Discipline, Vision & Winning the Trenches in 2026 w/ Brian Hess | Top Contractor School Podcast

Welcome back to the Top Contractor School Podcast, where contractors come to grow stronger, scale smarter, and build businesses that last.

In this special year-end episode, Eric Guy sits down with Brian Hess, CEO of The Pavement Group and founder of Top Contractor School, to reflect on the lessons of 2025 and lay the foundation for a dominant 2026. This is a raw, honest conversation about leadership, discipline, growth, and what it really takes to build companies—and people—that last.

Brian pulls back the curtain on a challenging but transformational year, sharing the mindset shifts, systems, and leadership principles that helped the organization persevere, invest, and come out stronger on the other side. 

🔥 Inside this episode:

✅ Why 2025 was a “year of investment” — and why tough years build better leaders

✅ The systems and structure changes that reshaped The Pavement Group

✅ Why discipline is the great separator between average and elite contractors

✅ The 3 numbers that determine whether you win or lose the year

✅ How lack of discipline fractionalizes your potential

✅ Why leadership presence matters — and the hidden cost of being “missed”

✅ The danger of delaying hard conversations (and why they multiply)

✅ Why saying no more often is critical for growth and sanity

✅ The importance of delegating roles you’ve outgrown

✅ How faith, belief, and long-term vision stabilize leaders in hard seasons

 ✅ Why relationships and people—not numbers—are the true highlights

✅ Brian’s 2026 declarations: Growth. No Mercy. No Drama.

✅ Rapid-fire leadership truths every contractor needs heading into the new year

This episode is a must-listen for contractors preparing to enter 2026 with clarity, discipline, and momentum. If you want to win in the trenches—day in and day out—this conversation will challenge you to raise your standard. 

👇 Get connected to the community built to help contractors lead and win:

 🚀 Join the 1TEAM Network → https://www.1teamnetwork.com/

 📈 Join Top Contractor School → https://topcontractorschool.com/