use the footage from that livestream as my podcast today. I thought it would be nice to be the guest on my own show for a change, instead of the host! So tune in to this episode to hear me interviewed by Cesar and maybe learn a little more about my background. Enjoy!