I knew when I was 17. And it took me forty years.

In 1984 I wrote in my high school yearbook: I want to run a successful plumbing business.

It's 2026. I've been a Master Plumber for over forty years. I own Society Hill Plumbing now. So I guess I got what I wrote down.

But I didn't get here on my own.

My first boss was a man named Harry.

Harry taught me plumbing right out of high school. He was the kind of plumber who would tell you straight: plumbing isn't about pipes, it's about taking care of people.

When Harry died, he left every single employee at his company a piece of his estate. It was a big estate.

I wasn't working for Harry by then. I had moved on and was working for another plumber who taught me how not to treat people. I never forgot Harry, and I never forgot what he did for those guys.

Now I run my business Harry's way.

Before Harry, there was my mother.

Her name is Elaine, but everyone calls her Lainey. She raised me. The sun on our logo is “Lainey's Sun” because I'm Elaine's son.

She taught me everything Harry didn't.

• Make life better by making life better for others.
• Give them more than they paid for.
• Don't return evil for evil.
• Anything worth doing is worth doing well.
• Excellence is only 3 more blocks.

She told me that last one all my life. Excellence is only three more blocks. Just keep going.

I'm still going. I wouldn't be here without you. I love you, mom.

The work is me.

People ask how I can guarantee my work forever. They want to know what the catch is.

There's no catch. Here's the thing: my work is me. If something I put in fails, that's my name failing. And that extends to my guys. They're working under my name.

So we all do good work even when nobody is going to see it. Inside a wall, under a slab, deep underground. I insist we do it the same way because it's not about being watched. It's about being a person who does the work right.

When I say forever, I mean it. If something we did gives out, we come back and fix it. No charge.

Forty years in, trucks on the road, City contracts for specialty work, and a crew I'm proud of - by most measures I should feel arrived, but I don't.

I'm still studying. Still reading. Still calling Harry's lessons back when I'm troubleshooting a tough job. Still measuring myself against my mother's voice in my head. Most days I hear her say excellence is three more blocks.

So I keep going.

There's only one job in this world that nobody else can do but you - and that's take care of your family.

Everything else, and the world won't even skip a beat. They'll put somebody in there to take your place.

So take care of yourself. Take care of your people. And call me when you need a plumber.