Intro: Let’s talk about the painful truth most contractors won’t say out loud: You’re working your ass off, but the profit just isn’t there. Welcome to what we call the Profit Epidemic — and it’s more common than you think. In Episode 1 of the Total Profit Podcast, T2 and Tommy P call out the root cause: most business owners are chasing revenue instead of building real profit.
The Problem: You might be crushing sales, booking jobs, even growing headcount. But if you’re not tracking gross margin at the job level, you’re flying blind. And it’s costing you.
You’re not alone. Most business owners think being busy equals being successful. But if your margins are off, you could be losing money with every job and not even know it.
What You Need Instead: Profit-first thinking. This means you stop treating profit like a surprise at the end of the year, and start making it the first line on every job bid and business decision. It means building margin into your pricing, reviewing financials weekly, and refusing to work jobs that don’t hit your targets.
What To Do Today:
Pull your last 5 jobs and run the numbers. How much margin did each one really make?
Are you consistently hitting your target gross profit?
If not, you’re not alone—but you are exposed.
Final Word: Don’t get stuck in the "busy but broke" trap. It’s time to make profit your priority.