Running a small business means wearing every hat — especially when things go sideways. One lesson I’ve seen lived out daily at All Nation Restoration is this: leadership isn’t about stepping back. It’s about being present.
Our owner, Benjamin Haugh, doesn’t lead from a distance. He’s in the office. He’s on the calls. He’s answering when no one else can. Why? Because sometimes the difference between keeping and losing a client is who picks up the phone.
Recently, one of our estimators called in — the client wasn’t happy about pricing, they were anxious after speaking to their insurance rep, and they started talking about dropping us, even though we’d already begun the job.
The call landed with our front desk team — great people, but not equipped to handle claim-level issues. Luckily, Ben was available. He jumped in, calmed the client, and saved the job.
“I used to think with a small business you don’t need to be there for these issues,” Ben said. “But you do.”
That moment reminded us all: leadership is showing up when it’s inconvenient.
A CB Insights report shows:
That disconnect often starts when owners get too far removed — physically and emotionally — from day-to-day operations. They become unapproachable. The team stops escalating problems. Clients start walking away.
Ben has met plenty of aspiring entrepreneurs who tell him:
“I’m running my company differently. I want my weekends free. I don’t want to be tied to the phone. I want freedom…”
He laughs.
“Gosh, it’s hard to hold it in when I hear that,” Ben says. “Because the reality is, as a small business owner, you better be ready to be working a lot. And your phone? It’s like another body part — it never leaves your side. You miss a call, you might literally miss something monumental.”
He adds:
“It takes a lot of work, a lot of sleepless nights, and a lot of saying to your wife or date, ‘I’m sorry, I have to take this call.’ That’s business ownership. But on the other side of it comes something amazing: gratification. The knowledge that it’s yours. You built it.”
At All Nation Restoration, the front desk isn’t just a formality — it’s the heartbeat of our communication pipeline. When they’re overwhelmed or stuck, they need someone who’s been in the trenches and can make decisions fast.
That someone is Ben.
And this isn’t about micromanaging — it’s about being available when it counts.
“Be there — always — for your team and your customers,” Ben says. “It may seem remedial, but it builds trust — inside and out.”
In a world where owners are told to “delegate and automate,” Ben is reminding us that people want presence, not perfection.
When leaders become unapproachable, clients feel like numbers, and teams feel abandoned. But when leadership is visible, reachable, and responsive? That’s how you build a business that lasts.
Ben would. He has. And it’s made all the difference.
