Running on Fumes? It’s Time to Redefine What Success as a Builder Looks Like.
You wake up exhausted. You go to bed wired. And somewhere in between, you’re managing projects, chasing trades, dealing with clients, and wondering when it all became so… heavy.
Here’s the uncomfortable truth: The building industry has been celebrating burnout for decades.
Working 60+ hour weeks? That’s “dedication.”
No time for family? That’s “what it takes.”
Running on fumes and barely keeping your head above water? That’s just “being a builder.”
But here’s what nobody tells you: This isn’t a badge of honour. It’s a warning sign.
When you’re constantly exhausted, scrambling, and stretched too thin, it’s not just you who suffers.
Your team doesn’t get the leadership they need.
Your clients don’t get the attention they deserve.
Your projects don’t get the quality you’re capable of.
And your family? They get whatever’s left – which is usually nothing.
The real cost of burnout isn’t just how you feel. It’s what it’s costing your business, your reputation, and your life.
And the hardest part? You can’t fix your business problems when you’re the problem that needs fixing first.
Most business coaches in the building industry will tell you to work on your marketing, fill your pipeline, systemise your operations, and scale your team.
But here’s what they’re missing: None of that works if you’re running on empty.
You can have the best systems in the world, but if you don’t have the energy to implement them, or the clarity to lead your team through them, they’re worthless.
You can bring in more leads, but if you’re too burnt out to qualify the right clients or too exhausted to deliver the quality you’re known for, you’re just digging yourself deeper.
The truth is simple: If you’re not right, nothing else will be right.
That’s why at Live Life Build, we flip the script. We don’t start with your business. We start with you.
Watch the video now, or read the transcript below. Be sure to also subscribe to the Live Life Build YouTube channel.
Amelia
Do you feel like you’re running on fumes? You literally feel like you’re burning out or right on the edge of any energy that you have.
You’re exhausted and you can’t see how it’s possible to keep going in your building business.
Duayne
It’s a common story that builders tell us in the building industry. You’re always busy, you’re always flat out, you never have time and everything seems like a constant headache.
You’re running on fumes and you’re just going every single day, waking up early, doing lots of work, and managing your team. Then you’re quoting and doing all the administration work after hours.
This isn’t a badge of honor. This is the way our industry has operated for the past one hundred years, but it’s not the way that we want it to operate for the next one hundred years.
It’s time for change so that builders have healthy lives. They can spend time with family and friends. They build great teams. They don’t have all that tension, stress, short temper, depression, and anxiety that we see so much in the industry these days.
Amelia
We know that lots of other coaches in the industry will help builders start to work on their marketing, filling their pipeline, and getting more jobs. What we do at Live Life Build instead is flip that on its head.
We know that if you’re not right, nothing else is going to be right. We put personal front and center. You’re working on yourself, your mindset, and understanding how you’re going to be able to get your time back.
You’re going to be able to focus on the things that are important to you, and those are your priorities in your personal life. Get that set up properly, schedule your time with your personal goals, and everything else stems from there.
That then enables you to actually start building your energy as an asset for yourself, so that you’ve got more fuel to be able to do all the other things in your life and your business.
If you’re not right, nothing else is going to be right.
Amelia
Duayne
It’s funny because when you’re in a position that you’re running on empty, you’re running on fumes, and everything just feels like a grind every single day in the industry,
It seems to be looked at as like I said before, a badge of honor. But in reality, it just means that you’re running a terrible business. It’s time to do something to make a change because it’s not good for you, nor your family. It’s definitely not good for your team or for your clients either.
If you sit back and reflect about this for a moment, you’ve probably got so many situations that are happening in your business that are happening purely because you’re burning out.
You’re running on fumes. You simply don’t have fuel in the tank to give people the direction that they need, the time they need, and the expectations that should be set. You’re simply scrambling around all the time.
If this sounds like you, it’s time for change.
Amelia
What if you looked at your energy as your most important business asset. Look at how you could be rested, focused and restore each and every day so that you can show up in the best possible way for your business.
Your Energy Is Your Most Valuable Business Asset
What if you stopped treating your energy like an endless resource and started treating it like the most important asset in your business?
Because that’s exactly what it is.
When you’re rested, focused, and restored, you show up differently. You make better decisions. You lead with clarity. You handle challenges without losing your cool. You see opportunities instead of just problems.
And here’s what else happens:
- Your team performs better because they have a leader who’s present and clear
- Your clients respect you more because you set and hold boundaries
- Your projects run smoother because you’re not constantly firefighting
- Your profitability improves because you’re not making decisions from a place of exhaustion
This isn’t about working less. It’s about working smarter by putting yourself first.
Inside ELEVATE, we start with you first. Your mindset. Your energy. Your time. Your priorities.
Because when you’re right, everything else starts working.
You’ll gain the systems, support, and community to consistently grow profitability, improve quality, and enhance your wellbeing so you can build a business that actually supports your life, not consumes it.
Learn more about ELEVATE here.