Can you be wealthy as an owner/operator tradesman in 2025?

Here at HomeGrown Contractor, I cater to the owner/operators. You might be still on the tools—a one man operation, maybe with a helper. There’s nothing wrong with WORK and for many this is the best way to do business.

The question is, can you get wealthy being an owner/operator tradesman?

My answer is YES!

Most of the business development content out there is about “scaling”. Hiring people to do the work and get off the tools as an owner.

That’s one way to do it and if you choose, you can eventually get there. Once you’re there you may look back with fondness at the time when you were working the tools and interacting with projects every day.

It might be because as men, we have something inside of us that wants to work and produce.

Many think they MUST scale a contracting business. This is not true. Some of the most profitable and simplest business are one or two man operations. Those businesses are able to stay lean and mean, become experts at what they do, they remain reliable and there are less mistakes with the work, because no one does the work as well as the guy who owns the business.

A lot of these bigger outfits have problems with their employees, the quality of work goes down, the owners work load and responsibility increases…there are A LOT of reasons NOT to scale.

ESPECIALLY if you have the courage to SAY THE NUMBER you want to make in order to do your work.

People think they have to scale because “There’s no way anyone would pay me that much.” They think they have to have 5 crews going at the bargain prices and take their cut off the top. There’s a lot of people who do business like that and it’s doubtful if they make more money and have more free time than if they just grabbed the tools, did the work themselves and named their own terms and price.

There’s the key. Naming your terms.

You’ll be wealthy because you’re naming your terms. The owner/operator works for wealthy people and we make agreements with them for what they want. We put off the IMPRESSION of a big company…but we front load the TRUST and then:

WE NAME OUR NUMBER.

With courage and confidence, we tell the people what it costs to have an owner/operator, expert tradesman work.

It’s tricky because a lot of the public thinks…”Oh, it’s a small outfit, they should be LESS money than the bigger ones.”

NO, NO, NO. It’s more money because the smaller outfits provide SO MUCH MORE. Less mistakes, you get to talk to the person doing the work – so no middlemen…PERSONALIZED service. Much, much better quality finished product because NO ONE will do as good a job as the guy who OWNS the company. Employees will slack and do whatever they want when no one is looking…

A client can DEPEND on owner/operators and that’s worth much more money.

BUT-

It’s a MENTALITY SHIFT for the tradesman doing this type of business. YOU need to realize how LUCKY people are to have you working for them. Look around at how terrible the big crews do. It should be a no brainer.

Don’t internalize the views of the public…that “you’re small so you must be cheaper.” HELL NO! There are so many benefits of working with the POINT MAN and that’s why you’ll pay me more and like it!

This way of doing business is being done all over the place, the craftsman operation.

Yes, you can get wealthy doing business like this in 2025. Wealthy by naming your pay. Wealthy naming how and when you work. Wealthy building a reputation. Wealthy in your relationships.

What you have to do is think of YOURSELF as the BUSINESS. You know you’re better than the big outfit with the employees, with half the headache.

But, you can’t be LAZY. Lot of guys are out here looking for a way around WORK. You get paid because you aren’t AFRAID of work. You don’t have someone else do it—you do it…maybe it’s for 5 hours a day…Trust me, you name your terms and you let people know that’s how it’ll  be and they’ll be glad to have it.

You’re solid, you’re skilled, you serve. Name your number.

10 tradesmen are leaving the world of work for every 1 getting in.

Understand that you can name your price in 2025.

Do good work, think of your long-term health and well-being. Be the hands on point man. Build your business and your family by doing better than the “business scalers” who inevitably will have problems and create problems.

Remember, you’re making an agreement with a wealthy individual who wants what you are selling. Decide what you want to make every year and reverse engineer it to what you have to charge for every job you do.

People are SICK of getting jerked around and the sowner/operator can fill a gap.

Fill the gap and get paid BIG while you’re doing it.

But it starts with you believing that you’re WORTH IT.

You’re worth every DAMN PENNY.

Now go get em.