Construction is a tough business. It can make you rich. And it can drive you into the ground. I should know. I've been in the construction industry for nearly a quarter century. I've been the guy sitting in the office bidding jobs. I've been the guy operating the backhoe. Hell, I've even been the guy shoveling gravel. I've made a lot of money. And I've gone bankrupt. But I dug my way back out. I wouldn't trade any of that experience because it has made me who I am today (well, maybe I would trade the bankrupt part). Today, I am a professional construction estimator and co-founder of ProfitDig LLC - an online application for easy construction estimating and job costing. This book is the culmination of my nearly twenty-five years' worth of knowledge in the construction industry. You can be successful in your own construction business, if you do things the right way. First off, you need to be really good at whatever it is you do. Forget about starting your own business until you have mastered your craft. Second, you need to be organized. You need to have a system for creating job bids that accurately reflect what it will cost you to complete the work (with some profit on top). And you must have a way to track all of your costs against the items in your bid. Third, you need to be professional. If you want to grow your business, people need to respect you and like you. You need to deliver high quality results on time and on budget. And if on time, on budget isn't going to happen, you need to know how to deal with it. These are the things we will talk about in this book. Topics include:

• How to get your first customer
• How to bid jobs professionally
• What to charge for people and equipment
• Contract review and negotiations
• Job management
]
• How to track your costs so you know if you're actually making any money
• Managing your materials to minimize waste
• Renting versus buying equipment
• Subcontractors
• Strategies to win jobs
• Understanding job bonding
• Managing your finances

In addition, I will tell you some of the top dangers to avoid so you won't make the same mistakes I did with my company. Learn from my hard-earned experience. Do the things the right way and you can be successful.