Episode 71: Introducing APB Chapters With Russ, Sky & Andy

In episode 71 of the Professional Builders Secrets podcast, we’re joined by Co-founders of the Association of Professional Builders Russ Stephens and Sky Stephens, along with APB’s Head Coach, Andy Skarda. Throughout this episode, the trio delve into what APB Chapters is all about and how it’s slowly helping builders all over the globe.

 

Inside episode 71 you will discover

• What APB Chapters are and who can join
• What makes them unique for builders
• What a builder can expect from being a chapter member
• Why builders need to connect with each other
• And much, much more.

 

Listen to the full episode to uncover exactly how APB Chapter meetings are helping to build a community where builders support each other and can have a race to the top, instead of a race to the bottom.

 

Russ Stephens - Co-founder

Russ Stephens is a Co-founder of the Association of Professional Builders, a business coaching company dedicated to improving the residential construction industry for both builders and consumers. Russ is a data analysis expert who has introduced data-driven decision making to the residential construction industry. Russ is also a proud member of the Forbes Business Development Council.

Connect with Russ

 

Sky Stephens - Co-founder

Sky Stephens is a Co-founder of the Association of Professional Builders, a business coaching company dedicated to improving the residential construction industry for both builders and consumers. Sky is a proud member of The National Association of Women in Construction and she was also recognised as one of 2021’s Top 100 Women. 

Connect with Sky

 

Andy Skarda - Head Coach 

Andy Skarda has owned and led businesses in South Africa, the United States, South-East Asia, and for the last decade, Australia. With 30+ years of business experience, Andy heads up the coaching team at the Association of Professional Builders (APB), helping business owners in the building industry identify and implement the skills and systems they need to be successful, without needing to go back to school or more importantly, without going bust.

Connect with Andy

 

Timeline

2:07 What are APB Chapters and who can join

8:58 What makes these chapters unique for builders

19:13 The benefit for builders

25:19 The long-term vision for APB Chapters

26:23 The importance of builders connecting with each other

 

Links, Resources & More

More info on APB Chapters

APB Website

APB on Instagram

APB on Facebook

APB on YouTube

Join the Professional Builders Secrets Facebook group for builders & connect with professional builders world-wide.

Russ Stephens:

These are meetings that are run by builders for builders.

Sky Stephens:

It's about connection. We want people to be able to actually talk to each other.

Russ Stephens:

Odds are that someone else has been through what you are going through and has already solved that problem.

Andy Skarda:

The format is really going to be driven by the needs of the group.

Sky Stephens:

We want to see chapters everywhere.

Andy Skarda:

The purpose of our chapters is to help builders come out of that isolation and become genuinely more connected skin to skin, not pixel to pixel.

Bosco Anthony:

Hello and welcome to the Professional Builders Secrets podcast, a podcast by the Association of Professional Builders (APB) for building company owners, general managers, VPs and emerging leaders. Here we discuss all things running a professional building company from sales processes to financials, operations and marketing. It's time for another exciting episode from the Professional Builders Secrets podcast. Joining us today are, Sky Stephens, Co-founder of APB. Lovely to have you, Sky.

Sky Stephens:

Hey Bosco. How are you?

Bosco Anthony:

I'm well. And we also have Russ, Co-founder of APB as well. Great to have you, Russ.

Russ Stephens:

Good to see you, Bosco.

Bosco Anthony:

Great seeing you too. And Andy Skarda, Head Coach for APB. Thank you for joining us today.

Andy Skarda:

You are very welcome. I was thinking today, I love these things because I get to ask Russ the questions I've always wanted to ask him and then I get to hear him answer them. So I love these. Thank you for having me again.

Bosco Anthony:

Well, you should prompt some questions my way, my friend, but I'll start off with a simple one. What are the APB Chapters?

Russ Stephens:

The APB Chapters are meetings that are run by builders for builders and they create an opportunity for the owners and directors of residential building companies to just come together and talk about what is happening in their world. It can be anything at all: it can be business, it can be personal. There's no restriction on what they talk about. But what does matter is that if you're feeling burnt out, exhausted, frustrated, anxious, or even depressed, there are other people out there who care about your wellbeing. 

Russ Stephens:

These meetings give builders the opportunity to come together and support each other. Because, let's be honest, there's not a lot of sympathy out there for builders in the marketplace. I think when you look at public opinion, public opinion is that builders earn a fortune. And to a large part, there's a perception that they rip people off. But as we know, the truth is obviously very, very different. It's so important, I think, for builders to interact with other like-minded people who get you, who understand you and talk your language.

Bosco Anthony:

How did this initiative come about? We talk about time with builders being a very strong currency. So how did this initiative come into play and how did it come about that builders really want to give more?

Sky Stephens:

Well, let's call them community groups. As soon as you boil it down to that, it's not a particularly groundbreaking idea because community groups have been around for years and decades. The fact that we're trying to bring people together who are like-minded is not earth shattering nor a brand-new concept. However, for us and the builders we're trying to bring together, this is different. This is unique because there wasn't a group of professional building company owners all meeting up together regularly with any system.

Sky Stephens:

Now what happened for us to be able to launch this was a few years ago, a few of our members, specifically based down in Adelaide in Australia, started putting out some messages in our private members only Facebook group, essentially wanting to catch up, trying to ask, "Who else is in this area? Hey, raise your hand if you're in this area. We would like to meet up. Let's just catch up and get connected." It was really interesting to see such a small area, such a small number of builders in that area put their hand ups and want to collaborate and want to connect physically in person.

Sky Stephens:

We started seeing that in a town that’s not a hugely dense town or a massive city like Sydney. So to be able to see that made us think, "Wow, this is something." So that essentially led us to where we are today. We wanted to launch chapters, we wanted to launch a way for our builders to connect with each other and we want this in every single city. We want builders to connect and collaborate with like-minded builders just like them.

Russ Stephens:

Looking back, it's no surprise that it originated in Adelaide because Adelaide is an amazing place for builders. These guys are the warmest, friendliest guys out there. Yeah, it's funny. Looking back now, it is no surprise that it originated from there.

Bosco Anthony:

So who can join the APB Chapters and who is this for? Is it just for builders?

Andy Skarda:

It's specifically targeted at the business owners. We are talking about professional builders here. So guys who are really looking to be that step above the average, non-professional builder. We really want to focus it at that leadership level of custom home builders and remodellers. Not people who are still on the tools. Literally, people who are now business people running a building business. And although we call them APB Chapters, this is not limited to APB members. This is literally any builder who would classify himself as already a professional builder or wanting to become a more professional builder. This would be the perfect place to go.

Andy Skarda:

I think Russ and Sky have touched on where this came from, but I'm just going to add a little element to that. Obviously, the impact of COVID on the building industry and on builders in particular created a fairly dark mental health scenario. When we dug into that with some of the organisations that work in that space, particularly in Australia, we found isolation from two perspectives: one, physical isolation, and two, the mentality that comes from the fact that the construction industry is predominantly male oriented. We know that's historical, and we know that we're working to change that. But that's the reality. 

Andy Skarda:

But because it’s predominantly male oriented there's this, ‘cowboys don't cry, she'll be right’ mentality. People don't open up and talk to each other. So we realised that if there was something we could do that would help to lift that isolation, people start to understand they're not the only ones going through that dark situation, there are other people, and not only are there other people, but some of them have possibly come up with other ways to deal with it. That's really where this thing starts to get into its stride.

Bosco Anthony:

Now are there locations just in Australia, all over Australia? How did you go about picking the locations?

Russ Stephens:

We've got builders running chapters in Australia, New Zealand and the USA at the moment. In Australia alone, there are regular meetings in Perth, Adelaide, Camden, which is just outside Sydney, Brisbane, and Melbourne. In New Zealand, we've got a guy called Brent Chatterton who's running a chapter in Christchurch. And in the US, we've got Bryce Rowland kicking off a chapter in South Jordan, which is near Salt Lake City in Utah. Now of course, this is just the beginning. We'd like to have enough chapters running so that any builder can join a meeting regardless of their location. So we are constantly helping more builders to start chapters in their areas. Hopefully we'll have some chapters up and running in Canada pretty soon as well.

Bosco Anthony:

Sky, you mentioned that the concept of communities is an old concept. It's been there a long time, but what makes this chapter's concept so unique for the builders?

Sky Stephens:

Well, I think it is everything Andy and Russ have just said. It's obviously not a knitting group, it's not a sports group. What makes it unique are the people there. And it's the fact that it's so specific who you have to be to actually access one of these chapters. So a massive part of the chapters for us as well is, we want to keep them small. We don't want to have community groups or chapters with 30 or 40 people in them. It's actually the opposite of what we want to happen because as Russ has just said, it's about connection. 

Sky Stephens:

We want people to be able to actually talk to each other. By the time you pass a certain number of people, a lot of smaller independent conversations start happening. It's not a collective group and it becomes a lot less about collaboration. So to answer your question, Bosco, what's going to make them unique is A, the people in the room, but B, how many people are in the room.

Sky Stephens:

So if we can cap them at 10 people in that room having a conversation, everyone is involved. It keeps fostering that culture of collaboration, support and really understanding what's going on with everyone else inside that room. It's structured in a sense that we know where they're going to be held, when they're going to be held, how often they're going to be held and who needs to be in the room. But they're informal in a sense, so that the conversation can be whatever it needs to be that month, whatever needs to be discussed, whatever someone needs support with, that's going to be the most important thing.

Andy Skarda:

Just to amplify that a little bit, one of the other unique factors is that they are very local. So you are going to get conversations happening in one that are not mirrored anywhere else. The beautiful part of this from our perspective is we have no agenda. We are not trying to drive these in any particular direction. We simply want to facilitate a process whereby builders can come in and talk about what's important to them in their part of the world.

Bosco Anthony:

How frequent are these events and what does the future of these events look like?

Andy Skarda:

Currently, they're at once a month. We are running them at the moment on a Tuesday evening, the second Tuesday of the month from 5:30 until 7pm. Because we are developing this concept, they may go to more than that or they may move around at some time in the future, but I don't think we'd ever end up at less than once a month. Obviously, that's the formal part of the evening. What we'd really like to see happen is that relationships grow out of that, and then possibly builders would be connecting individually or whatever in between those meetings as well.

Russ Stephens:

I think we've seen that as well. We recently received feedback from the chapter presidents where they've been catching up outside of the initial chapter meetings and just meeting for a coffee. I think the thing that's really striking about that is these people would've been perceived as competitors and are now meeting up for coffee and chatting. In other instances, guys didn't know each other, but they’re reaching out to the chapter president for more of a one-on-one chat where maybe they needed a little bit more support.

Bosco Anthony:

So take me through the process of what happens when a builder wants to sign up. First of all, how do they sign up? Where do they see the sign up, and what does the process look like once they do sign up?

Russ Stephens:

Well, there are two ways that they can register for a chapter meeting. The first way is they could get invited by the chapter president themselves, because like Andy pointed out, this isn't limited to APB members. This really isn't about APB at all. We're just trying to promote these meetings going on. So we encourage the chapter presidents to tap into their network and invite builders along who they might know in the local area. It could be a direct invitation from a chapter president. 

Russ Stephens:

We've also got quite an extensive database of builders and followers on social channels as well. We promote these meetings that are going on and we allow builders to register their interests by going to our website and just submitting a quick form. That automates the process of introducing them to the chapter president in their particular area. So they can see a list of meetings and see if there's one in their area.

Russ Stephens:

They submit the form and they get automatically introduced. We share the contact details of both parties. What happens then is the chapter president will add them to a calendar meeting invitation, and that then confirms the date and the time, which is always the second Tuesday at 5:30. But it also has the address, the location on there, along with directions of how to get there. Invariably, the chapter president will also reach out by phone or SMS beforehand as well.

Russ Stephens:

After that happens, once you're registered, it's down to you to get yourself to the meeting at 5:30 sharp, because these meetings do kick off at 5:35, so don't rock up late; consider everyone else's time. So rock up on time at 5:30. The meetings kick off pretty sharp and from our experience, they get started quite quickly and the time just flies. We do try to bring them to a close after 90 minutes, just to respect everyone's time.

Bosco Anthony:

Now, what can builders expect when they join the chapter? They’re invited to these events; what can they expect from being a chapter member?

Sky Stephens:

That was actually a great question, as you said, ‘chapter member.’ So, it'd be a really good idea just to establish the difference because I think we've actually thrown around ‘chapter president’ quite a bit, but not actually explained that role. In any community group you try and join, someone has to take charge, someone has to be a leader of a meeting. So when we wanted to set up chapters, we asked, "Who can actually spearhead this chapter in this specific location, in this specific area?" So we created the role of chapter president. Essentially, the president of that chapter is someone who is responsible for keeping the meeting on time and for hosting it. A big part of it is facilitating the conversation. It's absolutely not doing any coaching or any training and it's not delivering any material.

Sky Stephens:

It's absolutely not about that. We've found with our chapter presidents that they want to be the president because they want to give back to the builders in their community. So it's really come from a different place. To be a chapter president, you do have to apply and we have a conversation and the chapter presidents are chosen so that it makes sense for them to be the president of that chapter and lead those meetings, just from a leader's perspective.

Sky Stephens:

Now, the chapter president does everything that Russ just went through. Getting the people there, making sure reminders going out, and as an attendee of a chapter, you are most likely going to that chapter president's offices, if not their home, because these meetings take place in a private location. They're not at a pub or at a bar or at a restaurant, they're not in a public location. They're at a very private location like your offices or your home so that it can be an open conversation. Because at the end of the day, when you think about the attendees who are actually coming to these chapters, as Andy has said, these are building company owners, the owners and directors of companies.

Sky Stephens:

The topics they are going to get into are private conversations and they're big topics as well. So we want them to happen in private, and whether you head to their office or their home, you're going to have an hour and a half or a couple of hours of discussion where you can actually open up, share, ask questions, lean on other people's experiences and see if they're experiencing this. It really is a focus on collaboration.

Sky Stephens:

That said, as an attendee, there is absolutely no pressure for you to share anything you don't feel comfortable to share. There's no pressure, there are no rules. Quite simply, if you are even apprehensive about going to your first chapter meeting, you can just show up and observe. You can get to know all the other builders there and just share what you are willing to and what you are ready to and then keep coming back. Over time, you might find yourself really engaging and really getting a lot out of these chapters because you just feel more and more comfortable. But first and foremost, build those connections with the other builders around you in that area.

Russ Stephens:

You don't necessarily have to have a particular problem or challenge going on to attend one of these meetings. You might want to come along and just be there to support other builders. We have a lot of guys who come along because they want to give back, they want to support other builders and help build this community as well. So, it can be a combination there of contributing as well as receiving the benefits.

Sky Stephens:

I agree, 100%. Even just think about some of the topics that have been raised in the chapters so far. There were topics about builder etiquette in the local area. “What should we do? Say we've seen your plans come across our desks from these consumers. Shall I give you a call? Shall I let you know?” These are real conversations that are happening. “How is the business and running of your building company impacting you and your family's time? How did you get around that? What routines do you have? How are you coping with... anything?” Anything at all; these topics go any which way they need to, based on the people in the room.

Bosco Anthony:

There seems to be a big emphasis on compassion and empathy for the builders as well, and building a sense of togetherness. Take me through what the format of these events looks like and how they can benefit the builders.

Andy Skarda:

We require that every builder wears a Bob the Builder Costume at the event. So, they have to get dressed first, and then once they've got dressed, they then recite the creed where they basically say, "My name is Andy and I'm a builder." No, I'm joking, I'm talking rubbish. 

Andy Skarda:

The format is really going to be driven by the needs of the group. As we've said, we deliberately don't want to force any group to go in any particular direction, but as Sky has mentioned, there is a chapter president, who’s going to make sure that things kick off on time. He's going to be watching time, he's obviously going to do his best without pressurising anybody to involve everybody who's there in the discussions that are going on, so that everybody gets the opportunity to participate.

Andy Skarda:

When we launched this idea with people, the chapter presidents were worried that they were going to have to become therapists and counsellors and all the rest of it. That's absolutely not the case. They are simply there to facilitate and direct. Then Russ and Sky did an amazing job of putting together a package of support things for them. Obviously, if they find that somebody needs a particular type of help, they're able then to direct them to the necessary resources.

Andy Skarda:

You mentioned empathy and compassion. That's probably not going to happen at meeting one because we're predominantly males and we all have to pretend to each other that we're fine. But what we are really wanting to see is that the format will morph over time as people become confident with each other and comfortable with each other, and hopefully things will start to go a lot deeper, but they don't have to. Literally every single one will have its own identity based on the needs of the group.

Sky Stephens:

Andy Skarda, you said ‘he’ for chapter presidents one too many times and ‘males’ attending this event way too many times. We have female chapter presidents, and female chapter attendees. This is a really big point I have to say, because especially in this industry, especially all the charity work as well, it's a lot of men's health. Actually, it is inclusive. It is for the ladies too.

Andy Skarda:

And my knuckles have been suitably rapped. I receive that rebuke in the way it was delivered. Bad Andy.

Bosco Anthony:

Well, in fairness too, I have interviewed a lot of building owners who also have wives who are part of it or who are co-owners. I've actually just recently talked to one of the couples together from Canada as well. So, a shout out to the ladies for representing this to the growing industry.

Andy Skarda:

Absolutely.

Russ Stephens:

It's an interesting point because like Sky says, we do have a couple of female chapter presidents, which is awesome. But also now that we've had a few of these meetings, what we've seen recently as well is where the husband couldn't make a meeting and the wife has come along. Now we don't have any rules in place as to whether they can both come together or not, but we do find that they tend to open up a bit more if they're on their own rather than coming together. That seems to be what's happening. But it was really interesting that the husband couldn't make it, so the wife came along and just enjoyed the time and had a different perspective and great input.

Sky Stephens:

That's it. And again, it just comes down to whatever you're comfortable with. So whether you feel comfortable alone or together, it truly is up to you.

Bosco Anthony:

Now, what can builders expect from these events as far as the content? You talked about the fact that it's an open dialogue with different topics. I'm just curious if there's a curation process for these topics or thoughts, or does it organically come up?

Russ Stephens:

As Andy alluded to, these meetings are evolving all the time. Sky and I do have a follow-up meeting with all the chapter presidents the morning after these meetings run, so that we can get the communication flow in two ways. This is where the presidents share what worked well in the evening and what they feel they can improve or what would work better in future meetings. Because they all get to share that, we're getting combined feedback. So it's moving quite fast in terms of our learnings. It's really evolving quite quickly.

Russ Stephens:

In terms of expectations as far as the content's concerned, I think it's an opportunity to be heard because a problem shared is a problem halved, and it's really powerful talking about challenges. When you talk about challenges, odds are that someone else has been through what you are going through and has already solved that problem. So they're able to give good firsthand advice and support. What we've seen lately that has come up in our post chapter meetings with the presidents is builders are sharing information on suppliers and subcontractors.

Russ Stephens:

Now, typically, because they're all localised, they're using a lot of the same suppliers and subcontractors, and typically builders don't talk to each other, which makes it really easy to divide and conquer them. But by sharing this information with each other and working together, they can achieve so much more. The builders who actually do this are the ones on top of their game because they don't have the scarcity mindset. They're not withholding information or hiding information. They're finding that the more open they are and the more they can work together with each other, the better it is for everyone, and we all rise together.

Bosco Anthony:

Now, what is the long-term vision for these APB chapters? You've talked about the fact that you want to expand, but what are some of the things that you'd like to see take off from this?

Sky Stephens:

Far and wide, Bosco. We want to see chapters everywhere. This is not exclusive for big cities. It's not one inner city. No, we want them to be so dense that you've got multiple to choose from. We want it to become one of those groups that if that first chapter you went to isn't for you, they are actually another couple around you in the local area. Try those out as well. Find your tribe, find your people. 

Sky Stephens:

They're not going to expand in terms of who's going to be invited; we are not going to make them for anyone else. It literally is just the building company owners, capping it at 10 and having good quality conversations in them. That is our expansion plan. Doing more of those rather than opening it up to more people or subcontractors or suppliers. Again, this is something exclusive for the builders in the industry. This is just for you guys.

Bosco Anthony:

Now, you've alluded to mental health and wellness. What are some of those important factors or important benefits for the builders to connect with each other? What are you seeing from these outcomes that are happening right now?

Andy Skarda:

Well, I think I mentioned the ‘I’ word earlier. In this industry, in fact, in any business, as the leader of the business, it’s often lonely. Even if you’ve got a husband and wife situation running the business together, sometimes because of the fact that we’re all human, we don’t open up to each other or maybe we open up too much. There’s a whole bunch of interpersonal dynamics that are going on in the leading of a professional building business. So partly, we want to address the isolation thing. We want to make sure that nobody feels like they’re alone and there’s nowhere for them to get help.

Andy Skarda:

When we spoke to the specialists in this area of mental health and wellness, the thing that they zeroed in on was the fact that we don’t talk, we don’t communicate with each other. Russ has alluded to the scarcity mindset and that there is a pervasive attitude of keeping your cards close to your chest. Somebody says, “How are you doing?” “I’m wonderful.” Unless somebody follows it up with, “No, no, how are you really doing?” there’s this superficial interaction that never ever gets into people really talking about how they are and what they’re dealing with in their businesses and, obviously because of that, in their lives.

Andy Skarda:

So that’s really the biggest issue and that’s where we are focusing on; that’s why it’s important. Let’s get people together and let’s get people talking. Outcomes that we were hearing about were that isolation was leading to depression, the depression was leading to self-medication, usually with alcohol and drugs and all of the negative consequences that come with that, and unfortunately to self-harm of varying degrees. I heard one person describe it as people eventually coming up with a permanent solution to a temporary problem. Obviously there we are talking about suicide, unfortunately. 

Andy Skarda:

We’re in an industry where there are power tools around. We are up and down scaffolding. There’s unfortunately, on a day-by-day basis, a real opportunity in this industry for people to get hurt. The reality here is we need to get people to understand that often the problems they are dealing with are temporary. Somebody just down the road went through it a year ago and they’d be happy to share with you how they dealt with it, and that’s really what we’re aiming at. For boys and girls.

Sky Stephens:

I was going to say, it’s a bad day, it’s not a bad life. It’s a bad week, it’s not a bad life. It’s a bad month. Sometimes you’ve just got a problem, one after the other. But often it’s not all bad as well. 

Sky Stephens:

Just going back to something you said just then as well, Andy, was when someone asks you, “How are you,” people always answer, “Yeah, I’m good,” unless someone says, “No, how are you actually?” Because a lot of the time people just don’t even care. We’re actually not even asking really consciously how you are, either. So I think that’s really special about these meetups and these groups. It’s like permission to have time to even care about other people as well. How is everyone? This is our community, this is our local area, all of us are in it together here. How are we doing? Let’s check in.

Andy Skarda:

I think what Russ said earlier is critically important, this idea that we all rise together. I hadn’t even thought about the fact that all of a sudden builders can talk about the Richard Cranium electrician who’s messing them all around. The spinoff from that combined focus on the local building industry, I think is huge.

Bosco Anthony:

Also, I think it was you Sky who said people in the past would say builders are competitors, and now you bring them together. How can builders benefit from this type of network? Usually we focus on clients, we focus on prospects, but now we’re hanging out with our fellow professionals. What’s the key benefit here from this type of network?

Russ Stephens:

Well, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had a builder’s wife reach out to me and just ask that I contact her husband and speak to him because she’s worried, he is going into a bad place. I'm sure Andy has got plenty of similar experiences, both with himself and the coaching team as well. It is quite a common thing. When we reach out to these guys and say, "How are you doing?" What's the first thing they say? "Yeah, great. Yeah, everything's fine." You can't say, "I've been asked to call you," but you know you have to go deeper. Then it brings out the real challenge, and then you can start to help someone when you're talking about the real problem. That's how builders can benefit from these groups, just by being in an environment where they can go beyond the superficial, “I'm great” and talk to people who want to listen to them.

Russ Stephens:

In order to enable builders to benefit fully, we don't have many rules surrounding these meetings, but one thing we do ask of the chapter presidents, obviously we want to keep the registration to owners and directors of residential building companies, but when they're running the meetings, what we do ask that they maintain one conversation at a time. What we don't want is all different conversations going on. These are small groups of 10 people. Everyone deserves to be heard and deserves the respect of the room. That's probably one of the few rules or requirements that we ask of the presidents, is to manage that rule and also to involve everyone. Some people may not want to talk or may not feel comfortable, but at least give them the opportunity to talk so they can be heard.

Russ Stephens:

Another way they can benefit as well is when they register, they can submit a topic or a request for a topic as well. It might be something they want to talk about, it could be supplier pricing, which has been a big topic they've all been talking about and debating lately, and lead times. But networking is really, really powerful and builders are in different niches, so they're not all competitors. We have got competitors coming together, but let's not forget, there are plenty of different niches within this industry and these types of networking, these groups, enable builders to refer each other as well as trades and suppliers that can be recommended as well.

Russ Stephens:

Most importantly, as I was saying earlier, we can learn from other people's experiences because in this industry, you cannot afford to learn from your mistakes because you will run out of money before you learn all the things you need to learn. You have got to learn from other people's experiences.

Sky Stephens:

That's a really good point. You’ve got to find your people because let's remember the typical journey of any building company owner as well, how you got to where you are today, and especially to transform and move into being a professional builder, that's a massive transformation. Very often, you have outgrown the people you've grown up with, you've worked with for the last 5, 10, 15, 20 years as well. Networking is so important to just find your people, find other people who are like-minded, who want to grow, who have bigger goals just like you, who want more in life because it's very rare that the people you've known for 10, 20 or however many years are moving at the same pace or even just in the same direction as you.

Russ Stephens:

Yeah, and let's be honest guys as well, builders love talking to other builders and listening to other builders. Be honest about that. Whenever we meet up with builders at our live events, they might say that they listen to this podcast here. “What's your favourite structure? What episodes you like the best?” “I like listening to other builders’ stories.” They mention that they love listening to Andy as well, and of course Sky. But the number one thing is always, they love the builders’ stories.

Bosco Anthony:

Now, what is the legacy you want to leave for the builders long term?

Sky Stephens:

I think it's just being that we are stronger together. We want to build those strong local communities of professional builders. We really do want to be able to change the culture of the residential construction industry to focus on connection, to focus on collaboration and improvement rather than secrecy, competition and keeping very isolated. That would be the biggest thing, changing the whole culture and it's our mission at APB. Our mission is to improve the whole residential construction industry for both builders and consumers. We do that through working with builders, and this is a wonderful initiative that we could get behind to just localise it for everybody.

Bosco Anthony:

Now in a time of digital clutter and technology and social media, do you think that builders today are more connected or isolated?

Andy Skarda:

I think, like all of us, they are more isolated. Theoretically, ‘fast tube’ and ‘new book’ are there to connect us more, but I think we all know truthfully, a decade into the experiment or more, they’ve actually created a place that people can hide away even more and put up this persona that's not real. So the truth is, builders start out as people, strange as that may sound to some people. So they're facing that level of isolation. And then this is a very unique industry. It brings with it potential problems and stresses and situations that no other industry ever has to deal with. And because of that, it isolates even further.

Andy Skarda:

So ignoring the fact that for the last three years up until the end of 2022, COVID and all of those things, there's inflation, all of those are happening to everybody. But then there's a whole bunch of other things that are happening to builders, and the danger is that it's easy to withdraw. So in terms of isolation, we certainly have not seen that builders are more connected. And absolutely, that is the purpose of our chapters: to help builders come out of that isolation and become genuinely more connected skin to skin, not pixel to pixel.

Russ Stephens:

I think right now we've never seen a moment in time where so many builders are just feeling completely burnt out and exhausted, and it's not surprising with what they've gone through over the past two and a half years with COVID hitting and then the surge in work, and then all the extra work that's gone on behind the scenes for no extra money with all this constant rescheduling, resourcing, trying to get subcontractors on site. It's been probably triple the work for the same amount of money. It's been absolutely exhausting for builders, and they are just mentally and physically burnt out right now. So now more than ever, these guys need all the support they can get.

Bosco Anthony:

I guess my final question is, I'm assuming we'll have the link to join the chapters with the show notes, I guess for this episode?

Sky Stephens:

Definitely. We'll make sure there's some decent information inside the show notes, just so you can read it a little bit more about what they are, what to expect, a little bit more information, everything we've covered here today, and definitely a link where you can register for a chapter in your area or certainly near you.

Bosco Anthony:

Well, Sky, Russ and Andy, thank you so much for being here today and sharing with us a wonderful initiative, and I look forward to seeing this grow worldwide.

Andy Skarda:

Thanks, Bosco.

Sky Stephens:

Thanks, Bosco.

Bosco Anthony:

Thanks, Sky. Thanks, Russ. Cheers.

Bosco Anthony:

Thank you for listening. Remember to subscribe to Professional Builders Secrets on your favourite podcast platform and leave a review. To learn more about how the systems at APB can help you grow your building company, visit associationofprofessionalbuilders.com. See you next time.