After 55 years in the HVAC business, my dad Ed chose to hand over the reins of the business. He moved into the suite over my living room, because he wanted to stay close to us. We tried convincing him to relocate down south and enjoy his retirement, but dad wanted to stay here. Partly it was about my wife and kids, and partly he wanted to keep an eye on me. I took over the company for him, and although he’s retired, dad still comes into the office. I have no issue with that, actually, because he has a wealth of information about the work that can’t be taught. Managing an HVAC company isn’t just about doing repairs. You also have to manage people, deal with purchasers, and pay all the bills. I treasure his input. When it comes to the installation and repair of heating and cooling systems, I’m sure of what I am doing. I was certified for HVAC work back in 2004 and ever since then I have been active in the industry. The part of the work I am not as common with is building relationships with HVAC company sales reps and wholesalers. I need to master how to generate common invoices, and how to make sure all the HVAC purchasers pay in full without sending them to collections. I also have to keep the morale for the HVAC technicians strong, so that most people remain focused on their work. With dad as my advisor I’m starting to make the transition from being an HVAC technician to an HVAC company owner. In this position, I rarely need to do any actual repair work.