From Grit to Greatness: The Rise of a $10 Million Moving Company with Caleb Thurman
This podcast episode delves into the essence of entrepreneurship, as encapsulated by our guest, Caleb Thurman, the founder of Sunrise Moving and Packing, a remarkable $10 million national moving enterprise. Thurman's journey underscores the significance of resilience, systematic approaches, and the foundational work required within oneself to achieve success. He articulates how the interplay of grit and well-structured systems has catalyzed his company's exponential growth, emphasizing the necessity of delegating responsibilities to scale effectively. The conversation further explores the pivotal moments that shaped Thurman's business philosophy, including the challenges of relinquishing control and embracing a collaborative workforce. As we navigate through his experiences, listeners are invited to reflect on their own entrepreneurial journeys and the enduring value of perseverance and quality service in the business realm. The dialogue between Adam Marburger and Caleb Thurman delves deeply into the foundational principles that undergird successful entrepreneurship, particularly within the moving and packing industry. Caleb, the owner of Sunrise Moving and Packing, elucidates his journey from a career in insurance to establishing a $10 million enterprise through sheer determination and an unwavering commitment to systematic growth. Central to the discussion is the emphasis on the significance of operational systems; Caleb articulates how finely-tuned processes are indispensable for scaling a business effectively. He reflects on the cyclical nature of the moving industry, where the summer months serve as a lucrative peak period, necessitating a well-oiled machine to maximize profits. The conversation further explores the importance of quality service, with Caleb asserting that prioritizing customer satisfaction is paramount, as even minor damages during a move can lead to exorbitant costs for clients. This episode serves as a testament to the importance of grit, resilience, and the recognition of the systems that facilitate success in business ventures.
Takeaways:
- The essence of successful entrepreneurship lies in the integration of grit, systems, and a focus on people.
- Caleb Thurman emphasizes the necessity of establishing robust systems to ensure the seamless operation of a business.
- The journey of building a company often involves significant risks and the courage to pivot when faced with challenges.
- To achieve sustainable growth, it is critical to delegate responsibilities and trust capable individuals within your organization.
Links referenced in this episode:
Companies mentioned in this episode:
- Sunrise Moving and Packing
- U-Haul
- American Family
- State Farm
- Two Men and a Truck
- College Hunks Hauling Junk
Transcript
This is Adam Marburger.
Speaker A:And this is humans that build real conversations with real people.
Speaker A:Not just about what they've built in the world, but what had to be built inside them first.
Speaker A:No hype, no shortcuts, just humans doing the work.
Speaker A:Humans that build.
Speaker A:Real people.
Speaker A:Real work.
Speaker A:Welcome to another episode of Humans that Build.
Speaker A:I'm your host, Adam Marburger.
Speaker A:This show is designed to share interesting stories from interesting people.
Speaker A:Those making an impact, humans that are building.
Speaker A:So today I've got a special guest.
Speaker A:I'm here with Caleb Thurman.
Speaker A:I'm going to go ahead and give him the proper introduction here.
Speaker A:So he is the owner of Sunrise Moving and Packing, a $10 million national moving company built from the ground up through grit systems and focus on people.
Speaker A:Welcome to Humans that Build.
Speaker A:Caleb, how are you, sir?
Speaker B:I'm fantastic.
Speaker B:Thanks for having me.
Speaker B:Happy to be on here.
Speaker A:Let's get, you know, here as I'm reading your intro, let's talk a little bit about grit and systems.
Speaker A:First of all, you know, how important are systems in any business?
Speaker B:Oh, I think systems just pretty much defined your business.
Speaker B:You know what I mean?
Speaker B:Everybody needs a fine tuned system to operate well.
Speaker B:And you know, I look at my business like, you know, we only have so, so many months to get it right because summertime is kind of our bread and butter.
Speaker B:So as a moving company owner, it's kind of like an ice cream shop a little bit.
Speaker B:So like in the wintertime, you know, business is a little slow, but then come summertime you got to have a well oiled machine ready to go because you're making all your money, you know, in a short span.
Speaker B:We're talking like, you know, sometimes five to six months.
Speaker B:So systems, you know, you got to be able to delegate and you got to have systems in place in order to scale your business and make sure everybody's doing their role effectively.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:So let's, I'm going to back this up a little bit.
Speaker A:So I want to know everything about Sunrise Moving and I, you know, I see you, I mean just watching you guys online, I see you guys growing, you know, what got you into that business?
Speaker A:Like were you, you know, always had dreams and aspirations growing up of having a moving company or how did you come about this business?
Speaker B:Yeah, actually surprisingly I never, never would have imagined I would have owned a moving company.
Speaker B:But I was actually, you know, I started the business around 20, 21.
Speaker B:Before that I was selling insurance.
Speaker B:So I had my property and casualty license, I sold life insurance.
Speaker B:I was doing that for a Little bit.
Speaker B:And I worked for a really good agent that I had the blessing to work for down in Crevecord, Missouri.
Speaker B:He was a great mentor for me, and he taught me just a lot of leadership skills there, accountability skills there, and he was pretty tough on me.
Speaker B:But when I first worked for him, I didn't really understand how to take in that tough love, you know, like, he kind of went through the numbers a lot with me.
Speaker B:And, you know, he was a little bit of a perfectionist when it came to his business.
Speaker B:And we kind of clashed a little bit because I wasn't a very coachable person.
Speaker B:I realized I was.
Speaker B:I was not very coachable.
Speaker B:I wanted to do things my way, and, you know, I was producing a lot of good results, but I was having a hard time dealing with change.
Speaker B:But it ended up with, you know, I was right.
Speaker B:You know, 90 to 100 policies a month selling, you know, property, casualty, life and health.
Speaker B:And I ended up stopped working for.
Speaker B:For him because we just didn't see eye to eye.
Speaker B:I wanted to eventually get into agency.
Speaker B:I wanted to become a State Farm agent.
Speaker B:That was kind of my dream around that time.
Speaker B:And from there I went to work for another agent.
Speaker B:I went and worked for American Family, actually.
Speaker B:So I was selling insurance for them.
Speaker B:But it's kind of weird how it worked because my old agent, I had just sold so much insurance that I was like, almost sold myself out of selling insurance.
Speaker B:I had nothing left in me to sell anymore.
Speaker B:I was like, wow, man, it's time for a change.
Speaker B:Like, I'm kind of getting a little burnt out on this industry.
Speaker B:And.
Speaker B:And it's really weird how God works, because one day I was sitting in this office and I got a call from my brother who lives in Dallas, Fort Worth, Texas.
Speaker B:And he says, hey, Caleb, you know, I just moved recently and I got on U haul's website and I rented a U Haul and it asked me if I needed moving help.
Speaker B:And I ended up hiring moving help through their website, which is just contracted labor that you could hire through U haul's website when you rent a TR truck yourself.
Speaker B:So it's called like a do it yourself move.
Speaker B:And essentially what ended up happening was he's like, I think you and my brother Josh, who was currently surprisingly, actually unemployed at the time, he's like, I think you guys would be really good at this.
Speaker B:Like, he's.
Speaker B:I definitely see it's a niche market, and I think it's something that, you know, you guys could take it and run with it.
Speaker B:So I'M sitting here and I'm in, you know, this agent's office that I'm working for and I get on this website, I fill out all the information to be a U haul contractor on their website.
Speaker B:And then about a week or two weeks go by and we get our first job booking.
Speaker B:And it's like 10 o' clock in the morning.
Speaker B:I got an appointment at 11 and I got to figure out how to get to this job and tell the agent that I'm working for, hey man, I got to leave work and I got to go do this move, so.
Speaker B:And then I got to call, call my brother up.
Speaker B:Kind of the whole rally of the troops thing and we get out to.
Speaker B:So I ended up telling the agent, I was like, I, I just.
Speaker B:The truth, you just gotta be truthful.
Speaker B:At the end of the day, I just flat out told him, I was like, hey man, I'm gonna try this moving thing.
Speaker B:And I just kind of took a risk.
Speaker B:I just, I put all my mar.
Speaker B:Mar.
Speaker B:All my marbles in and I just kind of went for it.
Speaker B:And I was like, I'm gonna go try this.
Speaker B:And he was a cool enough guy to where he's like, hey man, go try this.
Speaker B:And if, if this doesn't work, like you're good enough at your job to where you'll still have a job here.
Speaker B:So he kind of encouraged me in a way to just like go do it.
Speaker B:So me and my brother, we go out there, we do it.
Speaker B:We both had moving experience in the past.
Speaker B:I worked for a lot of national brand companies.
Speaker B:You know, two men in a truck, college honk, stuff like that.
Speaker B:But again, it was all like summer jobs every time I had it.
Speaker B:Never envisioned what I would have owned a moving company.
Speaker B:But we get out there, we do a job on U haul and we get a five star review for the customer and then we kind of figure out what their algorithm is.
Speaker B:So like their algorithm was they look at your last 10 reviews.
Speaker B:That's how you rank at the top.
Speaker B:So.
Speaker B:And I never made any kind of real money in my life.
Speaker B:I'll tell you, like, selling insurance was a fun business, but you got a grind like nobody, nobody can imagine in that business.
Speaker B:That's cold call after cold call and you're not making a ton of money.
Speaker B:So every day is a grind.
Speaker B:It's a struggle.
Speaker B:You're getting hung up on non stop.
Speaker B:You got to keep a positive mindset.
Speaker B:And yeah, it could be pretty challenging.
Speaker A:So that's, you know, the insurance industry is very, very difficult.
Speaker A:You Know, especially too you.
Speaker A:You know, you weren't the actual principal agent, right?
Speaker A:So you're working your tail off for somebody else to make a bigger cut, and you're the reason they're successful.
Speaker A:At some level.
Speaker A:I've got a buddy that.
Speaker A:That had that same scenario.
Speaker A:I want to, you know, I've got a lot to unpack about, you know, what got you to a $10 million evaluation.
Speaker A:But before we do that, you know, it's a lot of hard work.
Speaker A:I mean, moving.
Speaker A:First of all, explain to everybody who your company is.
Speaker A:What do you do?
Speaker A:Where do you operate?
Speaker A:Let's start there.
Speaker A:I got a lot of questions.
Speaker A:Yeah, so let's start with.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:So essentially, Sunrise Moving.
Speaker B:I mean, we're a residential and commercial moving company.
Speaker B:So, you know, we come to your house, we'll pack all your stuff up that's stowed away in your cabinets, place them into boxes, label all your boxes.
Speaker B:We'll come out the next day, we'll move all your furniture, make sure it's nice, pristinely wrapped, and, you know, get you to your new destination without any kind of damages.
Speaker B:That's what we pride ourselves on, is the quality of service that we bring to our customers first and foremost.
Speaker B:I think a lot of people get kind of wrapped up in the volume game.
Speaker B:At the end of the day, we've always focused on the quality.
Speaker B:It's just make sure the customer is having the best experience out there.
Speaker B:Because, let's face it, I mean, if you hire the wrong moving company, it could really cost you a lot of money.
Speaker B:Like with vinyl plank flooring, for example, if you scratch one piece of that flooring, you got to tear it up from the wall all the way to that specific piece.
Speaker B:A lot of times, you can't buff the scratch out.
Speaker B:You can't just replace that one piece.
Speaker B:So.
Speaker B:And this could be the difference between you and your competition as far as the cost.
Speaker B:Customer calls in, they're getting a quote.
Speaker B:You know, they're, oh, well, this company was $200 cheaper.
Speaker B:Well, if this company damages your floor, you could be talking, you know, a couple thousand dollars more expensive at the end of the day.
Speaker B:So just, again, just focusing on that quality reputation.
Speaker B:But we're in.
Speaker B:To answer your question, we're in, you know, five different states.
Speaker B:We're trying to become a national brand.
Speaker B:Our goal is to get to 20 markets.
Speaker B:So right now we're in St. Louis, Kansas City, Phoenix, Houston, and Dallas Fort Worth, Texas.
Speaker B:So those are our five locations currently.
Speaker B:Wow.
Speaker A:You know, that it seems so getting into this business.
Speaker A:I mean, that's tough work, right?
Speaker A:I mean, you're, I mean, that's a.
Speaker A:Where do you find your, your employees?
Speaker A:Where's the best place to find young men and women that want to be a part of your work?
Speaker B:Yeah, a lot of times just college campuses.
Speaker B:You can do internships and things like that.
Speaker B:You know, we got a lot of good relationships with some local colleges.
Speaker B:Kids looking for summer jobs also, you know, a lot of word of mouth are really good employees.
Speaker B:Nine times out of ten, if, if somebody's a pretty outstanding person, generally they know other people that are outstanding.
Speaker B:Like, you know, they always say like, your net worth is your net or your network is your net worth, right?
Speaker B:So it's like usually good people know other good people.
Speaker B:So I'm always coming to my employees that I see are exceptional and I'm like, hey man, like surely, you know, other people like you.
Speaker B:I mean, you just.
Speaker B:And usually we get a lot of referrals.
Speaker B:We have a pretty cool, you know, referral program when it comes to talent acquisition.
Speaker B:We get a lot of guys through indeed too.
Speaker B:We, we send them through a pretty rigorous like, training system.
Speaker B:I know it's just moving furniture, but at the end of the day, you know, it's.
Speaker B:We want to be the best at what we do, so we invest a lot of time and resources into it.
Speaker A:I love it.
Speaker A:I've got a random, you know, as we're talking, I just got this random thought.
Speaker A:I got a really question.
Speaker A:Maybe, you know, maybe you don't.
Speaker A:What percentage of people hire a company like yours to move opposed to doing it themselves?
Speaker B:You know, that's actually a really good question.
Speaker B:I think it just kind of depends on the economic conditions.
Speaker B:You know, I think we're kind of a weird time right now where the economy is squeezing a little, you know, squeezing people a little bit.
Speaker B:So there are some advantages into doing like a do it yourself move just because it can be a little bit more cost advantageous.
Speaker B:But there's a, there's also a huge risk factor associated with that though.
Speaker B:You know what I mean?
Speaker B:Like, are you willing to, like, are you willing to go out and replace, you know, a thousand dollar dresser if, you know, if you're unqualified to move it, you damage it, you know, or let's say your, your home, you're getting ready to close on your house and then the new buyer is walking through, right?
Speaker B:And they're like, dang, Adam, you just did a really bad job at moving your stuff.
Speaker B:Like, I'm seeing scratches that weren't here on the initial walkthrough, I'm seeing holes in the wall.
Speaker B:And then it's like, you know, that's where being cheap will kind of get you in trouble.
Speaker B:So that's where we, like, preach the quality to our customers.
Speaker B:Generally speaking, though, we're typically like, the average move does cost, I would say around like a thousand to fifteen hundred bucks.
Speaker B:So you have.
Speaker B:There's a lot of different ways that you can look at things.
Speaker B:You know, you could say, hey, I'm going to try to do this myself and try to get it done cheaper.
Speaker B:But a lot of times what you'll end up finding out is actually cost you more money because you can't pay for experience.
Speaker B:Like, it's not something that you just snap your fingers and get.
Speaker A:And time, I mean, think about the time you're saving.
Speaker A:I'll tell you what, I've done moves with help and without help.
Speaker A:I'll tell you.
Speaker A:It's been a couple times I've had the company come in, like you've talked about going forward.
Speaker A:I promise I'll call you.
Speaker A:But just having somebody coming and wrapping everything up and organizing and getting it ready to go, opposed to doing it yourself, is a huge difference for me personally, it's the time factor.
Speaker A:I'd rather have somebody else coming.
Speaker A:Knock it out for me.
Speaker B:Absolutely.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:I mean, I couldn't agree more with you.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:I mean, from an efficiency standpoint, a lot of the people we do business with, they're busy people.
Speaker B:You know, we do a ton of work out, like St. Charles county, you know, here in our St. Louis market.
Speaker B:And, you know, there's.
Speaker B:There's successful individuals everywhere, but there's a lot of busy people out there, so, I mean, they definitely see the value.
Speaker A:Let's go back in time.
Speaker A:You're a fellow entrepreneur to entrepreneur here.
Speaker A:Let's go back in time because you guys seem to be doing really well right now.
Speaker A:Put up some big numbers.
Speaker A:I'm sure it wasn't always that way.
Speaker A:Okay, let's talk me through startup phase year one.
Speaker A:What did that look like?
Speaker A:What were, what were?
Speaker A:I always love to ask people what some of their favorite failures were.
Speaker A:What did you learn?
Speaker A:What can you share to, you know, to help the younger generation?
Speaker A:So looking back at year one in business, let's talk through that a little bit.
Speaker B:Oh, man, I got the perfect one for you, man.
Speaker B:I made so many mistakes.
Speaker B:It's.
Speaker B:I don't even know how.
Speaker B:I'm here right now just to be transparent with you.
Speaker B:You Know, one of my mentors said he's like, worry about the legal stuff after the fact.
Speaker B:Like, you know, get into business and figure out how to make money first.
Speaker B:You could always figure out the legal stuff later.
Speaker B:I'm not saying go out and get in trouble.
Speaker B:Trouble.
Speaker B:That's not what I'm saying here.
Speaker B:But I'm saying, you know, there's a lot in business when you first start out that you just.
Speaker B:You don't realize that you need.
Speaker B:Even when it comes to accounting, when it comes to taxes, like our first couple of years, I'll be transparent with you.
Speaker B:I never made as much money that I made moving in any other line of business that I was ever in.
Speaker B:I mean, this is my first business I also ever ran.
Speaker B:So there was so many things that I just didn't have the answers to that I had to figure out the hard way.
Speaker B:I. I mean, I didn't even pay.
Speaker B:I didn't even pay taxes till, like, two years, two, three years into my business.
Speaker B:We were, like, behind on taxes and stuff, just because I didn't even realize the implications of, like, all the things that you kind of needed to have in order to kind of start the business.
Speaker B:But then again, I was fortunate that I took the leap of faith, because we would never be where we are at today.
Speaker B:And that's, you know, a $10 million company had I been so focused on, you know, all these other things, like analysis, paralysis, you know.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:So when you look back, what was your biggest setback when you're starting this company?
Speaker A:Trying to get it off the ground, you got to generate revenue.
Speaker A:And obviously, I. I can relate.
Speaker A:Obviously, you got to pay your taxes for everybody listening.
Speaker A:My mentor, you know, and I.
Speaker A:He's kind of.
Speaker A:He drilled this in me.
Speaker A:He's like, do what you got to do to make the deal.
Speaker A:Figure out how to make the deal, figure out how to generate revenue, and then we can worry about the details later.
Speaker A:And there's a reason I operate.
Speaker A:My biggest company is Scent Dealer Services, which I'm supporting.
Speaker A:The shirt today.
Speaker A:I operate on an EOS entrepreneur operating system.
Speaker A:So out of the book traction.
Speaker A:So it's.
Speaker A:Everything's very dialed in, and we have systems and levels.
Speaker B:Great book.
Speaker A:Yeah, it's a wonderful book.
Speaker A:But it wasn't always that way for me because I've got an integrator now.
Speaker A:I'm the visionary.
Speaker A:I've got an integrator.
Speaker A:But in the past, it wasn't that way.
Speaker A:It was like, let's throw everything against the wall.
Speaker A:But it could be Costly.
Speaker A:So looking at that, what do you think your biggest setback?
Speaker A:You know, knowing now that you're kind of dialed in, you believe in systems.
Speaker A:I started our talk today talking about processes and systems.
Speaker B:I would just say like delegation, just not delegating things sooner, thinking that I have to control absolutely everything inside of the business.
Speaker B:Like, the fact of the matter is there's people out here that can, believe it or not, can do a better job then like you or me can do at certain things.
Speaker B:And I didn't think anybody on this planet could ever outsell me.
Speaker B:I'll just be transparent because I just came from a cutthroat agent.
Speaker B:I knew what it was like to have to farm leads and cold call people and it was like getting hung up on non stop, non stop.
Speaker B:How do I keep somebody's attention within the first like 10 seconds and then keep them engaged into something they weren't even ready for?
Speaker B:Like, you know, I could, I had this ability to just turn like a, you know, a 10 second intro into a 40 minute phone call, you know, and I just, you know, just kind of being not arrogant, but just thinking that I have to do every, every single thing in my business at first I think was a big setback in terms of like scalability.
Speaker B:I think I could have gotten to where, I think we could have gotten to where we're at probably three to four times as fast and been even more successful had, you know, we had, we trusted the pro, had we had the processes, trusted the process and delegated things a little bit sooner.
Speaker B:You know what happened though, Caleb?
Speaker A:What happened to make you change so you, you, you.
Speaker B:Volume, volume happened.
Speaker B:I couldn't do it.
Speaker B:I was like, there's just too many phone calls coming in.
Speaker B:Obviously I can't answer every call.
Speaker B:I was literally carrying a couch.
Speaker B:I was out on a move and my phone was ringing.
Speaker B:I was trying to move somebody and I was trying to do a sales call at the exact same time.
Speaker B:By the way, I closed the customer, but we could talk, but you know, I'm literally carrying a couch and I'm talking to somebody at the same time.
Speaker B:And then I got our customer.
Speaker B:They're looking at me like, what are you doing dude?
Speaker B:Like, I always perceived it as like they were mad at me because they're paying by the hour, but really they just thought it was impressive.
Speaker B:Just.
Speaker B:But you know, I was sitting there in that moment, I'm like, dude, it's time to, it's time to scale.
Speaker B:You have to delegate.
Speaker B:And I remember I hired my very first sales rep and she was a little rough around the edges at first and like training her was a little tough, but she had a lot of grit.
Speaker B:She had like so much grit.
Speaker B:And she would just keep, you know, she would always she super responsive, like pick the phone up really quick, quick.
Speaker B:She was very coachable, would always fight for sales.
Speaker B:And it was like in that moment I knew, like, dude, I don't actually have to do all the work in this company.
Speaker B:There's like people that I could hire and train or people that are just better at me in certain areas.
Speaker B:And I think that was the biggest lesson that I learned is like kind of letting control can be a good thing, but it can also be a detrimental thing as well.
Speaker B:When you want to control absolutely everything around you, then sometimes it can kind of hinder your growth a little bit.
Speaker B:You know, you can't do every job in your company.
Speaker B:You can't play every role.
Speaker A:You're right.
Speaker A:I mean it's, you know, for those listening, maybe you're a solopreneur, maybe you're just starting out or maybe you got, maybe you're somebody that needs to hire somebody and you're afraid to give up income because for me too, it's like when you scale, you're giving up revenue.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:So there's that part of it, but then there's the ego part of it too.
Speaker A:But you can't grow something without people.
Speaker A:And you said something that was very profound.
Speaker A:You said that, believe it or not, there are people out there better than you, people smarter than you.
Speaker A:And that is a fact.
Speaker A:I think as a business owner, the goal is to get your business to work for you and not you work for the business.
Speaker A:And I think that's ultimately the goal.
Speaker A:So let's talk about this.
Speaker A:How difficult was it the first, say 60, 90 days when you said, all right, first of all, you were self aware enough to know because of volume.
Speaker A:Volume made you pivot, made you open up your mind to bring it on people.
Speaker A:How difficult was it at first though, knowing that, like I'm, I'm going to trust you with this and that.
Speaker A:Well, talk through that phase.
Speaker B:Yeah, I mean it was really difficult to relinquish that control and kind of trust somebody to do that position.
Speaker B:Especially considering like I was still out on the trucks moving the furniture.
Speaker B:There was also a part of it that was a little nice, I'm not going to lie.
Speaker B:You know, I was no longer carrying that couch and trying to take a sales call at the same time.
Speaker B:So there was a bit of relief as well.
Speaker B:At first it was definitely a little, little bit of a change because, you know, I still had it in my mind.
Speaker B:My ego was like blocking my growth.
Speaker B:I was like, you know, in my mind I was like, oh, there's nobody that could sell better than me.
Speaker B:Or, oh, I'm spending money here and this is more money that we could be making, you know, as a company.
Speaker B:But now I have to spend it on this person who's not doing this job as good as me.
Speaker B:But then I soon learned I was like, when I looked at the numbers, track the numbers too, I mean, I could see like she was booking just as much as me.
Speaker B:I mean, the conversations are recorded.
Speaker B:I'd go back and listen to some of the calls she was doing everything that I asked her, you know, she was following it to a T, like following the script.
Speaker B:So at the end of the day, it was a prime example of like me trying to control the situation to the extent to where it was like hindering my growth.
Speaker A:Wow.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:You know, I. I can remember like yesterday whenever I relinquished my day to day duties at Ascent, you know, the first like month, I was scratching my head.
Speaker A:I really didn't know what to do.
Speaker A:Like, I always have leads and I'm always working leads and I'm always doing social and I've always got little, you know, emails to check.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:But I was in the day to day.
Speaker A:Like, I was responsible for everything.
Speaker A:But now looking back, I'm working on bigger stuff.
Speaker A:We're scaling at a higher level because we're doing bigger things now.
Speaker A:I can do things that are creative.
Speaker A:I can do things to position us, to get us down the road faster.
Speaker A:It's just there was a lot of.
Speaker B:Pressure for me too, because, I mean, I was living in a shotgun gun style apartment when all this was going down.
Speaker B:Like, this was a 300 square foot apartment that me and my wife were renting from her grandparents for like three or four hundred bucks a month.
Speaker B:I had my first daughter on the way, Gabrielle.
Speaker B:So I mean, the pressure was immense on me.
Speaker B:Like, I had to get it right, you know, so it was even harder for me to pass that baton over and relinquish that control to somebody, you know, like that.
Speaker B:Because I was like, dude, like, I have so much pressure on me.
Speaker B:But I mean the, the old saying is like, pressure creates diamonds.
Speaker B:And like, I just think the biggest thing is you just have to be consistent whatever you do.
Speaker B:Like, you don't have to be the best at what you do, but you, if you show up every single day.
Speaker B:Like there's one thing that's guaranteed to happen and I mean, you're gonna get better.
Speaker B:It's inevitable.
Speaker B:Like, so that's.
Speaker A:Pressure is a privilege.
Speaker A:Let's talk about you a little bit.
Speaker A:So you're a successful entrepreneur.
Speaker A:You know, I noticed trends, common denominators, common themes with high superachievers.
Speaker A:So why, what does your morning look like?
Speaker A:Tell me what a normal day of Caleb Thurman looks like.
Speaker A:Curious.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:So I typically get up at 5am the first day.
Speaker B:First thing I do when I start my day out is I do.
Speaker B:There's this thing, it's called a 365 day Bible recap by Tara Leanne Cobb.
Speaker B:I definitely recommend you checking it out.
Speaker B:It's when you eat an elephant, you eat it one bite at a time.
Speaker B:It's a great way to dive into the Bible.
Speaker B:But you know, I do that, it's small, small portions.
Speaker B:I'll read like three chapters at a time and then I'll just do a reflection of what I read, what it means to me.
Speaker B:And you know, I think putting God first in my day has really shaped a lot of my success.
Speaker B:So that's the very first thing I start my day out with is, you know, reading the Bible, studying the Bible, praying.
Speaker B:Then from there, usually I'm doing all the household chores because my wife is also an entrepreneur and she gets up even earlier than I do.
Speaker B:She starts training people at 4 in the morning.
Speaker B:So I'm usually responsible for the kids routine in the morning.
Speaker B:So, you know, I'll do the dishes, I'll do the laundry, I'll clean up anything that needs to be clean.
Speaker B:I'll make sure the kids eat good.
Speaker B:It's important that your kids eat good quality food.
Speaker B:And so I'll make them their food.
Speaker B:I'll write out the things that need to get done after I eat my breakfast throughout the day, you know, high priority tasks, the lowest priority task and then after that's done, the next thing I do is I usually always go get, go get my workout in.
Speaker B:So I think the two, two biggest things that kind of shape my day routine wise is, is, you know, my relationship with God and then making sure I get my workout in.
Speaker B:I feel like if I do those two things, I impact the people around me, you know, more deeply than if I didn't do those things.
Speaker A:So I love that.
Speaker A:I love it, I love it, I love it.
Speaker B:Be serving.
Speaker B:You know, you say it all the time like be a certain, be serving to the people.
Speaker B:Around you, I think that's the most.
Speaker B:That's the greatest thing that we can do as people.
Speaker B:Like, at the end of the day, all my accolades, accomplishments, they mean nothing.
Speaker B:I'm just a steward of God's resources.
Speaker B:At the end of the day, I don't control none of this.
Speaker B:So the more lives I could change and the more I could do to advance the kingdom of God and help other people, the more that impacts me and gives me a feeling of passion and, like, I'm on the right path.
Speaker A:So, yeah, I mean, there is.
Speaker A:I love what you just said.
Speaker A:There's a level of selfishness that comes along with serving others too, because it makes you feel really good when you see others do good.
Speaker A:Like, and it's cool.
Speaker A:It's like when you grow somebody, you're pouring into somebody and you're mentoring somebody, and you see them continue to grow and grow and make bigger impact, bigger impact.
Speaker A:It's like, that feels freaking awesome, man.
Speaker A:There's nothing better than that.
Speaker A:There's nothing better than, like, here for Jiu Jitsu, I train Jiu Jitsu with you.
Speaker A:Like, when I teach things and I see individuals pick up on those things and then eventually use those things against me, like, that is the most humbling, awesome thing in the world.
Speaker A:Kind of sucks sometimes, but it's also awesome.
Speaker A:So I'm gonna.
Speaker A:I'm gonna.
Speaker A:I'm gonna switch gears.
Speaker A:You know, when things get tough.
Speaker A:Like, you know, entrepreneurship, you know, a lot of people love.
Speaker A:A lot of people like to talk about business and entrepreneurship, but, I mean, startups are difficult.
Speaker A:Making it past year 1.
Speaker A:Starting a business takes courage.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:Just the idea of getting off the couch, getting into the business, starting it, leaving a position that you're maybe.
Speaker A:Maybe you're somebody that worked for an insurance agent for years and just decided to say, I'm doing this myself.
Speaker A:It takes an act of courage to start a business.
Speaker A:Number one, getting through year number one is also difficult.
Speaker A:Making it to year four or five, really, really difficult to do.
Speaker A:So as an entrepreneur that's made it this far, you know, it's not all unicorns, rainbows.
Speaker A:Sometimes it rains.
Speaker A:So what happens?
Speaker A:How do you deal with the seasons that are tough?
Speaker A:What gets you through?
Speaker A:What advice could you give somebody out there?
Speaker A:It's an entrepreneur that's maybe in a season right now where it just.
Speaker A:It could be financial distress, it could be a personnel scenario, it could be the market soft.
Speaker A:How do you get through situations like that?
Speaker A:And what advice would you give others?
Speaker B:You know, I just always circle Back to the reason that you started, like there's definitely a reason that you took the risk and you started the company that you were doing.
Speaker B:And I think we're all going to deal with adversity in life and I think the, you know, like you said, the trials and tribulations are going to happen.
Speaker B:But I think that's where we like kind of double, that's where we need to double down on ourselves.
Speaker B:Because generally speaking like when you face those times and you get through those times, you get like a million times better, you know.
Speaker B:So the biggest thing that I do, like I said and I, I know it may, it could sound a little cliche to some people, but it all comes, this all circles back to faith for me, like understanding that like I don't control everything.
Speaker B:If it's not my hands, I give it to God and I ask God, you know, take care of this for me.
Speaker B:I pray about it nine times out of 10, he always delivers.
Speaker B:That's the first and first most important thing.
Speaker B:But also just keeping a positive mindset, like, you know, you're the most dangerous when you're constantly sharpening the saw, you know, like, like for me for example, like business is tough all the time but like that's why I go to jiu jitsu, that's why I exercise, that's why I do things to constantly work on my self development.
Speaker B:That way when those hard times do come, I'm prepared for them.
Speaker B:Like David Goggins says, you know, he's like, I don't know when the opportunity's coming.
Speaker B:There's not like a crystal ball.
Speaker B:I can't pull it out, forecast in the future and see when I'm gonna have a problem.
Speaker B:But I'm training today to make sure when that problem happens, I'm prepared to take it on.
Speaker B:So that's really what it boils down to is, you know, just, just really just circling back to why you started trusting yourself, trusting the business that you have gotten up to this point.
Speaker B:I mean dude, I'll tell you the first.
Speaker B:I deal with problems with Google all the time in my business.
Speaker B:They've deleted, they've suspended my Google listing a multitude of times.
Speaker A:Brutal.
Speaker B:And like I'm talking, you can't do anything with Google.
Speaker B:Like they, they don't, you can't call them on the phone, you have to email them and then it takes somebody three weeks to email you back.
Speaker B:I've had situations in my business where my Google listings been suspended for like a month at a time.
Speaker B:And that was my Only source of revenue.
Speaker B:Like, moves were not coming in for a whole month.
Speaker B:And I'm sitting here scratching my head, like, what is.
Speaker B:What are me and my family gonna do?
Speaker B:What did I do to deserve this?
Speaker B:Like, don't ever victimize yourself, though.
Speaker B:Find a solution is another big thing too.
Speaker B:Like, don't ever get in the habit of saying, why me?
Speaker B:Why this?
Speaker B:Why these circumstances?
Speaker B:Instead, figure out a different alternative solution.
Speaker B:And, like, for me, it was going into attack mode.
Speaker B:I was like, okay, well, I'll just advertise on Facebook.
Speaker B:I'll do Facebook ads.
Speaker B:I'll start getting in front of a camera.
Speaker B:I'll start talking more.
Speaker B:Like, I think the minute you put yourself in a box and you put, like, these walls around yourself is the minute that you can kind of become a victim to yourself.
Speaker B:And I think that's the worst thing you can do is when you deal with those tough obstacles is, you know, kind of like just victimizing yourself and say, you know, I don't.
Speaker B:I don't know why it's me in this situation.
Speaker B:Like, work towards the solution.
Speaker A:Victim mindset.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker A:There's things that I talk about a lot.
Speaker A:Approval, addiction and victim mindset.
Speaker A:It's a disease, and a lot of people are trapped in it.
Speaker A:There's so much of the human population that lives in a woe is me mindset.
Speaker A:They're dependent on others.
Speaker A:They're dependent on what the government says, or they're so stuck in their way.
Speaker A:And if the world is not fair, it's the woe.
Speaker A:Those individuals I can't spend any of my time with because it just brings me down.
Speaker A:And I'm sure as an entrepreneur, you can relate to that.
Speaker B:Absolutely.
Speaker A:You said something.
Speaker A:You said something that I think everybody needs to understand or we should just kind of piggyback off of.
Speaker A:You're talking about doing things that kind of suck and training and, you know, jiu Jitsu.
Speaker A:I use that as an example.
Speaker A:I was in my mastermind this morning.
Speaker A:There's 30 entrepreneurs in a call with you once a week.
Speaker A:When our coach Danelle asked us, what is one thing that has really drastically.
Speaker A:I don't have my notes, but drastically impacted our business this year.
Speaker A:What is something that we've done or what is one thing that's really helped us in our business this first quarter?
Speaker A:And for me, it was an easy answer, and it was Jiu Jitsu.
Speaker A:Getting back to training more Jiu Jitsu, getting more passionate about coaching Jiu Jitsu.
Speaker A:Because here's the thing, and I'll just.
Speaker A:I'll use you as an example.
Speaker A:I don't need to stroke your ego.
Speaker A:You're a young, very big, strong animal to grapple with.
Speaker A:And there's a few others in the gym that are similar.
Speaker A:They're very.
Speaker A:You guys are very strong and tough.
Speaker A:I'm a lot older than you guys, so when I leave the gym at night, I'm like, I earned my, my dinner tonight.
Speaker A:Like, doing something that sucks.
Speaker A:When you're.
Speaker A:When you do something that sucks and you do it repeatedly, something that sucks, it's difficult.
Speaker A:It makes life easier.
Speaker A:It's crazy to think about it too, like that.
Speaker A:Like, regardless, it could be playing the violin or the piano or being a marathon runner or being a champion pickleball, but I don't know what it is.
Speaker A:When I'm looking to hire somebody, I'm looking to do life with somebody.
Speaker A:I'm looking for somebody that likes hobbies like that, that are difficult because it really sparks creativity.
Speaker A:It helps you in your vocation.
Speaker A:It doesn't just help you in your vocation.
Speaker A:I would bet that you probably are a better father and a better spouse because of your training regimen.
Speaker A:Am I right or wrong?
Speaker B:Absolutely.
Speaker B:No.
Speaker B:I mean, without a question.
Speaker B:You know what I mean?
Speaker B:There's just something that happens when you exercise.
Speaker B:I mean, science proves it time and time again.
Speaker B:Like the amount of endorphins, serotonin, it releases in your brain.
Speaker B:I mean, I'll tell you what.
Speaker B:Even.
Speaker B:Even when I was like actively on the phones doing sales, like, I think my sales, my close rate would probably increase at least by like 30 to 40% when I got a workout versus the days that I didn't get a workout in.
Speaker B:You know, there's just a certain type of energy that comes with it.
Speaker B:It's like when you.
Speaker B:It's funny because a lot of people are like, I don't work out because I don't have the energy.
Speaker B:And it's actually the exact opposite.
Speaker B:You don't have the energy because you don't work out.
Speaker B:Like, you have to.
Speaker B:You have to go to the gym and you have to do things, and sometimes it sucks at first, you know, and you just got to get through those first couple hard weeks, but you feel like a brand new person on the other side.
Speaker A:So, yeah, amen.
Speaker A:That, that is so true.
Speaker A:The best medicine is some clean food and going to the gym.
Speaker A:And two, it's not working.
Speaker A:You don't necessarily have to go to the gym, but you got to work out.
Speaker A:You know, I was Talking to Steve McKinney, my pastor the day we were talking about this, like just going his.
Speaker A:He's in such great shape too.
Speaker A:I had him on the show recently.
Speaker A:Every single night after dinner, him and his wife walk for 30 minutes.
Speaker A:They just a 30 minute walk every single day keeps him in great shape.
Speaker B:Absolutely.
Speaker A:Just.
Speaker A:I would love to see the human population come in, you know, more of us.
Speaker A:You don't, you can just go for a walk.
Speaker A:You don't need to be a marathon.
Speaker B:Yeah, I mean, it's like same thing with weightlifting, you know, Like, I don't weightlift to be the, the best bodybuilder that existed.
Speaker B:Like, I'm not trying to out here, go out here and get a Mr. Olympia and beat Chris Bumstead or Phil Heath or something.
Speaker B:When I'm in the gym working out, I just do it because like you said, I know it makes me a better, better father and it makes me a better person to be around.
Speaker B:And the more, the, the sharper that I am, the way I look at it, the more lives that I can impact around me, you know.
Speaker B:And yeah, I mean, I just think, you know, you got it, you got to exercise.
Speaker B:Exercise is one of those things that's extremely important for your mind and for your body.
Speaker B:You know, nobody, nobody thinks about it until they're in the hospital bed, you know, or until their health's taken away from them.
Speaker B:Then it becomes, you know, really prevalent how important it is.
Speaker A:So I really enjoyed this talk.
Speaker A:I've got a few more questions for you.
Speaker A:As we kind of wind this thing down.
Speaker A:I want to know, you know, now, you know, you've matured and you've evolved as an entrepreneur.
Speaker A:Like we don't know what, we don't know when we start.
Speaker A:Right then we, you know, for me, I'm still a gigantic work in progress.
Speaker A:We just celebrated seven years and you know, I'm still trying to figure it out, but I'm definitely a lot farther along than I was.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:What are some non negotiables that you've put in place in your business, in your life now that you didn't have in the past, past that have really helped you scale.
Speaker B:Do the hard things first, like get them out of the way first.
Speaker B:I would say just having an action list like every morning that you wake up, you know, write down, write down the things that need to get done from, you know, the, the hard, the hardest thing that you want to do the least, make sure that's the first on the list.
Speaker B:That way you get it out of the way.
Speaker B:For me, it's kind of, like, when I go to the gym, not to segue, but, like, I hate training abs.
Speaker B:I hate training calves.
Speaker B:So, like, when I get in there, it's the first thing that I do because I know if I don't do it, it's not going to get done at the end of my workout when I'm tired.
Speaker B:So, I mean, it's the same thing in life.
Speaker B:I'm just giving you an analogy there, but making sure you get the hard things done first.
Speaker B:So, like, a lot of times, you know, we can again, fall victim to our mindset.
Speaker B:And sometimes we could think we're so good at stuff that we actually don't need to do stuff.
Speaker B:And that's not.
Speaker B:That's not the case, like, a lot of times.
Speaker B:And also too, like, what got you here is not going to get you there.
Speaker B:I hear you say that a lot.
Speaker B:So, I mean, you kind of got to be constantly strategizing.
Speaker B:You got to be innovative.
Speaker B:You got to have ingenuity.
Speaker B:Like, you got to be looking at your competition, seeing what they're doing to, like, do your market research.
Speaker B:Don't ever get complacent.
Speaker B:Like, complacency kills dreams.
Speaker B:So I would say those are, like, two of the most important things, is, like, having an action list.
Speaker B:Don't get complacent.
Speaker B:You know, make sure your health and God is a top priority for you.
Speaker B:Make sure you have some kind of outlet.
Speaker B:Doesn't have to be.
Speaker B:Have, like, an outlet that challenges you mentally, though.
Speaker B:You know, it could be reading or it could be critical thinking in some capacity, but, like, not some things Chart, you know, challenge you physically, but, like, there's not a lot of stuff out here that challenges you mentally.
Speaker B:So mentally, you have to actually think and you have to find those things and, you know, challenge yourself a little bit.
Speaker B:But those are just three things off the top of my head.
Speaker A:I love that.
Speaker A:And the thing here, I'll piggyback off that, and I'll.
Speaker A:I tell.
Speaker A:And I'm not trying to sell my product here.
Speaker B:That's why I love my ears.
Speaker A:I want jiu jitsu.
Speaker A:I mean, it's.
Speaker A:It's physically, but it works.
Speaker A:The mental, it's.
Speaker A:So you got to use your head so much in jiu jitsu.
Speaker A:That's what I love about.
Speaker B:That's a good thing, too, because I'll just say, like, I'm not the smartest guy at all.
Speaker B:Like, there's people that's far smarter than me.
Speaker B:And the reason I was good at sales is because I legitimately worked Harder than the entire team.
Speaker B:Like they could read the exact same stuff that I read and they would consume it twice as good.
Speaker B:You know what I mean?
Speaker B:Like they just remember it.
Speaker B:I have like a very small attention span, so it's very hard for me to retain information.
Speaker B:So a lot of times I have to.
Speaker B:It might take somebody one time to read something, they remember it and it takes me like 10, 10, 15, 20 here.
Speaker A:I'm right there with you.
Speaker A:I can, I can relate to that at a very, very high level.
Speaker A:And, and by the way, ADD adhd.
Speaker A:It's a superpower.
Speaker A:It's a superpower, you know.
Speaker A:You know, they try to tell kids today that it's, it's so bad.
Speaker A:Let's give you all.
Speaker A:No, no, it's, it's, it's actually a superpower.
Speaker A:You got to learn how to contain it.
Speaker A:But it's a definite superpower.
Speaker B:I just wanted to throw that in there because I feel like, you know, that's something that's important.
Speaker B:I'm sure there's probably some people listening that maybe struggle with that a little bit.
Speaker B:Especially when it comes to like writing things down.
Speaker B:Like that's something that you almost have to do.
Speaker B:It's almost a non negotiable if you are somebody with like adhd.
Speaker B:You know, some people put it up here and they never forget it.
Speaker A:You know, I have a legal patent pen.
Speaker B:As I'm showing you the neuroscience too, says if you write it down, it sticks in your brain, you know, and make sure you write it on a legal pad like you got, don't type it in your phone electronically because it just doesn't mean the same, you know.
Speaker A:Amen.
Speaker A:All right, I'm going to ask you this.
Speaker A:So you've made it this far.
Speaker A:Well, you know, what got you here ain't getting in there.
Speaker A:So, you know, you got your $10 million company.
Speaker A:What's the future look like?
Speaker A:What's the ultimate goal of sunrise?
Speaker A:Moving and packing?
Speaker A:Like, are you.
Speaker A:Is there a certain number you're looking to exit?
Speaker A:You know, is there a certain number you're trying to get to?
Speaker A:If you could share, that'd be great.
Speaker B:Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker B:I mean, we're trying to get to 20 locations is the goal.
Speaker B:$100 Million company is what we have envisioned.
Speaker B:So that's our 10 year growth plan.
Speaker B:So that's just kind of the direction that we want to head in.
Speaker B:We want to get more into the long distance sector.
Speaker B:So we want to eventually get some tractor trailers on the road, some big 53 foot semis right now we got the small 26 foot box trucks and we just want to continue to serve our customers and know offer the best experience that there is out there in the moving industry.
Speaker B:There's a lot of different moving companies that people could choose from.
Speaker B:So we're grateful that they choose us.
Speaker B:And, you know, we just want to be the absolute best at what we do.
Speaker B:You know, offer five star service from sunrise to sunset.
Speaker B:Pretty much.
Speaker A:I love that.
Speaker A:How do, how can people find you and your company?
Speaker A:First of all, start with your company.
Speaker A:The best way to find your company.
Speaker B:Yep.
Speaker B:So, I mean, you could, you could find us on Google.
Speaker B:You could just Google our website, www.sunrisemovingandpacking.com.
Speaker B:You can find our business page on Facebook as well.
Speaker B:You can find me on Facebook as well.
Speaker B:I'm happy to talk with anybody.
Speaker B:I'm like the most responsive person ever.
Speaker B:I'm, I'm the type of person that if you text or you message, it doesn't matter who you are, I will respond to you because I believe that every person matters and everybody deserves an answer.
Speaker A:So I love that.
Speaker A:Well, Caleb, it's, it's been really fun chatting with you.
Speaker A:It's kind of nice to talk business and not just all jiu jitsu.
Speaker A:So I'll see you at the gym.
Speaker A:I'm sure I'll see you at the gym this week still.
Speaker A:So, hey, thanks for hanging out.
Speaker A:If you would stay in the waiting room, I want to chat with you offline for a minute.
Speaker B:Absolutely.
Speaker B:Well, thank you so much for having me on here.
Speaker B:I greatly appreciate it and I'm honored to be, you know, a guest on here.
Speaker A:I love sharing stories of those making an impact.
Speaker A:My friend, it was, it was an honor and a privilege just to kind of chat with you today.
Speaker A:And for those listening, thanks for tuning in to another episode of Humans that Build.
Speaker A:This show's designed to share stories from those making a positive impact so you can go out into the world and make a greater impact yourself, y'.
Speaker B:All.
Speaker A:See you soon.
Speaker A:Humans that build.
Speaker A:Real people, real work.
Speaker A:See you next time.
Speaker A:It.
