9: The Justin Boyd Episode

In this episode, Gabe Torres interviews Justin Boyd, a seasoned finance professional who transitioned from a corporate role at IBM into launching a fractional CFO service for small businesses. Justin details how selling everything to travel the U.S. with his family helped him move from playing “not to lose” to playing to win in both life and business. He explains why financial forecasting—especially understanding your cash flow—can guide better decision-making and unlock sustainable growth. Whether you struggle with overspending on ads, hiring at the right time, or simply want to future-proof your company’s finances, Justin’s insights shed light on how to use numbers as a strategic asset.

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SHOW NOTES

• Guest: Justin Boyd

  • Fractional CFO Services for Small Businesses (No direct URLs provided)

• Key Topics

  • Corporate-to-Entrepreneur: Leaving IBM to gain more freedom and impact
  • Overcoming Fear: Selling everything, traveling the U.S. full-time, and embracing risk
  • Financial Forecasting: Using future-focused models (P&L, cash flow, balance sheet) to influence today’s decisions
  • Cash Flow Management: Going beyond P&L statements to see where the money actually ends up
  • Scaling: Balancing client service with building an infrastructure that doesn’t solely rely on the founder
  • Mindset Shift: Switching from “playing not to lose” to “playing to win”
  • Time Value of Money: Outsourcing tasks so you can focus on high-value activities and long-term goals

• Resources Mentioned

  • Full Focus Planner – productivity tool
  • Traction by Gino Wickman
  • The E-Myth by Michael E. Gerber
  • No Excuses! by Brian Tracy

• People & Mentions

  • Mike Dahlke – Business mentor and mastermind leader
  • Jesse Itzler – Entrepreneur emphasizing “time rich” living

• Additional Resources for Home Service Entrepreneurs

  • Huge Insider Newsletter
  • Huge Foundations Education Platform (120+ hours of training)
  • The Huge Convention (August 20–22, 2025, in Nashville, TN)
  • Huge Mastermind (for $750K+ revenue)

• How You Can Support the Podcast

  • Subscribe to the Huge Transformations Podcast
  • Leave a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify
  • Share the episode with entrepreneurs eager to scale sustainably

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TRANSCRIPT
Sid Graef (Host):
Hello, everyone. Welcome to the Huge Transformations Podcast. I’m Sid Graef out here in Montana.

Gabe Torres (Co-Host):
And I’m Gabe Torres here in Nashville, Tennessee. We are your hosts and guides through the landscape of growing a successful home service business. We do this by interviewing the best home service business builders and owners in the industry—folks that have already built seven- and eight-figure home service businesses, and they want to help you succeed. Yep, no fake gurus on this show, just real life owners that have been in the trenches and can help show you the way to grow profitably. We get insights and truths from successful business builders, and every episode is 100 percent experience, 0 percent theory.

We are going to dig deep and reveal the good, the bad, and the ugly. Our guests will share with you the pitfalls to avoid and the keys to winning. In short, our guests will show you how to transform your home service business into a masterpiece. Thanks for joining us on the Wild Journey of Entrepreneurship. Let’s dive in.

Gabe Torres (Co-Host):
Hey everyone, it’s Gabe Torres with the Huge Transformations Podcast. I have an amazing guest for you all today. We had a really fun conversation around finance, believe it or not, but also around overcoming your fears and traveling around the United States, and a lot of ways that you could apply finance strategically to your business to continue to grow. So I’m really excited for you guys to meet him. His name is Justin Boyd, and he has a huge depth financially. He’s a lifelong career finance professional, has spent time at big companies like IBM, but also small businesses like a lot of the ones listening to this podcast right now, and has just become an expert in forecasting, budgeting, using your finances to fund your future. So I’m really excited for you guys to listen. Put a smile on, throw the radio on, throw your headphones on—whatever it is—but get ready to smile and learn some good stuff. Thank you all for joining.

Gabe Torres (Co-Host):
Welcome. This is Gabe Torres with the Huge Transformations Podcast, and our guest today is Justin Boyd. Justin, where are you at right now?

Justin Boyd (Guest):
Southwest Florida, actually. So yeah, it’s nice compared to—I was just in Chicago. It’s a lot nicer than that, but it’s still kind of cool down here.

Gabe Torres (Co-Host):
Much nicer than Chicago. Cool. Well, we’re excited to have you. And you’re based out of Florida now, right?

Justin Boyd (Guest):
Yeah, yep. That’s where I live. My business is—well, that’s where I live. We’ll get into that.

Gabe Torres (Co-Host):
I was going to say, give us—yeah, do it now. Give us some backstory on your story, your journey.

Justin Boyd (Guest):
Yeah, yeah, for sure. Well, I’ve always liked—I’ve always been a finance guy. I’ve always liked numbers and money, ever since I was little. My favorite game was Monopoly, and I’m still getting made fun of for that. One time, I played with the in-laws…

Gabe Torres (Co-Host):
Didn’t end with like a fistfight or anything?

Justin Boyd (Guest):
No, it ended with two people getting pissed off and leaving, but I feel like that was a win. (Laughs)
But yeah, I’ve always been in that. I always had a knack for it, not necessarily like business—I’m going to be a crazy entrepreneur or business owner—but I’ve always had a knack for numbers and finances. So yeah, went to school for finance and accounting, got my MBA, did a bunch of different stuff: personal financial planning for small companies, mostly households—investments, insurance. Worked in a bank for a few years doing loans and banking stuff. Then my longest stint was at IBM, in corporate finance, handling pricing for North America for a couple different products, doing a lot of planning, FP&A, budgeting for expense portfolios, some cloud pricing, different things like that.

Ultimately, I was—until later, I didn’t realize I was very entrepreneurial, but I couldn’t do it anymore. I just can’t sit here… They’re treating me well, but I just can’t sit here and try to hammer it out until retirement. It was very exhausting, soul-sucking, feeling underutilized, and yeah, just part of the machine, right?

Gabe Torres (Co-Host):
A lot of entrepreneurs would probably describe any finance thing—going to look at a P&L as soul-sucking. (Laughs) So going back even before then, where are you originally from?

Justin Boyd (Guest):
Originally from Wisconsin. Born in Minnesota, grew up in Wisconsin, then lived in Minnesota.

Gabe Torres (Co-Host):
Okay. That’s where you were stationed?

Justin Boyd (Guest):
Yes. I was in Minnesota when I worked at IBM for a while.

Gabe Torres (Co-Host):
You moved around a little bit, right? I think you were here in Tennessee for a bit, and then landed in Florida?

Justin Boyd (Guest):
Yep, so we traveled across the country, pretty much full-time for three or four years. (Coughs) Sorry, just getting over a cold. (Coughs) I was at the end of it, but yeah… So yeah, we traveled, I think we saw 34 different states, 16 or 18 national parks with the kids, just a blast. We sold everything. That was like 2020 with COVID—that was the last straw. We said, “Let’s make lemonade out of the situation,” so to speak. It was definitely a learning experience. We’d never done anything like that. We jumped in full-bore, never had been camping or anything.

Gabe Torres (Co-Host):
So it wasn’t even like you guys were a big camping family or anything?

Justin Boyd (Guest):
No. (Laughs) So we just went with it. IBM had gone remote at that point, so I was like, well, at least I have some sort of safety net, making some income while I figure out the next step. I was always kind of a finance-oriented, risk-averse person, so it was definitely outside my comfort zone.

Gabe Torres (Co-Host):
Yeah, that’s interesting for a finance guy…did that stress you out?

Justin Boyd (Guest):
It did, but I realized, “What have I done in the past, and has it gotten me where I want to be?” So maybe there’s something to be had from being more adventurous and risk-taking. That was the big realization: “I’m in this job because I’m afraid to take risks.” So maybe I can flip that. And yeah, traveling full-time taught me you can do hard things, figure it out as you go. You don’t need all the answers at the start. Great segue for me.

Gabe Torres (Co-Host):
So that was the impetus to leave IBM and start your own gig. Now you run a fractional CFO business. So how’d that come about?

Justin Boyd (Guest):
I saw all these frameworks and tools we had in corporate finance, like pricing, forecasting, etc., and talking to small business owners—especially in the home service realm—no one had that. Marketing? Sure. CPAs for taxes? Sure. But no one was helping them with the strategic side of finance, looking forward rather than backward. So I thought, “Hey, they can’t afford a full-time CFO, but maybe they can afford a fractional CFO arrangement.” That’s basically how it started: we bring big-company finance know-how to smaller businesses so they can make data-driven, strategic decisions.

Gabe Torres (Co-Host):
What are some things you do that business owners might not realize could help them?

Justin Boyd (Guest):
Forecasting is the main one: not just looking at the P&L after the month ends, but projecting ahead—P&L, cash flow statement, balance sheet—12 months out, so you make decisions now that impact your future. It’s surprising how many owners only look at the bank balance or the prior P&L, ignoring their balance sheet, ignoring where the money actually goes after net income. So we help them map all that out and plan how much cash they’ll have, how they can invest in growth, etc. CPAs typically handle historical data, but we handle the forward-looking side.

Gabe Torres (Co-Host):
That’s awesome. So you started that about three years ago?

Justin Boyd (Guest):
Yep, three years now. It’s been good, but at an inflection point. I love serving clients, but I also need to build the business—kind of like a plumber who doesn’t want to fix his own sink. We have good software and processes in place, but also I need to hire and scale so it’s not solely me. Because that’s the next step: building an entity that can succeed without me working 60 hours a week.

Gabe Torres (Co-Host):
Yes! That’s exactly what I’m going through with my business. Trying to do the same. You’re basically living the journey so many entrepreneurs face at that next level. That’s sweet.

Justin Boyd (Guest):
Yeah, for sure. I’m still struggling with it, but you don’t have to have all the answers before you dive in. Talking to coaches and masterminds, you get different opinions, but you still gotta do it and figure out what works for you. Reading business books is great, too. Each one can give you a little nugget. Eventually, it all comes together.

Gabe Torres (Co-Host):
One last piece of advice for folks listening?

Justin Boyd (Guest):
Keep moving forward, even if it’s not pretty. Don’t let fear of not being perfect stop you. And trust yourself. Even if other people’s stories don’t match yours exactly, you can chart your own course.

Gabe Torres (Co-Host):
Perfect. Justin, thanks so much for joining us, buddy.

Justin Boyd (Guest):
Yeah, thanks, man!

Gabe Torres (Co-Host):
See ya.

Sid Graef (Host – Outro):
Hello, my friend. This is Sid. Thank you again so much for taking your time to listen to today’s episode. I hope you got some value from it, and listen—anything that was covered, any of the resources, any of the books, any of the tools, anything like that is in the show notes, so it’s easy for you to find and check out.

Also, I want to let you know the mission for The Huge Convention and for this podcast is to help our blue-collar business owners like you and me gain financial and time freedom through running a better business. And we do that in four ways:

1. Our free weekly newsletter—it’s called the Huge Insider. I hope you subscribe. It is the most valuable newsletter for the home service industry, period—paid or otherwise—and this one’s free.
2. The Huge Foundations education platform—that is, we’ve got over 120 hours of industry-specific education and resources for you. And every month, we do a topical webinar and Q&A with seven- and eight-figure business owners, and it’s available to you for a $1 trial for seven days.
3. Of course, The Huge Convention. If you haven’t been, you gotta check it out. It’s every August. This year, it’s in Nashville, Tennessee, August 20–22, 2025, and it is the largest and number one-rated trade show and convention for home service business builders. We’ve got the biggest trade show so you can check out all the coolest tools and meet the vendors and check out the software to run your business. We’ve got world-class education and educators and speakers that will teach you how to run a better business. And it’s the best networking opportunity you can have within the home service business.
4. Lastly, if you want to pour jet fuel on your business, check out The Huge Mastermind. Now it’s not for everyone; you gotta be at over $750K of revenue, and you’re building toward $1M, $5M, or $10M in the next five years. It’s a network, mentorship, and mastermind of your peers, and we help you understand and implement the Freedom Operating System.

We go into more detail, but you can get all the info on all four of these programs and how we’ll help you advance your business quickly just by going to https://www.thehugeconvention.com and scrolling down to click on the Freedom Path. Or, of course, you can find the links here in the show notes.

Sorry if I’m getting a bit wordy, but I just want to let you know about all the resources available to help you accelerate and advance your beautiful small business. Keep on growing, keep on learning, keep advancing. And if you liked the show, go ahead—please take 90 seconds to give us a review on iTunes, then subscribe and share it. Man, it would really mean the world to us. It helps other people, as we continue our mission to help people just like you and me. Thanks again for listening. We’ll see you on the next episode.