Turn Your Shop Into a Business That Can Run Without You

Brian Haughey

Seven things cabinet shop owners say, and what to do about each one.

Which one sounds like your shop?

Chapter 1

"It's all in my head"

Get out of the middle.

Chapter 2

"I lose sleep over things we might be forgetting"

Nothing important depends on somebody remembering it.

Chapter 3

"We keep making the same mistakes"

Every stage of a job is setting up the next one.

Chapter 4

"We're always scrambling to meet deadlines"

Stop looking at due dates. Look at the workload.

Chapter 5

"We're always waiting on something"

Materials get figured out when the job is planned, not when somebody reaches for the part.

Chapter 6

"I don't know where the hours go"

Hours aren't a feeling. They're a number you write down, on the job, while it's happening.

Chapter 7

"Bookkeeping is a mess"

The quote, the changes, and the invoice are the same job. They should live on it.