Episode
246
Thu, 05 Mar 2026 20:00:00 +0000
Most contractors fall into one of two traps:
In this episode, Dominic Rubino talks with Adam Sylvester—business owner and host of Jobber’s Masters of Home Service—about the handful of numbers that actually matter.
Because the truth is simple:
If the right number is flashing red, it’s trying to tell you what to fix.
Adam says it straight: most people don’t even know what to track.
But if you don’t know your profit, you don’t know your business.
You’re just working.
Profit isn’t a “nice to have.” It’s what keeps the company alive:
Adam shared a number many owners can’t answer:
How much revenue does one technician produce in a year?
Then he simplified it even more:
What does one employee need to produce per day?
If a worker costs you ~$200/day (example), and they only produce $400/day…
That’s a problem.
Because labor gets too high, fast. And profit disappears.
This is one of the core tools discussed:
The One Hour Calculator helps you stop guessing.
It shows what you must charge per hour to cover:
If your required rate is $130/hr and you’re charging $80/hr, you don’t have a “more work” problem.
You have a pricing problem.
And once that number is real, it creates the next conversation:
Dom asked a question they use in coaching:
“If you do 10 estimates, how many do you win?”
If the answer is 7 or 8 out of 10, it often means you’re priced too low.
That hurts to hear.
But it’s real.
Winning “too many” jobs often means:
Adam’s simple approach:
Raise pricing slowly (example: 1% per month) until the close rate drops into a healthier zone.
Adam talked about a leadership shift:
He stopped trying to be everyone’s friend.
He started holding standards:
And once he did that, everything improved:
Customers can feel it. Like Dom said:
You can walk into a coffee shop and feel if the culture is “off.”
Same thing happens when your crew shows up to a jobsite.
Adam shared a key moment:
He decided what kind of business he wanted—and tuned out distractions.
That’s strategic planning:
It’s how you stop being pulled by every shiny opportunity and start building a real machine.
If you want to apply this episode fast, do this:
If you want the full conversation with Adam Sylvester, go listen to the full episode and take notes—this one has tools you can use immediately.
More about Adam Sylvester: LinkedIn | Site
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