From Side Hustle to Scalable Success: How to Build a Business That Lasts

In today’s episode, we sit down with Tyler Hall, owner of Hall Contracting, to unpack his nearly 20-year journey from evenings-and-weekends side work to leading one of Colorado’s most respected landscape construction and maintenance companies.

What started as a small operation focused on craftsmanship, specifically water features, has grown into a business with nearly 100 employees, a powerful reputation, and a culture rooted in service, accountability, and family values. Tyler shares the real story behind that growth: the risks taken, the mistakes made, and the mindset shifts required to scale without losing what matters most.

You’ll hear how Hall Contracting built a thriving business primarily through word of mouth, why leadership at scale requires letting go of perfection, and how investing in people and culture creates long-term stability, even in a seasonal industry.

Whether you’re an entrepreneur just getting started or a business owner navigating growth pains, this episode delivers practical lessons on leadership, resilience, and sustainable expansion. 

In today’s episode of the Harvest Growth Podcast, we’ll cover: 

• How side hustles and calculated risk-taking can lay the foundation for long-term growth
• The mindset shift required to lead a company with 80–100 employees
• Why word-of-mouth and relationships outperform traditional advertising
• Building a strong company culture that drives retention, professionalism, and referrals
• Navigating major setbacks, costly mistakes, and learning faster because of them
• Habits and routines that help business owners stay sharp, focused, and resilient
• And much more!

Looking for high-quality commercial or residential landscape construction in the Denver Metro area? Learn more about Hall Contracting and their award-winning work at www.hall-contracting.com.

To be a guest on our next podcast, contact us today!

Do you have a brand that you’d like to launch or grow? Do you want help from a partner that has successfully launched hundreds of brands totaling over $2 billion in revenues? Visit HarvestGrowth.com and set up a free consultation with us today! 

Transcript

Jon LaClare [00:00:00]:
Today's guest is someone I've known for almost 20 years. It's been incredible to watch his journey firsthand. When we first met, he was launching a small landscaping company with big ambitions. Today, he's grown that business into one of the most successful landscaping operations in all of Colorado, with almost 100 employees and a reputation for quality that stands out in a very crowded industry. What I love about his story is that it's not just about growth. It's about learning to lead, building systems that scale, creating a strong company culture, and navigating the challenges that come with expansion. He even appeared in one of my infomercial years ago. So he's seen the marketing world from both sides.

Announcer [00:00:43]:
Are you looking for new ways to make your sales grow? You've tried other podcasts, but they don't seem to know. Harvest the Growth potential of your product or service as we share stories and strategies that'll make your competitors nervous. Now here's the host of the Harvest Growth podcast, Jon LaClare.

Jon LaClare [00:01:03]:
Welcome back to the show. I'm super excited to be speaking with my good friend Tyler Hall. He's the owner of Hall Contracting. We're going to dive into his business a little bit. It's incredible what he's built over the past, I don't know, 20 years. How long have we known each other? When did you move to Colorado, Tyler?

Tyler Hall [00:01:20]:
19 years this coming year. Yeah.

Jon LaClare [00:01:22]:
Crazy. It was like right after we. I think we're a year ahead of you. It's been a long time and we're going to dive into your story. When we met, it was. You were just starting off, you were getting on on your own. And I think we were starting our businesses almost at the same time. And it's not completely disparate paths, but it's been really fun to watch what you've done and really growing into a successful business. Before we dive into the questions, I just want you to give a quick overview. What does Hall Contracting do? What does a company do that you've created?

Tyler Hall [00:01:53]:
We are a commercial and residential bid build and design, build landscape construction and maintenance company. And we do that. And we do that throughout the Denver metro area. Cause, you know, geographically, we stick to Denver metro.

Jon LaClare [00:02:11]:
Absolutely. And when we first met and you were starting off your business, if I remember right, water features were kind of the first thing that you specialized in. Is that, am I remembering correctly from.

Tyler Hall [00:02:21]:
Way back when, I've definitely always had an affinity to water and water features. Yes. Not everybody can afford them, so, you know, that was. They're A little bit more, fewer and far between. But they are incredible to enhance. I've had them at each one of my homes. So, yes, I enjoy water.

Jon LaClare [00:02:43]:
Yeah, it's amazing what you do. I've seen a lot of your work at your home, your homes. I've seen a couple of them over the years, and including our kids went on a date to a dance recently. My youngest. And your oldest.

Tyler Hall [00:02:56]:
Second.

Jon LaClare [00:02:56]:
Oldest. Second, that's right. And they're both 16, 17 years old. And it's good friends to this day, which is. Which is a lot of fun. So they were not born, I think, when you were starting off, and I was starting off way back in the day. It's kind of crazy how time flies. So if you look back to those early days of your business, so when you first got started, of course, every business is small. At the very outset, what was the single most important decision, you think that set your company on the current path to this tremendous growth that you've had?

Tyler Hall [00:03:25]:
So kind of the first, I would say the first half of the last 19 years that we've known each other was side work, doing work in evenings and weekends to kind of make ends meet. Right. I worked full time for a couple other, you know, a couple different outfits while learning what I wanted and what I didn't want to do. And I think that was kind of integral for me, being able to really, truly start out on my own full time. And that's. It was about. It was 11 years ago that I started full time into this. So those steps, those baby steps, if you will, helped.

Tyler Hall [00:04:04]:
Create the path that I've been put on. My single greatest, or the thing that I would say has been the most impactful was just being willing to take risks. Whether you call me crazy, which I'm sure plenty of people have done, but, you know, being able to take risks and being willing to hustle, I think, you know, the evenings and weekends, Sundays aside, I tried to avoid Sunday, of course, but.

Tyler Hall [00:04:35]:
Evenings and Saturdays, it was a grind. I mean, being willing to do that.

Tyler Hall [00:04:43]:
Was.

Tyler Hall [00:04:46]:
Imperative. You know, I had. I had to do it. That that's what I would have. Need to do. Needed to do.

Jon LaClare [00:04:51]:
Yeah. And I think, you know, as we fast forward to your business, which is so successful today, a lot of people look at, man, I want to be an entrepreneur. I want to get out on my own. Because they look at the end, right? This isn't your end. You're still GROWTH.

Tyler Hall [00:05:01]:
Right.

Jon LaClare [00:05:02]:
But they look at your current state where you're in a very, you know, successful STABLE and growing business. And you don't think about the story that goes into it. A lot of work that took to get to there, like you said, evenings and Saturdays to get started and, you know, long hours. I'm sure as you got started, as you did GROW your business, when did you realize, or I guess maybe what was the turning point where you realized it was no longer a small 1, 2, 3 person operation. But, man, this is becoming something big that I can really get behind and GROW.

Tyler Hall [00:05:30]:
So it's funny because in contemplating that question.

Tyler Hall [00:05:37]:
I've mixed emotions because I still feel like we're small. I mean, some of the people that I or the entities that I compete with are enormous. And so on some aspects, I feel like we're still very small. But one thing that has always kind of struck me and I would say is probably the turning. Not necessarily turning point, but what's made me feel like.

Tyler Hall [00:06:01]:
Have turned a page is the amount of times people would say, I see your trucks everywhere. Yeah, I see you all over the place. My first reaction is like, oh, my gosh, are we efficient? Are we burning fuel? Just wasting time driving around. Right? We're just driving billboards. But no, but that's. That it's not one person. It's not my best friend that is down the road or something that sees me all the time. I see your trucks everywhere. No, it's like people out in the community that are like, seeing.

Tyler Hall [00:06:32]:
Our company vehicles traveling around. And that's kind of been where I felt like, okay, we're large and comes with it a lot of additional burden and scariness and all the crazy. But also, you know, being proud to. To. To be able to offer that to. I think about the people and the employees, like, I'm very. That's very important to me. And.

Tyler Hall [00:06:58]:
It'S neat to see and think about the impact that we're having on not only the employees. Like, they're the folks that work with me, but like their families, you know, I'm such a family. Is so important to me as it is. As it is for you. And, you know, I think a lot about that and the extent to which we're able to bless and support Harvest.

Tyler Hall [00:07:20]:
Families, small or large.

Jon LaClare [00:07:22]:
So I. Yeah, it's a real blessing that I didn't honestly think about before becoming an entrepreneur so long ago is. Is the just being able to give back to others. Right. So in mine, I kind of view it. It's a similar. Probably for you too, I guess, right? Part of it is the employees, and part of it is for Us, our clients, you know, our customers or people, you know, you're changing their environments, giving them beauty in their lives. For us, you know, we're helping businesses Growth and, and helping them pay their employees on top of ours and just kind of that give back thought is something I didn't think about. But it's real joy that comes when the business grows or when you're just able to help support other families that are part of this, whether they're for us clients and employees, and for you, especially for your big growing number of.

Tyler Hall [00:08:07]:
Employees, it is twofold. It's interesting you mentioned that. One of the other days I had or a few days ago, I was driving by a neighborhood. It's one of our first large Harvest projects. I call it commercial, but it's in a residential area. So it was a, it was a park that we had built around, you know, somewhat high density homes. And I bet there was four, maybe five families to some degree or another, all playing in that park. So, nice day. It was a beautiful afternoon and I was going through checking, doing some, some quality control on a couple things. And this was one of our first big projects that we'd done on that scale. And I remember seeing the renderings by the landscape architect and thinking, oh, I can't wait to build this. We already had the project awarded and I was scared because it was the largest one we'd ever done.

Tyler Hall [00:09:03]:
But in doing that.

Tyler Hall [00:09:07]:
Been completed now for about two, two and a half years. Two years now. So the plant material starting to really grow in, you know, it's, it's looking less of a brand new location and more of like it's lived in. Right. And that was so rewarding to drive by and see, you know, little kids. I remembered mine and playing at the neighborhood park with my kids. Right. And to see that other people doing it based on what we had done and what the folks that work with me had done was extremely rewarding. So.

Jon LaClare [00:09:39]:
Yeah, that's cool. That's cool. I gotta tell our audience that I have convinced you now twice to appear on video with me. I know this is not your day job. Right. One time I think it was probably 15 years ago. You were in one of our infomercials long time ago, back when this was a side hustle for you. And so I put my calendar for 15 years from now to do something else again with you on video. We'll bring you back and commit. So thanks again for. I know this is not your normal modus operandi is appearing on video, although you're Doing great. But you know, it kind of got me thinking about advertising. So that was something completely separate from your business. You were just doing me a favor with your expertise, you know, to give a testimonial for a product that was an outdoor product. But what do you do today, you know, as you've grown your business for, in terms of advertising? So I'm not doing infomercials. It's a different world and a different business too. So what do you do that works well for your business?

Tyler Hall [00:10:29]:
We're in a service industry. Anybody can pick up plants or buy sod, plant it, say they can do irrigation, so on and so forth. For me, it's all about the client, it's all about the service experience. And I attribute.

Tyler Hall [00:10:49]:
95, 98% of our, our success around word of mouth.

Tyler Hall [00:10:57]:
On the bid build commercial side of things. The world.

Tyler Hall [00:11:02]:
That, that world is a very small knit community. You're talking, you know, land developers and big general contractors that typically get, they have their, their decision makers and their, their quantity of work is spread out over multiple sites and multiple projects. And so really becoming connected with certain individuals has been, you know, wildly beneficial for our growth. That's kind of the commercial or bid build side. On the residential side, it's very similar. Just I would say more quantity. Right. The projects are smaller typically and take less time, but nonetheless just as important on developing relationships with those individuals and setting yourself apart as someone.

Tyler Hall [00:11:52]:
That doesn't fake care, but like genuinely cares. Right. And has.

Tyler Hall [00:11:58]:
That we have the desire to serve them both now and in the future.

Tyler Hall [00:12:02]:
So that's been really our marketing strategy. Call it a strategy or not, that's just kind of how I've done it recently. We've always had a website because I always felt like people needed to see that I existed and it wasn't just some man in a truck like some of the other landscapers that are out there. Recently, we've invested a little bit more into that and into a more holistic approach with social media channels and.

Tyler Hall [00:12:31]:
Taking small bites out of that because.

Tyler Hall [00:12:35]:
What'S worked for years continues to work. But we want it to be sustainable. I anticipate always being around, but having our clients develop relationships with the folks that work with me as well as gaining new clients through other methods. Like I said, be it website, be it.

Tyler Hall [00:12:59]:
Outdoor advertising on our vehicles and trailers, or you know, and more recently utilizing the social media marketing and digital presence as an enhancement. Also we are working towards being more parts, being a part of more organizations. Recently we, we did go ahead and join what they call NALP, which is the National Association of Landscape Professionals. So that's a national association. Not that we're getting jobs through them or anything, but just driving home that, that understanding of we're here to stay, we're, we're participating in the, the landscape or the.

Tyler Hall [00:13:47]:
Construction community as well as partnering with Home Builders association of Colorado and other associations as well. So these are all methods that we are working on, but our primary source is word of mouth.

Jon LaClare [00:14:04]:
One thing I'd add to that you mentioned kind of your relationships with others and how that leads to referrals, et cetera. I think I would add is employees too. So we live in the same town in Castle Rock, Colorado, and I come across your trucks all the time, of course, because you're headquartered there. I see them all the time at Loaf and Jug on my way out as I'm getting gas, etc. And it's always a positive interaction. I don't know, you know, almost any of them personally. They don't know who I am, but they're always professional, kind. You know, I just, I think you kind of notice we're friends. Right. So I want to see your employees and I watch out for it and it's always a positive interaction and I've heard nothing but good things. And I think that makes a difference too. Right. They are a representative. You can only do so much, right, as the owner of the company. As you grow, you've got to make sure your employees are representative of you and your values as well. And let's, I want to talk about leadership, kind of shift that gear a little bit. So you've got over 100 employees now, I think. Right.

Tyler Hall [00:14:54]:
We're just under 100. Peak was about a year or two ago, but yeah, 85, 90 is typically where our peak summer employment is.

Jon LaClare [00:15:05]:
We'll round up so around 100 employees, we'll say. So that's, that's very, very different. Whether it's 85 or 100 or whatever, it's very different from having one or two employees. What has been the biggest mindset shift for you as a leader during that transition from being a small company into now 85 + employees?

Tyler Hall [00:15:22]:
I think.

Tyler Hall [00:15:24]:
One of the, in this, maybe oversimplifying it, but.

Tyler Hall [00:15:30]:
What comes to mind is live and let live. I think a lot of times I'll, I don't know, you can get caught up in the mistakes, right. When you have that many people, mistakes are going to happen.

Tyler Hall [00:15:44]:
And, you know, it gets frustrating when.

Tyler Hall [00:15:48]:
You know.

Tyler Hall [00:15:50]:
I, as an owner or manager expect, I wouldn't say perfection, but you're looking for. We want to provide a good service. We want it to be done on time, this and that and the other. And then we have costs and this comes up, that comes up. And.

Tyler Hall [00:16:09]:
I think it can be easy to get caught up in that to where you could, you could overreact, right? Like, you could cause it to become more than it needs to be. And I try to shift my focus a little bit from not necessarily overreacting, or I may vent to somebody else in here and be like, okay, calm down, fine. But like, letting go of that and letting that be a cost of doing business. Because the way I look at it is.

Tyler Hall [00:16:39]:
I can only do so much as one human being, right? I could go out and I could trench, I could do this, I could plant, but I can only do so much. But if I task 10, 20, 30, 50, 100, right, to help me with those. With all these tasks, there's going to be mistakes, but I need to be okay with them. And then we work towards.

Tyler Hall [00:17:03]:
Avoiding them in the future, what can we put in place? What process can we change? Certain things that can help us improve? And I think that to me has been what's been critical because otherwise I would have maybe just stayed at 3 or 4, but stayed at 5 and been like, you know what I can't handle? You know, I can micromanage, you know, when I'm only managing, you know, half a dozen or less, whereas I can only do so much when there's that many people. I need to put confidence and confide in those that I've asked to do certain things and a letting go of some of the things, obviously if they're egregious, then we're having a different conversation. But by and large, most of what we deal with are simple mistakes that we can do a better job the next time of. So working through those and really empowering people and trying not to micromanage, right? Empowering people to do the right thing. And I'm a big believer in buy their fruits. The fruits of any employee will tell whether or not they're a good fit. And that's how we obviously decide as, as decisions come up and we need to figure out what, what our next move might be. And those are all kind of, kind of the, the things that I take.

Tyler Hall [00:18:24]:
Into consideration and, and how I approach from a. Being a small organization into. Into a large one.

Jon LaClare [00:18:31]:
And once you do find good employees, it makes all the difference, right? They're going to learn from as they make, everyone makes mistakes, right? As they learn from those, they're going to get better and better and better. So you want to retain those and keep good employees around.

Tyler Hall [00:18:44]:
You know, what have you learned over.

Jon LaClare [00:18:45]:
The years about retaining these good employees, especially in your business that's seasonal, right? To some extent, right. Because I know your employment goes up and down each year because a lot of the work in Colorado is done over the summer months or the warmer months of the year. So you know what, I guess what have you learned? What helps you retain the best people?

Tyler Hall [00:19:01]:
So we utilize.

Tyler Hall [00:19:05]:
Just speaking of the seasonality of our organization, we use the H2B visa process to the best of our ability.

Tyler Hall [00:19:17]:
It's gotten more difficult as of late, but due to the seasonality, that helps. And those employees that come in and work from April to October really help support the other employees that are year round. It gives them the ability, gives me the ability to employ them gainfully year round.

Tyler Hall [00:19:42]:
Those folks that come up on that program, you know, the legal way, it's a hot button hot topic these days. And I don't need to get into the political side of that, but I do think it's incredibly beneficial for us because they come up, they pay their taxes, they are no burden on the system here yet they rent, they pay fuel, right. They do all these different things and then they travel back to Mexico or any other of the, the nations that we could bring them up from. But what I'm getting at is that drives.

Tyler Hall [00:20:21]:
Utilizing that program. Those people are the guys that you're seeing at Loaf and Jug and they're respectful, they care, they care about coming up the next year. And so they're driving home.

Tyler Hall [00:20:34]:
That culture that I want to continue to encourage of professionalism, doing a good job, following through, correcting our mistakes, right? Like these different things that are conveying to our clients and to the general public really who we are and that then transfers to, that's our priority in our office and in our management and in the higher paying jobs that I, you know, that make that, make it worth that make me feel so great that we're then, you know, blessing families on.

Tyler Hall [00:21:11]:
That specific of a scale through maintaining and encouraging that culture here. And that just, that creates the word of mouth referral basis or ensures we're.

Tyler Hall [00:21:27]:
Solid with certain key individuals at these larger organizations that are the decision makers that want to continue to work with us because we have that solid foundation of culture that's respectful, that's.

Tyler Hall [00:21:42]:
Working for someone that's not gonna scream first and ask questions later. Right. Like these are all things that are really important to me. And we're working, you know, safety is a big thing and I feel like when we work safe. And it's funny, one of the things I tell my guys every single safety meeting, everybody goes, we're all here. Yes, to work. But more importantly, you need to get home to your families every day. Now, some of those are H2B so their families are not with them at this time. But same concept applies. Right. And, and I feel like that's, that's what's of utmost importance. And I think when people feel that and feel like they're not a number, right. They're not just somebody that that is that their name's not known or their personal situation isn't known, they have more buy in. They have like the culture is there to support them. And when they have challenges or things that arise, they know they'll have a small support system at work. Maybe not like their family. Right. But, but a close second when it comes to understanding and working together to achieve the common goal, which is profitability, like any business, but understanding. We are a people focused.

Tyler Hall [00:22:55]:
You know, business. And even more so, I love the industry that we're in where we do get to create and we do get to spend time outdoors and that, that helps enhance the culture as well.

Jon LaClare [00:23:08]:
For sure. I love that answer. I want to talk about setbacks or challenges. Every business, no matter how successful you are today, you've had challenges in the past, you'll have some in the future. Right. Like that's just part of running a business. Can you maybe share what was one of the hardest setbacks or challenges that you've experienced and how did you navigate your way through it?

Tyler Hall [00:23:27]:
So two come to mind. I won't get into the super specifics of it, but one being we had.

Tyler Hall [00:23:38]:
The largest job. I referenced that park well, it was amongst a handful of open space and Landscaping around.

Tyler Hall [00:23:49]:
150, 250 homes, something like that. So it was a fairly large filing in a community and it was the largest project we'd ever bid. We were the only bidders because it was back post Covid. So the big boom and everybody's busy. So anyway, so that was. We kind of. We bit off more than we could chew and I did not realize a lot of things. So that's kind of where I tie that back to your first question of like, what what?

Tyler Hall [00:24:20]:
When you look back, what what, what.

Tyler Hall [00:24:23]:
What really helped you continue to grow or learn? It was taking that risk. We risked a lot by Tackling a big job, and we made a thousand mistakes. I mean, there's so many things that we did wrong.

Tyler Hall [00:24:41]:
But we took it in stride. And thankfully we had enough volume that other projects went a little bit better or whatever, and we were able to.

Tyler Hall [00:24:50]:
Cover the additional costs or the additional mistakes. And I think about, like, the lessons that we learned over the course of two to three years were invaluable. So, you know, it was very much.

Tyler Hall [00:25:06]:
Learning from the mistakes that we made. And we've been so much stronger and more robust since on all the subsequent projects that we've either bid and didn't get because we knew what we were bidding and what we're doing better or the ones that we're doing and we're continuing, continuing to refine those processes.

Tyler Hall [00:25:29]:
There's another project that that was. That was about three years ago. There's another project that we had that was a real difficult one last year.

Tyler Hall [00:25:39]:
It was a retaining wall project. And we.

Tyler Hall [00:25:44]:
Through a certain amount of circumstances, we ended up needing to build something at our own cost. And it was a very hefty cost.

Tyler Hall [00:25:53]:
...I'm sure you have as well, Jon, when it's been something that you didn't. Didn't know how to tackle or what to do, but creating that focus around it and just saying, you know what, I could choose to stick my head in the sand or I could choose to, you know.

Tyler Hall [00:26:32]:
Get after it and just. Just work through the work the problem. Right?

Jon LaClare [00:26:36]:
And.

Tyler Hall [00:26:37]:
And we did, and we came off better off for it. And now we're making changes to avoid that same issue, much like the other changes that we made on the other Harvest project. So there's definitely been big setbacks, but by and large, having a team and that goes back to that culture, it's like having the buy in, having the people that are around you that are like, we know this sucks, but we're going to work at it together because we have a desire for it to. For this company to succeed. And it's neat to see more than just me, even though I'm the owner, more individuals with that desire to see it succeed and to get through the muck, you know, in order to get through to the other side and the Nice green grass, right?

Jon LaClare [00:27:23]:
Yeah. No, right. And I think, you know, once you've had a few of those mistakes as a team, everyone starts to see that you sometimes learn more from those than you do from the successes. Right. You've got, hopefully most businesses I know you do have a lot more successes than mistakes or failures along the way, whatever. But you, you learn from those because they're usually different situations and it makes you better, it makes your organization better. As long as you can roll your sleeves up as a team and really work on it together to solve it. I want to talk to you about you personally. So if you think about your role as the owner, you know, running this organization, you've got a lot of help. You know, you've got a great team behind you. But at the end of the day, the. I always say the crap rolls uphill, right. So it kind of comes back to you if something bad does happen, it is on your shoulders, right. Which is good and bad, right? There's. There's good and bad things about it for sure. So are there habits or routines that really keep you sharp and. And performing at your best?

Tyler Hall [00:28:16]:
For me, and it's only been recent, it's funny because I haven't grown up. I grew up on a farm and was a very active person. And honestly, like in the early stages of my business, I was not in a collared shirt or pants that were dirty. In fact, I still have guys that give me a hard time that my shoes aren't dirty enough. Some of my. The guys that are in the field, they get to give me a hard time because they've seen me when I was both younger and had more energy anyway. So I've always kind of looked at exercise as kind of just.

Tyler Hall [00:28:50]:
Not necessarily pointless, but I just didn't. I've always been an active person. Should be good enough, right.

Tyler Hall [00:28:57]:
Recently, and I say recently, the last like three years, I've gotten into more of a habit since I'm not so much in the. In the field and doing more physical work. In fact, I'm not doing any of that anymore at all. Just getting in the habit of a daily routine of physical fitness. I'm no big lifter or anything crazy, but just doing that has been very helpful for me, I think. And I think that's. It's kind of.

Tyler Hall [00:29:27]:
Call it cliche, but you know, something along those lines where it's like, well, everybody does that, right? Or you should do that. Or all the ironman type type type folks do that. And I wouldn't call it Like I have some target or anything, but I enjoy.

Tyler Hall [00:29:45]:
Living life to its fullest. And so I would say, you know, physical fitness and trying to have a routine there has blessed my life. And then the other side of it being.

Tyler Hall [00:29:58]:
Regular interaction and family time. I have a large family or, you know, we have five kids and an incredible wife. And I feel like spending time with them and spending time with my extended family and prioritizing that on a regular basis, both is just like good for the soul.

Tyler Hall [00:30:20]:
In its simplest form, but also just that support system and also that downtime right of. I feel like for a number of years I didn't have a deep enough team or I didn't have enough confidence in the folks that were working with me to really start to kind of let go.

Tyler Hall [00:30:41]:
In some of the off hours. And so I can empathize with every entrepreneur about the clock. Really never shuts off or you're never off the clock, if you will. And that's challenging. But there is light at the end of the tunnel, if you will, when you can find good folks that can help you carry that burden. And I've been very blessed to have people by my side that do that. And I would say somewhat recently in the last couple years when I go on vacation, it is more of a vacation instead of.

Tyler Hall [00:31:13]:
Just being away from home or something along those lines. So having, having those, being able to have those family relationships and that physical fitness side of things have been.

Tyler Hall [00:31:26]:
Key things for me on a regular basis to try and keep myself in the game so I can be focused. And then when I'm not, I can reset a little bit and get and take a break so I can come back just as strong.

Jon LaClare [00:31:39]:
That's good advice, I think, you know, I've found that too. It's just you need something to recharge you in your life. Especially as an entrepreneur or business owner. You could work 24 hours a day and you would still feel like you're not getting everything done right. No matter what stage your business is at, it's really part of it. But even in your busiest, most difficult times, if you can find time to be with your family, to recharge and we just need that, like you said, it's healthy for your soul and also exercise on keeping your body fit. It doesn't have to be. You don't have to be an ironman. Right? You can do simple exercise, but something to keep yourself healthy because you'll work more efficiently, you'll work better in, you know, the couple fewer hours it might you know, take from your day or whatever. You'll be more. You'll perform better. I could not agree more with that. All right, a couple of final questions for you. So what's the craziest landscaping request you've ever received?

Tyler Hall [00:32:28]:
The craziest landscape request.

Tyler Hall [00:32:32]:
Was a fairly recent one. One of our clients had acquired some land and they are trying to trans. They're transforming it currently into a new and incredible park. Along with recreating 100, 150 year old buildings. There'll be new buildings. There were existing buildings. So we were asked to go through and.

Tyler Hall [00:33:03]:
Salvage.

Tyler Hall [00:33:05]:
Junk. I mean it felt like American pickers. We have two enclosed semi trailers full of stuff from this farm and four flatbed semi trailers full of plows and sheet metal from the roof and the wildest.

Tyler Hall [00:33:29]:
Feed troughs and I mean, just.

Tyler Hall [00:33:32]:
Coffee cans. I mean from the, you know, 100 years old. I mean it was, it felt like we were dumpster diving on the farm. So anyways, that was quite the, quite the task. We've had some other weird ones as well. But that was, that was a. That was a big project and we still keep. They. They've had us store it while they're building the new facility. Right. And so we've had to move that a couple times because it's on site and they're building different parts of the site up anyway. So that's been. That was quite a funny ask. So that's funny.

Jon LaClare [00:34:05]:
That's funny. Every day is different for sure. Is there a project that stands out that you're most proud of as you look back in your career? That something you just enjoy thinking about and looking at.

Tyler Hall [00:34:16]:
I have a client that we built a water feature for and Harvest.

Tyler Hall [00:34:23]:
At the time, a fellow that worked for me who built. Going back to the water feature thing. That's funny. You mentioned that at the beginning. One, he helped build the water feature at the rock yard. I think it's the rock yard. It's at the edge of Coors Field. So he was a water feature guru. He's retired now. Great guy. He helped me build the water feature for a client. And the client came to me and was like, he had a picture of a golf course down in Harvest. And coffee down in Arizona. And he was like, I want that. Cattails, giant boulders, you can't even tell. Like this looks natural. And we did it and it is amazing. It's huge. It requires probably more power than a normal house. In fact, I'm positive of that. His power bill did jump quite a bit when we installed this. But it was. We had concrete vaults. I mean, this thing was a golf course water feature, and it's probably 100ft long. And I. It's my most.

Tyler Hall [00:35:27]:
The most pride I've taken in a water feature because I had the room and the budget to build it and Growth.

Tyler Hall [00:35:35]:
Is and continues to operate to this day. That's been probably six, seven years ago that we built that. So, anyways, it's a cool water feature.

Jon LaClare [00:35:44]:
That's cool. Yeah. I'd love to see a picture of that. All right, my last question. If you could go back to the version of you who first started the business way back in the day, what would you tell them?

Tyler Hall [00:35:56]:
I would probably say just keep going.

Tyler Hall [00:36:00]:
It can feel overwhelming, and it felt overwhelming on a daily basis.

Tyler Hall [00:36:06]:
Not giving up would be the encouragement that I would give and say, for the younger me or anybody that's looking to do something like this.

Tyler Hall [00:36:22]:
Working hard and giving your all and accepting failure at the end of the day, that's a part of life. I feel like it's almost a daily basis that I reconcile something that I'm doing wrong or something that our organization or individuals here or groups, and recognizing it, not letting that bog you down so much that you can't get. Get, you know, get back up the next day and face it again.

Jon LaClare [00:36:47]:
So it's good advice. It does. When we look forward, everything's always seems so overwhelming, Right. Whatever stage we're at in our business, you know, I think back, my best example of that is when I first went to college. I called home my first month or so. I'm like, I can't do this.

Tyler Hall [00:37:02]:
Right.

Jon LaClare [00:37:03]:
...if you're especially in the Colorado area or know anybody that is. I can't speak more highly than I can't speak highly enough of Jon LaClare. His character, but also his work. I've seen a lot of it firsthand and it's, it's top notch quality, great teams he's got. It's just you can't beat his company with what they do. So I encourage anybody to check him out if you're in the market or know anybody that might be, especially in the Colorado area, to reach out to them again. Check out the show notes and wherever you're watching or listening to this to find the links to learn more. Well, thanks for tuning into today's episode where we uncover the strategies and stories behind some of the most successful businesses out there. If you're looking to take your own business to the next level, be sure to visit Harvest.com you can grab a free copy of my book, the Perfect Launch System. It's packed with proven principles we've developed over the past 20 years, helping hundreds of businesses launch and grow successfully. Plus you'll also get exclusive one page summaries of some of our most popular podcast interviews, real world insights you can apply right away. Head to Harvest.com and start building your perfect launch today. Until next time, keep learning, Keep launching and keep Growing.