How to Make Every Restoration Job More Profitable

Stop settling for “it is what it is.” Break free from limiting beliefs that hold your business back, with proven strategies that drive real growth, higher profitability, and long-term success.

I had a great comment from a client earlier this week, the kind of thing that genuinely makes me happy. I love helping clients get more profitable, reduce the chaos in their business, and build something that’s truly sellable when they decide it’s time to move on.

Here’s the comment, and I’ll paraphrase. He said, “Scott, when we started working together a couple of years ago, I thought this guy’s crazy. There’s no way I’m going to be able to get any more profitable than I already am. It is what it is in this industry. I don’t see a way to do any better. I feel like there are things we can improve in my business, but profitability isn’t one of them.”

Then he said, “I’m really happy that I was wrong. When I look back over the past couple of years, especially at 2025, and I see on the P&L how much more profitable we are as a business, I’m truly blown away.”

I share this not to boast, although I’ll admit it makes me feel really good when I hear something like that. I share it because I think all of us, myself included, can fall into the mindset of “it is what it is.” And if we’re not careful, that mindset limits what’s possible.

For this client, the shift started by implementing what I consider a non-negotiable rule. One condition that is not optional: no job starts without a budget.

No job starts without a budget in reconstruction, where there are subcontractors and materials involved. And no job starts without a budget in mitigation either.

I could turn this into an hour-long video and get into the weeds, but I won’t. Instead, I want to challenge you with this thought. What if this is the year you decide to try some different things? What if this is the year you break out of the limiting mindset that says, “It is what it is, and I’m only as profitable as I am now because of the industry I’m in”?

I want to invite you to book a call with me. There’s no pushy sales element to it. And I can guarantee that even if you decide Scott Miller isn’t for you and you don’t want my help, you’ll walk away with a couple of clear action items you can implement to improve your business.

The core message here is simple. No job starts without a budget. And every time a job closes, you review the budget versus the actual with at least one person, the person who is financially responsible for the outcome of that job.

Work through the job with the budget in mind. Check the budget along the way. Compare the budget to the actual at the end. Then have a conversation using my favorite business acronym, LBNT.

• What did you like best?
• What are we going to do differently next time?
• What went well on this job?
• What will we change to improve the outcome for the customer, for the business, and for our profit level?

Once you get into the habit of doing this job after job after job, things change. And by the way, I have a one-page PDF challenge document where you can track this process over the next 75 jobs. I know that sounds like a big number, but if you commit to it, your business will look very different on the other side. I guarantee it.

Book a call with me, and I’ll see you next time