The Going Rate Is Killing Your Business

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Episode Description

"What's the going rate for a project like this?" Wrong question. In this episode, Tom breaks down why pricing off the going rate is the fastest way to price yourself into the gutter and what to ask instead. It's not about what everyone else charges. It's about your production rate, your real costs, and your number. If you're still shaving your price to "stay competitive," this one's for you.

What You'll Learn

• Why "going rate" pricing means you're averaging other contractors' blind spots into your own bid
• The one question to ask instead of "what's the going rate"
• The three numbers you need to know cold before you price any job
• The blind-spot costs that never show up in a "going rate" conversation
• Why revenue hides stupidity — and how a broken pricing model gets worse the more you scale it

Episode Breakdown

• Open — The question that started this episode, and why it's the wrong one to ask
• The Going Rate Problem — Why market-average pricing means pricing off other people's guesswork
• The Better Question — Production rate vs. going rate, and why one is math and the other is a rumor
• The Cost of Guessing — How "going rate" pricing quietly scales a broken business
• How to Build Your Number — The three things to track: actual time, real costs, target margin
• The Blind Spots — Access issues, waste, permits, travel — the stuff the going rate never accounts for
• The Standard — What strong contractors do differently
• The Fight This Week — Pull your last five jobs and build your real number

Key Quote

"The going rate is the kiss of death for a contractor. It keeps you tied to the average. And average is not where you want to live."

This Week's Fight

Pull your last five jobs like the one you're about to bid. Look at actual hours, actual costs, actual outcome. Build your production rate... not the going rate.

oduction rate — not your going rate.

Links & Resources

• Sales Leak Scorecard
• The Contractor Fight Website: https://thecontractorfight.com