Craig Todd Brickwork

10 things I wish I knew before starting my trade. 👀🧱

Years working in construction, being a bricklayer and eventually running a construction business have taught me a fucking lot. 😂

Some lessons cost money. Some cost time. Some you only learn the hard way.

1️⃣ Look after your body.
The trades batter you. Your health & fitness matter.

2️⃣ Make your money while the sun shines.
Winters can be brutal. Keep a buffer for the bad months.

3️⃣ Stop wasting money trying to look successful.
Invest it into things that can make you more.

4️⃣ The drink & drug culture isn’t cool.
It can destroy your health, relationships, finances and career.

5️⃣ Sole trader is hard. Business is another level.
Employees, contracts, overheads and responsibility change everything.

6️⃣ Learn more than your trade.
Learn pricing, contracts, tax, cash flow and management.

7️⃣ Tax is REAL. 😂
That money sitting in your bank account isn’t necessarily yours.

8️⃣ Managing people is fucking hard.
It’s a skill in itself — learn it.

9️⃣ Revenue is vanity. Profit is sanity.
Big turnover means fuck all if there’s nothing left at the end.

🔟 Cash is KING. 👑
Protect your cash flow. A busy business with no money in the bank can still be in serious trouble.

Those are 10 of mine.

Tradesmen — what’s ONE thing you wish you knew when you first started your trade? 👇

Apprentices — read the comments. There could be decades of experience in there for free. 😂

Craig Todd Brickwork & Developments Ltd
Brickwork Contractor | Site Management | Self Build Homes | New Build Homes | North East England

#Construction #Tradesmen #Bricklaying #ConstructionBusiness #Apprentice

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2 days ago | [YT] | 7

Craig Todd Brickwork

What’s ONE thing you wish you knew before starting your trade? 👇

Here are 10 things I’ve learned from working in the trades & running a construction business.

If I could talk to myself when I first started, I’d have a fucking list. 😂

1️⃣ Look after your body.
The trades batter your back, knees, shoulders and hands. You only get one body.

2️⃣ Make your money while the sun shines.
Winters can be brutal. Make money through the good months and keep a buffer for the bad ones.

3️⃣ Stop wasting money trying to look successful.
Don’t piss it away on stupid stuff. Invest it into things that can make you more.

4️⃣ The drink & drug culture isn’t cool.
It can destroy your health, relationships, finances and career. Don’t get dragged into it.

5️⃣ Sole trader is hard. Business is another level.
Employees, bigger contracts, overheads and responsibility completely change the game.

6️⃣ Learn more than your trade.
Learn pricing, contracts, tax, cash flow and management. Being great on the tools doesn’t make you great at business.

7️⃣ Tax is real. 😂
That money in your account isn’t necessarily yours. And a good accountant is worth paying for.

8️⃣ Managing people is fucking hard.
It’s a skill in itself — and one you need to learn.

9️⃣ Revenue is vanity. Profit is sanity.
Big turnover means fuck all if there’s nothing left at the end.

🔟 Cash is KING.
Protect your cash flow. A busy business with no money in the bank can still be in serious trouble.

That’s 10 of mine.

There are tradesmen on here with decades of experience between them, so let’s hear yours.

What’s ONE thing you wish you knew when you first started your trade? 👇

And apprentices — the comments might actually be worth reading for once. 😂

Craig Todd Brickwork & Developments Ltd
Brickwork Contractor | Site Management | Self Build Homes | New Build Homes | North East England

#Construction #Tradesmen #Apprentices #Bricklaying #ConstructionIndustry

3 days ago | [YT] | 1

Craig Todd Brickwork

⚠️ SEVERE WARNING FOR TRADESMEN & SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS.

We’ve all been warned. 😂

Work hard, Take the risk, Start your own business, Employ people, Create jobs.

Earn a bit more money…

Everyone wants a fucking piece of it. 😂

Running a small business genuinely feels like you’re being punished for trying to grow one.

And I know I won’t be the only who thinks this…

Anyway, please remain unsuccessful until further notice. 🫡

Tag a self-employed mate or business owner who needs to see the warning. 👇

Craig Todd Brickwork & Developments Ltd
Brickwork Contractor | Site Management | Self Build Homes | New Build Homes | North East England

#SmallBusiness #Tradesmen #Bricklaying #Construction #SelfEmployed

3 days ago | [YT] | 1

Craig Todd Brickwork

Ahhh… Friday DONE. Cash’s in the bank. 👊💰

Big blockwork job — DONE. 🧱
Knock-through & steel installation — DONE. 🔨
Invoices sent — DONE. 💷
Lads paid - DONE

Me?

FUCKING DONE. 😂

Absolutely wrecked.

There’s tired… then there’s that Friday night tradesman tired where you sit down and suddenly realise just how fucked you actually are. 😂

But the jobs are finished, the lads are paid, money’s in the bank and another week’s graft is behind us.

That first sit down on a Friday just hits different. 👌

Lad’s — who else is absolutely finished tonight? 😂👇

Craig Todd Brickwork & Developments Ltd
Brickwork Contractor | Site Management | Self Build Homes | New Build Homes | North East England

#Bricklaying #Tradesmen #Construction #Brickwork #ConstructionLife

3 days ago | [YT] | 5

Craig Todd Brickwork

“Easy money.” Two words that usually come back to bite you. 😂🧱

On paper, this should have been a bricky’s dream.

Big straightforward blockwork panels.

Working indoors and out of the weather.

What could go wrong?

Turns out, pretty much everything. 😂

I won’t lie, this job has been a killer.

Underpriced and we’ve lost money.

We’ve had some of the worst ready-mix mortar I’ve ever worked with.

And the nice idea of working indoors quickly disappeared when we ended up doing it through 30-degree summer heat. 🥵

No fresh air. Dark. Hot.

It’s been one of those jobs where nothing seems to go your way.

And there’s something especially demoralising about grafting all day when you already know you’re losing money doing it.

I’ll admit it — morale has completely gone on this one.

But we still turn up, still put the blocks down & keep turning up until the job we agreed to do is finished.

At this point, I’m not sure whether that makes us dedicated to delivering what we promised the customer…

or whether we’ve just completely lost our minds. 😂🧱

Probably a bit of both.

Either way, we’re finishing it.

Not every job is a winner.

Sometimes you get the price wrong. Sometimes the job just doesn’t go your way.

You take the hit, finish what you started, learn from it and make damn sure you don’t make the same mistake on the next one!

Any other bricklayers or contractors had an “easy money” job turn into an absolute nightmare? 👇

#Bricklaying #Bricklayers #Construction #Blockwork #Tradesmen

1 week ago | [YT] | 0

Craig Todd Brickwork

Every Bricky reckons they can price a job from a photo… this should be EASY, so prove it. 👀🧱

How many bricks do you reckon are in the main panel behind me?

No drawings. No measurements. No calculator.

Just have a look and give me your best estimate. 😂

I know fine well some of you are about to start counting courses

Closest answer wins absolutely fuck all except bragging rights. 🤝😂

Drop your guess below 👇

#Bricklaying #Bricklayers #Construction #Brickwork #Tradesmen

1 week ago | [YT] | 2

Craig Todd Brickwork

This might upset the Stihl lads… 👀

I got this Belle battery saw over a year ago and genuinely didn’t expect it to be as good as it is. It’s an absolute beast.

It’s been thrown in the van, covered in dust, used on brick, block and whatever else we’ve needed to cut. It just keeps going.

No petrol.
No mixing fuel.
No fucking about trying to start it. 😂

Battery in. Pull the trigger. Cut.

And before the Stihl and Husqvarna lads start crying in the comments… yes, I’ve used them. 😂

For day-to-day bricklaying, I’d take the Belle.

Over a year of proper site use and it’s earned its place onsite.

What tool did you buy thinking “we’ll see how this goes”… and it ended up being one of the best things you’ve bought?

Or better still…

Belle, Stihl or Husqvarna — what are you taking? 👇😂

#Bricklaying #ConstructionUK #Tradesmen #Bricklayer #ToolsOfTheTrade

1 week ago | [YT] | 2

Craig Todd Brickwork

One supplier has lost my business… who’s next? 🔥

Who’s got the best ready mix muck ?

I’ve got around 150 tubs needed on an upcoming job.

I’m not after the cheapest… I’m after the best.

Lately, one of the biggest ready mix suppliers in the UK has been producing some absolute BS!
The consistency has been all over the place and, if that’s what turns up on my site again, I’ll be sending it straight back. AGAIN!

I don’t want:

* Shit muck that needs knocking up.
* Soup.
* Half-filled tubs.
* Late deliveries.
* Plastic just slung over the top instead of being wrapped properly.
* Crap from the drum.
* Stones.
* Dumplings.

Turn up on time. Full tubs. Consistent mix. Ready to use.

Surely that’s not too much to ask? 😂

Tag the companies you rate. Let’s see who’s getting the recommendations.


#Bricklaying #ReadyMixMortar #ConstructionUK #Morpeth #Tradesmen

1 week ago | [YT] | 0

Craig Todd Brickwork

Every project teaches you something.
Some just teach you more than others.

These first photos are where it all began. Swipe through, and you’ll see just how far this development has come.

As contractors, there comes a point where your part of the story is finished.

For us, that point has arrived on this development.

Our brickwork package was completed some time ago, but we remained involved as the development continued to move forward.

The roofs went on & the homes became weather tight.

It was rewarding to see the project continue taking shape, knowing we’d played our part from the very beginning.

There’s still more to do.

The road has to be constructed and two more houses are still to be built.

With the programme slowing to allow those road works to progress, it’s now time for us to hand the baton over and move on to our next project.

Looking back through this series, it’s hard to believe where it all began.

Like every successful development, this wasn’t built by one company.

It was built by bricklayers, groundworkers, joiners, roofers, electricians, plumbers, plasterers, landscapers, site managers, suppliers and many others, all working towards the same goal.

I am proud to have played our part as the brickwork contractor, while also supporting the site management throughout the development.

A huge thank you to everyone involved throughout the build. Projects like this are only possible because of the effort, professionalism and teamwork of every trade, supplier and member of the site team.

I’d also like to thank our client for trusting Craig Todd Brickwork & Developments Ltd with the brickwork package, and for giving us the opportunity to support the site management throughout the development. We’re grateful for the trust placed in us and proud to have played our part in delivering this project.

Our attention now turns to a bespoke self-build home in Northumberland, and we’re looking forward to sharing that journey with you.

Every project leaves a story.

This one was worth telling.

This concludes our bungalow project series. 🧱

⸻

Client Privacy Notice: To respect our client’s privacy and protect the site’s location, some surrounding landscapes may have been digitally altered. The construction work, progress and homes shown are genuine and accurately represent the project.

Craig Todd Brickwork & Developments Ltd
Brickwork Contractor | Site Management | Self Build Homes | New Build Homes | North East England

#PropertyDevelopment #BrickworkContractor #SiteManagement #NewBuildHomes #ConstructionUK

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2 weeks ago | [YT] | 4

Craig Todd Brickwork

Every trade thinks they’ve got the toughest job…

So let’s settle it.

Which trade do you honestly think has the hardest job on site, and why?

No wrong answers… 😅

#Construction #Tradesmen #BuildingSite #ConstructionCommunity #OnSite

2 weeks ago | [YT] | 2