Addiction, Redemption, and Building an HVAC Life That Matters – Gil Cavey

Profit & Grit with Tyler

Gil Cavey shares his powerful journey from addiction to successful HVAC business leadership, revealing how rock bottom reshaped his management philosophy toward empathy, accountability, and second chances. He demonstrates how investing in people creates returns that transcend typical business metrics while building a company where technicians want to grow their careers.
• Second-generation HVAC professional with 25 years of experience who rebuilt his life after addiction
• Creating processes and structure as the key differentiator between companies that scale beyond $10 million and those that stagnate
• The "McDonald's effect" – developing repeatable processes everyone can follow consistently
• Implementing training meetings that combine technical skills with customer communication practice
• Combating seasonality by offering strategic discounts to shift demand to traditionally slower months
• Structuring maintenance agreements as "memberships" with exclusive benefits like emergency service
• Building career advancement paths within the company to retain technicians seeking opportunity
• Supporting employees' mental health through observation, care, and having tough conversations when needed
• The value of attention to detail – from parking location to knocking instead of ringing doorbells
• Personal branding as a powerful tool for technicians and business owners to connect authentically with customers
Build your reputation first, then let your reputation build your brand. When you focus on people rather than outcomes, revenue tends to take care of itself.

🎙️ Profit & Grit by Tyler Martin
Real stories. Real strategy. Real results for service-based business owners.

🔗 Website: ProfitAndGrit.com
📍 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/thinktyler
📸 Instagram & TikTok: @profitandgrit
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Chapters

1. Gil's Journey from Addiction to Leadership (00:00:00)

2. Building a Career from Technician to GM (00:07:28)

3. The Manager He Never Had (00:13:32)

4. Creating Processes That Scale (00:18:04)

5. Mastering Seasonality in HVAC (00:24:18)

6. Building an All-Star Team (00:34:23)

7. Supporting Mental Health in the Workplace (00:36:28)

8. From Employee to Entrepreneur (00:41:27)

9. Success Principles and Final Wisdom (00:48:31)