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According to a Gallup study, only one in three workers in the U.S. strongly agree that they received recognition or praise for doing good work in the past seven days. At any given company, it's not uncommon for employees to feel that their best efforts are routinely ignored.

On its face, that makes perfect sense — especially given the severe drought facing so many areas of our country right now. And why not? Greywater draining from bathtubs, showers, lavatory sinks, automatic clothes washers and laundry tubs is not contaminated with fecal matter or urine, so why not use greywater twice?

It's easy to fall prey to mediocrity. But, when you’re willing to put in the hard work and do what many people will not do, you'll find that the payoff is well worth it.

My iPhone pinged a text: “Hi, Dan. How are you and Marianne, and the family? I’m sorry to bother you. I can’t get my steam heat to go on. I can’t get a plumber to come quickly. I guess they’re busy with the weather. Can I call you later to ask you something about the burner?”

The choice between ∆T and ∆P operation of a circulator has, at times, been the subject of rather “heated” debates. It’s almost as if a few Yankee fans are disputing superior pitching or batting performance with a few Red Sox fans. There appears to be some strong opinions involved.

I was lucky enough to be able to take a week off from work at the beginning of July. Though we attended so many family functions and get-togethers, I almost felt I needed another vacation to recover from my first vacation. Ever had one of those?

For those not directly connected to the field service industry, it might be surprising to learn that many technicians in this space do not have the tools or information available to make quotes on the spot and still struggle with finding transparent solutions for scheduling — resulting in delays and lost business.

During JP Morgan’s investor day, investors heard optimistic tones coming from JP Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon, who referred to our situation as “Strong economy, big storm clouds,” and went on to explain “I’m calling it storm clouds because they’re storm clouds. They may dissipate.” Dimon, who is known for his keen eye on the market, added that a recession is possible, but it would be unlike past downturns because of the unique mix of economic conditions we see ourselves in today.

You would never send your plumbers into the field without training and tools, right? What about the necessary sales training? Here is a simple 8-step approach that you can weave into your weekly service meetings to boost your team’s effectiveness in promoting add-ons.

All of my employees and I were sitting in our trucks eating lunch when the OSHA inspectors arrived on the commercial job site, which was a two-story addition to a nursing home. Talk about fear — the other trades and general contractor’s employees about had a coronary!