The Huge Insider

De: The Huge
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  • Weekly actionable insights that add profit to your bottom line
    Copyright 2025 All rights reserved.
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Episodios
  • Episode 15: Meetings That Don't Suck with Michael Kaplan
    Apr 28 2025
    In this episode of The Huge Insider Podcast, Michael Kaplan breaks down how team meetings, when done right, can drive culture, mission alignment, communication, and motivation across an entire organization. Instead of boring status updates, great meetings reinforce your company’s purpose, deliver key information, cascade leadership messages, and celebrate success. You'll walk away with actionable tips on how to plan your meetings with purpose, inject energy into the room (think "Black Betty" as a hype song), and engage your team so they leave energized and informed. If you want your team rowing in the same direction—toward growth and excellence—this episode gives you the blueprint. Show Notes Guest Michael Kaplan Home service entrepreneur since 2006 Scaled a carpet cleaning business to over 150 employees and eight figures in revenue Resources Mentioned Downloadable Action Guide The Huge Insider Newsletter Signup Foundations Platform Free Trial The Huge Mastermind Info Page Facebook Group Huge Convention Tickets August 20–22, 2025, in Nashville, TN Transcript Sid Graef: Welcome back to the Huge Insider Podcast. Hey, my friend, it's Sid Graef here, and the Huge Insider is the show for home service professionals that are striving to break the million-dollar revenue mark. And if that's you, you're in the right place. If you're already over a million dollars in revenue, you will get even more out of this show. So we want to help you skip the BS and get real wisdom from experienced business builders. We've gathered wisdom and insight directly from seven- and eight-figure business owners, people who are running companies that do anywhere from 2 million a year to 40 million a year, and we're bringing you their best insights, all focused on one single topic each month. And these are real owners. They're not armchair philosophers or fake gurus. These are the ones that are quietly building empires behind the scenes. They're not on social media looking for attention. They're in business actually making things happen. So last month we focused on hiring A-players, and this month we answered the question, what do you do once you hire the right person? You've got onboarding, pay structure, training, safety, and much more. And today's topic is team meetings and the value of team meetings. So you're about to hear from Michael Kaplan. Michael Kaplan built a strong eight-figure carpet cleaning business in the Midwest, and he knows about team meetings because they had over 150 employees and they had to get everyone on the same page week after week after week. So he goes into a lot of detail about what a good team meeting needs to be successful and why it's important. You know, most businesses treat team meetings as an afterthought or skip them altogether and just assume that everybody knows what to do and where they need to be. Last thing before we dive in, we've got a downloadable action guide for you for this episode, and it's available at thehugeinsider.com. So with that, let's dive into it. Michael Kaplan: Hello, podcasters. My name's Michael Kaplan. I've been a home service entrepreneur since 2006, and I drew the short straw. So I get to talk to you about team meetings, and actually, I'm a bit of a team meeting nerd, so maybe it's not a super short straw. But most people groan and hate the prospect of having a team meeting because most meetings suck. And no offense, your meetings probably suck. Mine have too, and I've got a couple of tips here to help you think through how to make your meetings suck less or maybe even accomplish a couple of goals. So think about the tone of the meeting as much as the content of the meeting. How you deliver the message matters almost as much as the message. And similarly important, think really hard about how much you're trying to accomplish. Less is more, and the risk of overextending is real, and you'll dilute the message if you do overextend. So you've got the full team there. How are you going to set the tone? I always think upbeat. Get people kind of rocking going into the meeting. Think, you know, Ram Jam, "Black Betty" — that's always been my go-to. Have a clear agenda and don't stuff it too full, but for me, a successful meeting's going to tick all these boxes: It's going to reinforce culture. It's going to cascade a message from the leadership team. It's going to reinforce the mission. It's going to transfer information. And it's going to celebrate success. So let me unpack those real quick. On reinforcing culture: you are not in front of your whole team every day, at least not in this manner. So fill their buckets, remind them their why, why they show up, why they love each other, what's great about the company, what's special. Like it might be feedback from a customer that you're relaying. There are any number of ways to do it, but really think about what you guys stand for and how you can transfer that throughout the meeting. You want to ...
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    10 m
  • Episode 16: Beyond Day One - Onboarding That Builds Loyalty with Liz Trotter
    Apr 23 2025
    In this episode of the Huge Transformations Podcast, Liz Trotter flips the script on traditional onboarding. Forget stuffing forms into Day One—real onboarding is about connection, clarity, and belonging. Liz walks us through how onboarding should begin the moment the offer is accepted—not the moment they walk through the door. From sending pre-start welcome kits to scheduling intentional one-on-ones, this is the people-first playbook for retaining great hires from day one. If you're tired of the revolving door of new hires or want a smoother, more human onboarding system, this episode is your roadmap. What You’ll Learn: Why onboarding starts before Day One The emotional goal of onboarding: connection + clarity What to send before their first shift to reduce anxiety How to create a first-day experience that builds loyalty What kind of conversations to have in week one to build trust Pro Tip: Onboarding isn’t a checklist—it’s how you bring people into the soul of your business. Downloadable Action Guide The Huge Insider Newsletter Signup Foundations Platform Free Trial The Huge Mastermind Info Page Facebook Group Huge Convention Tickets August 20–22, 2025, in Nashville, TN Transcript Sid Graef: Welcome back to the Huge Insider Podcast. Hey, my friend, Sid Graef here, and The Huge Insider is the show for home service professionals that are striving to break the million-dollar revenue mark. And if that's you, you're definitely in the right place. If you're already above a million dollars, you're going to get even more out of the show. So we want to help you skip the BS and get real wisdom from experienced business builders. We've gathered wisdom and insight directly from seven- and eight-figure business owners—people who are running companies that do anywhere from 2 million a year to 40 million a year. We bring you their best insights, all focused on a single topic each month. These are real business owners. They're the ones actually quietly building empires behind the scenes, so they're in business making things happen. Now, last month we focused on hiring A-players, and this month we answer the question: what do you do once you hire the right person? The first thing you do is you onboard them. And not just with a list of tasks and forms to sign, but by embedding them into the soul of your company culture. That’s exactly what today’s guest, Liz Trotter, is here to teach us. Liz is a true business rockstar with several seven-figure businesses. She owns them—she's not running the day-to-day. So anytime Liz speaks, I listen carefully and take notes. In this episode, she’s going to walk us through not only an onboarding checklist but also a deeper onboarding philosophy. Let’s dig in, and remember, there’s a downloadable action guide for this episode at thehugeinsider.com. Liz Trotter: Hey all, Liz here. I want to talk to you a little bit about onboarding today. The idea behind onboarding might be a little different than what you're used to. Most people think onboarding is just what you do on day one—uniforms, legal forms, job description talks. And sure, you need to do that stuff, but that’s not onboarding for success. Onboarding should start the minute someone accepts your job offer. You want to begin embedding them into your company culture before they ever walk in the door. That might look like sending them a job description, expectations for behavior, and even a "favorites list" to help you connect on a personal level. Clarity reduces anxiety, so the more prepared and informed your new hire feels, the better they’ll perform. Let them know how success is measured in the role—even if it’s just a brief overview. You can dive into details later, but start with transparency. Day one should include a warm welcome. Whether it’s a welcome kit with their name on it, a Slack introduction, or a name up on the board, make sure they feel like they belong. Introduce them to the team, and start giving them context around how their work contributes to your company’s big-picture mission. Schedule one-on-ones early and often. Reduce the anxiety of the unknown by telling them what to expect in those meetings. And when mistakes happen, focus them on the future. Show them that the best is yet to come. If you follow this onboarding approach, you won't just gain a new employee—you’ll nurture loyalty, performance, and a sense of purpose right from the start. Sid Graef: Okay, so what did you learn about onboarding? More importantly, what are you going to do with it? The action guide simplifies this whole process and is ready for you to download at thehugeinsider.com. As always, subscribe to our free newsletter, The Huge Insider, for weekly insights. Join the Facebook community, and grab your tickets for The Huge Convention, happening August 20th through 22nd in Nashville, Tennessee. This is the last time we’ll be in Nashville for a while, and prices go up on...
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    15 m
  • Episode 14: Safety & Certifications with Sheila Smeltzer
    Apr 21 2025
    Safety training isn’t box‑checking—it’s profit, people, and peace of mind. Host Sid Graef interviews Sheila Smeltzer (President, A+ Pro Services and former IWCA president) about building a bullet‑proof safety culture for home‑service firms. Sheila explains why OSHA 1910 rules matter, how a single four‑foot drop can cost six‑figure fines, and why ladder incidents alone send 200,000+ workers to the ER every year. Her framework is simple: Know the law. OSHA 1910 Subpart D (walking‑working surfaces) and Subpart I (PPE) govern most field work. Use qualified trainers. Hire or outsource a qualified person who can certify employees and document everything. Systemize it. Flag hazards in your CRM (e.g., ServiceTitan), create written Job Hazard Analyses and Safety Work Plans, and re‑train annually. Document or it didn’t happen. Clear, signed records slash liability and keep crews—and profits—intact. The takeaway: a documented, repeatable safety program protects lives and margins better than any marketing hack. Show Notes Guest – Sheila Smeltzer, President, A+ Pro Services (window cleaning & exterior maintenance, NC) – https://aplusproservices.com/ A+ Pro Serivces | (910)-754-2263 Host – Sid Graef, Huge Insider Podcast – https://thehugeinsider.com References & Links Mentioned OSHA 1910 General Industry Standards – https://www.osha.gov/laws-regs/regulations/standardnumber/1910 Subpart D – Walking‑Working Surfaces – https://www.osha.gov/laws-regs/regulations/standardnumber/1910/1910SubpartD Subpart I – Personal Protective Equipment – https://www.osha.gov/laws-regs/regulations/standardnumber/1910/1910SubpartI International Window Cleaning Association (IWCA) Power Washers of North America (PWNA) Expert Safety Services / Safety Advocate App ServiceTitan field‑service CRM Call‑in line to share your story – (804) 600‑4843 Resources The Huge Insider newsletter signup The Huge Insider podcast downloadable action guide Foundations platform 1‑month trial The Huge Mastermind info Huge Foundations Facebook group Transcript SID GRAEF: Welcome back to the Huge Insider Podcast. Hey, my friend, it’s Sid Graef here. The Huge Insider is the show for home‑service professionals who are striving to break the million‑dollar revenue mark. If that’s you, you’re in the right place, and if you’re already over a million dollars of revenue, congratulations—you’re going to get even more out of this show. We want to help you skip the BS and get real wisdom from experienced business builders. That’s why we’ve gathered wisdom and insight directly from seven‑ and eight‑figure business owners—people running companies that do anywhere from $2 million a year to $40 million a year—and we’re bringing you the best insights. It’s all focused on one topic each month, and these are real owners. There are no arm‑chair philosophers or fake gurus. These are the people quietly building empires behind the scenes; they’re not on social media looking for attention—they’re in business making things happen. Last month we focused on hiring A‑players. You can’t build your dream without people, so you’ve got to have the right people. This month we answer the question, What do you do once you hire the right person?—on‑boarding, pay structure, training, and more. And today’s topic is safety training. You’re about to hear from Sheila Smeltzer. She owns a thriving window‑cleaning business in North Carolina and has been the president of the IWCA—the International Window Cleaning Association. She goes into a lot of detail today about what safety training needs to be successful. And it’s funny, because most service businesses treat safety training as an afterthought. They make jokes like, “Just be careful—if you fall, you’re going to be fired before you hit the ground.” Safety’s not a joke; it requires planning, diligence, and repetition so that you can keep your people safe, because there really is no window that needs to be cleaned or Christmas light that needs to be hung that’s worth having someone on your team—or yourself—get badly injured or killed. Sheila’s going to dive into it. Before we do, we’ve got a downloadable action guide for you, and it’s available at The Huge Insider. As always, I’m thankful that you’re here. Get ready to learn from Sheila Smeltzer—let’s get into it. SHEILA SMELTZER: Hey everyone, this is Sheila Smeltzer, today’s contributor to the Huge Transformation Podcast, and we are talking about a not‑so‑fun topic today, but something that is absolutely crucial to protecting the liability of your company—safety: safety standards, training, and certifications. Now, this topic is near and dear to my heart. I have served on the board of directors for the International Window Cleaning Association—I’m the immediate past president—and ...
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    24 m
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