The Hardest Working Myth in Restoration

“If you do good work, the jobs will come.”

Sounds noble, doesn’t it?
Feels honest. Feels safe. Feels like something your granddad would say while tightening a lug nut and sipping burnt coffee from a Stanley thermos.

But let’s tell the damn truth:

This is the hardest-working myth in the entire restoration industry.

Not because it’s true. Because it refuses to die.

It spreads like mold in a warm attic. In July.

Quiet. Persistent. Fed by fear and pride. Repeated by well-meaning mentors, crusty old techs, and even the guy behind the mic at the franchise summit.

This myth gets around.

And it’s working hard to keep you small.

Why It Still Exists

Because it flatters the craftsman in you. In me.

The part that wants to believe this is about skill, not selling. That the universe, or, carriers, or agents, or karma, will reward quality with quantity.

Because "doing good work" is controllable. It’s measurable. It feels righteous.

Selling? Marketing? Leading? That’s a different beast. That’s uncertain. That’s vulnerable. That’s work that can’t be finished by the end of the day.

So you double down on your comfort zone. You build the house and wait for someone to knock.

But this isn’t Field of Dreams.

This is restoration.

What It Causes

This myth rots your business from the inside.

You stay stuck in a cycle of feast and famine.

You resent competitors who market harder than you.

You refuse to ask for the job, then curse the guy who did.

You build resentment toward adjusters, carriers, agents, and even homeowners because you’re waiting to be recognized for what you do.

You hide behind quality as a shield.

But the truth is:

You’re hiding.

Why It’s Time To Kill It

You can still do exceptional work. In fact, you must.

But if you want to lead a restoration company,  not just do restoration work, you have to step beyond the garage logic and into a new posture.

You need to stop waiting for recognition and start building awareness.

You need to stop hiding behind the hammer and learn how to sell your damn value.

You need to stop playing small and start acting like you belong in the same room as your clients, competitors, and collaborators.

The job doesn't come because you did good work. It comes because someone believed you would.

Big difference.

A Better Way

This is what I wrote about in Fork In The Road. (grab your copy here if you are curious)

That moment when a technician becomes a business owner. When the tools in your hands become the vision in your head.

When you realize:  good work is the floor, not the ceiling.

The next level requires more. More leadership. More risk. More ownership.

But also? More freedom. More margin. More control.

Let the myth die. Let it walk into the fog next to Sasquatch and the Loch Ness Monster.

You’ve got a business to build.

And the real ones aren’t waiting to be found. They’re building something that can’t be ignored.

-K