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As a driven leader in a blue-collar industry, I’m sure you’re no stranger to making mistakes. If you’re at all like me, you’ve made some big mistakes throughout your career. These are not just to be expected, but I’m here to help you remember that they are absolutely necessary for your continued growth and evolution as a driven leader.

For many years, I’ve been offering a free demo version of the “Hydronics Design Studio” software that I co-developed with my long-time colleague, Mario Restive. It’s there for the taking at www.hydronicpros.com.

When I first entered the trades in 1972, residential tank-style water heaters shipped with the aquastat set to approximately 140° F. Dishwashers had no need to incorporate a sanitizing cycle. Around 1977, water heater manufacturers were required to lower the aquastat temperature setting to approximately 120°, and now, dishwashers needed to incorporate a sanitizing cycle where rinse water in their reservoir was raised to 140° or higher.

When I first began covering the HVAC industry almost eight years ago now, I was one of few women — if there were any others — in the room. Since that time, I have started seeing more and more women at the various industry events I attend, and I am overjoyed. 

From a very young age, we are taught the importance of having a successful career. Whether it’s our parents or a teacher, we know that by the time we reach adulthood, we will have a job. But not every job is created equal.

The home service industry is constantly evolving. Although they’re based on traditional trades like HVAC, plumbing, electrical and piping, home services are also expanding into less charted territory. Today’s homeowners are modernizing and aspiring to more eco-friendly living situations supported by radiant heating, geothermal and solar thermal energy.

As business leaders, we often make assumptions about what our field service personnel know. In addition, they make their own assumptions about us. The result is they know less than we think, and think they know more than they do. Here are seven things your service plumbers should know about their profession.

You ever have one of those jobs where nuisance heating system lockouts drove you crazy?

Whether you’ve been in business for a week, a year or a decade, you have undoubtedly experienced more than just a few setbacks. We’ve all had major setbacks in our lives and businesses, and we generally respond to setbacks with our world-conditioned responses involving pain. We have pain, we have trauma, and we have turmoil, challenges, etc.

In March 2010, a nine-month-old boy rolled off his sister’s bed in Jersey City, New Jersey, and got stuck between the bed and a cast-iron, steam radiator that was as hot as it’s supposed to be. The radiator delivered third-degree burns to the infant and left him with permanent scars.