Podcast Outline Summary: Cosmos and Commerce with Michele Cook
Introduction to Helen Holloway and Champion Pest and Termite Control: Helen Holloway is the tenacious and insightful founder of Champion Pest and Termite Control, a company that has carved a niche for itself in the competitive pest management industry. With a keen focus on customer satisfaction and environmentally friendly practices, Helen's business stands out for its commitment to both efficacy and eco-consciousness. Her journey from a curious observer in the field to a leading entrepreneur is a testament to her dedication and innovative approach to pest control.
Podcast Summary:
1. Opening Remarks by Michele Cook:
2. Helen's Origin Story:
3. Business Philosophy and Practices:
4. Industry Insights:
5. Customer Relations and Growth:
6. Overcoming Challenges:
7. Future Aspirations:
8. Closing Thoughts:
9. Sign-off by Michele Cook:
Links
Champion Pest & Termite Control
Facebook
The E-Myth Revisited by Michael Gerber
The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman
https://cosmosandcommerce.com
https://www.facebook.com/cosmosandcommercepodcast
Podcast Outline Summary: Cosmos and Commerce with Michele Cook
Introduction to Helen Holloway and Champion Pest and Termite Control: Helen Holloway is the tenacious and insightful founder of Champion Pest and Termite Control, a company that has carved a niche for itself in the competitive pest management industry. With a keen focus on customer satisfaction and environmentally friendly practices, Helen's business stands out for its commitment to both efficacy and eco-consciousness. Her journey from a curious observer in the field to a leading entrepreneur is a testament to her dedication and innovative approach to pest control.
Podcast Summary:
1. Opening Remarks by Michele Cook:
2. Helen's Origin Story:
3. Business Philosophy and Practices:
4. Industry Insights:
5. Customer Relations and Growth:
6. Overcoming Challenges:
7. Future Aspirations:
8. Closing Thoughts:
9. Sign-off by Michele Cook:
Links
Champion Pest & Termite Control
Facebook
The E-Myth Revisited by Michael Gerber
The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman
https://cosmosandcommerce.com
https://www.facebook.com/cosmosandcommercepodcast
Helen Holloway Michele Cook: [00:00:00] Welcome to another episode of Cosmos and Commerce, where business tales are stirred, not shaken. I'm your host, Michelle Cook with Bodyache Escape Massage Center. And I'm doing this solo today. Janice did not make it. Today we have a guest who's mastered the art of combating unwelcome critters, all while building a buzzing empire. From the world of banking to ensuring homes in Pickerington are pest free, she's a true testament that you can shift gears and triumph. She's here to share her tale of grit, growth, and grace. Raise your glasses, listeners, for the formidable force behind Champion Pest and Termite Control, the one and only Helen Holloway. helen holloway: I love these introductions. It makes you sound like this man, I can run through a brick wall after hearing that. Michele Cook: Yeah, she is a superhero. helen holloway: I love it. Michele Cook: Helen, could you share a bit about your background and what inspired you to start Champion Pest and Termite Control?[00:01:00] helen holloway: Yeah. Thanks for having me. Super excited to share our story. So I would say that I got dragged kicking and screaming into. Business ownership. So I met my husband Dwight back in 2001 And I was in college. I was a 12 year old prodigy for sure But he was in pest control and so and I was a banker that was like I guess the Summer job that I had when I graduated high school. So basically meet this guy who's crazy and he was nuts and I was maybe a little bit crazy too. And I remember telling him like, oh, I need a man with his name on his business card and not on his shirt. And so that probably wasn't my finest moment, but maybe tells you a little bit about my maturity at the time. And he actually pursued me pretty hard. He kept trying, which is great. I appreciate it. And so I married him. So we get married, moved to Columbus and he can't get promoted. He's working for one of the biggest companies in the [00:02:00] world, frankly, and just couldn't get, couldn't break through the, ceiling. So he says to me about six months after we're married Hey, I'm going to start a business. And I thought that was cute, but surely like you mean a couple of years from now. Maybe a week or 2 later, we are sitting in church and we hear this sermon that says I'm designed to be a champion. And he looks at me and he says, there it is champion fast and termite control. It's okay, sure. anD then maybe 2 weeks later from that, he calls and says, I have an appointment tomorrow with my 1st customer. Are you going to make me a contract that I was like, I'm sorry. What? So literally. Come home from work at night type of contract on word make a copy, because it's it's not too fly or I don't have a great way to have a copy of it and to share a copy of it with the customer. And this is 2008, so we're not scanning and emailing and, but we're still faxing at this point in the, in history. And so literally I'm like, what are you thinking? We've [00:03:00] got a kid and we've got houses and he's failure is not an option. And I said, okay, so I follow this crazy guy into this crazy. And he does it. So he did it by himself. He was in my man show for a couple of years. And then fast forward to 2017 it's our 10 year wedding anniversary. And we've got like just a lot of big things going on and I get laid off from my job at the bank. Love the job favorite team I've ever had. That was everything I wanted and I get laid off. They eliminate the whole. The whole department. And so I said, what am I going to do? So I spent a couple of days in the bed crying because Michele Cook: That's what you do. helen holloway: I do? I love that job. And he's offended that I'm just not sweet. I'm just going to work with you. And I'm like, surely you're not offended that I don't. I think spending all day, every day to get would be a great [00:04:00] choice. But I did I'm a banker, I'm going to calculate the risks and I've got all these charts and things and we can try it for a year. So we did, and I loved it. And I just never went back every once in a while. I will look back and be like, Oh, my licenses that I've let lapse or my, the things that maybe I have don't have anymore. Especially after a conversation Oh, you don't have your name on your business card. Now, all of a sudden, I don't have my name on my business card either. And the things I've, titles that I had to let go of, but it's been an amazing experience. I couldn't, could not have written a story, would never have written a story like this for myself. Michele Cook: Yeah. That's awesome. How it all fell together, though, like that. helen holloway: It did, yeah, for sure. Michele Cook: Starting a business can be quite challenging. What were some of the initial hurdles you faced and how did you overcome them? helen holloway: Yeah, sure. So when we first started, of course, I'm working full time in banking. He is, he took a job selling TVs, [00:05:00] which actually was one of the best things that could have happened because he learned sales differently. And it was retail, so he could work the business on certain days and then he could work in retail on other days. And so I would just say for us, it was the. How do you balance your time? How do you balance your like, what should you be doing? And when and then, of course, you've got 2 very strong willed people who have ideas of what something should look like. And how do you who wins? There's no tiebreaker. There's no, and I'm going by all the things that I've learned at this point. I've got a master's degree in business, right? Surely what I've seen written. Thank you. Is much better than his, off the cuff experience, but meanwhile, he's no, this is what I've seen in the industry. And it was a difficult task to manage the who's on 1st, who's on 2nd and what's your lane and what's my lane. But eventually we had to figure that out pretty quickly. Yes, Michele Cook: Yeah. [00:06:00] I can understand that having a partner as well, but that is a tough thing to maneuver. helen holloway: you just have different experiences and perspectives and, ideas and so until you either align them or say, hey, listen, here's your experiment and here's mine. And here's what it will cost us if we win. And we, what do we gain if we lose? It takes some meeting in the middle, but I'm the only child, right? I've never had some middle. It's just been my way or the highway. So that was a. And he's the oldest, right? So he's also had my way or the highway, because he just beat up his younger brother and sister until they submitted. And that's just not how I operate. So it took a little bit of figuring out and we still had to stay married was another thing that was important to us. And yeah, that just took some figuring out. We still figure it out every day, but. Michele Cook: It sounds though that you're [00:07:00] maybe the analyzer and he's like a visionary. helen holloway: of 100 percent yeah, I see forest. He sees trees. As far as he's concerned, we're going to do this right now and we're going to run with it. And I'm like, yeah, what's that look like. Next week, next month, next year, and he. I don't know, we'll work, we'll worry about that when we get there and I'm like, no, that's not how it's not how I operate. And even. Something as simple as we are, trying to go to a thing and I'll say, what time are we leaving today? And he's I don't know whenever we're ready. No no, I need a time. I need some structure. And he's I'm ready now. No, you didn't warn me. So just how we have to like, understand each other's quirks. But it's been 22 years at this point, I know what to expect. But yeah, it's still always a. A challenge to figure out when to fight the battle and when not Michele Cook: Yeah. I always appreciate the analyzers. Cause I know I don't pay attention to the details and I, somebody needs to, so the Kiron is [00:08:00] our analyzer. helen holloway: I love it. I love it. It's great to have an amazing partner. That's invaluable. Michele Cook: Yes. Can you share a story of a high point in your entrepreneurial journey? helen holloway: Yeah. So as soon as I lose my job so they announced it in January. I have to dug it out till April and that's just not how I operate. I can't. Again, I see forest and my forest says there's not gonna be any trees left. So why am I putting my energy into this thing? But of course, it's important to me to leave the job with dignity and, all the things. And I did my best to balance some of that in the most honoring way I possibly could. But then these contracts come up and 1 of them is the city of Columbus, which of course is the largest. City in the state one of them is Columbus city schools, which is the largest school district in the state. And sometimes it's are we equipped for this kind of thing? And you research it and you are, and you can make it happen. And we [00:09:00] won those. And so very quickly, the salary that I was spent so many days crying in the bed about is replaced. And so you're like, huh, look how God made that happen. And then a couple of years later. So of course those are all on. A time contract and you don't know whether or not you'll keep them, but a couple of years later, we lose them their quantity, not quality, which is fine. That there's a place for that. And the growth of the business but we lose those contracts and we still continue to exceed and pass the goals and the numbers. And so you're like, huh, I guess this thing really is destined for success. You lose a big contract like that and you begin to get just a little nervous, but. Yeah. You figure out how to replace some of that. And I think that's the continued favor that we feel like we feel from the, from God in the spaces. It's just been like, all right, you're doing the right thing when those kinds of things are happening and aligning and moving forward. Michele Cook: Yeah, that's awesome. helen holloway: God has really provided for us in this journey. I [00:10:00] grew up in church. My stepmom is a pastor. So I'm a pastor's kid. And for anybody who doesn't know, we say that PKs are usually just a little bit rambunctious and rogue. And we go against the grain. Now I was almost an adult by the time that she began to ministry. I got to maybe not experience the entire PK experience, but you think that you have faith or you think that you, that you are believing in God until something happens. And then it's like your faith is tested. Do you really believe or? Did you just like the idea of believing? It's like a diet even, right? I'm trying to try, but like when the brownie hits the plate, are you still trying or do you, concede? And I would just say to us I've been faithful. And you look back and you're like, man, My experience in this aligned with this so that I can do this today and my experience with that and how, God puts people in their life like you, right? We meet at a random thing in a whole different city. [00:11:00] And we're neighbors quote unquote. And you're like, man, that all just really aligned and work well. And in fact, when SBA scale up program was the time in which my job had literally just collapsed that mid January. It was like, hey, this. You're losing your job, but here's a program and I'm like, all right, let me apply really quickly and see what happens. And it all just aligned and made such a. Like, all right, I see that or the people, the number of people who do business with us that I ran into at the bank that I didn't solicit to necessarily, but, they come back into our lives and we're like, huh? I know that person or my husband will say, oh, I met this landlord today and I'm like, oh, I begged him for years. And you're like, all right. I love how it just all. Aligns and there's a great master plan that again, as a planner, I want to know, I want to control, but I don't always get the opportunity to do that. And but [00:12:00] again, that's the beauty of having a partner who's no, roll with the punches and. Michele Cook: Yeah. That's helen holloway: There are so many times where he's just I thought you had, I'm like, I do until it doesn't add up. I'm doing the numbers and the math ain't mapping, but it does. You look back and like, all right, we pulled it off somehow. And I don't know, that's the, I think that's the lesson is when you are walking in your destiny, it'll work out. It'll completely. Michele Cook: giving me, me hope for our big move coming up. helen holloway: Oh, yeah, I'm super excited for you. I'm like, this is, this works great. It's just, it's the right thing. And everything always does fall into place, right? There are times when things fall out of place, and it's very frustrating, and, but it becomes the right thing at the right time. Michele Cook: Yeah. We've talked a lot about you and Dwight working together. Are there any specific strategies that you two use to effectively manage your roles? Do you have [00:13:00] any? helen holloway: Your wife is always right. That's the strategy. Follow your woman. No yeah, working with your spouse is not for the faint of heart. And it does take a lot of. Finding the medium for example Dwight is when it's on his mind. Here it comes. It's coming out his mouth and it doesn't matter what you're working on. Here comes rule. And I'm like, no we need to schedule some time. I need to process what you're saying. And so we found a way, so every week we have a meeting to go through the things. And so sometimes, obviously, there are some things that we got to figure out. Now. I can't wait till next Wednesday to talk about what the quote is. This is why we got to get this done now, but. If there's a should we buy the vehicle? Which one should we buy? What should it look like? Should we hire the person? What's the value? Like some of those conversations that just take a little longer, we table them and we sit down and we have them. We have. We're trying to get them uninterrupted, right? It's hard to do on when people need you. So we try and make sure our time is protected and [00:14:00] uninterrupted. We have a great plan of what we're going to talk about. What would be the table? What takes more precedence now than the other? you just, you have to know your spouse, right? I am not a morning person. I do not want to talk before nine o'clock. I just don't, there's nothing needs to be said, but I'm washing dishes. Those things come to my mind at six or seven o'clock in the evening and I'm ready to talk, but that doesn't work. So I do, I can literally be sitting on the couch next to Dwight and I'll email him. All the thoughts, all the things and then when I wake up the next morning, he's been up since 4 or 5 o'clock and I have all my responses. I can manage all the things and it works well for us. Because otherwise there were just times when. He would be bringing work home and I wasn't ready. I wasn't in position. I wasn't. And sometimes I'll say I'm listening, but I'm not retaining, right? I'm listening to you as your spouse, as your friend, but as your business partner, this has to be tabled. I can't solve this. And so just knowing, and again, [00:15:00] I'm forest, he's trees, right? So if he says a thing, how he doesn't have the logistics ironed out. It's on me. They call me the processor. It's on me to process it. And that's fine. And sometimes I have to say, this isn't logistically going to work. And sometimes he's but make it work. What's that balance of who and how, but when you're in business with a partner that you trust, and that, yeah. Trust that you have everybody's best interest and that helps. But I'm sure there are situations where you're like, I don't know that I trust that this person has done all the things. I'm analysis paralysis, so I have done all the research, but when do we pull the trigger is my problem, but do I, it's you did it great. Go buy it. I'm like. You know what that costs, that now he only does that on the really expensive decision. If it's like a 100 B suit, we have to discuss it in Manila and I'm like, no, it's been 100 and that was 1 of the things like I told him a lot way early. If we have to argue over a 100 decision, this business [00:16:00] is not big enough and not ready for me. To join it. I don't want to have to run every hundred dollar decision past you now, every 10, 000 decision, maybe we'll have a good conversation, but it depends on what the 10, 000 even is right? Like you're spending 10, 000 in products for that service, spend it. And so just knowing your roles and your and being able to separate. And sometimes I have to say, Hey, I love you. I'm your wife right now. I am not your business partner. And stop. Yeah. Stop talking to me. Stop talking to me. Stop talking to me like that. Stop talking to me about that. And we've learned the balance. And he knows what I mean it. But it's all about finding the balance in your relationships. Spouse or not spouse. Michele Cook: That is very true. I'm sure Kyren is so glad that he's not married to me also, because we would probably be talking business all the time. helen holloway: All the SOme, especially as when you have an entrepreneur mind, something hits you and you wanna say you think [00:17:00] about it. And I'm like, yep. Noted. Wrote it down. We'll talk about it later, , but it's hard. Michele Cook: Yeah. I do something similar to what you do with your emails all at current. And I also meet once a week to talk all the things and rather than texting him at 10 o'clock at night. When I have an idea, I schedule the text to show up right before our meeting. So he has this whole list of texts. So I remember. Yeah, helen holloway: there are so many tools, like using tools is so valuable to your business. And honestly, life. It's a whole. Management process of all the things. We don't have to do business the way our parents and grandparents did. Michele Cook: right. Right. All right. Let's switch into a little bit of strategy now. What marketing tactic has yielded the most significant return on investment for champion pest and termite control? helen holloway: So Dwight would say, [00:18:00] when he's out hanging out, like watching the game, going out with his friends, he meets people and he's right. He literally meets people anywhere and everywhere. We used to hang out at a local restaurant and he would come back with business cards. And I'm like, Thought you were, hanging with Eric and he's yeah, but Eric introduced me to this guy and he's a landlord. So I would say, honestly, it's relationships people do business with people. And that's, again, that's a tactic I learned in the bank is how to be the people that the person wants you to be. And our service, sometimes it's curative, sometimes it's preventative. It really just depends. But. Yeah. The question is, do they want to do business with you? Because, if you come in and you're a jerk and you're a bulldozer, like sometimes that's not going to work. And if you come in and you're understanding and you're empathetic and you, they know you can fix the problem. And that's the thing. Dwight puts off him more than me because he's the bug killer, but he puts off this [00:19:00] I'm going to fix your problem. He has that. He's a problem solver. That's what he does. And so it just really works for us to the people that know us, our apps, they want to do business with the way. And he's fun. He's very charismatic but they want to do business with him. And so that, that works out. I'm just a wise wife, Michele Cook: No, not Jeff. helen holloway: but I tell people it's funny because people say that. a thing that women run into sometimes, especially when they're working with their husband and it's Oh, yeah. You work for Dwight, right? Or, oh, you can Dwight let you have the day off? I'm like, so a couple things about how Dwight and I work. Or I remember when I first lost my job, I kept hearing like, so when are you going to go back to work? And I'm like, I am working. I am these bills don't pay themselves. This payroll doesn't run itself. The systems and processes and things like I. Enable him and enable our team, honestly, to get things done. And if something ain't going right, then he's in the field and I'm in here fixing it. And [00:20:00] I think that's a struggle that we face and he has done a great job of say it out loud no, we're partners. And again, I don't do bugs and he don't do numbers. And so we partner well, the number of people who are like, and how you work for your husband. Sure. I work for him and he works for me. Michele Cook: Yeah. That's a good way to put it. Can you share an instance where a unique strategy dramatically changed the trajectory of your business? helen holloway: Yeah, I would say so a couple of things and I would say perhaps the scale up program was 1 of the things that really brought to our attention that you have to work. In your business and you have to work on your business. And so I don't think it's, I don't think there's any magic golden, magic golden bullet egg thing that fixes a business. I think it's it's just always paying attention and focusing on it. And one of the jokes that I make my daughter is 13. My business is 15. They're both teenagers in a lot of ways. They can function very well alone [00:21:00] on their own. I don't, I'm not changing diapers. I'm not, I'm probably not cooking you dinner. You know what to do and how to do it. But there are some times where they do need your attention. And sometimes you forget that to give it the attention that it really needs. And have before created a list. All right. Today I'm going to work on my business doing these things because if you don't and you don't put the time into chamber events or, and pick what matters, right? Not everything deserves your attention, but you don't take the time to work on your business. You'll, your business becomes stale. Your pricing may be wrong. Your product may be wrong. Your services, your packages may not be proper. So you just always have to be. Always improving and working on what's next and how do you anticipate the customer's next need? Michele Cook: Yeah, that's so true. helen holloway: Also sometimes we run into who should take it, right? I, some of the stuff I know enough and some of it. [00:22:00] Dwight knows enough, but like, where's the intersection? So he just finished. I don't know if you've heard of. Reno guys has intentional leadership Academy, and he just finished that. Jen and Sean Olsen are great people. They're here in Pickerington as well. And, to hear Dwight tell it, he's a great leader and he wasn't necessarily a bad leader, but certainly leadership is, you develop that over and Michele Cook: Oh yeah. helen holloway: so you can just see the difference in someone who has been through. And I, again, I was in corporate, so I went through a lot of leadership training and some of those things. And so he went through it wasn't a lot of his time. It was a good use of his time. And there were parts of it that. Okay. Maybe didn't always apply to him, but just continuing to always just grow who you are, like. You never until you stop breathing you're never done, like there's, you can learn more and you can do more. And again, just reflecting back on. So when I met my husband, my stepson was 2 and that's my favorite [00:23:00] size. They're cute and, everything. And honestly, he's now 24 and he still thinks I know everything, which is also why I love that kid. But count every stare and we would count every, I don't know, you. I remember one time when Dwight and I were dating, he was like, is everything a learning experience? And I was like, yes, everything still is. So 20 years later, I'm still reflecting on everything is a learning experience. And we were out to dinner the other day and Dwight said, you, some version of you made me mad and you did well. And I'm like, what does that mean? And he was like, you're turning me into a CEO. And I was like. Yes, I am Michele Cook: it's sexy. helen holloway: because everything is a learning experience and just continuing to always grow and develop you as a person and our business and our teams and there's just so much to be learned. And so another example I was at Cooper's Hawk with Dwight. That's one of our favorite places to strategize Michele Cook: Have your helen holloway: our wine tastings. [00:24:00] best strategy is done over wine, right? And I run into this person who had worked for me in the job that I left the last job. I left a long story short. Her husband did a lot with franchises and we later on grab some. More wine at Cooper's Hawk dinner and had a great conversation about franchising and what does that look like? A champion would choose to do that and all of those things. Again never thought having her in my life. Cause it's been seven years since I've left the bank and she'd left before I had, but 10 years later, run into her. She has now married someone who just can speak into our business. Like it's crazy how that happens. And we had literally just been saying like, we got to figure out what's next and what does this look like? And. Then here comes this guy who was a, he actually was like a territory manager and built the franchising for one of the largest franchisors, honestly, in the country. Good. All right. Can I pick your brain? And he was like, yes. And he just [00:25:00] literally word vomited to us for about 2 hours. Michele Cook: So you think you might pursue that? helen holloway: I don't know, depends on what day you ask me. So here's the thing, right? We are in central Ohio, which is like the hottest area right now, in my mind, and not even just central Ohio, but literally right in the middle of a big project in Johnstown, a big project in Circleville, a big project in Lancaster. And I am right sitting right in the middle of it. How will scale, depends on the day you ask me today. We're not today. We're going to add more staff and grow this thing from here. But you asked me yesterday or tomorrow, maybe you'll change. We'll Michele Cook: Yeah. Mine changes too. Today. I want to franchise. Tomorrow. I want to sell my business. It's just the things. helen holloway: Like, how much money do I need? All right. So 41, I've got 60 years ahead of me. At least my grandmother was 99 and a half and in great [00:26:00] health Michele Cook: Oh, nice. helen holloway: Hi, when she passed. So I'm like, all right, can I live for 60 more years? Michele Cook: What I've got in the bank, I don't know. helen holloway: The answer is no, that either. I can't live or I just can't live how I choose. I can survive. But I can't live how I choose. Michele Cook: Yeah. Okay. So back to strategy. What are the strategies that you use to ensure customer loyalty and retention? helen holloway: Yeah. YOu got to know your customers. I am again, we're big on relationships and let's not we've got a lot of customers. We don't have great relationships with each and every one of them. Some of them we don't even see we service the outside of your house and. Might not ever talk to you again because you're on auto pay and you don't want to talk to us. So we don't want to talk. Don't talk. If they do want to talk, talk, pet the dog, like high five the kid, bring the trash cans up. Just the little things that that creates that customer loyalty and. It's hard to, [00:27:00] you can't replace that. And you just have to know what your customers want. One of our guys has been with us, I think 12 years, I would, I think is where we're at now. And he knows I can say, Hey, here's, Mr. Customer. And he's yep, the address is the house is blue. The dog is green. The kids are 12 and 14, right? Like he knows those people. And Dwight, is the same way. And he'll say, oh, you've got, that person on the schedule. Don't forget the neighbor. And and and I'm just like, I don't know what I have for breakfast this morning. And this guy is telling me all the neighbors on the street that we don't even live on. And but that's the thing. They know that at the end of the day, and do I don't take care of them or we'll take care of them. And that they are, they're going to be well taken care of. And that's really what people want. It's the security and to know that their problems will be solved, especially in our industry. Michele Cook: Yeah, that's great. You talked about Will as your employee. helen holloway: Yes, Michele Cook: Employee happiness is a crucial aspect of any business. What's your top advice to keep your team [00:28:00] motivated and satisfied? helen holloway: Yeah. I would say again, just like you have to know your customers, you have to know your team. So Dwight wants to win. If there's a prize at the end, great. If there's not a prize at the end, also great. And even sometimes again. I have to say, Dwight, I am your wife, and I am not trying to compete with you. We're in a fantasy football league together, and he is sabotaging me. Michele Cook: Oh, helen holloway: Every Sunday from 12 to 1, I'm like, we're not married, don't talk to me, because he gives me the worst advice. And there's, there's a, I think, 200 prize at the end, but it's not worth our relationship, right? But Dwight wants to win. All of our guys don't want to win. One of my guys wants to get home to his family. So what can I do to make sure his route is efficient, that he's done at the right time so that he can get home to his family? One of my guys wants to go home and play video games and take a nap. So when he gets done at two o'clock, he is consent because he can go home, take a nap and play video games, right? So you just have to know what's important to your team. And when you know that. Then it's [00:29:00] easy to feed that. But that gets hard because there comes a point where you don't know what every employee likes or needs or but somebody has to. So how do you make sure that those people are feeling appreciated and that they're part of the team? And how do we win together? And that they're bought in and all the things. And I think you just have to know your, you have to know your people. Michele Cook: yeah. That's a good point. I've been wondering how, if I want to continue to grow, like how you keep that connection, I guess you have to helen holloway: you take, I think 1 of the things so will is really are he's our primary trainer for a lot of our, a lot of our newer technicians when they come in and sometimes there's a title attached to leadership and sometimes they're not there's not. And even when there's not necessarily a title attached to it, just respecting people as a leader. Sometimes it is just about. A pat on the back or hey, let's grab a drink. We're all done early or, whatever the little thing is. And [00:30:00] some of that just, it means a lot. And then sometimes people are like, I don't want to grab a drink. I want to go home. And I'm like, yep, cool. Bye. Have a great day. Michele Cook: Oh yeah. helen holloway: Sometimes if it's a holiday weekend, we're going to try and get those guys out early on Friday and. You've worked hard, especially like July 4th, July is one of the peak is like the peak season for us. Everything's swarming. We're doing mosquitoes, Michele Cook: Yeah. helen holloway: termites are, so like on July 4th, if I can get you out early, like I'm going to try and get you off early. And then same thing with Christmas. Obviously we're in pest control in Ohio. There's no great reason to make people work Christmas Eve or anything like who wants you in the house on Christmas Eve and those creatures that are stirring are just going to have to be there till the 26th. We try to be super honoring and those things your vacation time and just. How do we flex some of those things let's be honoring to our people. Michele Cook: How do you start your day to ensure you're in the right frame of mind for business?[00:31:00] helen holloway: I like really still until Dwight leaves so he doesn't talk to me because as soon as I stir in the morning he wants to talk about it. At that point, he's two cups of coffee in. Michele Cook: Oh helen holloway: And I already, I don't like to talk, so you like really still until it's quiet in the house. That's step one. My daughter's an 8th grader. She has to be on the bus at 630 in the morning. Dwight's on morning duty. But she'll come in and she sometimes will snuggle Mama in the morning still. Which is weird. She's 5'7 and 130 pounds. That's a great part of my morning. She's the only reason I will wake up and I don't even really wake up. Like she gets in and we go back to sleep. So I think a great snuggle is usually the best part of my day. And then I have to shower. I am absolutely a morning shower. Like I have, that is the only way I'm going to you have to add water for me to function. Michele Cook: Wakes it wakes you up. helen holloway: I don't talk to me till I shower, [00:32:00] that's it. And I typically go straight there. I do make the bed every morning. I don't know if you've read the book about making your bed and how that really gets your day started. I do make my bed. Last person off the bed makes it, so it's not always me. Sometimes Abby's last, sometimes Dwight, Dwight's last about once out of a hundred times. Michele Cook: Okay. helen holloway: He's usually not last, but Abby or I will typically make the bed in the morning. And then honestly, if I can come in I typically some, if I can, my best days, I'm here before everybody else. I don't answer the phone unless it's like super busy and I just take some time, make my list, get through some of the things. That first hour is probably the most productive because I, I know what I need to get done. I can get it done. Pretty quickly. I feel like if I ever start my day past like nine o'clock, by the time I actually get started now, I'm hungry and I got to go get lunch and then the phone is ringing and the people are here and the right. And and honestly even like my, the people [00:33:00] that support me, some of my partners along the way, I'm like, can we talk at seven, seven 38, because that's just, and first of all, I don't. Have a lot of extra words. So we get through things pretty quickly at that time of the morning, but it's just the beginning of my day, like nine to five is just hard. Michele Cook: Nice. helen holloway: I also really work well at night. Especially when we were first starting the business and Abby was little and I was still working full time Saturday nights were my absolute favorite time to do QuickBooks, to make sure things were right. Saturday Night Live and I would just roll. And I could get so much done. And Dwight would go to sleep and Abby would go to sleep and just The lull of night especially at Christmas when the Christmas tree is in the corner. I'm happy to put everybody to bed and just be in the Michele Cook: Yeah. Yeah. Sounds nice. helen holloway: And that's backwards, right? These businesses, they say, get up at 5 o'clock. I ain't. You do not want a 5 o'clock in the morning, Helen. That's very Michele Cook: [00:34:00] yeah. Yeah. I'm more of a night owl too. Joe will go to bed early and I'll stay up for four more hours getting stuffed in. helen holloway: 1 a. m. is about the right bedtime for me. Michele Cook: It out. Yeah. How do you handle stress or overwhelming situations in the business world? No, helen holloway: we don't have them here at Champion. Michele Cook: no stress. helen holloway: Yeah, low stress. It's easy. I would say probably Cosmos and Conversations. Michele Cook: Yeah. The wine. helen holloway: Wine. Yeah. I think, no, really, it's like knowing what you love and making sure you make time to do it. You're going to go through hard things and for me, I need to know what's at the end of that. All right, I'm going to fight through this thing, but then I'm going to schedule a massage with Andrew at Bodyache Escape afterwards. Or I'm going to meet with my friends and grab a drink or, hang out with Abby. We like to go to the movies. You've got to, for me, I have to have kind of a goal at the end and that helps me plow [00:35:00] through and I collapse pretty quickly. I am, I'm not the person that gets super emotional and stress. I'm like, all right, cool. What's the, what's a, b, c, d. I'm very black and white and very plow through, but then I just collapsed at the back. And so I just need to make that space to collapse. That's important. Michele Cook: Yeah. That's good advice. What is, helen holloway: The massage part, Michele Cook: yeah, the massage part is the best. helen holloway: But don't schedule with Andrew because he's already busy enough. You'll need to schedule with somebody else so that I can get him when I need to get him. Michele Cook: True. Rochelle and Zakira are good second places. helen holloway: Great, good to know. Michele Cook: What's one piece of advice you'd give to someone who's on the fence about starting their own business? helen holloway: Yeah couple things I've seen in my banking career and in my in my career as a business owner is you can't chase money, right? You have to do what you love and let the money chase it. Now [00:36:00] you have to solve a problem and doing what you love, right? If you love basket weaving and like baskets are not in that's not going to do it, but is there a way to get to bridge the gap between what you love doing and what someone needs done and so that you can manage that? There's gotta be. You've got to find that and honestly, it's okay. Not to be a great entrepreneur. That's okay. We need really good workers too. And find someone who does what you want to do and does it well and is honoring and pays you well to do it. That's okay. Just so many times I would see business owners who were just really good at their craft, but didn't know How to manage the taxes or the payroll or the, and that stuff, man, I spend more time managing than I, I don't kill bugs, but I spend more time doing those things than I do doing other things like putting out the fires. When you're a business owner, you're not doing the thing. You're managing [00:37:00] it. You're influencing it. But you are, you're not doing it. And so it's one of the things Dwight struggles with sometimes he wants to be in the field and he wants to do the thing again, that's why I'm his partner who can fill that gap for him when it comes to all the other things. But, the period of time when he did it and I wasn't working in the business full time, he was. He was all things and you can't be all things well, so you've got to, you've got to figure that out. But he, Dwight will tell you. And again, he gets up at 4 or 5 a. m. and he's drinking his coffee and watching the news because he needs to see what traffic is doing, because we've got guys going out on the road and we need to know what's closed and what's open, or we need to see what weather is doing, and if we're on our level 2, are we calling people off, are we, but he will tell you, he wakes up in the morning and it is not work it's exciting and he's ready to do it. Now, I'm not going to say it's not work. It's definitely work. buT I enjoy it. So that's. You have to enjoy what you're doing because it's a lot of work. Michele Cook: Yeah. [00:38:00] You reminded me of the e myth book. When did you ever read that? helen holloway: No, I've heard about Michele Cook: Yeah. It's helen holloway: on a podcast. Michele Cook: Yeah. What you were just talking about is pretty much the entire book, so you don't need to read it. But. helen holloway: Okay. I was gonna say, maybe they should pay me Michele Cook: Yeah. So helen holloway: obviously the reason why they wrote Michele Cook: yeah, I'll get when I was still doing massages, I would have clients that would say, so are you, do you have a busy day? Like I, and I did never knew how to answer that because I'm like you're my only massage, but I've got this, or they're like, are you working the rest of the day? Well, yes Not doing massages. helen holloway: I'm always working. And then the other thing for us is that in our busier seasons, I'm not soliciting and I am not working as hard as Dwight may be. But in my, he'll look at me and say, what do [00:39:00] you have to do today? I'm like, what do I have to do? What do I plan to do? What else could I do? It never ends. And so I'm like. So the other thing, one of my favorite things to say to him is ask the question you want the answer to. If you're saying, hey, do you want to grab lunch? Let me say yes or no. But if you ask me what I have to do today, and I show you this list of things and you're like, oh you don't have time for no, you should have asked me. Did I want to grab lunch? Ask the question you want the answer to unapologetically. Michele Cook: Yeah. That is really good advice all around. If you had to attribute your success to one mindset or principle, what would it be? helen holloway: I would say have a good partner and obviously my husband is my business partner, but even outside of him do you have other business owners that you can bounce ideas off of make sure you've got a great accountant, a great attorney, a business coach is super useful. We look at these athletes and we're like, man. LeBron James, or we'll use Nick Chubb [00:40:00] because that's my guy and he's hurt. But like we look at these athletes and we're like, yes, LeBron is the face of it, but there's certainly a nutritionist that helps him eat what he needs to eat, and a trainer who stretches him out, and a coach who does it, and frankly his wife. Who must hold down the house with, with the kids at home. And who can support you? I think we make the mistake of saying business ownership is like living on an island and like for a long time, Dwight and I created that island for ourselves. Sometimes people don't understand the things you're going through and that's a different, I think situation, but at the end of the day, like having a good team around you and acknowledging that team and supporting that team. Man. It's super important and we, if we look at our top performing athletes, they're making bazillions of dollars and we, high five LeBron for what he's doing. And he has all those people around him. Why wouldn't we expect our business owners to have all the same team and tools? And so just don't make the mistake of thinking that you're [00:41:00] in it alone. Somebody's been through it, find them. Somebody understands somebody can help you. Let's not wait till you go with the IRS taxes or whatever the thing is before you engage, using the right tools, the people or software sometimes, but really people, I think because somebody's going to tell you about that product or, you've got to just make sure you. dOn't operate on an island that. Michele Cook: Yeah. helen holloway: not and you drive yourself nuts. You'll be crazy Michele Cook: yeah. helen holloway: talking to yourself. And, Michele Cook: Sure. Yeah. helen holloway: you need to surround yourself with good people. Michele Cook: I agree. Many entrepreneurs fear failure. How do you perceive failure and how has it helped shape your journey? helen holloway: Yeah. Everything's an experiment, right? So you throw something at the wall, see what sticks. And you just need to reevaluate it. Again, being the only [00:42:00] child, the word no is just not something I enjoy hearing. I Don't even know how to, I don't know how to react to it. So no, usually it's not no to me. It's not right now. And sometimes, and I feel this a lot of times with people who, don't they, people operate, most people, I think operate in the standard and the norm. And if you're going to be successful in your business, or like those who have. Exceeded expectations somehow went outside the norm to catch the attention because the norm is not attention grabbing. And don't expect that your failures or that your nose or that your, the weird things that you're doing you got to embrace those. That's what. Pushes you above in the head and faster than the rest. And it's going to fail sometimes. Great. What failed? What is it? The eat the meat and throw away the bones. You have to take what works, the parts of it that work, apply it where you can, and throw out the rest but you [00:43:00] also have to figure out what's the right amount of that for you, right? There's a cost, um, your time, it could be your money, it could be, like, relationships, so just make sure you're calculating your risks well and the costs of it, but. Try it. I think one of the best experiments we've ever had is we've hired some family members, some friends of family. And I, again, calculating the risk, I'm like, Nope, I'd rather be your friend than you. But Dwight has, Dwight tried it and it has worked really well for him. And you, that's... Way out of the ordinary. I would never ever recommend something like that, but it has worked. And so honestly, all of our, we've had neighbors that worked for us. We've had family and friends of family or family of friends. And that is a highly calculated risk that could have gone very wrong very quickly. And for us, it didn't, but that doesn't mean it's not going to go wrong for you. And just making sure that you have really well calculated that is super valuable. Michele Cook: Yeah, most of the time that went wrong for us.[00:44:00] helen holloway: It went wrong once. It went wrong one time, but not in a bad relationship sort of way, but it's gonna work. Thanks anyways. Michele Cook: you're fired. Still love ya. helen holloway: Yep. Bye. I see you at Thanksgiving. Because you are. You're gonna see him again. But, and everybody knows, hey, let's try it. don't work, no hard feelings, okay? And that's just, again, that's also out of the ordinary, but, Michele Cook: when you outline like expectations in the beginning. Of what will happen at the end then it's better. Yeah helen holloway: Yeah, but looking back, most of those people have been the best I have decided we will no longer advertise for technicians. We will source technicians with our friends, our family, our because when we advertise outside, it's okay. Sometimes, but when we source them from people, we, it's so much better the quality of person that we end up with. Michele Cook: I've seen you post about that before on Facebook. So I know you do that helen holloway: Over and over. [00:45:00] Give me your son. I know you know somebody. I think one of my posts was between Dwight and I, we have however many hundred Facebook friends. Surely one of you has somebody. Unapologetically. And that's what happened. I hired the son, the brother of one of my daughter's volleyball players. That Okay I hired some guy who posted on Facebook. Hey, I'm looking for a job and had a one on one conversation with them. We have sometimes been at a McDonald's at a Burger King and I've been like, Hey, can I talk to you? Unapologetically, I'm going to hire. Source differently, That can go wrong too. It can fail. It's and I'm also like, fishing in a very small pond. It's all about where I'm going and who I'm running into, but. Michele Cook: Yeah, I wish I could find massage therapists like that because we have, they have to have a special degree or certificate. So it's a little bit trickier. helen holloway: I get it. I get it. But like some of your other people, I don't know, like maybe office staff or some of that, like I [00:46:00] can teach you how to kill bugs. I can't teach you how not to be a jerk. So you have to come with that skill automatically and then I'll teach you the rest. Michele Cook: Looking back, is there something you wish someone had told you when you were just starting out? helen holloway: I would say outsource early. I am the only mom Abby has. I'm the only wife, I'm the only daughter of my dad. So there are places where you need to be you, no one else can do that. But guess what? Somebody can mop these floors and cut this grass and pull these weeds. And at this point I will unapologetically like just outsource the things that I think someone else can do and can do well. And you look back and you're like, Helen's yard looks great, but nobody knows whether Helen spent 10 hours in the yard or somebody else that doesn't matter. But, at the end of the day, my time with Abby is short. My time with my, with people can be short seasons [00:47:00] of life happen and, people move or people, people pass away or whatever the thing is or relationships, we just get busy and go different directions because you've got a son and I've got a daughter and like we aren't in the same spaces, but I will not outsource like my husband Michele Cook: Oh, yeah. helen holloway: Just experiences that, they don't last long, especially with kids. Or, just time you just don't know. And there are things that I can have someone else do, or that I can, now, some of that's hard, right? So one of the things that I probably should be outsourcing that I'm not doing a great job of is some of my financial stuff. I don't want anybody in my, I'm a banker. I don't want anybody in my money. I have who I have. And but, there's a line where you got to trust people and, inspect and verify and protect yourself the best you can and maybe place great limits. But. Outsource, but you can often, um, and early. Michele Cook: That's good advice, yeah. Okay, so I'm going [00:48:00] to ask you a couple of fun questions. helen holloway: Okay. Go. Michele Cook: If Champion Pest and Termite Control had a signature cocktail, like a Cosmo, for instance, helen holloway: a good Michele Cook: what would it be called, and what's in it? helen holloway: So it would probably be called head first. Cause that's how we jump into things. jUmp first and ask questions later. And it'd probably be like this mix of a bunch of random alcohols, like a Long Island where you're just like, grab all the bottles and just turn them all upside down and then shake it up and see what happens. Michele Cook: Oh, my gosh. Yeah, you're going to be thinking about your head first the next morning. That's for sure. helen holloway: Listen, you'll look back and you'll be like, man. That was worth it. Now, you can't do a whole bunch of them and you can't, you might, that might be the last first and last drink you have for the day, but that's all right. You'll wake up the next morning and be like, man, that was Michele Cook: That's good. Yeah,[00:49:00] All right. Let's switch gears for a moment into some lightning round questions. We'll be okay. You ready? All right. What is the book you've most given as a gift or the book that's made the biggest impact on you? helen holloway: Five love languages. Gary Chapman, you can apply it to your marriage, your children, I actually have a children's version, like, how to love language your children, your business, know your people, treat them the way they want to be treated, Michele Cook: Yeah. helen holloway: Know how you want to be treated, and also help them give that back. Mine is words of affirmation. It's not necessarily what you say, but don't discount what I've done or I am. So if I wash the dishes, do not point out to me that the trash needs to go out because I wash these Michele Cook: Okay, yeah. helen holloway: spend some time. I don't need you to say, Hey, great job on the dishes. And what I don't need you to say is, Hey, you forgot to take out the trash. Michele Cook: Oh, yeah. Yeah, I gotcha. Mine is acts of service, so please take out the trash for me. helen holloway: I [00:50:00] love it. And they say like in the Love Languages book it varies depending on your season to like when Abby was super little, acts of service was it because it was like, I didn't want to wake up and look around and see all the things that needed to be done. But now it's I just don't talk to me crazy. Michele Cook: What's an unusual habit or absurd thing that you love? helen holloway: A bunch of things. Dwight and I like to watch live music. We like to travel to see live music and concerts. That's, we just did a 50th anniversary of hip hop at Yankee Stadium. All of Run DMC it was great. So we like to do that and we've gotten to the point where we're going to travel to do that. We'll go see anybody, anywhere cause then you get to travel and music. It's cool. But my, probably my biggest unusual obsession is my Cleveland Browns. Michele Cook: Yeah. helen holloway: they're terrible. And. Michele Cook: You, you must be sad. helen holloway: a Browns fan. She's gonna be loyal. Michele Cook: Yeah. Yeah. You have to be sad a lot, yeah. helen holloway: to bounce back Monday morning. You [00:51:00] have to almost always almost win. If that man or woman is a Browns fan, they are loyal. Michele Cook: Yeah. My husband is a Browns fan. He was very excited last week, but not as excited. He was mourning the broken leg. helen holloway: I know. It was bad. was terrible. Michele Cook: What is your proudest accomplishment? helen holloway: I would say probably Champion, right? I feel like I went to school forever and did all these things. But you look back and you're like, I think that this girl in this thing and having some fun with it, loving on people the guy that we met that I was telling you about who did the franchising, one of the things he was saying is like, how many, he was so proud of how many millionaires he made over time. And so just the way we've been able to support our team, they've bought houses and we've never had any new babies. I don't know why that is, like built houses and graduated children and, just being able to watch that and how those things, their lives have been changed by the job that they have here.[00:52:00] beIng able to support that, I think has really been, and sometimes even just the non traditional people that we hire and how we can help them just make a difference. It's been fun. Michele Cook: What purchase of a hundred dollars or less has most positively impacted your life? helen holloway: Massages with Andrew. Again that's, I carry the weight of the world on my shoulders and in my back. So I can spend that hundred dollars or so, and he just takes it. And he just hurts me so good. I actually, I ask him during one of my massages, do people moan? Sometimes they do, and it's creepy, so I didn't moan. Michele Cook: Yeah. Only you, Helen, only you Mo helen holloway: I was like, surely this feels so good to everybody else that they too moan, but Michele Cook: I can't wait to share . I can't wait to share this podcast with him. He's gonna, helen holloway: I'm a big Andrew Michele Cook: yeah. What is your current passion project?[00:53:00] helen holloway: I think like me and my kid and my family I am working really hard. What I can do, like you go into this young and you're like, I can take on the world. I can be every woman, I can do all the things. And then you hit 40, which by the way, ladies, 40 is not the new 30. They lie to you. 40 is not the new 30, but also in some good ways, right? So you hit this. Maybe 40 ish. And you're like, you know what I can, but I don't have to be all those things. I don't have to be everything to everybody. I don't have to be what you want me to be. I can look at what, and then of course you're teaching this to a teenager and that's a whole nother. Level, but yes the church is going to tell you they want your time. Volleyball is going to tell you they want your time. Mom wants your time. Dad wants your time. Your friends wants your time. And it's up to you to look back and say, all right, where am I going to spend my time for real? And not just the person or the thing that is flashing their [00:54:00] lights in front of you and And don't sometimes pay a little attention right there, there may be some value in it, but really decide what do I stand for? What do I care about? And how do I like, spend my time there? Not only teaching that to my daughter right now, but also living that for myself because, especially with teenagers, you can talk to your blue in the face, but until you actually do it and they understand it and see it. And I also think that makes a difference in your community because, you stand up and say, no, I'm not going to do that thing because I want to do this thing. And it's important to me. And I don't think enough people do that. I think it's oh if I do that, my kid won't play or my, my reputation gets messed up. And I think honestly, it strengthens your reputation when you stand for something and just say, and find a balance, right? Yeah. My daughter's playing volleyball on Easter. I don't love the idea of volleyball on Easter, but guess what? It's in Chicago, and I've got cousins in Chicago. Can we play volleyball in the morning, and then can we spend time with people, [00:55:00] honor people and family that evening? What's the balance of all the things that are gonna ask for your attention? And sometimes you have to and ought to balance them, sometimes you don't. And just being able to identify which ones you do and don't is super important. Michele Cook: Yeah. What was your first job? helen holloway: Marcos Pizza. I could walk there. I there came a point where someone was stealing money from the register and I hadn't been there when those things are happening. So I got to be, I got to work the register. I was like primarily registered, which was again, that into my banking career and was all the things that I got to enjoy doing. Michele Cook: Nice. helen holloway: Yeah, Marco's Pizza. I still love a great Marco's Pizza, but it has to be from Northeast Ohio. They're not the same Michele Cook: Oh, okay. Okay, good to know. helen holloway: Yeah. Michele Cook: Where do you see yourself in five years? helen holloway: Five years from now Abby will have graduated, which makes me want to vomit when I say that. She's [00:56:00] amazing. She's gonna do fine. I will not. Michele Cook: I helen holloway: I will be in her dorm room in her bed waiting for her to collapse. no, I think we're going to be in a very different situation of empty nesting and. Again, what really matters to us and how are we like, whose concert can we get to next? Or what city can we get to next? I Think at that point, a champion will have grown. Again, it will also reach some value. Some, maybe a young adulthood, because 5 years from now will be 20 years in business. There should be some managers in places and people in places and and central Ohio will be. Look different five years from now too. Michele Cook: Have you seen that Intel on Intel? Speech with Betsy. Oh my gosh. helen holloway: good. Michele Cook: It's a little daunting. What's happening? What's going on? helen holloway: And that's one of the things that really caught my attention about man, how are we going to grow this thing and be ready again to solve a problem in advance of people having it? And so I'm [00:57:00] excited. I know there's a, there are certainly some disadvantages, right? But I think there's a lot of advantages, economic advantages for this area as well. Michele Cook: sInce we're called Cosmos and Commerce, what is your drink of choice? helen holloway: I like okay, I like vodka. Vodka doesn't like my marriage. Michele Cook: Same. helen holloway: wHen Dwight's drinking vodka, the party should never end and I'm Michele Cook: I know. helen holloway: to fight. So that's not I can drink it with my friends cause they'll fight me. But I can't drink it with Dwight. But I also like gin. Like a good cucumber gimlet is Michele Cook: I've never had that. I'll have to try that. helen holloway: it's really refreshing, although you have to be a gin drinker, but it's lime and cucumber and Michele Cook: Okay. helen holloway: summer spritzer kind of Michele Cook: Ooh. helen holloway: vibe. Michele Cook: Yeah. helen holloway: I Michele Cook: You'll have to come up with a fall drink now. I know, helen holloway: know. I just only want summer. Michele Cook: right? helen holloway: So if I just keep drinking the summer drink, does Michele Cook: You'll feel summer. Yeah. Yeah. [00:58:00] Okay. Here's a good one. A fun one. Would you rather have to give a surprise keynote speech at a major banking conference with just five minutes to prepare or Have to handle a rare tricky pest situation in a high profile client's house without any of your usual tools helen holloway: Oof. Yeah I don't do booze. As a matter of fact, Dwight yells at me when I scream about spiders and things that are in our house. Because he feels because we own a pest control business, that I ought to not scream. And in fact, funny story, uh, I probably should have started with this. So Dwight and I met he knew my cousin and I was staying with her for a couple of months over summer in college. And he lived across the street. And there was a spider that was huge. He was literally like, I don't know, three, four feet around. He was big enough. I've got bad eyes. He was big enough that I saw him at the top of the stairs when I [00:59:00] looked down. So he was that big and he, of course, , my cousin called him to come kill the spider. I had gone to the store to buy Raid, because again, I don't need anybody, right? That was... only child syndrome and maybe again, some immaturity. So I went to go buy a can of rain. When we looked at the back of the rain can, it did not kill spiders. Maybe a miss there. So anyways, we met or he came and killed a spider in my bedroom and then never left, but my bedroom was in the basement. Yeah, I don't do bugs. I can do communicating about things. So I could do a. Bank thing, I can do a business thing pretty quickly. And that's 1 of my favorite things to do is to go to the chamber and talk about our business or business in general and support small business owners with what I know, or maybe things we've done in the past. But yeah, me and the customer, if we [01:00:00] are at a house, we're in the corner together. You. What is that? We're not gonna make it. Mhm. Michele Cook: Helen where can our listeners find you helen holloway: You are welcome to shoot me emails. My email is very long, so I'm sorry in advance. But it's first initial last name. So H Holloway at Champion Pest and Termite dot com. You can find me on the website as well. If you. Send an inquiry there. I'll get that. Or every Pickerington volleyball game, that's our passion. We love our city. We love our sports. We love our church. So Pickerington is home to me. And so we'll be out there often and as often as we can. I'd be happy to answer any questions about the things we've been through or the life that we live and the fun that we manage in this circus we call life. Michele Cook: Awesome. All right, folks, that's a wrap for today's episode. Thank you, Helen, for sharing your awesome journey and [01:01:00] from banks to bugs. Seriously, what a story. helen holloway: Thanks. Michele Cook: If you liked what you heard, don't keep it to yourself. Share it with your friends and make sure you hit that subscribe button so you don't miss out on our next episode. We've got more cool chats and stories coming your way. Helen, thanks again for hanking out with us and to all our listeners. Thanks for tuning in. Catch you next time on Cosmos and Commerce. helen holloway: Bye.