This Electrician Didn't Realise How Much He'd Love Mentoring Until He Tried It with Dave Willmann
Tradies Who LeadShow Notes
Today we're joined by Dave Willmann, a licensed electrician, trade supervisor, and owner of Willmann Electrical, who's built a reputation across electrical, industrial, and commercial work. He’s also a trusted voice for sparkies online, known for his no-nonsense tool reviews and testing breakdowns.
Dave's led crews on some of the toughest sites in the industry and mentored a generation of apprentices, and he's now stepping into an entirely new challenge: running his own business as the boss after years as a supervisor in someone else’s business. He gets honest about what each change demands, and what he’s learned from his mistakes and successes along the way.
We unpack: 📈 What changes when you go from tradie to supervisor, then boss 💬 How he handles the tough conversations most leaders avoid 💰 Why he teaches apprentices what a job costs from day one
Chapters: 0:00 – Coming Up 0:40 – Meet Dave Willmann, Electrician & Leader 2:08 – How Mentorship is Leadership 3:22 – Dave's Mature-Age Apprenticeship Story 5:36 – Growing an Electrician Community Online 8:25 – How to Jump From Tradie to Supervisor 9:12 – Managing Different Personality Types 10:46 – The Mental Load of Trade Leadership 11:32 – How to Have Hard Conversations With Your Team 15:32 – Managing Pressure as a Foreman 18:09 – Keeping Trade Team Culture Strong as Teams Scale 20:50 – Business Skills Every Apprentice Needs 24:45 – Why Yelling Doesn't Build Good Culture 26:29 – Leading Through Mentorship
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Or download our free eBook: 5 Things Every Tradie Needs toKnow About Leadership If you want to connect with Dave, you can reach him via:
Website: www.willmannelectrical.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/willmannelectrical/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/davewillmannelectrical
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