Hustle or Bust; Powered by Paverart

We are joined by local business owner Lashaun Crawford, founder of Girl With a Grill Restaurants and the non-profit, Staying the Course. In business, there is something we referred to as the magical 2 H's, Heart and Hustle. Hustle is self explanatory, its about that unreal effort focused on the highest leveraged activities to maximize progress. Heart is different however, it's about the gr...

A build on our last episode with Paver Pete & Ryan Ravalli from Techo-Bloc, we dive deep into the world of outdoor living. In particular, both PAVERART & Techo Bloc have something in common: 100% of our manufactured products are installed by contractors. And what is the #2 most failed business segment in America? Contracting. So we talk about this, how contractors can improve, and how a gr...

Episode 50: 10k Hours Or Bust For a couple of guys running a small growth business, putting out a podcast can be challenging! Nevertheless, we look up and see a mini milestone, episode 50! We revisit maybe one of the most important concepts we covered as it relates to successfully building a business: THE 10k Hour Rule. What is the 10k hour rule: * Popularized by the great Malcolm Gladwell- develo...

In June of 1925, the NY yankees have a first baseman by the name of Wally Pipp. He asks out of the lineup due to a head ache. Who replaces him? Lou Gherig. 2,130 consecutive games later, the Iron horse becomes an all-time great. Sometimes you need just one shot to prove you belong. On episode 49 of the Hustle or Bust Podcast, we introduce you to Brian McNulty, PAVERART’s plant manager. We go throu...

It’s a fact in America: EVERYBODY loves a comeback story. The person that is down and out, and finds a way forward to a better life. This episode we have an inspiring, courageous Guest. Jimmy Ruddy is one of our team members at PAVERART. He tells his story with a brutal, raw honesty that is bound to inspire many from Similar backgrounds. And what background would that be? Years of Crime. Incarcera...

Napolean Hill famously declared:  A goal is a dream with a deadline!  Like most areas of business, it says easy, and does hard.  We dive deep into the practice of goal setting, with some war stories, current challenges and ways to think through this process.  Getting this right throughout the organization is one of the great unlocks to building a stronger, more sustainable business. 

Episode #46 we dive into the world of interviewing. More specifically, the disturbing trend of businesses of all sizes to act like Greek Life: "Pledging" or competing for acceptance into an organization with a variety of odd, de-humanizing activities and long, drawn out processes that don't map to the real world job. It's unprofessional, and becoming all too common. We shine a sp...

A spur-of-the-moment podcast with zero preparation: Mike corners Mark and said "I'm in charge!" On Mark's 5 year anniversary of owning PAVERART, Mike decided to go through a deep dive of: * Why did you buy PAVERART? What did you see? Why? And why 5 more times. Naturally, this got us deep into the world of building a business with Heart, not just Hustle. None of what is required t...

Every business needs a health check-up, and what better time of year than the halfway mark? We critically evaluate and grade ourselves on this episode. In someway, this felt like the small business rectal exam! Drop us a line with any key areas we have missed.

Leading the Sales & Marketing function for multiple decades is no small feat. Mark Fuss joins to take a look back at his career, what makes a great salesperson, building and protecting a reputation, and what life looks like being recently retired. Check out our website for more blogs, podcasts, and business insights: https://www.hustleorbust.com/

Episode 42 of the Hustle or Bust Podcast focuses on sales, but extends well beyond a successful transaction.  We focus on past war stories that highlight the importance of adding value BEYOND your product or service.  This value creates deep, long term personal relationships.  That’s what separates the average performer in sales from the great ones. 

Sales is extends well beyond generating revenue from customers interested in your product or service.  It’s about the art and science of persuasion.  That persuasion, or leadership extends to all stakeholders:  Employees, suppliers, the community.  Episode 41 we dive into the Art & Science of SALES.  From success traits off effective sales people, common stereotypes, and adding value BEYOND yo...

Small Businesses need to fight for awareness in a way the big corporation does not have to worry about. Episode 40 we cover a range of Marketing topics. Story-tellingImage-creating, enhancing, and destroying methodsClassic vs digital marketing, and the Prisoner dilemma of 3rd party digital agencies.

Every business will face a crisis, that's a guarantee. What is NOT obvious? WHEN will the crisis happen. On this episode of the Hustle or Bust Podcast, we dive deep into crisis management and how to deal with those existential threats to your business when they happen. A war story of a multi-million dollar disruption and how FAMILY became a detriment, not an asset to a small business owner&#39...

Capital Expenditures (cap-ex for short) are long-term investments needed to accelerate growth and strengthen the overall business. Over the past 5 years, PAVERART has executed 2 transformational projects that had massive investments fuel all areas of the operation. From tripling production capacity, doubling our space, focusing on branding/marketing, and building the team, you name it, we've i...

A special episode with the return home to PAVERART by Ken Bull, an original founder of PAVERART. Now? A Chief Operating Officer at Five Below, one of the country's most successful, high-growth retailers. We covered the intricate planning of PAVERART's beginning days, actually covering 2 years PRIOR to its start. This was our first episode in the new Hustle or Bust Studios, so early that we...

We dive into a topic that needs to be talked about: Mental Health. We all have our battles we fight. This episode started as an impromptu discussion and Mike said "This needs to be broadcasted, it can help others." The mental freight train is an ONSLAUGHT of brain activity, anxiety, stress, and to-do lists that are unrelenting all rolled into one. We also discussed empathy and talent sel...

What do you get when you combine an Marine, an MBA and a thoughtful approach to building austainable business of true value?  The makings of a successful venture.  Rodney Adams is the Founder of Mr. Home Repair, a new Handyman Business with big aspirations.  This is part 1 and we cover some key areas of branding, what you should think through in the pre-planning stage, and hiring your first employ...

Reg Zeller is the Founder and CEO of Cane Kast, a fast growing manufacturing business he acquired in 2017.  As you’ll hear in this episode, Reg’s background in Corporate America gave him both the foundational experience AND the motivation to take a shot on his own.  He’s taken the strengths of his past and tried to shed some of the “bad stuff” as he’s charted his business on a hyper grow...

Episode 32 brings you Part 2 with Robert Phillips, owner of Phillips Contracting.  We get more clues as to how this business has defied the survival odds for over 2 decades.  Have you ever thought about charging clients for price quotations?  There's a strong case to be made that you SHOULD, and Robert dives into his experiences here.  How about NOT expanding your employee base...

The Contracting business ranks high on the list for failure rate in the world of business ownership.  So when we see a businesses that has not just surivived but has thrived for over 2 decades we were thrilled to dive deep.  Robert Phillips, owner of Phillips Contracting is that exact person.  This is part one of an extended conversation where we discuss the start, the challenges, c...

Mike Legregni joins the Hustle or Bust Podcast.  Mike is the founder of Veteran Wood Co., a Veteran and former Law Enforcement professional.  He started Veteran Wood Co. in 2019 and put his skill working with his hands to immediate use.  We dive deep into Mike’s background and the decisions a new entrepreneur encounters when deciding on when to take the plunge into full time busines...

It's the holy grail for many entrepreneurs, getting their product into the world's largest retailer, Walmart.  But there's an entire process, language, and system that you need to understand.  In episode 30 of the Hustle or Bust Podcast, we speak with Brian O'Dell, CEO, and Co-Founder of NOR-Dell, a strategic sales development business specializing in big box stores like Walmart.  A...

Bruce Marks joins the podcast and we dive deep into Merger & Acquisition Trench Warfare!  Bruce has closed over 1,200 deals valued at over $320,000,000.  We go through the growing and dynamic world of Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition, also known as ETA.  We go through deal dynamics when deals blow up, and aspects of search and selling businesses that too many overlook.

It's a simple fact of business life.....highly engaged employees are more productive, create less turnover for a business, and common sense tells us they have a better quality of work life.  We talk about how this topic impacts small businesses, especially in the context of competing for great talent.   PAVERART is in the middle of our largest investment project in 20 years, and thi...