It took a semester for Cameron Dumond to learn college wasn't for him. And now, as a Journeyman Plumber, he is doing better than most of his friends with degrees. In this episode he discusses some wild jobs during residential service, his escapades during the Texas freeze of 2021, the differences between earning a Texas and Oklahoma plumbing license, and the infamous dollhouse all Texans must tackle to become a plumber.
Nov 15, 2023•44 min•Season 1Ep. 32
Nils Rasmusson is the content creator behind LRN2DIY , a successful YouTube Channel with over 700k subscribers. As a father of four, Nils discusses the importance of any skilled trade as a valuable asset to (at the very least) fall back on, as well as the necessity for homeowners to have a basic understanding of the mechanics for upkeep on their homes.
Nov 08, 2023•59 min•Season 1Ep. 31
When the twin towers were hit on 9/11, Andrew Brown was an IT geek who found himself racing through checkpoints in his friend's truck, heading towards ground zero. It was there that he understood the vital importance of tradesmen. Two weeks later, he quit his job and now owns ToolFetch.com, an e-commerce website with over 150,000 products across 7 different categories.
Nov 01, 2023•48 min•Season 1Ep. 30
Robert Renfro was broke, out of work, but still had a growing family to feed. Out of necessity, he drove to Austin, TX and became an apprentice and a journeyman on the same day. Now with 8 children, eighteen grandchildren, and 40 years of plumbing under his belt, Robert discusses the sacrifices he made to earn a high six-figure salary, and how young plumbers can get on the fast-track to earning a comparable wage.
Oct 25, 2023•59 min•Season 1Ep. 29
Dustin Stelzer is a master electrician and the founder of YouTube channels JOURNEY 2 MASTER and ELECTRICIAN U. In this episode, he discusses how social media heightened his ability to communicate, and the ways in which it grew his many trades-based businesses.
Oct 18, 2023•1 hr 2 min•Season 1Ep. 28
Alex Gonzales dropped out of high school and started plumbing for his father at a young age. He later joined the Army and learned several life skills that apply to his work ethic and business acumen. Now, as a master plumber, he's learned to do everything with maximum effort, and to never second guess yourself because failures in the field will teach you more than any textbook.
Oct 11, 2023•56 min•Season 1Ep. 27
Josh Campbell, owner of Rescue Air & Plumbing, details how his penchant for learning, and his never-ending pursuit of happiness, helped him evolve from a master electrician to the owner of a multi-million dollar residential services business. From the recent acquisition of Roger Wakefield's Texas Green Plumbing, to his massive expansion servicing over 60,000 customers, Jeff Campbell is showing no signs of slowing any time soon.
Oct 04, 2023•56 min•Season 1Ep. 26
Dubbed "The Home Service Expert," Tommy Mello started a modest garage door business which has expanded to 18 states and exceeds $200 Million in revenue. He's written two books ( Home Service Millionaire and Elevate ), one of which details his meteoric rise from $50,000 in debt to $30 Million in seven years. In this episode he discusses the importance of a leader's ability to delegate, their willingness to learn from the experts, as well as being approachable and visible for every employee....
Sep 27, 2023•1 hr 21 min•Season 1Ep. 25
John Trammell is the Director of Virtual Design & Construction (VDC) Technologies for Brandt. Starting out as an apprentice plumber and pipefitter, John has climbed the ranks and worked on some of the nation's largest commercial projects. VDC is a fabrication database akin to a virtual hardware store.
Sep 20, 2023•56 min•Season 1Ep. 24
Known as "The Fixer" across social media, Matt's path to becoming a content creator seemed carved in stone. While studying his passion of Audio/Video in school, Matt was introduced to construction where he found stable and fulfilling work. But it would be ten years and many, many jobsites later before he took the leap to combine the two. Now, as a full-time content creator, Matt "The Fixer's" mission is to equip homeowners with the necessary tools to tackle their own maintenance and repairs....
Sep 13, 2023•43 min•Season 1Ep. 23
In Russia, Dmitry Lipinskiy aspired to be a teacher. However, upon emigrating to the States, and to support his growing family, Dmitry called several friends and received the same answer on how to make money: ROOFING . In 7 years, Dmitry built and sold a multi-million-dollar roofing business and now owns several other businesses including the Online Roofing Business School , and the formidable rival to Angie's List, Directorii , which connects homeowners with elite contractors and is backed by D...
Sep 06, 2023•1 hr 7 min•Season 1Ep. 22
Tyler Sasse is a welder, entrepreneur, and the successful content creator and founder of Western Welding Academy which is responsible for churning out the world's top welders through a rigorous six-month curriculum. As a Top Hand award winner , Tyler discusses why this should be the bar (not the exception), his vision for the future, commraderie in the trades, and why the one million job deficit in the skilled trades is one of our nation's greatest security threats ....
Aug 30, 2023•1 hr 5 min•Season 1Ep. 21
Father/Son duo Paul and Jordan Selleck used the lockdowns as an avenue for content creation in the construction trades. From simple plumbing videos, to now documenting the build of not one, but two dream homes from the ground up, Paul and Jordan discuss their journey forging a successful content creation business, and the kind of influence a strong mentor can have on young impressionable minds—something many take for granted....
Aug 23, 2023•1 hr 8 min•Season 1Ep. 20
Laura Giudice tried her hand at college twice before finding stability and success as an apprentice plumber. She discusses what she has learned from the older generations, what it's like working union in Canada—not only as a new, green tradesman—but as one of the few females on any job site.
Aug 16, 2023•49 min•Season 1Ep. 19
It was a random encounter that led Jamie McMillan to Ironwork, though with her mining roots, it seems she was tailored for success in the skilled trades. Now, a 20-year union vet, Jamie travels 30 weeks a year providing keynotes and workshops to more than 50,000 students, parents, educators, and employers each year across North America. She founded Kickass Careers and developed the Children's Book Series, All the Kids On Builder Street . In 2019 she was named co-chair of Canada's National Skille...
Aug 09, 2023•52 min•Season 1Ep. 18
McKinsey is an Austin-based interior designer who turned her passion into a full-scale operation. From blue collar roots, she received first-hand, on-the-job training from her tradesman grandfather. Now, through failures and successes, she understands what it takes to build a home, and what it takes to make that home functional.
Aug 02, 2023•46 min•Season 1Ep. 17
Known on social media as Wally the Welder or The Weld Professor, Wally got into the trades to stay out of trouble. Through hard work and grit, he earned the opportunity to apprentice for the nation's top welders where he found not only a career, but a passion which enabled him to climb the ranks and provide a comfortble living for his family.
Jul 26, 2023•1 hr•Season 1Ep. 16
Matt Osborne ran operations for the CIA and the Department of State before joining Operation Underground Railroad and the fight against human trafficking. In this episode, he discusses how service techs can be aware and vigilant to mitigate today's fastest growing arm of organized crime.
Jul 19, 2023•1 hr 2 min•Season 1Ep. 15
Scott Dixon worked in operations for years at Caterpillar before carving his own path through social media. Now, a successful content creator in the DIY space, Scott discusses the unique ways he relates to his vast audience, and the necessity for diligent sweat equity, not only in your profession, but in yourself. Scott currently creates content for his YouTube channel @EverydayHomeRepairs.
Jul 12, 2023•1 hr•Season 1Ep. 14
Former offensive lineman Kyle Hofmann tried everything from selling insurance to driving for Uber before finding meaning in the plumbing trades. Through hard work, Kyle has climbed the ladder in a budding career that allowed him to uproot his family from Washington to the Lone Star State. But his introduction to the trades was anything but ordinary, pulling a page straight out of the Roger Wakefield playbook.
Jul 05, 2023•46 min•Season 1Ep. 13
Unlike most young men, Shawn Strong took his mother's advice and became a plumber, but it didn't start out that way. He tried sales, graphic design, anything in an air-conditioned cubicle in front of a computer, only to learn later on that working with his hands provided a comfort and joy only those in the skilled trades can understand. In addition to plumbing, Shawn runs the Discord and sub/Reddit channels for the man himself, Roger Wakefield.
Jun 28, 2023•54 min•Season 1Ep. 12
Dave Hill, owner of Express Plumbing, Heating, and Cooling in Jersey Shore cut his teeth as an apprentice on a service truck until he was fired -- on his wedding day, and by his own father -- during the recession. But through hard work and dedication, Dave has built his business into a Jersey Shore household name, now with plans to extend his reach to the great state of Texas. This episode discusses the hurdles of running your own business, in addition to tapping into the unlimited growth potent...
Jun 21, 2023•57 min•Season 1Ep. 11
Passed over for promotions time and time again, Brent Gentling (@BYOTools) risked it all when he left the security and stability of his construction job at the height of COVID to pursue content creation. He now operates the successful, burgeoning brand of Bring Your Own Tools across multiple social media platforms.
Jun 14, 2023•57 min•Season 1Ep. 10
With over 30 years of experience as a plumber, Kevin Adams is the Discipline Lead Professor for Plumbing at Collin College. He holds a Texas state Master Plumbers License, a TCEQ Level C Groundwater License, and a TCEQ Backflow Prevention Assembly Testers License.
Jun 07, 2023•52 min•Season 1Ep. 10
Growing up, Spencer West struggled in school due to multiple learning disabilities. He attended college because he thought it was the "next step" in life. But it wasn't until he dropped out and found the trades that his life had a sense of meaning and direction. He's now a successful electrician with a burgeoning YouTube channel to boot.
May 31, 2023•57 min•Season 1Ep. 108
Dustin discusses the high earning potential of a plumber, and the risk and responsibility it took to make the leap from Master Plumber to entrepreneur and business owner — in which, not only his family, but a fleet of tradesmen now depend on him.
May 24, 2023•1 hr 2 min
Henry Wakefield is a 20-year union vet and master pipefitter. This episode discusses his humble beginnings in a machine shop to become one of the best pipefitters in the nation.
May 17, 2023•59 min•Ep. 106
Jimmie Dale is President of Baker Brother Plumbing, a North Texas based company slated to do $100 million dollars in revenue for 2023. This conversation starts with his roots, and tracks his metoric rise to become a titan within the industry.
May 03, 2023•57 min•Ep. 101
Dustin Stelzer is a master electrician and the founder of Electrician U. "The idea of Electrician U was born from a lack of availability of quality educational material, for electricians, on the web. There are tons of people teaching code classes, but nobody teaching electrical work, from the field. We sit and watch many traditional trade schools takes peoples money and not give any true value to the students, so something was needed to get education out to the people in need, without ripping th...
May 03, 2023•58 min•Ep. 102
Gary studied Mechanical Engineering in College and spent almost 40 years in the bakery business (25 years self employed) before devoting himself full time to helping families with their water. He was excited to learn how a water softener worked because, as he found soon after, almost no one in the industry knew how they worked either. Truth was, no one seemed to know how any type of water treatment equipment actually worked.
May 03, 2023•51 min•Ep. 103
