I had a landscaping customer that not only gave me a pair of knee pads, he insisted on putting them on my knees. While I was an older teenager then, that was creepy.
Yep, Had a job building a deck around an over built house about 25 yrs ago. Found out almost too late that he owed a lot of money to a lot of people. Before I started the job, we agreed that when the job was finished, he would pay the bill! He said he didn't have the money owed, That's when my buddy rapped a chain around one of the post that held the deck to the house to his truck and crank it up and started to pull the deck down. Boy, that did the trick. He paid me right then and there! He then asked me if I had pulled down the deck if he hadn't paid me, I said nope, but my buddy would have!
Stan, years ago had a customer who refused to pay for a giant Willow tree removal. So, I returned his Willow logs with my Log Loader truck completely blocking his driveway, also gave him his 2 loads of woodchips back( again, in the driveway). Oh, and a bill for the trucking. That also never was paid.
I had a customer who was a bully to everyone. I fired him. He was in shock. I spent the time replacing him with several very pleasant new customers. New rule....ditch sobs as fast as you can
We used to do courtesy machining between companies. We did a 25k job with the expectation of a handshake promise. We had a large qty contract which exceeded our machinery sizes. The material was shipped to the company and the first week we received 500 parts and the following six months nothing. We found another company in our circle to do the work. When we sent a truck by to pick up the material our driver was told the material had been picked up two weeks earlier. Our steel had been scrapped and we went to court expecting in the least to get remuneration for it, after 18 months we won a judgement against that member of the circle. We now owned half of that business. Within a year from the judgement, we owned that business in its entirety, including its mortgage free real property. We bit the bullet and moved all our equipment into that property. Sold our property and were now mortgage free. We had a meeting of the four in the circle and mutually decided it would be more practical to refuse to quote work that was beyond us.
I had a situation where this lady was asking for extra little things whenever my boss would leave the jobsite and go do bids or whatever. I finally told him and he confronted her about it and said the "Well you're already here, I don't see why I have to pay for it" he ended up charging her for everything extra. He also mentioned her husband couldn't stand her and that's why he didn't live with her. He ended up finally divorcing her about half a year after we finished her project.
I never mow bi weekly .. ever . Two kinds of customers those that want their "lawn mowed" others want their "grass cut" ... worlds of difference My best trick I accidentally did, I told her that she hired me to mow up her grass and leaves and (spring cleanup) remove them from her property as the season really didn't start fast I was putting everything into a garbage can and leaf bags I was in a hurry and just put her debris in the trailer in a corner, the next week I did the same thing and she met me in her driveway and complained that she didn't ask me to do all that and she wasn't paying for it, I really thought she was just goofing around so I said that I could just return her grass and leaves for her and pointed to the trashcan and leaf bags visible in the trailer she freaked out and said she would pay as soon as I sent her a proper billing In the mean time I showed up to mow her neighbor and I caught he snooping in my trailer for her leaves 😮😅 She did pay, all stressed out and "can't sleep at night" over it I wouldn't have really but it worked well
I had a customer when I was about 13 offer me $10 an hour to do some weed eating work at a preschool she owned. I had to borrow my grandpa's big stihl because i had a battery powered weed eater at the time and it was a nightmare job. I tried to tell the lady it needed to be brush hogged and then poisoned but she wouldn't listen to me. Sure enough it all came back a couple months later and she asked me to do it again. I told her I'd only do it if she'd pay me enough to rent a walk behind brush mower to do the job right and she declined and cancelled the regular lawn maintenance I was doing at her house later on. Come to find out a few years later she had a bunch of tax issues and the IRS shut her down. Lesson learned, I'll never take a job like that agin if the customer isn't willing to listen.
I've said those words to two different contractors on two different projects this year. "Hey, while you're here..." I never expected to get something for nothing. I paid extra and was happy with the work. It's strange how people think it's ok to steal. "The worker is worth his wages."
Its so very hard to walk away from a job where you have a bad customer and not say anything. We had a bug pressure washing job on a couple of months back now the lady agreed to a price to pressure wash the very overgrown brickweave and to sand it , when we go there on the day she asked us to pressure wash the wall aswell and she was happy to pay extra we agreed on the extra she left for work.After spending all morning takling big weeds (she said they would pull out)and drainage channels that had been set higher than the brickweave itself we finshed the pressure washing side of it but had left a bit of dirty water due to the lack of drainage so we left a note explaining this and that we would be back the next moring to finish the job ie sand . we had a phone call later that day with the boyfriend laying into us for the mess and that we had not finished the job,so after i had explained we left the note and he had calmed down the call ended only for him to ring again moaning about the price saying we charged was way too much and moaning again about the mess. I told him that he could have the pressure washing on us and he can do the sanding himself . WOW did that hurt but we had the upper hand doing that. The area was enough to fit atleast 7 good sized cars on and was caked in weeds etc no drainage , we qouted a full day over two days for two people plus machine wear and tear etc plus sand £450 was that unreasonable.
Thank you for sharing. As much as those 8 words hurt, it's a painful truth I needed to hear. I actually found it admirable that you didn't leave right then and there. I can only imagine the lessons you gained from this experience. Thank you.
Hi Stan ! Love your channel. That was a great story! Sorry you had to deal with such a person, and glad you had the persistence and know how to use the 'system' to get justice in the workplace.
Because my yard looks just like the before picture I enjoyed every minute of this, and it’s motivating me to get out there today and hit it. Also I love my ego mower too. Good stuff
A few years ago I heard of an app or website that was going to list deadbeat landscaping customers per town/region. It was going to rely on other landscaping companies giving info on deadbeat customers so new companies didn't get stuck chasing payments. I have a feeling legally this wasn't allowed, to bad because it's a great idea.
i had two neighbors fight over what grass with theirs and one of them put in a fake landmark a stick from lowes or somewhere. they both non stop yell that us, so i stupidly ran the stick over and said for beep beep sakes it just grass. So the company paid for an actual land surveyor come out and mark it, guess what she didnt even own the land she was yelling about lol. after that ever saw them again thank god
Stan I love the TRUE stories no matter how simple or not simple they are, and hope folks who watch your videos know that hard work does need to be rewarded. Not everyone works for NASA and has money falling out their pockets. Your guys are always moving in your videos and very little wasted motion goes on. I helped a friend of mine who from PA to AZ, He lived with us and did construction while trying to get back on his feet. He used my tools and equipment and did a few jobs and was doing well. He decided to tackle a large job rehabbing an old Auto repair shop and turning it into NAPA service location. It turned out great but when it came time to complete the job the Owner stiffed him on his last two checks for labor and materials. It was a bit of disappointment. He lost money, but I did get my tools back (most of them) and moved on. He's in CA and I still help when I can. He works supper hard and I see how people like to use that as a tool against him. Those 8 or 10 words that tell the tail, or really just a con man scamming contractors. Keep them coming Stan the videos, Cheers.
Back during the 1990’s I was an HVAC contractor. Just starting out I landed a small commercial building that was primarily completed but needed the final ductwork connected to each office as the spaces were rented. It was owned by a group of lawyers that didn’t like or talk to each other. Took a year to get my money plus attorney fees but the court ruled in my favor and the attorneys paid the fees.
In early retirement I took over a lawn maintenance company. A new customer, a retired firefighter, asked me to take his dog crap bucket and dump it somewhere! I said no of course and while I was mowing in the back yard he dumped the bucket, big bucket, of crap all over my truck and trailer! I didn't know this fellow had a brain injury from a firefighting incident and I lost it on this guy then called the police. Long story short, no charges and the cop said follow me in your truck. We ended up at the firehall where my truck trailer and gear got the cleaning of a lifetime. I went back to this guy's house after and had a talk with the guy and he apologizes and I sympathized and I continued to cut his lawn for many years. His wife hired a doggie scoop crew! Cheers 🇨🇦
Your technique for getting us to watch longer works but man it’s frustrating how every time we start to relax and just listen, you say “and I’ll tell ya about that in just a minute” lol please finish the story no pause
When I started out, I had a neighbor come up to me and told me her guy quit. I thought great I can get another job. That was short lived when she wouldn't let me cut the grass for 3 weeks and we had 15" of rain. She even slapped my arm and told me she was in charge. I did a crappy mow got paid and never went back. I have had yards that I told the customer to pick up everything in the yard before I would mow. They never pick up the toys and the crap in the yard, so I never mowed the grass. The grass was over grown and it was going to be a nightmare to mow anyway. lol Also, did you get my text today?
I do yard care and recently got fired by a customer. Original quote was for her property which was a few acres. It was also on the lower end of the scale but I was willing to do it. Then they added a lot more fencing and dog kennels, but never talk to me about Raising the cost. So every so often when I would be there. They would asked me to string, trim, the dog kennels, or do little bit extra here and there. Which I obviously didn’t always do. This went on for months until I was fired and their reasoning was that I wasn’t doing enough on the property to keep it looking nice but she also wanted me to scalp her yard instead of weekly cuts.
These people definitely exist. Contracts first. I do extra work when homeowners are either very kind or if they never ask to have other things done, in this case i may even suggest something be done just because they are so easy to work for. Now this year i just picked up my first account where the last guy "screwed them" and i told my wife I will not be sending them a contract renewal for next year. those are definitely red flag words! Love the vids man
As a recent customer for work I’m used to doing myself, I admit I have asked the contractor to do another thing or two on the day of the job. It has always been because I completely forgot about it. But it has also always been with the open Declaration I want to pay extra for it. Also, if what I have would cover it, then don’t do it. I’ll call them back when I can pay them.
I get calls about "I can't find your website", I don't need a website, "how will people find you or see your work", I'm busy, I don't need more customers, " oh but you need a website", no I don't need a website... I keep very busy from all my current customers and their referrals to more good people that I haven't had to deal with bad customers.
As a former senior mechanic, that's why I stopped doing minor repairs for a bit of ready cash - for each reasonable person there seemed to be a dozen psycho' nutters.
I had a lawn customer that hired me. The first time i mowed his lawn he came out midway telling me i missed spots. I responded, well im not done yet. He was always a late payer, i mowed weekly and had a policy that if the bill wasnt paid before the following week you were skipped. He always payed late. His plan was to get four mowings and only pay for three because i would skip him and have to double mow the next week. I skipped him one time and he called and said to come back and mow. My response. When i send a invoice and it says due upon reciept thats what it means. He goes ill pay and you can come back and mow. I responded i only mow one day a week, if I'm to return to mow just your yard im charging a 100.00 return fee and mowing fees, if i have to double mow it its double plus the return fee. He proceeded to tell me hes far too busy to pay my bill right away and he needs more flexibility so he was going to let me go. This was two years ago. I see a new lawn company there every couple months. Follow your gut feeling.
After that I'd be getting the secretary to ring round every other contractor and get them to blacklist this guy. People need to help each other avoid the bad payers
The more clients want to space our regular maintenance jobs the more they cost. Yeah. They may pay less often but I still need my money because more time means more growth.
I definitely want to hear that story about the creepiest contractor. As a teen, I would babysit for some folks from church, one of which was a single mom. She was usually pretty good about paying me on a bi-weekly basis, but June came around, the public pool opened, and she decided it was more important to buy all three of her kids season passes than it was to honor her agreement with me. Two weeks later, she still doesn't pay me, this time her excuse is she had to catch up on some bills she let go because of those same season passes. Tooke me 8 weeks to get what she owed me, and since we were on the outs, she had roped in another sucker to watch her kids. Now, I was just a kid myself, no power, no life experience, but if that happened today, I'd handle things differently.
The wicked serve themselves, while the righteous are in service of the Almighty. Who promises to pay more? Did I miss what you did 15 years later in a similar situation?
Nice storytime! Very important lessons to learn by... Unfortunately, long story, got hit for framing, + extras, 3 very custom homes, (same developer) spent 7 years trying to collect Several (!) $100k... The lawyers were the only ones to make money... Even with contracts & change orders... Pick your clients carefully, & document, document, document, just in case. If the gut feels uneasy, walk away... Thanx !
Man, you gotta get some gas powered pro grade equipment. I love your video as always but a good industrial gas powered push mower and a gas powered trimmer would make all the lawns go faster.
I install docks n hoists in MI, I had a customer buy dock from a boat show and had me install it. Upon seeing the product he purchased I told him that he needed to change some pieces before installing said dock due to it being not high enough off of the water. He resisted and I warned him that if a storm kicked up the dock could be compromised. In which it did. I retrieved all of the dock that was floating away, replaced all of the broken pieces with my own money and reinstalled the dock. Only for him to tell me I didn't know how to install docks and he wasn't paying me for anything. At the time I was a small outfit, so shelling out that much money was a big hit. He threatened to call cops if I didn't leave when I was trying to collect. Learned the hard way about doing a job without a written contract
Nice job. That guy will get what's coming to him if he doesn't repent. In California, you can do a mechanics lien. Once you hit them with that, they'll pay 😂.
I've never commented more than once on any video and very rarely even once but this single video has had me commenting three times now I really hope you actually see this last one and hope to have you make a video on how to handle collecting debts as a service provider
Hard working people are never stupid but stupid people take advantage of them. I lost money in my business few times. I believed in the hand shake business but that did not help me. Lucky for you that you collected but I hired an attorney and cost me as much as the debt. I cried about it but 20 years later I still think about sometimes. Thank you for sharing your story
I never did mowing for a living but to finance my beer drinking. Suffice to say, I've been mowing other peoples yards since 1965 but at 73 years old now I need someone to mow my small city lot. We hired a guy that last fall came around asking if we had work for him ,. We had 4 small bushes to remove in front of our house, he backed his old smoking pickup in and jerked them out we paid him cash $ 5o bucks , everyone was happy. Come this spring he returned and offered to power wash all our sidewalks and mow our yard the whole season for $ 1000. He showed up twice after we paid him $500 for half the season. Well we just got our $500 back after reporting him to the police for fraud!
Sounds kind of like the truck driver. That called the cop stupid without knowing what was going on up ahead in the traffic Jam That truck driver was stupid. I find you need to know how many people have moved that 1 in the past. You'll usually spot a pattern. Luckily I know the landscaper is basically in my area. And they talk to each other. Get The scope
nothing wrong with a little insight to tell people what your going to face with the lawn care bid ness plus your good story teller 😮. sure i’d like to know about the creep factor.
The "stupider"? Right there is how i would have responded... Pointing out that he couldn't even grasp the basics of the English language as we packed up our stuff and left the project incomplete One thing I i started doing after several years in business was filing a notice to owner on new client properties if there's any suspicion that they aren't on the level
i'm thinking that whenever a potential client says their previous contractee just quit, it's going to be a good idea to ask the 'client' who their previous contractee was and give them a call - if it's a legit contract break from the client's end they should be happy to provide it, if not...
Customers need to understand that us contractors talk with one another. I routinely will call another plumbing contractor if a job comes up where that contractor left or was kicked out and now the customer wants me to give a quote. Sometimes I give the "Im booked" routine, Sometimes I give the "make me do it" price, Sometimes I will want the money upfront before I will do a job, and sometimes...... its just not worth any money in the world and I refer the job to someone who is not very good.....lol. If your a customer who cant find anybody to work for you..........
I am so sorry anyone would do that to you.any stories you have would be great to hear. Please let me know what namegarage is where you took push mower out of
I have a new neighbor moved in and they cut it once every 6 wks. Drives me crazy. Why move into a house that has an 1.5 acres if your not going to take care of it
Oowchie I might not have whippersnipped that healthy comfrey plant , top right 6.34. Your good wife would have something to say, " Oh NOOO , not the knitbone. it has taken years to get that established.".
your lawn maintenance videos have yet to see any irrigation system maintenance i currently mowing and irrigation for rv park thats approx 30 yrs old and irrigation system ahhhhh why oh why do engineering people design putting irrigation pipeline close to tree's yes in beginning trees were small but roots grow way wider than the canopy of tree roots have choke hold on sprinklers and crush pipes lines
I would have told my guys to pack up and leave the crap behind if I heard those 8 words and told the customer they are fired. Great job standing your ground
You said you didn't know how to handle when your employee was told the dumber you are the harder you work but it happened again and you had an answer. I don't recall seeing it in the video. Did I just miss it somehow?
'You do know I have A-Levels, don't you, a bachelor of science? I've another interesting fact for you. Physics tells us that for every action there must be an equal and opposite reaction. Therefore the lazier you are the lonelier you get, as people will have no time for you just like you have no time for them. You'll die a friendless and bitter old man.'
No amount of money is worth the smallest of demeaning insults to you or one of your workers.i would of finish the 1st lawn job then tell him i womt be back cause of what he said.
Ya I’ve had worse and basically walked away from 3 cleanups side by side and originally it was a 1 for sure then got there 2 for sure and I finished edging original really nice retired all 3 houses sighh I always discount elderly but after initial clean ups it would be fine needed some more in the area to finish up a full day in that area so my help comes walking up to me fast and is loading up I’m like wo w/o take a water break as it was a really hot day the weeds/ grass about 4 foot high and I knew I would barely get away with a double thinking ok I will try and talk them into a week from today and can get it under control when my help caught his breath he said she was furious that we had mowed over some flowers the sweet lady is peaking out at us thru curtains ( warning) so I go to collect and do damage control I get there met by hostilities and so she gets her check book I was charging half of what I normally would A-elderly B- I would make it back thru regular maintenance and perhaps leaf season she ripped the check out of her book handing it to me snatches it back with hate in her eyes says I could get a N--r to do it for half price the customers inbetween I hadn’t talked to yet apparently we’re in there car watching this unfold I bit my tongue and said listen you are a racist mean old b- tch I don’t want your money she responded with I’m calling the cops I said I’m going to take a water break and let my guys get extra rest so you call and when the black dekalb county police show up exactly what are you going to tell them I hear first lady’s door to screen porch shut kind of quiet like you didn’t do me right I we work hard for any race religion sexual preference we are here to make your lawn look good to to be insulted by a racist I told the guys to get in the truck I loaded up and thanked the sweet lady the middle house just hauled ass away poor folks having to live next to such a mean spirited lady ya I over reacted but it did feel good to speak from the heart we were not the first obviously and sure we weren’t the last I’d say that’s the worst 10-15 over 33 years I didn’t ever lose my cool like that again still it did feel good sticking up for all us folks that get treated like second hand citizens o he’s just a painter or a roofer or a carpenter or a mechanic you don’t notice we are humans with little girls and boys that depend on us o you got money cool I’ve bicycle toured thru Europe im from Atlanta and learned to ski in and around aspen Colorado my parents took me backing in the Rocky Mountains for a month and a half when I was 9 I’ve gotten a certificate of appreciation from the Atlanta police chief December 1986 for help taking down some really low life drug addicted rapist robbers I couldn’t have made it easier for the police while everyone else kept to themselves I’ve hung out with the mayor- homeless folks all religions colors good people are good mean people are mean so I got to know these kind of people that judged and would raise my price to avoid and damn if they wouldn’t pay it dad got cancer left my bussiness to do what I could to make his last bit of time the best I could and then be there for mom bussiness imploded as I couldn’t babysit and was torn up after I stopped worrying about my daughter and mom now was my time to exhale and realize how lucky I was to have Peter Arthur Combs as my father his dad Arthur combs pretty well known psychologist society not much of a grandfather and seemed like he always looked down at my dad ya those kind of clients crazy world. I’m starting a worm casting- living soil- worm farm so folks can put the nutrients and minerals back into thier gardens to need doctors and pharmacies less in thier life woooo nellly a little harder than I anticipated but nothing wrong with staying busy may your higher power bless all the good and even questionable 🤔 humans 😁🙏😇😎 love my country question the media and government don’t let politics take away life long friends strength in numbers both parties have failed us all- all of my life for the most part- don’t let computers raise your children
Yes, let's hear the story of the creepiest contractor you ever worked for.
I had a landscaping customer that not only gave me a pair of knee pads, he insisted on putting them on my knees. While I was an older teenager then, that was creepy.
Yep, Had a job building a deck around an over built house about 25 yrs ago. Found out almost too late that he owed a lot of money to a lot of people. Before I started the job, we agreed that when the job was finished, he would pay the bill! He said he didn't have the money owed, That's when my buddy rapped a chain around one of the post that held the deck to the house to his truck and crank it up and started to pull the deck down. Boy, that did the trick. He paid me right then and there! He then asked me if I had pulled down the deck if he hadn't paid me, I said nope, but my buddy would have!
Stan, years ago had a customer who refused to pay for a giant Willow tree removal. So, I returned his Willow logs with my Log Loader truck completely blocking his driveway, also gave him his 2 loads of woodchips back( again, in the driveway). Oh, and a bill for the trucking. That also never was paid.
I had a customer who was a bully to everyone. I fired him. He was in shock. I spent the time replacing him with several very pleasant new customers. New rule....ditch sobs as fast as you can
As soon as I heard those 8 words I would’ve packed up and left. Wouldn’t have asked for payment, but wouldn’t be coming back.
We used to do courtesy machining between companies. We did a 25k job with the expectation of a handshake promise. We had a large qty contract which exceeded our machinery sizes. The material was shipped to the company and the first week we received 500 parts and the following six months nothing. We found another company in our circle to do the work. When we sent a truck by to pick up the material our driver was told the material had been picked up two weeks earlier. Our steel had been scrapped and we went to court expecting in the least to get remuneration for it, after 18 months we won a judgement against that member of the circle. We now owned half of that business. Within a year from the judgement, we owned that business in its entirety, including its mortgage free real property. We bit the bullet and moved all our equipment into that property. Sold our property and were now mortgage free. We had a meeting of the four in the circle and mutually decided it would be more practical to refuse to quote work that was beyond us.
I had a situation where this lady was asking for extra little things whenever my boss would leave the jobsite and go do bids or whatever. I finally told him and he confronted her about it and said the "Well you're already here, I don't see why I have to pay for it" he ended up charging her for everything extra. He also mentioned her husband couldn't stand her and that's why he didn't live with her. He ended up finally divorcing her about half a year after we finished her project.
You could tell me any story... Hanging out with you is awesome Stan. Great content! 👍
I never mow bi weekly .. ever .
Two kinds of customers those that want their "lawn mowed" others want their "grass cut" ... worlds of difference
My best trick I accidentally did, I told her that she hired me to mow up her grass and leaves and (spring cleanup) remove them from her property as the season really didn't start fast I was putting everything into a garbage can and leaf bags I was in a hurry and just put her debris in the trailer in a corner, the next week I did the same thing and she met me in her driveway and complained that she didn't ask me to do all that and she wasn't paying for it, I really thought she was just goofing around so I said that I could just return her grass and leaves for her and pointed to the trashcan and leaf bags visible in the trailer she freaked out and said she would pay as soon as I sent her a proper billing
In the mean time I showed up to mow her neighbor and I caught he snooping in my trailer for her leaves 😮😅
She did pay, all stressed out and "can't sleep at night" over it
I wouldn't have really but it worked well
I had a customer when I was about 13 offer me $10 an hour to do some weed eating work at a preschool she owned. I had to borrow my grandpa's big stihl because i had a battery powered weed eater at the time and it was a nightmare job. I tried to tell the lady it needed to be brush hogged and then poisoned but she wouldn't listen to me. Sure enough it all came back a couple months later and she asked me to do it again. I told her I'd only do it if she'd pay me enough to rent a walk behind brush mower to do the job right and she declined and cancelled the regular lawn maintenance I was doing at her house later on. Come to find out a few years later she had a bunch of tax issues and the IRS shut her down. Lesson learned, I'll never take a job like that agin if the customer isn't willing to listen.
Lmao! This whole video was just an EGO ad. That mulcher did a really bad job btw. Definitely don't buy one of those! Wow those are terrible.
I've said those words to two different contractors on two different projects this year. "Hey, while you're here..." I never expected to get something for nothing. I paid extra and was happy with the work. It's strange how people think it's ok to steal.
"The worker is worth his wages."
Its so very hard to walk away from a job where you have a bad customer and not say anything. We had a bug pressure washing job on a couple of months back now the lady agreed to a price to pressure wash the very overgrown brickweave and to sand it , when we go there on the day she asked us to pressure wash the wall aswell and she was happy to pay extra we agreed on the extra she left for work.After spending all morning takling big weeds (she said they would pull out)and drainage channels that had been set higher than the brickweave itself we finshed the pressure washing side of it but had left a bit of dirty water due to the lack of drainage so we left a note explaining this and that we would be back the next moring to finish the job ie sand . we had a phone call later that day with the boyfriend laying into us for the mess and that we had not finished the job,so after i had explained we left the note and he had calmed down the call ended only for him to ring again moaning about the price saying we charged was way too much and moaning again about the mess. I told him that he could have the pressure washing on us and he can do the sanding himself . WOW did that hurt but we had the upper hand doing that. The area was enough to fit atleast 7 good sized cars on and was caked in weeds etc no drainage , we qouted a full day over two days for two people plus machine wear and tear etc plus sand £450 was that unreasonable.
Thank you for sharing. As much as those 8 words hurt, it's a painful truth I needed to hear. I actually found it admirable that you didn't leave right then and there. I can only imagine the lessons you gained from this experience. Thank you.
Hi Stan ! Love your channel. That was a great story! Sorry you had to deal with such a person, and glad you had the persistence and know how to use the 'system' to get justice in the workplace.
Because my yard looks just like the before picture I enjoyed every minute of this, and it’s motivating me to get out there today and hit it. Also I love my ego mower too. Good stuff
YES! I want to hear about the creapy contractor!!! Loving these stories!
I built a shed, treehouse, a hot tub surround, a deck and an outdoor kitchen for this woman. Now I have to pay for it and half the mortgage.....
Get a contract. Are you a licensed contractor?
I’m pretty sure it was his wife or GF
Ex-wife
😂 I heard that one coming
Sounds like that customer needed some roundup on ALL his yard.
You have to anonymously send this customer a fake 1 million dollar winning scratch ticket in the mail 😂
A few years ago I heard of an app or website that was going to list deadbeat landscaping customers per town/region. It was going to rely on other landscaping companies giving info on deadbeat customers so new companies didn't get stuck chasing payments. I have a feeling legally this wasn't allowed, to bad because it's a great idea.
i had two neighbors fight over what grass with theirs and one of them put in a fake landmark a stick from lowes or somewhere. they both non stop yell that us, so i stupidly ran the stick over and said for beep beep sakes it just grass. So the company paid for an actual land surveyor come out and mark it, guess what she didnt even own the land she was yelling about lol. after that ever saw them again thank god
That bad first customer must be the hardest working little man on the face of this earth 😮
You could weed whip everything you tried to cut with that electric pile of crap way faster
Stan I love the TRUE stories no matter how simple or not simple they are, and hope folks who watch your videos know that hard work does need to be rewarded. Not everyone works for NASA and has money falling out their pockets. Your guys are always moving in your videos and very little wasted motion goes on. I helped a friend of mine who from PA to AZ, He lived with us and did construction while trying to get back on his feet. He used my tools and equipment and did a few jobs and was doing well. He decided to tackle a large job rehabbing an old Auto repair shop and turning it into NAPA service location. It turned out great but when it came time to complete the job the Owner stiffed him on his last two checks for labor and materials. It was a bit of disappointment. He lost money, but I did get my tools back (most of them) and moved on. He's in CA and I still help when I can. He works supper hard and I see how people like to use that as a tool against him. Those 8 or 10 words that tell the tail, or really just a con man scamming contractors. Keep them coming Stan the videos, Cheers.
Thank you sir. Appreciate the good info
Back during the 1990’s I was an HVAC contractor. Just starting out I landed a small commercial building that was primarily completed but needed the final ductwork connected to each office as the spaces were rented. It was owned by a group of lawyers that didn’t like or talk to each other. Took a year to get my money plus attorney fees but the court ruled in my favor and the attorneys paid the fees.
Go figure always beware of lawyers sorry to the good ones out there
In early retirement I took over a lawn maintenance company. A new customer, a retired firefighter, asked me to take his dog crap bucket and dump it somewhere! I said no of course and while I was mowing in the back yard he dumped the bucket, big bucket, of crap all over my truck and trailer! I didn't know this fellow had a brain injury from a firefighting incident and I lost it on this guy then called the police. Long story short, no charges and the cop said follow me in your truck. We ended up at the firehall where my truck trailer and gear got the cleaning of a lifetime. I went back to this guy's house after and had a talk with the guy and he apologizes and I sympathized and I continued to cut his lawn for many years. His wife hired a doggie scoop crew! Cheers 🇨🇦
Your technique for getting us to watch longer works but man it’s frustrating how every time we start to relax and just listen, you say “and I’ll tell ya about that in just a minute” lol please finish the story no pause
Did he ever tell us how he handled the 8 words the second time it happened?
If that guy had said those eight words to me, I would have packed everything up and left
I just tell people like that to not confuse education with intelligence!
Thankfully i have never had to deal with someone insulting my crew, Im not sure id be able to maintain a cool composure. Hope you have a good weekend!
When I started out, I had a neighbor come up to me and told me her guy quit. I thought great I can get another job. That was short lived when she wouldn't let me cut the grass for 3 weeks and we had 15" of rain. She even slapped my arm and told me she was in charge. I did a crappy mow got paid and never went back. I have had yards that I told the customer to pick up everything in the yard before I would mow. They never pick up the toys and the crap in the yard, so I never mowed the grass. The grass was over grown and it was going to be a nightmare to mow anyway. lol
Also, did you get my text today?
I do yard care and recently got fired by a customer. Original quote was for her property which was a few acres. It was also on the lower end of the scale but I was willing to do it. Then they added a lot more fencing and dog kennels, but never talk to me about Raising the cost. So every so often when I would be there. They would asked me to string, trim, the dog kennels, or do little bit extra here and there. Which I obviously didn’t always do. This went on for months until I was fired and their reasoning was that I wasn’t doing enough on the property to keep it looking nice but she also wanted me to scalp her yard instead of weekly cuts.
These people definitely exist. Contracts first. I do extra work when homeowners are either very kind or if they never ask to have other things done, in this case i may even suggest something be done just because they are so easy to work for. Now this year i just picked up my first account where the last guy "screwed them" and i told my wife I will not be sending them a contract renewal for next year. those are definitely red flag words! Love the vids man
As a recent customer for work I’m used to doing myself, I admit I have asked the contractor to do another thing or two on the day of the job. It has always been because I completely forgot about it. But it has also always been with the open Declaration I want to pay extra for it. Also, if what I have would cover it, then don’t do it. I’ll call them back when I can pay them.
Yep, let's hear the creepy contractor story. I love hearing your lessons you have learned.
Need to remediate that Tree of Heaven.
Do we want to here it?! Umm yes! Yes we do. Lol
I really enjoy your videos, and I would love to hear all the stories you have.
I get calls about "I can't find your website", I don't need a website, "how will people find you or see your work", I'm busy, I don't need more customers, " oh but you need a website", no I don't need a website... I keep very busy from all my current customers and their referrals to more good people that I haven't had to deal with bad customers.
Having worked in the retail automotive business for decades, I have too many stories like this to even count..
As a former senior mechanic, that's why I stopped doing minor repairs for a bit of ready cash - for each reasonable person there seemed to be a dozen psycho' nutters.
I had a lawn customer that hired me. The first time i mowed his lawn he came out midway telling me i missed spots. I responded, well im not done yet. He was always a late payer, i mowed weekly and had a policy that if the bill wasnt paid before the following week you were skipped. He always payed late. His plan was to get four mowings and only pay for three because i would skip him and have to double mow the next week. I skipped him one time and he called and said to come back and mow. My response. When i send a invoice and it says due upon reciept thats what it means. He goes ill pay and you can come back and mow. I responded i only mow one day a week, if I'm to return to mow just your yard im charging a 100.00 return fee and mowing fees, if i have to double mow it its double plus the return fee. He proceeded to tell me hes far too busy to pay my bill right away and he needs more flexibility so he was going to let me go. This was two years ago. I see a new lawn company there every couple months. Follow your gut feeling.
thank you for the beetle tip
I don't offer bi weekly mowing
After that I'd be getting the secretary to ring round every other contractor and get them to blacklist this guy. People need to help each other avoid the bad payers
The more clients want to space our regular maintenance jobs the more they cost. Yeah. They may pay less often but I still need my money because more time means more growth.
Enjoyed from Texas! Thank you for sharing!
I definitely want to hear that story about the creepiest contractor.
As a teen, I would babysit for some folks from church, one of which was a single mom. She was usually pretty good about paying me on a bi-weekly basis, but June came around, the public pool opened, and she decided it was more important to buy all three of her kids season passes than it was to honor her agreement with me. Two weeks later, she still doesn't pay me, this time her excuse is she had to catch up on some bills she let go because of those same season passes. Tooke me 8 weeks to get what she owed me, and since we were on the outs, she had roped in another sucker to watch her kids. Now, I was just a kid myself, no power, no life experience, but if that happened today, I'd handle things differently.
Stan I'm going through it now for a customer that I did work for last year thinking headed to court
The wicked serve themselves, while the righteous are in service of the Almighty. Who promises to pay more?
Did I miss what you did 15 years later in a similar situation?
Nice storytime! Very important lessons to learn by... Unfortunately, long story, got hit for framing, + extras, 3 very custom homes, (same developer) spent 7 years trying to collect
Several (!) $100k... The lawyers were the only ones to make money... Even with contracts & change orders... Pick your clients carefully, & document, document, document, just in case. If the gut feels uneasy, walk away... Thanx !
Man, you gotta get some gas powered pro grade equipment. I love your video as always but a good industrial gas powered push mower and a gas powered trimmer would make all the lawns go faster.
I install docks n hoists in MI, I had a customer buy dock from a boat show and had me install it. Upon seeing the product he purchased I told him that he needed to change some pieces before installing said dock due to it being not high enough off of the water. He resisted and I warned him that if a storm kicked up the dock could be compromised. In which it did. I retrieved all of the dock that was floating away, replaced all of the broken pieces with my own money and reinstalled the dock. Only for him to tell me I didn't know how to install docks and he wasn't paying me for anything. At the time I was a small outfit, so shelling out that much money was a big hit. He threatened to call cops if I didn't leave when I was trying to collect. Learned the hard way about doing a job without a written contract
Where's your zero turn?
Good story and it points out how unscrupulous some people are. You had to work twice.
What about when a customer speaks poorly to one of your employees ?
Nice job. That guy will get what's coming to him if he doesn't repent. In California, you can do a mechanics lien. Once you hit them with that, they'll pay 😂.
Would love to hear more stories!!
I've never commented more than once on any video and very rarely even once but this single video has had me commenting three times now I really hope you actually see this last one and hope to have you make a video on how to handle collecting debts as a service provider
Hard working people are never stupid but stupid people take advantage of them. I lost money in my business few times. I believed in the hand shake business but that did not help me. Lucky for you that you collected but I hired an attorney and cost me as much as the debt. I cried about it but 20 years later I still think about sometimes. Thank you for sharing your story
story time = yes.
Listen to Oliver Anthony much.
Stan, if that was me I'd pickup a load of manure from a local farm and go dump it in his yard.
Excellent advice and video Stanley ❤😊😮
I never did mowing for a living but to finance my beer drinking. Suffice to say, I've been mowing other peoples yards since 1965 but at 73 years old now I need someone to mow my small city lot. We hired a guy that last fall came around asking if we had work for him ,. We had 4 small bushes to remove in front of our house, he backed his old smoking pickup in and jerked them out we paid him cash $ 5o bucks , everyone was happy. Come this spring he returned and offered to power wash all our sidewalks and mow our yard the whole season for $ 1000. He showed up twice after we paid him $500 for half the season. Well we just got our $500 back after reporting him to the police for fraud!
Troy Ohio, 20 miles north of Dayton@@scottderaas2692
Mr Stan will you tell me what that garage was called where you took push mower out of please
Thanks for the awesome videos
Hearing someone call another human an idiot or stupid is one of my biggest pet peeves I wouldn't have time to think about how I'd respond.
Sounds kind of like the truck driver. That called the cop stupid without knowing what was going on up ahead in the traffic Jam That truck driver was stupid. I find you need to know how many people have moved that 1 in the past. You'll usually spot a pattern. Luckily I know the landscaper is basically in my area. And they talk to each other. Get The scope
Now I don't feel bad for letting mine go for 3 weeks.
nothing wrong with a little insight to tell people what your going to face with the lawn care bid ness plus your good story teller 😮. sure i’d like to know about the creep factor.
Looks like you should have been wearing chainsaw chap`s.
Thinking about buying one of them ego mowers stan? How many batteries did you use to do all that mowing?
👍🏻🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸
I did custom hay and I don't think I was ever stiffed. I did have a few I wouldn't do because it would be trash going thru my equipment.
The "stupider"? Right there is how i would have responded... Pointing out that he couldn't even grasp the basics of the English language as we packed up our stuff and left the project incomplete
One thing I i started doing after several years in business was filing a notice to owner on new client properties if there's any suspicion that they aren't on the level
What's so bad about mowing every 2 weeks? I'm not running a golf course.
i'm thinking that whenever a potential client says their previous contractee just quit, it's going to be a good idea to ask the 'client' who their previous contractee was and give them a call - if it's a legit contract break from the client's end they should be happy to provide it, if not...
hate to say it but sometimes you just have to learn to say no and be the asshole as a service provider
Customers need to understand that us contractors talk with one another. I routinely will call another plumbing contractor if a job comes up where that contractor left or was kicked out and now the customer wants me to give a quote. Sometimes I give the "Im booked" routine, Sometimes I give the "make me do it" price, Sometimes I will want the money upfront before I will do a job, and sometimes...... its just not worth any money in the world and I refer the job to someone who is not very good.....lol.
If your a customer who cant find anybody to work for you..........
I am so sorry anyone would do that to you.any stories you have would be great to hear. Please let me know what namegarage is where you took push mower out of
I have a new neighbor moved in and they cut it once every 6 wks. Drives me crazy. Why move into a house that has an 1.5 acres if your not going to take care of it
Is this a ego commercial 😂
I would of collected my crew, and walked off the site, period. The instant someone disrespected a crew member like that.
We used to just give it to a collection agency!
Ya sure, tell away bub, how are the kids doing, water well still got, stay happy, stay healthy, stay safe bub...
Oowchie I might not have whippersnipped that healthy comfrey plant , top right 6.34. Your good wife would have something to say, " Oh NOOO , not the knitbone. it has taken years to get that established.".
Think this was a 13 minute video for e- go mowers
your lawn maintenance videos have yet to see any irrigation system maintenance
i currently mowing and irrigation for rv park thats approx 30 yrs old and irrigation system ahhhhh why oh why do engineering people design putting irrigation pipeline close to tree's
yes in beginning trees were small but roots grow way wider than the canopy of tree
roots have choke hold on sprinklers and crush pipes lines
Electric mowers are ridiculous.
I would have told my guys to pack up and leave the crap behind if I heard those 8 words and told the customer they are fired. Great job standing your ground
NO, and stop being so trusting. If you don't get right the job, stop there.
You said you didn't know how to handle when your employee was told the dumber you are the harder you work but it happened again and you had an answer. I don't recall seeing it in the video. Did I just miss it somehow?
'You do know I have A-Levels, don't you, a bachelor of science? I've another interesting fact for you. Physics tells us that for every action there must be an equal and opposite reaction. Therefore the lazier you are the lonelier you get, as people will have no time for you just like you have no time for them. You'll die a friendless and bitter old man.'
What's up with the double blades on the ego?
No amount of money is worth the smallest of demeaning insults to you or one of your workers.i would of finish the 1st lawn job then tell him i womt be back cause of what he said.
Yes , please tell the story 😮
Love the videos
Ya I’ve had worse and basically walked away from 3 cleanups side by side and originally it was a 1 for sure then got there 2 for sure and I finished edging original really nice retired all 3 houses sighh I always discount elderly but after initial clean ups it would be fine needed some more in the area to finish up a full day in that area so my help comes walking up to me fast and is loading up I’m like wo w/o take a water break as it was a really hot day the weeds/ grass about 4 foot high and I knew I would barely get away with a double thinking ok I will try and talk them into a week from today and can get it under control when my help caught his breath he said she was furious that we had mowed over some flowers the sweet lady is peaking out at us thru curtains ( warning) so I go to collect and do damage control I get there met by hostilities and so she gets her check book I was charging half of what I normally would A-elderly B- I would make it back thru regular maintenance and perhaps leaf season she ripped the check out of her book handing it to me snatches it back with hate in her eyes says I could get a N--r to do it for half price the customers inbetween I hadn’t talked to yet apparently we’re in there car watching this unfold I bit my tongue and said listen you are a racist mean old b- tch I don’t want your money she responded with I’m calling the cops I said I’m going to take a water break and let my guys get extra rest so you call and when the black dekalb county police show up exactly what are you going to tell them I hear first lady’s door to screen porch shut kind of quiet like you didn’t do me right I we work hard for any race religion sexual preference we are here to make your lawn look good to to be insulted by a racist I told the guys to get in the truck I loaded up and thanked the sweet lady the middle house just hauled ass away poor folks having to live next to such a mean spirited lady ya I over reacted but it did feel good to speak from the heart we were not the first obviously and sure we weren’t the last I’d say that’s the worst 10-15 over 33 years I didn’t ever lose my cool like that again still it did feel good sticking up for all us folks that get treated like second hand citizens o he’s just a painter or a roofer or a carpenter or a mechanic you don’t notice we are humans with little girls and boys that depend on us o you got money cool I’ve bicycle toured thru Europe im from Atlanta and learned to ski in and around aspen Colorado my parents took me backing in the Rocky Mountains for a month and a half when I was 9 I’ve gotten a certificate of appreciation from the Atlanta police chief December 1986 for help taking down some really low life drug addicted rapist robbers I couldn’t have made it easier for the police while everyone else kept to themselves I’ve hung out with the mayor- homeless folks all religions colors good people are good mean people are mean so I got to know these kind of people that judged and would raise my price to avoid and damn if they wouldn’t pay it dad got cancer left my bussiness to do what I could to make his last bit of time the best I could and then be there for mom bussiness imploded as I couldn’t babysit and was torn up after I stopped worrying about my daughter and mom now was my time to exhale and realize how lucky I was to have Peter Arthur Combs as my father his dad Arthur combs pretty well known psychologist society not much of a grandfather and seemed like he always looked down at my dad ya those kind of clients crazy world. I’m starting a worm casting- living soil- worm farm so folks can put the nutrients and minerals back into thier gardens to need doctors and pharmacies less in thier life woooo nellly a little harder than I anticipated but nothing wrong with staying busy may your higher power bless all the good and even questionable 🤔 humans 😁🙏😇😎 love my country question the media and government don’t let politics take away life long friends strength in numbers both parties have failed us all- all of my life for the most part- don’t let computers raise your children
Battery powered will always let you down
Sure let’s here that story too
ICHTHUS
Stan, you should always have a knife on you.