The Son of a Poor Man Podcast

Don't let excuses keep you from starting the business you've always dreamed about -- or even just one that can get you to the next step in your journey. Recognize those excuses for what they are, then kill them and get on with your fantastic plans. That's what Tom and Ty talk about in today's episode.

For the first interview of Season 2, Tom and Ty talk with Daniel Harada, owner and operator of Frontier Pest Solutions. Daniel's a 28-year-old go-getter who started out working for a pest control company in Oregon, then moved back home to Wyoming and worked for a pest control company here for a short while, then struck out on his own. 

Tom and Ty talk about what the price is for running your own business -- not the financial price, but the cost of what you have to give up to succeed.

This episode is the final installment of The Son of a Poor Man Podcast's first year on the internet airwaves. It's the 104th episode of Season 1, and Tom, Brian and Ty sat down to talk about some of the issues they've tackled in the past year, toss around some ideas for what to cover in the next year, and a whole bunch of other stuff that's completely off-topic but interesting nonetheless. And as...

Both Tom and Ty were sick last week, and it got them thinking that it might be good to talk about what you do about your business if you can't go to work. You need to have a plan in the event you can't go to work for a week or so.

Well, Ty was out sick on Tuesday, and now it's Tom's turn to be under the weather. Ty steps in to cover for Tom, and he interviews his sister, who is a veterinarian in Riverton. She talks about what she does to keep her employees happy, and she has some great advice for business owners to find grants and other assistance programs to avoid racking up debt.

Tom recounts 3 Costomer interactions where he had to help solve unique problems

Tom and Bryan celebrate the 100th episode of The Son of a Poor Man Podcast, and they talk about how they've worked to overcome obstacles in their businesses.

Tom talks with Ty about a tip he found while he was looking for business advice that he thinks will improve both his and Ty's businesses. They walk through the six processes every service-based business should have set up and ready to go. 

Tom talks about staying busy, even when things are a little slow. It's the "if you've got time to lean, you've got time to clean" philosophy. There's always something you can be doing to make your business better, stronger, or more efficient.

Tom and Ty discuss the Accordion Theory (which you may remember from Episode 26). If times are starting to feel a little tight to you, maybe you need to close that accordion down a bit and tighten things up. 

Tom had to do a show without adult supervision, but he was able to handle it. In this episode, he talks about focusing on the things that help you move your business forward, and eliminate as many of the distractions as you can. That's not easy in today's world, but Tom has some good advice about how to get it done.

Tom got a message from a person who saw him on the road in his Service First van, and it made him stop and think. He and Ty sit down to talk about the image you project not only of yourself, but also of your business, when you are out in public in your branded vehicle or clothing. Keep in mind that your actions are your advertising, for better or for worse.

Tate Schrock, the genius who lives in Tom's attic, stops down to the shop to tell Tom about QUO, an AI-driven telephone answering program. Tom didn't have anything at all set up in the program when they started talking, but Tate walks us through the setup to get the system to answer calls and give the caller all the information they will need. It's frankly quite astounding.  One note, though -- pl...

Nobody's going to swoop in and save your business. You need to keep doing the things that make it successful, but also keep innovating and improving. Tom and Ty talk about the parasites that exist simply to feed off of businesses they can take advantage of, and the fact that those people aren't interested in improving your business -- they're only thinking of themselves. But there are things you c...

Tom goes this one alone, with no adult supervision, but he gives a comparison of two different stores in Cheyenne. Both are national chains, and one used to have lights-out customer service, and the other used to have terrible service. But he's noticed that with a change of management in both stores, they've flipped. It caused him to take a harder look at how he provides customer service in his ow...

Tom gives away one of his biggest trade secrets -- his Circle of Success. This is his blueprint for how to provide the absolute highest level of customer service, and he follows it on every job he does. The Circle of Success can be customized to any business, and it should be, so that you can build a process to ensure you deliver great customer service and make your customers think of you the next...

Brian drops in for another Life of Brian episode, and as usual, they jump all over the place. They talk about hiring one old guy vs. two young guys and about loyalty and being there for your people. It's the usual Tom and Brian unsupervised conversation, so it's unpredictable but chock-full of good business ideas.

Ty took his hats to a bronc riding event and set up a booth over the weekend, and in this episode, Tom and Ty talk about how it turned out to be a great business move. Ty went with the Minimum Viable Product, rather than waiting until he had everything he would need to do a full-blown hat store at the event, and he realized that MVP approach was probably a better strategy, anyway. 

Tom pulled in Don Blakesley, owner of Executive Builders, to talk about the business side of the construction game. It turns out there are a lot of similarities in all service-based businesses, and the basics hold true across the board.

Tom took his work truck on a two-hour round trip to get some hay for his wife's horses, and he used the SOPs he built after talking about them on this podcast to make sure the truck was in good working order. It turns out the truck was low on oil, and had he not checked it, the results could have been bad for the truck, which then would make things bad for business. So he had a real-life reminder...

Tom talks about treating your employees right -- and that starts with paying them the way they should be paid. The amount you pay them is important, but more important than that is that you set them up the correct way. Don't pay a regular employee as a contract employee. Not only does it hurt the employee, it also can come back on you in a big way if you get caught, because there are rules about t...

Tom and Ty discuss how "busy" doesn't necessarily mean "profitable," and how you can make some adjustments to make sure you are profitable, even if you aren't as busy.

Tom, Brian and Ty are breaking one of their cardinal rules for this episode -- they're delving into a political topic. But they're doing it because the issue in question doesn't make a lot of business sense. They come from different viewpoints and walks of life, but they agree that America in general and Wyoming in particular should not be for sale.  If you want to share your own views on this iss...

Tom and Ty talk about a billboard that doesn't get the point across, and how you can't afford to make that mistake in your business.