Owner Mindset

Pieces that challenge how you think about “busy vs profitable,” what you say yes/no to, and how you make decisions as an owner.

Operations & Systems

How to Build a Hiring Pipeline That Actually Works

Apr 4, 2026

•

8 min read

How to Build a Hiring Pipeline That Actually Works

The hiring pipeline that keeps 3 crews staffed year-round | The Backcut Issue #61

Jacob Hastings

Operations & Systems

Mar 28, 2026

•

6 min read

Is Your Equipment Making You Money?

The Equipment ROI Math Most Owners Skip | The Backcut Issue #60

Jacob Hastings

Operations & Systems

How to Develop Crew Leads Into Real Managers

Mar 21, 2026

•

8 min read

How to Develop Crew Leads Into Real Managers

The 90-Day Crew Lead Development Framework | The Backcut Issue #59

Jacob Hastings

Operations & Systems

What Happens To Your Tree Company If You Disappear For 30 Days?

Feb 21, 2026

•

8 min read

What Happens To Your Tree Company If You Disappear For 30 Days?

Your business can't outgrow the person running it. Here's the math. | The Backcut Issue #55

Jacob Hastings

Google/Maps

The 10-minute test that predicts what city to expand into next

Feb 14, 2026

•

8 min read

The 10-minute test that predicts what city to expand into next

One free Google search tells you if a city is wide open, a fair fight, or a dogfight to avoid. | The Backcut Issue #54

Jacob Hastings

Pricing & Profit

The Overhead Math Most Tree Services Get Wrong

Feb 7, 2026

•

6 min read

The Overhead Math Most Tree Services Get Wrong

You're busy. But are you actually profitable? (Here's how to know) | The Backcut Issue #53

Jacob Hastings

Pricing & Profit

Jan 4, 2026

•

4 min read

The $500 Guy Beat You on Paper

How to win hazardous removals without cutting your price | The Backcut Issue #48

Jacob Hastings

Lead Generation

Dec 28, 2025

•

4 min read

The Good Neighbor Protocol

How to build local trust that ads can’t buy | The Backcut Issue #45

Jacob Hastings

Pricing & Profit

Dec 27, 2025

•

5 min read

Stop Quoting Trees. Start Diagnosing.

The 6-step framework to close bigger jobs | The Backcut Issue #44

Jacob Hastings

Operations & Systems

Are you accidentally paying customers to use your equipment?

Dec 18, 2025

•

6 min read

Are you accidentally paying customers to use your equipment?

The math behind overhead, equipment rates, and profitable minimums | The Backcut Issue #40

Jacob Hastings