Meet Tanya Wilson | Home Service Entrepreneur

We had the good fortune of connecting with Tanya Wilson and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Tanya, how has your perspective on work-life balance evolved over time?

I love this question and I always start it off by saying that “work-life balance” is a term that you should immediately strike from your vocabulary if you plan to do something great! It’s really a silly idea.

Working is part of your life. Life is part of your work. So how do you possibly balance it? It’s constantly intertwined. One feeds the other.

To me, life is all about working to improve the juggle – not balance. Balance is restricting to me. Balance signifies if one thing gets pushed too hard or a strong “wind” comes by the whole thing topples over.

Juggling is more about finding a rhythm – sometimes you are juggling faster and sometimes slower. Sometimes you can throw a whole “ball” out of the juggle and the LIFE continues.

When you get in a better rhythm you can add the ball back in or realize that Life is better without it.

Either way, the juggling doesn’t stop – just like life and work!

What should our readers know about your business?

I love the home service industry so much. I see massive opportunities in this industry right now and into the future. There is no lack of homes in our area and the construction just continues to grow. What isn’t growing is the trainer professionals to service these homes to make them livable every day. I’m talking plumbers, electricians, framers, excavators, waste removal, septic technicians, etc.

With the advancing age of the baby boomers, many service companies that are owned by this demographic are tragically just being closed because their children don’t want to continue the business and others have no interest in buying the business and learning the trade. Employment in this industry is at an all-time drought and it’s tough to get to everyone who is requesting these kinds of services, which leaves burnt-out employees and frustrated homeowners.

I am passionate about spreading the word and educating our teen and young adult communities on just how lucrative a job can be in these industries. It’s an incredible position for someone who likes to work with their hands and in most instances, many business owners have put together on-the-job training opportunities for people who want to work in the service industry.

Another caveat of this is the opportunity that women have in these industries. A recent study conducted by HouseCallPro found that women have a huge opportunity to shake up the home service industry as they excel with what’s most important to home service customers: clear communication, willingness to learn and expand current skills, and their unique way at looking at and measuring risk required to grow a successful company.

Women are working more and more in roles that were traditionally held by men. The study found that 21% of pest control employees, 20% of general contracting employees, and 20% of plumbing businesses are run by women! This is so exciting!!

I feel being a woman in the industry that I am in Septic & Commercial Wastewater. (Owner & CEO of Priority Pumping) is a superpower/ Women offer a unique perspective to building a community – a company culture that resembles more of a family environment than just the stuffy good-ole-boys room. I want other women to feel this way as well and that is why I created a community and podcast by the name of Ladies Kickin’ Ass. On the podcast, I share inspirational or intriguing ideas on how to work on your business, not just in it, and what you can do to build an incredible culture within your company. I also interview other bad-ass ladies that are out there making their mark on the home service industry.

This year, I teamed up with my 13-year-old daughter Ayzli and we created a body and skin care company named Sudzli. Sudzli is focused on bringing high-quality, non-chemical body products to the teen market. It is available through our retail website, local vendor shows and through selected wholesale sites, where we can be found in boutiques all over. It’s been so incredible to take on a different business challenge and also create something so amazing alongside my daughter.

I truly believe that the biggest difference we can make and the most impact we can have is between the walls of our homes. I am not relying on any teacher at school to educate my child on what’s possible in the world, and the unique opportunities to enter the world of entrepreneurship, I feel that is my job and I am thankful that I have the opportunity to share what I have learned throughout my life with her and help guide her on a path of designing a life on her terms!

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?

Oh, I love to entertain when friends and family come into town because we have such a unique way to entertain people of all tastes. I live in Gilbert and I spend a lot of time in this town. I love Gilbert for its uniqueness and small-town feel.

I would start the morning by waking up and taking a walk around the Riparian Reserve at Greenfield and Guadalupe. I love the walk-through there and all the cute little animals that come around to check you out!

After the morning walk, we would move on to the patio at Snooze in downtown Gilbert for brunch with a blood orange mimosa and their insanely delicious eggs benedict. The patio is out back and secluded but fun atmosphere. Walking around and people-watching downtown Gilbert is always great fun so we’d probably move on over to the front patio at Postino’s and hang out for the morning. Let’s be honest, that would probably move us into the early afternoon!

I love to spend time in the pool and just chilling on the patio so we would spend some time doing that before we out to the downtown Chandler area for dinner and drinks. I love the atmosphere of downtown Chandler. The Ostrich is an amazing little hidden bar and my favorite dinner place in all the East Valley is the Hidden House (Seriously, check out their short ribs and brussel sprouts! It will change your life). Bourbon Jacks or The Stillery have great live bands to listen to and relax your night away.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?

My team is absolutely incredible and without them, I would never have the business that I have. My team members are part of my family and I owe gratitude for their willingness to learn the business and then execute and serve with an owners mentality.

My husband Jake has been instrumental in rebooting our septic system installation department with Priority Pumping and it has contributed high, 6-figure numbers for the business this year. He has assembled an incredible team that is unrivaled by any other septic contractors in the Valley.

My Fab5, (that’s what I call my kiddos – Peytan, Ayzli, Carter, Cash and Caleb) have always been my inspiration to know better, and then do better and be better.

This year, I received the honor to be recognized as a member of the inaugural Titan100 Phoenix. The Titan 100 program recognizes the top 100 CEOs & C-level executives. They are the area’s most accomplished business leaders in their industry using criteria that include demonstrating exceptional leadership, vision, and passion. Many times, as entrepreneurs, we work so hard and feel little recognition for so long. It’s great to be at a place where all the hard work starts to be realized – totally worth the effort!

Website: https://tanyawilson.page/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ladieskickinass

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tanyamerrittwilson/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ladieskickinass

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/ladieskickina

Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/junk-rite-gilbert-2

Youtube: https://bit.ly/PriorityPumpingYouTube

Other: Listen to the Podcast – Ladies Kickin Ass: https://bit.ly/ladieskickinass-podcast Be a Guest on the Ladies Kickin Ass Podcast: https://bit.ly/BeMyLKAGuest Septic System 411 Guide: https://bit.ly/SepticSystem411 Sudzli Skin Care: https://sudzli.com/