Chuck Violand
Chuck Violand is the founder of Violand Management Associates (VMA), a highly respected consulting company in the restoration and cleaning industries. Through VMA, he works with business owners and companies to develop their people and profits. For more information, visit www.violand.com.
Grow Yourself in 2026
Small businesses grow at the same rate as their owners. It’s a proven fact. If you want to grow your business, you must start by...
The Hidden Work of the Trades
My wife and I hired a landscaping crew to reshape our yard. As they arranged flagstones, spread pea gravel, and worked the soil, I thought...
Tap Into Soft Skills to Grow Your Business
My wife and I hired a landscaping crew to reshape our yard. As I watched the crew skillfully work with flagstones, pea gravel, and dirt,...
Grab a Shovel!
Years ago, a good friend of mine offered some sage advice that continues to resonate with me to this day. I must have been complaining...
Finding Success in Failure
If you follow the logic of Mark, a business colleague and friend of mine, the unfavorable connotation many business owners attribute to being fired by...
Centerboards
For years, nautical vessels have been used as metaphors for business, as the parallels between ships and businesses are unmistakable. I’ve even used them in...
The Mercedes-Benz Syndrome
In 2003, a client faxed (yes, faxed) me an article from a newsletter called Contractor Cents, which targeted the builder-remodeler trade. The article, written by...
Holding on Too Tight
In the classic 1986 movie Top Gun, Navy fighter pilot Cougar (played by John Stockwell) finds himself and his plane locked in the gun sights...
Falling in Love
What is it about small business owners that causes so many of us to fall in love with the people we hire? I don’t mean...
Throwing The Heat
“Every weed has to be removed, every burnt spot has to be repaired, and every divot has to be replaced every day. You never know...
