Beyond Breaking Even: The Service Business Owner's Playbook for Real Profit

I built Grizzly Junk Pros from a single truck to a multi-seven-figure operation — six trucks, over 6,000 jobs a year — without my day-to-day involvement. And I can tell you, the generic business books didn't get me there.Most service business owners are working harder than ever and still wondering where the money went. The trucks are running. The phone is ringing. And somehow, at the end of the month, the numbers don't add up.Beyond Breaking Even is the financial and operational playbook for service business owners at every stage — whether you're just trying to survive, grinding for growth, or already profitable and ready to compound.This book covers what the generic business books skip: how to read your real numbers, control your cash flow, price your work to actually make money, know your market and own your reputation, build lead flow that doesn't depend on luck, tighten your operations until efficiency becomes a competitive edge, protect what you've built, and use AI and automation to run your business smarter than the competition.No consultants. No guesswork. This is for the plumber, the roofer, the landscaper, the junk remover, the dumpster hauler, the cleaner, the HVAC technician, the electrician, the painter, the pest control operator, the pool service company, the mover, the handyman — the operator who needs legitimate answers, not frameworks designed for companies with marketing departments and venture capital. Every system, every number, and every framework has been tested in my own service business. Operator to operator.The book is organized across six parts:Part 1: Foundations & Money — read your numbers, control your cash, price for profitPart 2: Market Positioning — know your market, own your reputation, attract the right customersPart 3: Marketing & Lead Flow — get found, convert leads, build retention that compoundsPart 4: Operations & Efficiency — systems, people, vendors, and the tools that buy back your timePart 5: Expansion & Innovation — grow without overextending, diversify revenue, protect what you've builtPart 6: Future-Proofing & AI — use AI and automation to run your business smarter than the competitionAcross 37 chapters you'll learn:Why your P&L is lying to you — and how to use it as a diagnostic weaponThe True Job Cost formula that reveals which jobs are truly making you moneyThe Three-Touch System that converts estimates that went quiet into booked jobsThe Two-Path Review System that builds your reputation while protecting itThe Six-Layer Moat that protects your market position when competition floods inHow to hire, train, and build a team that doesn't need you on every jobHow to use AI and automation to capture leads, follow up, and run your operation more efficiently than operators who haven't built these systems yetThe five rules that govern what you do with profit once you have it — because building it and keeping it are two different skillsThe service industry is changing. AI is displacing white-collar workers who will enter your market with better marketing, better systems, and more capital than the competition you're used to. The operators who build now will hold their position. The ones who wait will scramble.Whether you're fighting to break even or already profitable and ready to scale — this is the playbook that takes your service business to the next level.For weekly strategies and real-world insights for service business operators, subscribe to my newsletter, the Haulers' Edge. Read more