The Fab Lab

Storm Tactics - 3 Part Plan for Preparing for an Economic Storm

Better to have a plan and not need it than to be caught unprepared!  The simple principles in this episode will serve you well if an economic storm hits your business.  They will serve you well if a storm doesn't hit your business.

1. Know your #'s - what numbers should you know?

2. Cost Cutting Plan - "If...Then..."

3. Debt Plan - Keeping Reserves

Enjoy and Happy Fabricating!

3 Massive Mistakes I Made During the Great Recession - Economic Storm Stories - Pt 1

Times have been good in recent years, but will they continue?  Hopefully.  But if they dont, and the economic weather gets stormy, the companies that have prepared will be fine.

Those that aren't prepared will make many mistakes like I did in the Great Recession, and some wont survive.

In this episode, I share the 3 biggest mistakes I made so you can avoid them:

1. Not knowing the #'s

2. Hoping instead of cost cutting

3. Too much debt

I've never been shy about my many mistakes in running a stone shop, you wont be disappointed in this episode.

Happy Fabricating! 

The Neuroscience of Gratitude (Happy Thanksgiving 2022!)

We have much to be thankful for, but sometimes bad news and our perceptions can cloud reality to the point we really miss out…and forget how much we have to be thankful for.

In this episode, we explore the POWER of gratitude and the positive effects it WILL have for those who practice it.

We discuss the following:

1. The Chemical Reality of Gratitude
2. Positive Effects of Gratitude
3. Discipline of Gratitude

I hope this finds you well, taking time with loved ones this Thanksgiving weekend.  If you have some spare time and want to read the source articles I mention in the episode, enjoy!

workplace

https://www.whartonhealthcare.org/discovering_the_health

chemical reality

https://www.whartonhealthcare.org/the_neuroscience_of_gratitude

gratitude study

https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/how_gratitude_changes_you_and_your_brain

 

If you’d like to reach out, visit aaroncrowley.com

Or just email me:  aaron@aaroncrowley.com

Happy Fabricating & Happy Thanksgiving!

The 1000 Pound Problem – The Risk and Reality of Full Slab Islands

Stone Shops are in a catch-22.  They can’t say no to the work otherwise their customers will go somewhere else.

So when the customer wants a full slab island installed, the stone shops have to say yes.

But what are they saying yes to?

They are saying yes to enormous risk.  In this episode, we talk about the risk and the reality of moving full slab islands on site and the nuances that MUST be understood if we are going to solve the problems installers face while installing.

Safe Installing!

No Lift Install System is the official sponsor of the Fab Lab podcast. Learn more about the No Lift System at www.NoLiftSystem.com 

The MILLION Pound Problem & The Effects

If you run a stone shop, someone has to install those counters you’re manufacturing…We call them installers and we ask a lot of them.

You might be shocked and you may not believe that we ask them to lift over One Million Pounds of stone per year.

In this episode, I show the math, that proves this statement’s truth.

Additionally, I explain the massive negative EFFECTS the Million Pound Problem has for the installer and your stone shop.

Fellow Fabricator (and installer), this problem is as widespread and important as the risk of moving slabs and the silica in the air in your shop.

We as an industry must address it.

Happy Installing!

Learn more about the No Lift Install System at www.NoLiftSystem.com

Interview – NSI’s Mark Meriaux on OSHA and Silicosis

If you are in the stone fabrication business, you are creating airborne silica.  Its not a question of whether you or your employees are breathing it.

The question is whether the levels are safe for you and your staff and whether they are below the OSHA PEL (permissible exposure levels).

In this episode of the Fab Lab Podcast, we hear from Mark Meriaux from the Natural Stone Institute on changes to OSHA and what it means for you as a shop owner as well as what you can do to minimize the risk to your employees as well as the risk to your company.

Its sobering but good stuff.

Safe Fabricating!

Resource Links:

Natural Stone Institute Safety Page: https://www.naturalstoneinstitute.org/safety/

Natural Stone Institute Silica Page: https://www.naturalstoneinstitute.org/silica/

Natural Stone University (online learning platform) with free safety courses: www.uofstone.com

 

Near Misses and Close Calls – It’s a Dangerous Business

Safety might be the least popular, most uncomfortable, but all the while important topic a stone shop owner needs to face.  In this episode, I share my near-death experiences and the uncomfortable fact that we had many close calls in my stone shop.  This episode begins a short series where we will cover the following:

1. Silicosis
2. Slab Handling and Storage
3. Installing – The Million Pound Problem

Safe Fabricating

Friends in low places

You may not be at a low point in your stone career, but you may know someone who is. 

Don’t underestimate the power of an encouraging word, your friends in low places may really need to hear from you!

Happy fabricating!

Click Here to explore 90 minutes of complimentary coaching with me!  No strings attached, no cost, my gift you fellow fabricator!

Dream Small

We must have small victories, little wins, achievements along the way on the journey towards the big dream… In this episode we break down four areas of life where you can identify smaller dreams that can be achieved in the moment or in the short term, as you build your business to enable you to accomplish the big dream!

Click here to watch the No Lift Install System Q&A Youtube Series

Or click the link below:

https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLAodIrdgp9yWl7s3AlSz7kO9SAUwaycNs

Enjoy and Happy Fabricating!

Aaron

Click Here to explore 90 minutes of complimentary coaching with me!  No strings attached, no cost, my gift you fellow fabricator!

 

The 6 Stages (AKA the 6 D’s)

The journey of a stone shop owner can be exhilarating and marked by success and profits.  Along the way, there can be roadblocks that either wear us out or prevent us from continuing the journey.

In this episode I share the 6 stages of leadership growth and management capacity:

1. The Doer
2. The Director
3. The Dictator
4. The Delegator
5. The Discipler
6. The Dreamer

If we get stuck managing in one of these stages, while the business grows past, the journey can become intolerable, exhausting, frustrating, and disillusioned…even preventing us from taking time off.

But progressing into the latter stages opens up doors and opportunities that you may never thought was possible.

Enjoy and Happy Fabricating!

Aaron

Click Here to explore 90 minutes of complimentary coaching with me!  No strings attached, no cost, my gift you fellow fabricator!