The Tradie Who Lost It All and Came Back
“The difference between a good businessman and a bad businessman is the good one fails and learns.”
Andrew Hopkins (Hoppo from Hopkins Construction) is the tradie story a lot of people live through, but don’t post about. Early wins. Dumb money. Bad advice. A business that looks fine from the outside. Then the crash. Then the rebuild.
This one’s for builders, carpenters, landscapers, and construction business owners who want the real-world version of “how to start a construction business” without going broke, burning out or pretending you’ve got it all sorted.
It also hits the unsexy stuff that decides whether a trade business survives: income protection for tradies, GST and tax basics, super and entitlements, and the trap of buying the tradie persona before you’ve built the profit to support it.
The stuff that quietly wipes tradies out
Plenty of tradies don’t fail because they’re bad on the tools. They fail because no one teaches you how to run a construction business.
Hard work doesn’t protect you from:
Not understanding GST, tax, and what “cash in the account” actually means
Bad accounting advice (or no advice)
Super, leave schemes, and entitlements catching up later
Overcommitting to expensive vehicles and gear too early
Most people learn these lessons the hard way. The difference is whether you learn fast enough to stay in the game.
When the business is “working” but you’re cooked
Hoppo grew Hopkins Construction quickly, built a crew and from the outside it looked like it was humming.
Internally, he was running a rulebook that breaks a lot of construction business owners:
First on site, last to leave
The business only works if you’re the engine
Being a good provider means being absent
That’s how you can have a full pipeline and still hit the point where you don’t want to get up and go to work.
The tradie dad - how to be present
You work insane hours to give your kids a better life, then you get home and they don’t want a bar of you.
Not because they’re ungrateful. Because they just want you.
There’s a blunt truth here for anyone chasing “work-life balance for tradies” or “burnout in construction” answers: big gestures don’t land like five minutes of actual presence.
The comeback isn’t a quote. It’s a system.
The rebuild isn’t motivational. It’s practical.
Hoppo rebuilt the business around real life:
Setting expectations with clients upfront (start times, pick-ups, drop-offs)
Working differently on kid-free days to balance the week
Getting sharper on craft and brand so he’s worth hiring even with a non-standard schedule
That’s the thread behind the title. Losing it all doesn’t end you. Not learning does.
Social media for tradies (without being “on your phone all day”)
This part matters because a lot of builders want the upside of Instagram/TikTok marketing for tradies (better leads, better clients, more trust) but they don’t want the downside (looking unprofessional on site).
The line Hoppo draws is simple: recording isn’t the problem. editing during paid hours is.
Here’s what that looks like in the real world:
Record while you work. Set the phone on a tripod, move it as the task changes, grab quick clips while you’re already walking to the ute or explaining a detail. The job still comes first.
Don’t curate on the clock. Voiceovers, captions, cutting clips, posting, replying to comments, and “perfecting the hook” happen after hours. If you’re paid to build, build.
Use content as a live update (not a distraction). When the builder or client can see progress in real time, it becomes proof of work, not time-wasting.
Set expectations early. If you’re a subbie or specialist tradie, tell the builder upfront: “I’ll film small bits for my brand, but it won’t affect output or quality.” Same rule as any boundary.
If you’re trying to market a construction business on social media, the goal isn’t to look busy online. It’s to build trust.
A simple content rhythm that doesn’t wreck your week:
One quick “what we’re doing today” clip (10 seconds)
One progress clip (10 seconds)
One finished detail / reveal (10 seconds)
That’s enough to show consistency, craftsmanship, and reliability.
And if you’re a builder hiring tradies who film content, the policy is easy too: recording is fine, editing is after hours, and the standard of work doesn’t drop.
AI in construction: don’t automate the mess
AI isn’t the enemy. Distraction is.
If your quoting, pre-construction, site documentation, and systems are messy, AI won’t save you. It’ll just scale the mess.
For construction business owners, the order matters:
Get your fundamentals right
Systemise your process
Automate what you can
Then add AI
If you take anything from Hoppo, take this: you don’t “lose it all” in one big moment. You lose it in the small stuff you ignore. The tax you don’t put aside. The boundaries you don’t set. The hours you keep donating because you think that’s what a good tradie does. The fix is the same way you build anything solid. Get the fundamentals right, put a system around it, and stick to it even when no one’s watching. Film the work if it helps you win better clients, but do the job first. Protect your time, your head, and your family like they’re part of the scope. Because the comeback isn’t luck. It’s structure.
LINKS:
Connect with Hoppo:
Pro Clima - https://mindful-builder.captivate.fm/proclima
MEGT - https://mindful-builder.captivate.fm/megt
CR Kennedy - https://www.crkennedy.com.au/
Connect with us on Instagram: @themindfulbuilderpod
Website: www.yoursanctum.com.au/
Connect with Matt:
Instagram: @carlandconstructions
Website: www.carlandconstructions.com/
-
[00:25:01] Hamish: They might at one, at, at some point-
[00:25:03] Andrew: Yeah ...
[00:25:03] Hamish: but there's a balance. And I think that's y- like, you, your story, my story is not uncommon.
[00:25:09] Andrew: Yeah. Oh,
[00:25:09] Hamish: absolutely. Like, we're trying to do these things for our kids which we think is what they want.
[00:25:13] Andrew: Yeah.
[00:25:14] Hamish: But all they want is actually five minutes of your time.
[00:25:17] Matt: Where does that perception come from? Because I'm sitting now on the opposite side with a younger family compared to both of you. Like, because is that something that your parents gave to you that you thought that you need to give? Or is it like, I don't think it's a social media thing that people sit and show.
[00:25:30] Hamish: I think it, I actually think-
[00:25:31] Matt: It's a, it's in you. It's
[00:25:32] Hamish: individual ... I reckon it's in na- I reckon it's something that's just ingrained in us as men, as providers, as whatever. Yeah. That that's what we do. Yeah. And I think there's enough signals in the world to suggest that. Probably it's, it's, it's switching now.
[00:25:46] Andrew: Yeah, yeah.
[00:25:46] Hamish: Definitely switching now, but, like, I'm 43 years old, and from memory it's always Dad goes to work. You know, Dad's busy. Mm. Dad doesn't have as much time to spend with the kids. Yeah. And that just becomes like a normal narrative.
[00:25:58] Andrew: Yeah.
[00:25:59] Hamish: [00:26:00] Uh, I'm not saying it's right, I'm not saying it's wrong.
[00:26:02] Andrew: No, but it's, it's generally that, like the, the generation and the...
[00:26:04] Like our parents. Yeah. Like their parents were like, you know, they'd be lucky if the dad was there for the birth of their kids. Yes. We gotta work, and it's okay, like- They were probably always
[00:26:12] Hamish: at the pub.
[00:26:12] Matt: Yeah. They weren't even allowed in the room half the time. Yeah.
[00:26:14] Andrew: Exactly. So I just think, like, we're not that, we're really not separated by that much at all.
[00:26:19] No. So it's just that, that mindset, the mentality and, and also of being that sort of ambitious, like, go-getter attitude what got you to where you are. Okay, I know what I'm good at, and I'm good at making money.
[00:26:30] Hamish: Mm.
[00:26:30] Andrew: So if I can give these guys comfort in that regard, I'm gonna work as hard as I can, because I know at home I can't breastfeed.
[00:26:37] Yeah. So I can't get up at 3:00 AM and do this and that. So, like, all right, I'm gonna bring myself back up to the living by working as hard as I can. But it's, it's pushing you away. But you know, I think once again, you don't realize until- What are,
[00:26:47] Hamish: what are
[00:26:48] Andrew: so- ... the effect takes place ...
[00:26:49] Hamish: what are some of the things that you're doing now, now that you've had this experience and realization of maybe what you were doing before to where you are now?
[00:26:56] And I reckon that trip around Oz probably really, you know, [00:27:00] bonded you and the kids together. Amazing. Like,
[00:27:01] Andrew: yeah. Yeah. Amazing. And then coming back from that- Um, my wife and I, we split up about five months after that. Um, yeah, about f- yeah, four or five months after that, and then- Didn't like
[00:27:13] Hamish: you farting in the car or anything like that?
[00:27:14] Andrew: No, exactly. It was exactly the reason. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So it's like, we, we got from that, and then it was like, all right, well, I'm put into a position now where, all right, I wanna have the kids as much as I can. All right, so I need to change my whole... How am I gonna make it work? That's when I sort of pushed for more of the sort of cr- content creation space.
[00:27:32] Yeah. Okay, I know that I got nudges at this earlier. I can make money out of this now. I need to push to be able to, like, I've got drop-offs now, I've got pick-ups. What more ways can I spend with the kids? All right, I'm gonna sign up to coach them in everything I can, and without pushing, but, um, just changing my whole business to make it work for that.
[00:27:51] Because if, you know, I'm not having my kids go to school at, before school care at 6:00 AM and coming home at 6:00 PM, and-
[00:27:57] Matt: Yeah ...
[00:27:58] Andrew: only person that's gonna change that is me. So- I
[00:27:59] Matt: [00:28:00] think we- Talk me through a normal day then right now. Like, what, what... Where, 'cause you, it seems like you got it pretty dialled in from where you are.
[00:28:06] Andrew: Yeah, yeah. Um, so I have the kids With coaching, it's probably more than 50% of the time now. So, uh, every Tuesday, every second Thursday, and then every second Friday, Saturday, Sunday. But because I coach them in basketball, I coach them on a Thursday after, after school, and then I go to the games on a Friday, and then I help out with Auskick on a Saturday as well.
[00:28:27] So most of the time, every weekend it's... So then I'll drop them at before school care as late as I sort of can on a Tuesday, and all my clients now are really understanding of the fact that, like, you hire me, this is
[00:28:41] Matt: a situation. They probably don't care. Like, we go back to the child saying about the, talk about building the area, and they're probably like, "Yeah, we totally get it."
[00:28:47] Andrew: Yeah,
[00:28:47] Matt: they totally- 'Cause they're usually older as well ...
[00:28:48] Andrew: exactly, and I'm very upfront about them, and it's, um, so I drop them there, get to, get to work as early as I can. And then the days I don't have the kids, I try and work back- Yeah ... to make up for the hours, which is also tricky too when you've got, say, builders you're working for, [00:29:00] I've got to be the difference of, okay, why would they hire me when I can get, I've got to rock up at 9:00 on this day, and the next day I've got to leave at 2:00 to pick up the kids, when they can have someone that's there from 7:00 till
[00:29:10] Matt: 4:00?
[00:29:10] S- so what is your answer to that? 'Cause it's a really good question.
[00:29:13] Andrew: So I, I guess that comes back to me trying to dial in my craft, but also dialling in my brand. Yeah. So when they- You get me ... when I'm there and I'm tagging them in stuff, it's also- Yeah, yeah ... you know, it's, it's putting their name out as well.
[00:29:23] So I've got to come at it from different angles of, okay, I've got to be there, I've got to do the best job. I've got to, whether I like it or not, I'm the senior guy on site a lot of the time now. So in my mind, I'm still 25.
[00:29:33] Hamish: Yeah.
[00:29:33] Andrew: But when you're there, you're getting these guys that are 25 asking you for advice, whether it's life advice, work.
[00:29:38] You try and help them out respectfully, and- I,
[00:29:41] Hamish: I think just t- touching on one thing you didn't talk about before, and sorry to interrupt- Yeah ... was you're setting, setting expectations from the beginning. Yeah. Like, if you, like if you- Yeah, boundaries ... I, I wouldn't want... So say I engage you to do a concrete benchtop, right?
[00:29:53] Mm-hmm. If you didn't tell me on Wednesdays and Thursdays you gotta do, like, early and late, like, you gotta, you [00:30:00] gotta come later and, you know, leave early, and then that just happened, I'd get annoyed. Yeah. But if you said, "Hey, Heim, you know what? On these days, this is what I'm doing. I'm dropping the kids off at school and I've got to go pick them up in the afternoon," I'd be like, "Sweet."
[00:30:11] Andrew: Yeah, exactly.
[00:30:12] Matt: At
[00:30:12] Andrew: what-
[00:30:12] Hamish: Real
[00:30:12] Matt: simple comm- If you, what do you work, 40 hours on the tools, let's just say that's the average person?
[00:30:16] Andrew: Mm.
[00:30:17] Matt: Who cares how you organize it? As long as the 40 hours gets done and they all get done on time and due dates to critical paths.
[00:30:23] Andrew: Exactly.
[00:30:23] Matt: Does anyone really care?
[00:30:26] Andrew: Really? I don't s- and I don't stop, I don't have lunch.
[00:30:28] Like, I'll eat lunch, but I'll just keep working. Yeah, yeah. Especially when you're by yourself.
[00:30:30] Hamish: Yeah.
[00:30:31] Andrew: It's very lonely if you sit there for lunch and it's so like- Just
[00:30:33] Matt: Doomscroll.
[00:30:34] Andrew: Yeah, exact- exactly right. Which is me, like, why would I stop for half an hour when I can either work half an hour longer or I can leave half an hour early- Yeah, yeah, totally
[00:30:42] and go get the kids or go home. So yeah, the week's a little bit different now, but, um, yeah, working around the social media stuff as well.
[00:30:49] Matt: And you, so you at the moment predominantly subby out to other builders, or you just- Yeah ... because
[00:30:52] Andrew: do you
[00:30:52] Matt: pick up
[00:30:52] Andrew: your own? At the moment I do, yeah. Yeah,
[00:30:53] Matt: entertainment units outside.
[00:30:55] Andrew: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, so I'm doing that for two builders. I do sort of on and off when I [00:31:00] can. Yeah. And then private jobs will come in as well- Yeah ... or for other random builders as well. But I try to, in my little trial period now of seeing how well the social stuff can go, and then I don't ever wanna have to pick up a job that I don't wanna do in the meantime.
[00:31:13] Hamish: Yep.
[00:31:14] Andrew: Um, so like, oh, I've gotta do a house frame or I've gotta go do this bloody p- paling fence-
[00:31:18] Hamish: Yeah,
[00:31:18] Andrew: yeah ... to fill the time. So And with the stuff I do, because I sort of pigeonhole myself in this little niche, and have a lot of just the barbecues and feature pieces- Yeah ... they're not coming around every day.
[00:31:29] But if a builder calls me, they're at the end of the job, and they're like, "All right, well, you know, everything blows out, and we've got, we've got two weeks to do this. I need you in next week," I don't wanna be able to say no. I wanna always be like- Yeah ... "I'm good to go."
[00:31:39] Matt: So, so this is a good part to move on to the social media side.
[00:31:43] So I'm gonna play devil's advocate for two seconds. Go for it. So, uh, you come on my site, you're working, but you're on your phone the whole time. Because I feel like that's a conversation that isn't had enough. Obviously, you've earned the respect and time- Yeah ... and you have the experience to [00:32:00] know when your phone goes on and when your phone goes off.
[00:32:02] Yeah. Now let's just preface that for young kids and who I'm not talking a 19-year-old first year apprentice, but- Of course ... how do you, how do you navigate that conversation? Because h- I feel like it's a tricky one, 'cause I've had someone work in the past that's do this, and it was like, "Dude, you're on your phone the whole time.
[00:32:16] You're not even getting anything done."
[00:32:17] Andrew: Yeah. How many subbies do you get in that answer 20 phone calls a day?
[00:32:21] Matt: I don't use subbies anymore. Yeah.
[00:32:23] Andrew: How many subbies do you
[00:32:24] Matt: see out there
[00:32:25] Andrew: that- Oh, heaps. Yeah I don't get any phone calls.
[00:32:26] Matt: Yeah.
[00:32:27] Andrew: So my time on my phone, I will set it up on a tripod, and I move it from here, I move it to there, I move it there.
[00:32:34] Matt: Yeah, you're not, yeah.
[00:32:35] Andrew: Or every now and then I'll throw up a story, but I'm walking to the car or I'm explaining to someone what I'm doing, and often the clients or the builders are seeing that too, and it's, it's a, a live update for them.
[00:32:44] Matt: So I was hoping you were gonna say that And not be like, "I've got five cameras set up, and I edit it in a day," because I think that's what...
[00:32:50] So we've written a social media policy, I have recently, and I don't care what my team do, but do it after, like, you can record during- Yeah ... hours. I don't care what you [00:33:00] do, but don't sit in there on edits and doing your voiceovers during the time- Yes ... or trying to curate your content. And I think that's what we need to understand that-
[00:33:06] Andrew: Yes
[00:33:07] Matt: do it outside of those hours if that's your choice. Yeah. I don't care you're filming stuff, but-
[00:33:12] Andrew: You're not hired for the social media aspect ...
[00:33:14] Matt: yeah, yeah. Like-
[00:33:15] Andrew: Yeah.
[00:33:15] Matt: And like I asked some of my team, like how much they might spend on, he's like, "Maybe five minutes of recording a day." I'm like, "That's fine." Yeah.
[00:33:21] If it's eating into things not getting done, things not getting done right, and then there's more time spent on social media, one, I'll tell you because I can see what time you're uploading stuff because if it's the middle of the day, it's very obvious. But- Exactly right ... I think there's just this generation of people that think that they sit on their phones all day while they work and nothing gets done, and I just wanted to have that conversation to explain that like me and Hayne don't do this during work.
[00:33:43] We kinda do, but very different. But Yeah.
[00:33:46] Hamish: We- we're different roles though.
[00:33:47] Matt: Yeah, yeah,
[00:33:47] Hamish: yeah. We- we're different roles. And do you know what? Like- Y- your day- Mm ... your day and my day- Yeah ... are completely different from day to day.
[00:33:55] Andrew: Yeah.
[00:33:56] Hamish: Like, today we're here for four or five hours. Mm. And t- [00:34:00] yesterday, or m- like, say, last Thursday, I was in the office at 6:00 AM.
[00:34:03] Andrew: Yeah.
[00:34:04] Hamish: And I, and I punched it through till 4:00. Yeah. Did a massive day. But then on Friday, mate, I reckon I finished at 2:00.
[00:34:10] Andrew: Yeah.
[00:34:11] Hamish: So my day, i- in, in my mind, is so much different to someone that's on site. You are there from 7:00 until 4:00, and my ex- my expectation is you're working from 7:00 till
[00:34:20] Matt: 4:00. So I got a question for you, and I'm gonna throw a curveball at you both.
[00:34:24] Before we go more to influencing, I just want to go back to this family thing. So I'm going down to four-day weeks. Yeah. And I'm a bit scared about it, because I want to look after my little one one day a week. I understand that in the morning before she's up, I will probably get my emails sorted, day sorted.
[00:34:37] Maybe the middle of the day I intend on taking her to meetings. Do you have any advice for me as both having young families who have sort of navigated it, on how to a- approach that and set that boundary?
[00:34:48] Andrew: Not advice, but it's, you'd be surprised how you start, and I'm sure you obviously value your time as it is, but how you will then navigate time before.
[00:34:59] It's like [00:35:00] before you have kids, everyone's like, "Oh, I'm so busy." And you're like, "You have no idea how much time you actually have- Yeah ... until you have kids." I'm,
[00:35:04] Matt: I'm only clicking right now.
[00:35:06] Andrew: Yeah. So once you cut down to four days, you'll really prioritize the other days. There'll be lack of waste of time, plus you'll, you'll, you'll end up just getting so much more done in your days knowing you've got that, and then you'll start to appreciate home more, and you'll start to appreciate work more.
[00:35:21] Yeah. So I feel like with me now, you're there, you actually enjoy it, 'cause it's, you, you are switching off for that little bit.
[00:35:26] Matt: So- But I love work. Like, I could just work.
[00:35:28] Andrew: Yeah.
[00:35:28] Matt: Me too. And that's my problem.
[00:35:31] Hamish: Yeah. I- I'm terrible at being present. Yeah, and so am I. And it's something that I am just working on so hard, but I think what I've set myself, what the goal that I've set myself is, like, literally just five minutes a day of just dedicated one-on-one with the kids.
[00:35:48] Mm. Just, just five minutes. You can do five minutes. Uh-
[00:35:52] Matt: This is why I'm doing the one day a week. M- Like, this is lit- on, like, the same, I'll be totally transparent here. It's like I know that sometimes I'm not present, so I'm going, [00:36:00] "Well, why can't I do..." I didn't have any maternity leave.
[00:36:02] Hamish: Yeah.
[00:36:03] Matt: Yeah. Like, why can't I do one day a week?
[00:36:04] And it might, it might get to 15 weeks and be like, "Nick, I can't actually do this. I need to do half a day."
[00:36:10] Andrew: And, and I
[00:36:11] Hamish: actually- Exactly. It's fine. It's trial and error. Yeah ... I actually think, I actually think it'll change as well though, and that's okay too. Like, my, so for me, I've got three kids. Um, Juniper's 10 months old, similar to Noah.
[00:36:22] Yeah. The, the balance that Lucy and I've got is, fortunately Lucy can take Juniper to work. Yeah. So she works for Nadia at Platylobium Landscape Design. Yeah. So Juni- Junie just goes to work, and it's awesome. But Lucy wants to go to PT on a Wednesday, and I'm like, "Well, I'll just have her on Wednesday." Yeah.
[00:36:39] So for two hours, I turn the treadmill on under the desk- Yeah ... and I put Junie in a, in a, in a little, in a little carrier, and she falls asleep.
[00:36:47] Andrew: Yeah.
[00:36:47] Hamish: Or I take her for a walk up the end of the street, we grab a coffee, and I walk back, and we just have a chat.
[00:36:52] Matt: I think that's the hard thing. My brain has always been told, like, unless you're not actively doing something, you're not working.
[00:36:57] Andrew: It's, it is hard. But it's, yeah, you just learn to get used [00:37:00] to it, and you just, yeah.
[00:37:01] Matt: Yeah. And I, and I know I'll adapt. I, I just, and I think that it's, we talked about until you have kids, you don't know how much time there is. And honestly, I'm seeing all these people, and it is quite overwhelming watching people at the moment being like, "I'm AI this, AI that."
[00:37:13] And I'm like, I'm kind of very happy that didn't come out when I didn't have a child, because I'd just fucking work. Yeah. I'd just sit there and be like, "I'm just gonna keep going with this." You're so dialed, yeah. I just would've been... And now I'm like, "Well, something's gotta give, and right now I'm not gonna go crazy- Yeah
[00:37:30] crazy down that path."
[00:37:31] Hamish: Can, I'm just gonna spend one second on AI. I think that people in the construction industry are- Getting too distracted with AI right now, when in my opinion, they should be actually focusing on the fundamentals of business- I 100% agree ... first because, like-
[00:37:50] Andrew: In what way though do you mean they're getting distracted
[00:37:53] Hamish: by that?
[00:37:53] Well, I, I think that it, like any data, like a- any outputs of something requires- Mm ... really good data.
[00:37:58] Andrew: Yeah.
[00:37:59] Hamish: And if your [00:38:00] data is shit, the outputs that AI is giving you is gonna be shit.
[00:38:03] Andrew: Yeah.
[00:38:04] Hamish: Now, I've accidentally realized this because I've just spent the last eight mo- eight weeks completely systemizing and wrapping process around our pre-construction phase.
[00:38:14] Andrew: Yeah.
[00:38:15] Hamish: With the view that I was keeping AI at an arm's distance for a second because I didn't want to get distracted by it I've actually realised that I was doing it right, that you should do your data first- Yeah ... then you automate it, and then you put AI. Now, a, a b- buddy of mine has actually clued me into, like, that logical process.
[00:38:35] I, I personally feel there's a lot of builders out there and tradies getting far too distracted with AI. They're
[00:38:40] Matt: creating things that they don't even need right now because their business isn't set up for that, because they see some big brand doing it, so I should that too. But the issue I see is, like, if you're gonna use AI, use it for marketing.
[00:38:52] Don't you need the lead first?
[00:38:53] Hamish: Yeah.
[00:38:53] Matt: If you can't get the lead, you don't have the job. D- don't
[00:38:55] Hamish: get me wrong, I think AI is gonna play a massive role, but I think that the, that the [00:39:00] hierarchy needs to be that your house needs to be in order first. And I'm, I don't profess- Yeah ... to be an expert at this at all, 'cause I, there's still so many things that I need to work on, but I, I think AI is a bit of a distraction at the moment.
[00:39:11] Andrew: Yeah, it's a good point. I agree. What do you
[00:39:11] Matt: use it for, out of interest? Because, like, I, I know, I, I know what you do,
[00:39:15] but-
[00:39:16] Hamish: To... Right, right now, um, I just use it for just copy validation and stuff like that. Yeah. Uh, maybe if I've got a few reports that I need to, um, summarize.
[00:39:25] Matt: Yep.
[00:39:25] Hamish: Uh, and I'm using it for a lot of AI summaries- Yeah ... um, to putting it into, like, clear, logical thoughts, but that's it for now. But I've got big plans to use it, but I realize that I need to get so many things in, in order first- Yeah
[00:39:38] before we start adapting it.
[00:39:39] Matt: Yeah. And it's play the long game. Ch- play chess, not checkers. '
[00:39:41] Hamish: Cause I, my goal is that my site team can actually punch a, you know, question into a WhatsApp chat that's connected to your Claude agent and be like, "Hey, can you just give me a little bit more information about how the engineering got to here?"
[00:39:51] Andrew: Yeah.
[00:39:52] Hamish: Now-
[00:39:52] Andrew: Because you started with the data first.
[00:39:54] Hamish: Yeah. It's,
[00:39:54] Andrew: yes.
[00:39:55] Hamish: Yeah. And you can't get that unless your data is in a logical form. Ah. So anyway, point. Yeah, let's, let's get [00:40:00] ahead. I've, I've, I, I'm, I don't... Again, I'm not professing to be an expert. I have just accidentally come across this. So anyway, don't get distracted by AI, but it's fucking powerful.
[00:40:07] Matt: All right, back to influencing.
[00:40:09] Hamish: Yeah.
[00:40:09] Matt: Have you been stopped in the middle of the street and been like, "Oh, I know you"?
[00:40:13] Andrew: So much. Really? So... And one of them was the craziest one, um, when I was in, on my trip around Australia, and I was on Busselton Jetty, which is the longest jetty in the Southern Hemisphere.
[00:40:25] Yeah. Just at below Perth there. And I was halfway along it and this bloke goes, "Hoppo." And I was like... And I'm shocking for, like, faces, names. I'm shocking. And I was like, "Yeah, G'day mate. How you going?" Like I thought we've met at a ca- caravan park along the way or something. He goes, "Bro, I follow you on Instagram."
[00:40:42] And I was like... My missus at the time looks at me and she goes, I'll never forget it, she goes, "At least you know your marketing's working." I was like, "Fuck." Yeah, that, yeah. A, yeah, a lot. So,
[00:40:51] Matt: so let's talk about the amount of time you spend on it, because I think there's this probably idea that you take a few photos, upload them and done, and that was my original thought [00:41:00] on content creation eight years ago.
[00:41:03] I now understand it's a lot more than that.
[00:41:04] Andrew: Mm. A serious amount of work.
[00:41:06] Matt: Yeah, like how many hours do you reckon you spend a week on it?
[00:41:10] Andrew: Um, I'm probably doing, like, minus recording, probably three hours a day-
[00:41:16] Hamish: Wow ...
[00:41:16] Andrew: putting stuff together, and that's just because, yeah, all these other brand stuff I put up as well, like creating ads for them and-
[00:41:22] Hamish: So, so not including the recording?
[00:41:24] Andrew: Not including the recording.
[00:41:25] Hamish: Okay, so the recording kinda just happens organically while you're on site. Yeah. Yeah. Okay, cool.
[00:41:29] Andrew: Yeah, and then I'll pluck bits for that. But then, yeah, when I get home I'll, you know, for my, like, Toasty Tuesdays on little pods and stuff now. Yeah. And then just the process of setting things up as well, so.
[00:41:39] Yeah,
[00:41:39] Matt: so Toasty Tuesdays, just to anyone that doesn't know, do you wanna explain what that is? 'Cause I love it.
[00:41:43] Andrew: It's a bit of a little, like, cultural explosion that happened by accident. Um, working on site in the mud, and I had, like, an old jaffle iron.
[00:41:50] Matt: Yeah.
[00:41:52] Andrew: I put a photo on my story, and then it just, I just started getting...
[00:41:58] Well, now it's hundreds and hundreds of [00:42:00] people have sent in just suggestions of what to cook.
[00:42:02] Matt: So what's the, what's the, so what's the best suggestion you had and the worst? Oh, the
[00:42:06] Andrew: worst. Well, these chairs got me. Uh, the worst
[00:42:11] one was my mate Andy, the Wandering Chippie. Shout out. I put a thing out for, like, "I want your kids' suggestions-"
[00:42:17] Matt: Oh ... "
[00:42:18] Andrew: what to make." And, uh, because I put it to a vote, I'll, I'll say, get, I might get 60 suggestions, and I'll pick one or two, and I'll get my missus to pick the other ones or my kids pick the other ones.
[00:42:29] And, um, then I'll put it to a vote. So then if it's shit and people go, "What'd you cook that for?" I'm like, "Well, the people voted." Yeah. So I've taken all, like, blame off me- Yeah, yeah ... and put it on... And their one was, it was, like, gummy worms- What? ... Nu- Nutella, and it was so- It was fucked. Like, dry rice. I was, like, gagging eating this thing.
[00:42:50] And I feel bad. I'm like, "Andy, man, I know your kids suggested this one, but it was the worst one I've ever had." Um, the best one, I had a Brit nice brisket one recently. My one I'm uploading [00:43:00] today was actually a, um, a chili tuna, jalapenos, cheddar cheese, and barbecue sauce, and it was unbelievable.
[00:43:08] Hamish: Simple.
[00:43:08] Keep it simple.
[00:43:09] Andrew: Simple, yeah. So,
[00:43:09] Hamish: and what was the one you did with Joel? 'Cause didn't you do the-
[00:43:12] Andrew: Yeah, so- Didn't
[00:43:12] Hamish: you, didn't you do, like, a curry or something?
[00:43:14] Andrew: I'd never met Joel, and he would just... He's obviously a, a passionate man like myself- Yeah ... and about food. And he's like, he'd hit me up and go like, "Hey, let's catch up and a- we'll film one."
[00:43:22] And I was like, "Yeah, what- whatever, whatever."
[00:43:24] Matt: Do you go back to basics, like, just, like, a smoked cheddar with, like, a manchego cheese and then, like a- Yeah, sometimes I'll literally- And just, like, literally just, like, four different, like, really fancy f- cheeses?
[00:43:32] Andrew: Yeah. Yeah, see. Well, sometimes I, like, dumb it right down and I'll do, like, I'm gonna do a, a baked bean episode this week.
[00:43:37] Of, like, just, you know, people get- I literally was just
[00:43:39] Hamish: thinking baked beans there ...
[00:43:40] Matt: and, like. And it has to be in a jaffle though, yeah?
[00:43:42] Andrew: Well, 'cause I've teamed up with Red Zed now. It's a sandwich press. Oh, that's, then this is good. 'Cause I know, 'cause the whole thing was I used to stand on the jaffle iron, and I used to zip tight or I used to twitch it closed, like wire, like concrete wire, twitch it closed, um, because I snapped the thing off it.
[00:43:56] 'Cause people used to suggest these big whoppin' things. I either have, like, a muddy boot [00:44:00] on and stomp on it. And that was the whole-
[00:44:02] Matt: Yeah ...
[00:44:02] Andrew: thing. But, uh, it just became a thing, and then companies would message me, want to do giveaways, you know. And it was, ended up being, like, it's quite a lot of work. And now Red Zed, I do it with them.
[00:44:12] They pay me each week to do it, so I can sort of justify-
[00:44:14] Hamish: Yeah ...
[00:44:15] Andrew: that, and we've got a really good relationship with them.
[00:44:16] Hamish: Is Red Zed, they're, they're the guys that were giving you the, uh, batteries as well? The generic ones? Yeah. Did you know that? Red Zed Energy.
[00:44:20] Andrew: No, that's... No, no, so that's... No, the Red Zed are, they're a, um, they're, they're a bank, but not a bank.
[00:44:26] Yeah, yeah, yeah.
[00:44:29] Matt: So they do
[00:44:29] Andrew: loans for the self-employed. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah. So it's perfect. That's it, Red Zed.
[00:44:30] Matt: That's who I'm thinking of.
[00:44:30] Andrew: Yeah. Um, so I do it with them now, as well as My Mates on Crates coming up. But they really... It's funny, 'cause they're this, obviously, uber professional company, but they-
[00:44:41] they've got a bit of a, a twang to 'em, and- Well, I think it
[00:44:44] Hamish: works. Like, I think you, like, the natural, organic style that you produce is engaging So why wouldn't they? The
[00:44:53] Matt: average person will watch it
[00:44:54] Andrew: Yeah, which, uh, to me it's a bit of imposter syndrome when I get these companies reach out to me. It's, I, I'm like [00:45:00] posties.
[00:45:01] I'm like a mum Tell me, tell me, tell me about, tell me about the time that you... Weren't you on
[00:45:02] Hamish: Karl Stefanovic?
[00:45:07] Andrew: I was actually telling Joel about this the other day, yeah Didn't
[00:45:09] Hamish: you, weren't you like, um, uh-
[00:45:10] Andrew: It was for these fingernail things Yeah So I got kinda stitched up in a way. And I thought of, I had this whole thing of like almost like a fucking fi- like, you know, and find out sort of, um, attitude of like, "You know what?
[00:45:24] Um, shoot your shot." It was my, I even got, like, it tattooed. "Shoot your shot" was my, like, slogan of last year. Just go for it. Like, what have you got to lose? And it was, um, Phrase Skin, who do, like, skincare for blokes, and they're like, "Hey, we're gonna fly down from Sydney. We wanna film some stuff with you."
[00:45:38] And I was like, "Why not?" You know what? I, I, I'd look at, like, you know, Adam Sullivan, who does, like, the, um, evidence-based training- Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah ... like that, and he'd just walk through a supermarket talking to his phone. I was like, it's always the best content, but I'm terrified to do it. To the
[00:45:53] Matt: talking head reel.
[00:45:54] Andrew: Yeah.
[00:45:55] Matt: They're hard.
[00:45:55] Andrew: Oh, it's-
[00:45:55] Matt: That's... Like, do you teleprompt? Like, 'cause you can't, 'cause then you're looking at the screen
[00:45:59] Andrew: and- I, I used to [00:46:00] try and do that. No Now I just, like, I just go with it. And that's one thing that I really took out of it. I used to do, like, 50 takes on things. I'm like, "Oh, I can't say, I can't say this."
[00:46:06] And I was like, it's not real. Yeah Like, I got this over edited thing going. So you just
[00:46:09] Matt: one take now and go for it, upload, see how-
[00:46:10] Andrew: Sometimes. Yeah Sometimes they're pretty ropey. I reckon they're the, they're the,
[00:46:12] Hamish: they're the be- the best ones, though. Yeah. They are Like, when you're just, like, off, you know, shooting from the hip, just boom, done.
[00:46:19] Andrew: Yeah
[00:46:19] Hamish: Send. Post.
[00:46:20] Matt: The worst, the worst about content creation, you think, "Fuck, I've nailed this one," then no one likes, and then the next day you put up something, you're like, "Fuck it," and that goes off.
[00:46:27] Andrew: My, my... I actually just recently got my most viral reel, and um, it took me- Like five minutes to do
[00:46:35] Hamish: Which one was that?
[00:46:36] Andrew: Um, so it was it's actually, it's... Like I can't remember what it says, but it's in relation to, uh, ADHD.
[00:46:43] Hamish: Yeah, yeah,
[00:46:44] Andrew: yeah. And it's just me with my, um, a DeWalt chainsaw just like- Oh, yeah. ... working this curve on this arbor, which, like, that's almost rage-baiting itself, 'cause people tell me it's the wrong thing to do.
[00:46:53] Which it worked incredible, so I'm like, "Well, if it works-" Yeah ... "what's wrong with it?" And it, it's like 6 million [00:47:00] views or something now. What? And just went psycho.
[00:47:02] Hamish: On, on Instagram or on TikTok or?
[00:47:04] Andrew: Oh, I put some stuff on TikTok. Like I, I went through a stage where I tried to do both. Yes. And I was just like, "I just gotta be fucked."
[00:47:10] Hamish: Yeah.
[00:47:10] Andrew: Um, which I should, 'cause it's my, it's my job.
[00:47:13] Hamish: Yeah.
[00:47:13] Andrew: Um, but yeah, so stuff like that. And that's when, so back to the whole Fraz Skin, I went there and I was super uncomfortable. Went out to this building site and had to, like, pretty much, like, do, like, these dance videos with him and stuff. And it was so...
[00:47:27] I was s- I felt sick. Like absolutely sick to... And they were just sort of going for it, and there was like, there's like tradies looking at us everywhere and thinking like... I hate the feeling of, like, going to a trade site and people not thinking I'm a tradie. Yeah. Yeah. Do you know when you see us walking up- Yeah
[00:47:41] like, "What's this bloke doing here?" Yeah. So I don't want anyone to ever think that of me. He's a paid actor pretending to be tradie. Exactly. And I'm like, "I'm actually, like a, I've got a business, come on." And um, I went there, and then this other lady who was filming, it's like, "All right, we'll do these nail things now."
[00:47:53] I'm like, "
[00:47:54] Hamish: Sorry, what?"
[00:47:56] Andrew: I didn't get paid for any of this, mind you. And [00:48:00] it's these nails, like these acrylic nail things you put on, and then put under, like, a heat thing. 'Cause, and um, and, and I just had black nails for, like, two weeks.
[00:48:08] Matt: And- Is there anything that you won't say yes to now?
[00:48:10] Andrew: Oh, I say no to way more stuff than I say yes to.
[00:48:12] Oh, really? And everyone said, "Oh, you're a sellout." So I was like, "I say no to so..." I used to say yes to everything.
[00:48:17] Matt: What's the weirdest one you've had as a request?
[00:48:21] Andrew: I had a, I had a vape company want to do a collab recently. I don't vape.
[00:48:25] Matt: Really?
[00:48:26] Andrew: Yeah. I was like, "Oh, , what's some..."
[00:48:29] Matt: Don't give them
[00:48:29] Andrew: names- I had a sex-
[00:48:30] 'cause then they're getting what they want ... I had a sex toy company reach out. Yeah, and I've, oh, I
[00:48:34] Hamish: don't know. Do you know what? I could actually- ... I, I could see you doing that, like Are you a visual person? I'm very visual. I'm sorry then. Yeah But you can see
[00:48:41] Andrew: that. But what, what were they requesting? It was- From a building site? Or... No,
[00:48:45] Hamish: it was, like, this- Actually, you don't want to, you don't, you don't wanna know what image came to my mind either.
[00:48:48] Andrew: No, I, no, I don't Were you trying to vibrate it- It's, uh, yeah ...
[00:48:50] Matt: vibrate the concrete or
[00:48:51] Andrew: something? It was, it was like a, it was like a, a male...
[00:48:55] It was a- It
[00:48:56] Matt: was OnlyFans ...
[00:48:57] Andrew: a male simulator. It, yeah, it was, yeah, wild. [00:49:00] So, um, that was odd. And that wasn't even a pay. That was through this company, I, I can't remember what it was called.
[00:49:05] Matt: Did you think about it?
[00:49:07] Andrew: Yeah. Definitely. Definitely. I was like, 'cause I was at that stage where I was like, "I'm gonna do, I'm gonna put myself out any way that, like..."
[00:49:15] You know? Yeah. But then I'm, I'm very glad I didn't do it. But, um-
[00:49:18] Matt: Did you just... Uh, do you reach out or like you just wait for people to come to you?
[00:49:21] Andrew: I used to reach out to companies. Yeah, yeah.
[00:49:22] Matt: And that's how it started, and then
[00:49:24] Andrew: it
[00:49:24] Matt: snowballed. Well,
[00:49:24] Andrew: it, it actually started by, and I remember Blunt石 I think were the first people I did something with.
[00:49:29] And they said, "Hey," like this was like eight years ago. And they're like, "Hey, we wanna, um, we're gonna send you a pair of boots if you could send us a couple of photos." And I was like, "Are you crazy? You're gonna send me a $250 pair of boots and you want photos back?" I'm like, "Absolutely, suckers." And I remember I was off the tools then, and I remember it so clear.
[00:49:51] This job at BuildEast, and the boys were laying coping around a pool, and I had to get one of them to hop into the... The pool was empty. Um, get... [00:50:00] I went like, "All right, I gotta put my work clothes on today." Went out there, got the trowel, and I was laying down some mortar down, and I had to get him to take these photos.
[00:50:06] And then he's like, "What the ?" I sent it in to them that... Yeah. And I was like, "This is crazy." So then, like Oliver Boot sent me something the next week, and then Hard Yakka. The, and I'd just say yes to everything, and then everything stopped. And I didn't understand branding back then and, like building a strong brand and- Yeah
[00:50:20] you know, having sort of trusts. And, um, people were thinking like, "This guy's just a sellout." Yeah. "He's saying yes to everything." Mm-hmm. And the companies were like, "Well, why would I give this guy anything?" And it stopped for like- Six months or more
[00:50:33] Matt: Yeah
[00:50:34] Andrew: And then, yeah, now it's just, I've said yes to a lot of stuff, and I've just realized.
[00:50:37] This year I said, "All right, I'm gonna stick with, like, say, three or four big brands that I, that I've used for 10 years- Yeah ... and I really
[00:50:44] Matt: like." That you align with. Yeah. Yeah, that I align with. So like, that's literally what we've done with Pro Climba. Yeah. We practically only, we, we actually picked what we wanted to work with.
[00:50:52] Hamish: Yeah.
[00:50:52] Andrew: Yeah.
[00:50:52] Hamish: Yeah.
[00:50:52] Andrew: Yeah. And I feel like it goes, it's, it's gone a long way.
[00:50:56] Hamish: And, um, I mean, I don't wanna go too much into your financials, but what's the split? Do you... [00:51:00] I mean, you're obviously still on the tools working. Yeah. You still gotta get money coming through there, and you've, you've-
[00:51:04] Andrew: It's about 50/50 at the moment.
[00:51:05] Hamish: Yeah, right.
[00:51:05] Andrew: I can see. Yeah. It c- could be, it could be more towards the, um, the socials. And at the moment it definitely is, because I'm really trying to, like, as I was saying before, cut back on the other jobs, the other construction jobs. Yeah. Just the ones I really wanna do. Yeah. Um-
[00:51:18] Hamish: Do, do you think, uh, have you...
[00:51:20] Like, is... Everything moves so quickly.
[00:51:24] Matt: Oh, yeah.
[00:51:24] Hamish: Do you think that the whole influencer thing has a use-by date? And are you setting yourself up-
[00:51:31] Matt: Ooh, question. 'Cause like, what, what stops me just going to Hamish now? 'Cause he'll do it for a little bit cheaper. I
[00:51:36] Hamish: won't, but sure.
[00:51:36] Matt: I know, but like, that's, but I know that's a, that's a thing.
[00:51:38] Andrew: Yeah. It's, um... I, I, I've thought about it- Yeah ... and said, like, "How hard do I go on this?" 'Cause if it stops, then I've put all my eggs in one basket within reason. And I says, "I don't think so." I think it's, we're in that generation now where this is the way people advertise.
[00:51:51] Hamish: Yep.
[00:51:51] Andrew: They see where it comes from.
[00:51:52] There's always gonna be, um, something that needs advertising for our generation.
[00:51:57] Hamish: And do you know what? The, the worst thing that comes out of it is [00:52:00] marketing for you. So, you know, if that, if this drops off over here, then you just take on
[00:52:04] Matt: more work. Exactly. And you, and you always... And 'cause if you take that seriously, you're gonna be two steps ahead.
[00:52:07] So- Exactly ... so by the time the market's adjusted, you've probably adjusted. We've got one question before we jump into the last bit. Trolling, do you read the comments?
[00:52:15] Andrew: I go through phases. Uh- Do you reply? Lately, I do now, at the moment. Beautiful. At the start, I used to fucking fly off the wall at them, and I would get so worked up, so, like lose sleep worked up.
[00:52:29] My partner'd be like, "What the... Who?" He's probably sitting in his mum's basement, and like, "I'm gonna look at this sucker's..." Like, he's, he's got... Whoa. He's like hook, line, and sinker, and I was. And then I started just deleting the comment and blocking them. That was really good, and I thought, "Well, I'll do, like, a little bit of engagement."
[00:52:47] It's good fun. So I started, like, killing them with kindness.
[00:52:49] Matt: Yeah.
[00:52:50] Andrew: And like, they'd be like, write something, like, horrific to me, and be like, "Oh man, you're like, obviously you're really upset. I really didn't mean to upset you." No. "Is there something you wanna talk about? Get off your back. Maybe give me a call."
[00:52:59] And [00:53:00] like, make it sound like... 'Cause people, they don't really know you if they're seeing you for the first time. Yeah. But then they might like his comment, and then, like, the best thing is, is when they delete their own comment.
[00:53:08] Matt: Yeah.
[00:53:09] Andrew: And you're like, "Yes, I know I got ya." Yeah. But I'll just try and do that, and they'll give it back to you a bit, and you're like, "Oh dude, like, I remember when I was like that in my life.
[00:53:15] Maybe you just need a hug." Yeah. "Maybe you tried, like, this, or maybe some yoga." When you get beaten up enough as a
[00:53:18] Matt: child and hugged.
[00:53:19] Andrew: Exactly, and that's how I go about it now. Yeah. Which is, Joel actually hit me up recently, um- And it's crazy because he goes like, "I look up to Joel so much." Yeah Like he just puts himself out.
[00:53:30] He's so knowledgeable. He's just, he's great. But he, um, did a reel recently where he was using a chainsaw with his young fella who was holding it, and he was getting eaten alive. I read that.
[00:53:40] Matt: I saw it. These people are
[00:53:41] Andrew: precious. He, he called me up and he was like, "I don't know what to do. I don't... Like, this is really..."
[00:53:46] It was, he was like- Not wearing PPE ... frantic. Yeah. It was... And I said to him, "Mate, kill him with kindness." I was like, "You know what, how I see that is? Like, imagine if you hide all these things from your kids, and then all of a sudden they're camping when they're [00:54:00] 16 with their mates, and they don't have no idea how to use a chainsaw and they cut their arm off."
[00:54:03] Yeah. Like, I was like, "You're really gonna
[00:54:04] Hamish: do that." I, I remember the post. I mean, I guess my only comment would be if, if, like, if my kids are doing stuff like that, it's earmuffs and eye, eye protection.
[00:54:10] Andrew: Yeah.
[00:54:11] Hamish: That, that's the... That'd be, um, my-
[00:54:12] Matt: Even still, sometimes you're like, "You'll be fine."
[00:54:14] Hamish: Yeah. Yeah. Look-
[00:54:15] Matt: Like you, like they, they see you do it, and then-
[00:54:17] Hamish: But do you know what?
[00:54:18] Like I f- I, I s- I remember that post and I'm just like, "Oh, well."
[00:54:21] Andrew: Yeah, exactly. S- I mean- And people were really getting him. 'Cause I said, "They're actually hitting your daddy button now." Yeah. Like you, it's because- Yeah, yeah. It's personal ... they're questioning you as a parent. And
[00:54:29] Hamish: actually,
[00:54:29] Andrew: do you know- But they don't see an issue
[00:54:30] Hamish: do you know what's interesting? I wonder how I would've responded if I didn't know Joel.
[00:54:35] Andrew: Yeah.
[00:54:35] Hamish: Yeah, but I probably still would've sc- Exactly right ... I probably still would've scammed hard and
[00:54:39] Andrew: been like, "What the fuck?" I would've just told him- Yeah, but then if you- ... and would've just got off into that ... you click on his page and that's how you realize the, the person he is- Yeah
[00:54:43] and the hours he puts in. So it's like, well, you know Joel. Yeah. Like I know you're an amazing parent.
[00:54:48] Hamish: Yeah.
[00:54:48] Andrew: Like I know that, and that's all that matters. As long as you know it, it like- Yeah ... and the kids know it. Yeah. So I was like, "Who the fuck is this-" Billy Bob Dingo user432 that's- ... making you not sleep at night.
[00:54:57] Like, I s- Do, are you on Facebook too? Yes. That's the one. Facebook. I do not[00:55:00]
[00:55:04] want
[00:55:05] Matt: to run back to some of those people. I, I, I don't look at them.
[00:55:08] Andrew: Dude,
[00:55:08] Hamish: so god. I don't, I don't, I don't have Facebook on my phone anymore, but I, I remember, um, I went, "Hey Luce, look at
[00:55:14] Andrew: this." The bur-
[00:55:14] Hamish: It is just like boom, boom, boom and-
[00:55:15] Andrew: When
[00:55:16] Hamish: I'm,
[00:55:16] Andrew: when I'm bored I go on Facebook comments The, the burpers are on there in force.
[00:55:19] Ah. And they will like, they will not hold... I think Yankee- Because I mean what- Yankee
[00:55:23] Matt: should shotgun. They
[00:55:23] Andrew: still haven't
[00:55:23] Matt: worked out how to u- they like type with one finger. Exactly, right. Yeah
[00:55:26] Andrew: And
[00:55:26] Hamish: I reckon it's the same person comments on mine, the same person comments on Matt, and I'm like, "Why do you fucking bother?"
[00:55:31] Yeah. Like, if you don't like what we're doing, why do you bother?
[00:55:34] Matt: That's what
[00:55:34] Hamish: I say. I just like-
[00:55:35] Matt: I, I, I have a very simple go back. I have two. I'm like, one, you just weren't picked up enough as a child.
[00:55:40] Andrew: Yeah.
[00:55:40] Matt: And imagine being shit at your job. Yeah. That's my one I go back to them at. Because, like, I'm... What I have a theory on is like you can come at me, go at me as much as you want.
[00:55:48] What I get really concerned about is if you've got someone young starting this journey, wanting to showcase their work and how, and like really proud of what they did, and there might be a little fault, and then you've got the fucking internet goes off at them. Yeah. Like, I want to [00:56:00] protect that person.
[00:56:00] Like, I can handle it. I don't give two fucks. Yeah, exactly right. Yeah. I'll, I'll bite back at you pretty quickly, but I want to protect that other person who, and put that person in their place because I want to encourage other people to share information. Because ultimately- Yeah ... that's what we're doing, we're sharing information.
[00:56:14] Andrew: Yeah. Um- I like to rag on them and see if they don't write back for say six hours, I'm like, "Oh, you know, your boss gave you, you know, you're on your, your, your boss gave you your lunch break now, your allocated lunch break that you can actually write back to me." So hit them up like that. Like, I can write back whenever I want.
[00:56:28] Like,
[00:56:28] Matt: but, um- Um, MEGT are a sponsor of this episode. Uh, we have a segment called the Mindful Moment. So MEGT, Australia's leading apprenticeship experts. Now, what w- this whole idea is, um, we want to give advice to people in the trade, starting a trade, training apprentices. Um, I want to throw it over to you today, Hoppo, because y- you've, originally I actually asked you before the, the episode of giving some carpentry advice.
[00:56:55] I feel like it's more business advice for those people who are coming out of the [00:57:00] apprenticeship, about to think about starting a business. Do you have any advice for those type of, type of people?
[00:57:05] Andrew: I obviously touched on it before about, like, money, and like you don't have to have- The $100,000 set up and this sort of thing.
[00:57:16] It's like, so just, just be humble and, and respect yourself for the position you're in and your, your capabilities, I guess. Is that all
[00:57:24] Matt: right as a way? No, no, that's perfect. Yeah. I actually was hoping you were gonna go down that road. Yeah. I think it's really important that you understand your financial liabilities as an apprentice coming out, if you are gonna start.
[00:57:32] If you aren't, I was sort of also hoping if you're an apprentice finishing apprenticeship about to start a business, that's not the right time to start a business. Hold off. Mm. Maybe give it a fews and continue to learning.
[00:57:42] Hamish: So I, I'm gonna comment on that, um, 'cause if I think about the personalities that are in the room right now, and we probably all finished our time- I didn't, I didn't do it
[00:57:50] and started businesses. So like I, I, I don't wanna be the one to tell someone who's ambitious to not go and start a business, that they need to go and do something else first. I think- But I think it's about, [00:58:00] like you are gonna fail and as I said before, good businessman versus bad businessman, one just learns from the mistakes.
[00:58:06] Andrew: Yeah. One gets back up, yeah. Yeah. I think it's, yeah, just, just not comparing yourself to other people. Like you might see these other guys- Oh, it's so hard though, isn't it? ... and think like, "I got a business. Yeah, I need to spend this money on this," you... And then you fuck, that's why so many businesses fail.
[00:58:19] Like just-
[00:58:20] Matt: I do that constantly. Yeah. I see Hamish with an awesome job. I was like, "Fuck, I want that awesome job. I've gotta do that."
[00:58:24] Andrew: Yeah.
[00:58:24] Hamish: Yeah. But that's good though because I feel like maybe you and I got to the point in our lives where we're using that as motivation rather-
[00:58:32] Andrew: I think it's a perspective on, yeah, from a- Like it's from a he- it's a
[00:58:32] Matt: healthy s- like
[00:58:33] Hamish: I think it's health, yeah. Like, 'cause I look at, you know, we recently went head-to-head in a job.
[00:58:36] Andrew: Mm.
[00:58:37] Hamish: And Matt ended up getting the job. Is
[00:58:39] Andrew: that, oh, notice the, the cut.
[00:58:41] Hamish: Yeah, yeah.
[00:58:43] Matt: It's like, it's like It's like the reel when you start and the end's actually the start. Exactly, right?
[00:58:47] Hamish: Yeah. That's what it looks like.
[00:58:47] There's the hook there. A-
[00:58:48] Andrew: and I was gutted that I didn't get the job.
[00:58:49] Hamish: Yeah. But I'm just like, you know what? I'm just gonna work harder now.
[00:58:54] Andrew: Yeah.
[00:58:54] Hamish: And you know, if anyone is gonna do that job, I know Matt's gonna do a great job.
[00:58:57] Andrew: Yeah. So it's, I think it's the whole perspective of things of [00:59:00] like letting, let success motivate you, not like sort of bring you down mentally and think like, "Why aren't I there?"
[00:59:06] Yeah. 'Cause no one knows the background of like, okay, he might have inherited this money. He might have this or he's got that. You, but he might be paying 1,000 bucks every week- Yeah, yeah ... for all this stuff, so. But, and, but, but also they're- It is
[00:59:17] Hamish: what- ... they're seeing what's on social media as well.
[00:59:19] Andrew: Oh yeah, it's shocking.
[00:59:20] Hamish: Yeah.
[00:59:20] Andrew: Shocking.
[00:59:20] Hamish: Not-
[00:59:21] Matt: It can be a really good place 'cause you've obviously made very good friends and got work from it, but it can also be a very dirty place.
[00:59:26] Andrew: Yeah. Oh, yes, it's, it's sent me on an absolute rollercoaster over the years. But I mean, that's what it's all here, but yeah.
[00:59:33] Matt: So h- someone wants to follow you or get onto you, what's your profile?
[00:59:37] Andrew: Hopkins Construction.
[00:59:38] Hamish: What's the following, uh, followers goal by the end of the year? 'Cause you just hit 40,000. Or is it more
[00:59:41] Matt: reach? Followers aren't the tool anymore, are they?
[00:59:45] Andrew: No, they're not. I like seeing... I just hit 40K, but I use- Good job ... like Sammy and Joel for just motivation constantly. Yeah. Like, it was the reach before, 'cause Sammy got, hit 10 million views for the last month, and I said to him-
[00:59:56] Matt: Whoa.
[00:59:57] Andrew: Whoa ... and I didn't think that was possible. It mi- it wasn't even a [01:00:00] thing, and I went, "Fuck, I'm doing it." So the last 30 days, I'd put 10 posts up a day. Between posts and stories, 10 a day, and I've hit 12 million views the last 30 days now. And I said it in our group chat to the boys, I was like, "This isn't a brag.
[01:00:14] This is-" "No, beat me now" "... Sammy did it." Now, m- yeah. Yeah. Now, now come at me. Yeah. This is, this is possible. I didn't think it was possible, and I've proved myself wrong.
[01:00:22] Matt: Fuck.
[01:00:22] Andrew: So this
[01:00:23] Hamish: is- So Sam, Sam's almost 70-
[01:00:24] Andrew: Yeah ...
[01:00:24] Hamish: 70,000?
[01:00:25] Matt: He's growing. Whoa. Wow. He, he's... We had him on. He's an awesome character. He's a,
[01:00:29] Andrew: he's a... You know
[01:00:30] Matt: what- Yeah.
[01:00:30] He... Can't, you know, we talk about Apprenticeships Country?
[01:00:32] Andrew: Yeah.
[01:00:33] Matt: That-
[01:00:33] Andrew: 100% ...
[01:00:34] Matt: just loves his craft. Yeah,
[01:00:35] Andrew: I lo- we speak every day. Yeah. Multiple times. I- And I have the utmost respect for him ... and Joel, 58k ... and I actually bounce a lot of things back off him. And he's a really caring guy, but he'll also... Like, the other day, I was bouncing stuff back and forth more than I normally would.
[01:00:49] I was sending myself into a spiral and I'm like, "I'm gonna start this, um, little feature concrete business I started years ago. I'm gonna do that and that, that and... Can I post this, or do you think this is too controversial?" And he [01:01:00] called me, he's like, "Dude, are you fucking all right?" Like, you never, you're normally a guy, you know, people reach out to for, like, confirmation on things, 'cause I say it how it is.
[01:01:07] And he's like, "I've never seen you not back yourself so much." Yeah. "Are you okay?"
[01:01:12] Matt: Wow. Yeah. Good on him. Easy.
[01:01:14] Andrew: I,
[01:01:14] Matt: I, I got a pretty good gut feel on people, and when I just met him for the first, and I was like, "I like you."
[01:01:19] Hamish: Just genuine.
[01:01:19] Andrew: He's- Yeah.
[01:01:20] Matt: Yeah.
[01:01:20] Andrew: Yeah. Just genuine. Yeah. He's genuine. And he's just reached out when I started selling my merch, and he just started buying everything.
[01:01:25] Every video out, "Sam, can I get..." And also I'd like, "I'll done." Send him one, and then I'd look in my inbox and he'd sent me a few messages. And I was
[01:01:31] Hamish: like- See, I tell you what, I'm disappointed- ... "This is like" ... we didn't get, come away with a fucking Hopkins T-shirt today. Unless there's some in the car.
[01:01:37] Andrew: There's none in the car.
[01:01:37] I'll send you some. Far out. This is outrageous. Or we could do my controversial one.
[01:01:42] Hamish: People are going, "Oh, I don't smoke, but-" Yeah, I like the make- It's funny. Like, yeah, it is ... make, make Austra- make, make construction... What is it? Make- Make
[01:01:47] Andrew: construction great again. Make- The one that when I wa- That was, that got some- Sort of people a bit precious?
[01:01:51] mixed emotions. Yeah. And I was like, but then they talked to me about, you know, about what my purpose is now, you know, in the industry. And I feel like how my [01:02:00] purpose has completely shifted in the industry from trying to make as much money and build this business to, like- Looking, I learnt off a craftsman, and there's not enough of that anymore, and the appreciation of, of, uh, people are just burning the thought of a trade, and the whole like...
[01:02:14] My sort of bottom line is, is that no one said it was gonna be easy.
[01:02:19] Hamish: Yeah.
[01:02:19] Andrew: So why are people surprised when it's hard? These apprentices turn up, they're like, "Well, this is way too hard." And you're like, "Who the fuck told you it wasn't gonna be?"
[01:02:26] Hamish: Yeah.
[01:02:26] Andrew: So what are you surprised for? Be grateful, and that's why I bring it down to the one percenters, and I sort of talk about a lot, it's just those waking up each day, your morning coffee, the feeling of, you know, you're gonna go into a team environment and conquer this job.
[01:02:38] It's a really good feeling. Yeah. It's, I think you gotta, like, those, build those rituals into your day and- Yeah ... and just enjoying those things. The small wins. The small wins. It's, it's
[01:02:45] Hamish: small wins. We better wrap up. Hoppo. Yeah. Thank you for coming on. Thanks for coming on, man. Thank you so much for having me.
[01:02:50] Appreciate [01:03:00] it.