I sat down with Brent Garrett, whose path ran from a childhood job site to building and selling a company, and then very nearly losing the next one. Brent grew up working for his father's plumbing business, though his dad pushed him toward life insurance sales first, a detour that shaped how he sells to this day. He eventually built his own plumbing and air conditioning company, sold it, and helped lead an industry rollup worth half a billion dollars. Then he started over, certain he had it figured out. He hadn't. "I go over to the neighbor, all their lights are on. My accountant didn't pay the bill, and I looked at that and we were a million dollars in debt." We talk through what really happened that year, and the two lessons Brent says he will never let slip again. "You can delegate, but you have to own your financial health of your company. That was the first mistake. The second one was I allowed a group of people to set the culture in my company that I didn't even believe in." Brent also gets into why contractors stall at the same revenue ceiling, what he calls the messy middle, the four rules his company still runs on today, raising kids who understand money, and what he told his wife once he found out. Toward the end, Brent talks about faith, why so many owners regret selling a business too soon, and the handful of things he tells owners to fix before they ever sit down with a buyer. "If you're getting close to thinking about retiring or you are thinking about selling your business, make sure that you know what you want to do in the future because you might be selling something that keeps you young and that you love to do." Brent is the author of "30 Days to a Better Business" and now works with owners who want to grow without losing sight of what matters to them. Brent Garrett is an owner of a thriving skilled trades business who has experienced the real highs and lows of building and running companies in the trades industry. He lives in Plano, Texas. He is a second-generation plumber who chose to enter the trade against his father's advice. That decision led him into a career of building, scaling, and leading service-based businesses from the ground up. Brent is the founder of The Skilled Trades Coach, Inc. and owner of Sirius Plumbing & Air Conditioning, Inc., and he operates multiple businesses across real estate, leasing, coaching, and consulting. After building and selling a successful company, Brent faced a significant business setback in his next venture, including overwhelming debt, unpaid bills, and the risk of missing payroll. That experience reshaped his approach to leadership, systems, sales, and accountability. His book, 30 Days to a Better Business, reflects the same systems, values, and leadership principles he uses daily to operate and grow his companies. Today, Brent helps skilled trade business owners build profitable companies without sacrificing their values, families, or health. He works with entrepreneurs at all stages of the business cycle, helping them improve leadership, strengthen operations, and build more stable and profitable companies. Connect with Brent: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brent-garrett-b455aa11 30 Days to a Better Business book: https://book.brentgarrett.com/ Follow Builder Straight Talk: https://BuilderStraightTalk.com Chapters: 00:00 Introduction 02:28 Meet Brent 02:43 Old School Wisdom 04:17 Teaching Kids Money 12:32 Entrepreneur Risk Mindset 16:30 Use Money Wisely 22:45 Scaling Past Messy Middle 30:24 Wake Up Call 35:33 Financials and Culture 37:48 Culture Rules 39:09 Know Your Numbers Early 40:09 Turning It Around With Sales 41:43 Coaching Mission, Industry Gap 45:15 Marriage Under Financial Stress 51:38 Faith, Natural Law and Grace 56:42 30 Days to a Better Business 01:01:05 Retirement and Selling Out 01:04:07 Five Steps Before You Sell 01:06:31 Rapid Fire
