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PODCAST

Unlocked Podcast

Chad Lingafelt, Tony Hokanson, Lars Johnston

Three business owners, spanning North Carolina, Minnesota, and Alberta, Canada, have joined forces to create Unlocked Podcast. Their mission? To share their insights on building enduring businesses that thrive for generations to come.

business entrepreneurship

All Episodes

00:59:14

2025 Successes: Reflection, Discipline, and Leveling...

Unlocked Podcast ·

2025/12/18

As the year comes to a close, the hosts take a moment for reflection—a crucial and often overlooked discipline for busy entrepreneurs. Tony from Assured Security shares his pride in the team's resilience, detailing how they rebounded from a rocky start and layoffs to achieve their highest-ever sales quarter. Chad from Loc-Doc Security opens up about his personal commitment to discipline, linking his 109-day Apple Watch fitness streak to the perseverance required for tough business decisions. He

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00:58:11

Post-Conference Paralysis: How to Prioritize Your...

Unlocked Podcast ·

2025/12/12

Do you return from every conference or book with a notebook full of ideas only to suffer from "whiplash" and implement nothing? Tony from Assured Security admits this struggle with prioritization, often running after the "latest and greatest thing" instead of focusing on high-impact projects. This episode addresses the two extremes: doing nothing, or trying to do everything at once. Lars from Calgary Lock & Safe shares his practical process after the recent Brevo/Eagle Eye

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01:13:48

Vertical Market Strategy: Defining Your Focus for Scale

Unlocked Podcast ·

2025/12/04

Are you spreading your business too thin by trying to be "all things to all markets"? This episode dives into the critical strategy of defining your ideal vertical market for growth. Lars from Calgary Lock & Safe, Tony from Assured Security, and Chad from Loc-Doc Security discuss how market focus—whether it’s residential, commercial, or multifamily—requires a completely different skill set, discipline, and product offering. Chad explains his company's intentional decision to

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00:49:17

Business Strategy Shifts: Leveraging Technology and...

Unlocked Podcast ·

2025/11/20

After spending a day immersed in the Cloud Security Summit in Austin, Texas, Lars from Calgary Lock & Safe, Tony from Assured Security, and Chad from Loc-Doc Security share their biggest takeaways and action items. The conversation focuses on leveraging technology, shifting business models, and identifying new opportunities within the security space. Tony highlights the power of a unified platform to simplify the purchasing process and make security a proactive operational tool rather than just

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00:55:22

Processing the Process (55)

Unlocked Podcast ·

2025/11/13

Do your business processes feel more like a tangled web of handcuffs than a straight path to profit? In this episode, Lars from Calgary Lock & Safe, Tony from Assured Security, and Chad from Loc-Doc Security dive into the pain point of process over-complication. They discuss how businesses naturally add steps and standardization to solve an occasional edge case (a 1-in-100 failure) or to dummy-proof a system, resulting in processes that waste time and impede customer service.The hosts share real

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00:58:55

Stop Solving Problems, Start Finding the 'Who' (54)

Unlocked Podcast ·

2025/11/06

Are you an entrepreneur stuck in the endless cycle of solving every problem in your business? This episode, recorded live in Austin, Texas, dives into the mindset shift needed to break the $3 Million Revenue Ceiling and stop being the bottleneck. Lars from Calgary Lock & Safe, Tony from Assured Security, and Chad from Loc-Doc Security discuss the core philosophy from the book Who Not How, challenging the old-school mindset of "I can do it all myself."They explore the critical difference between

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01:08:37

Mastering Leverage, Cash Flow, and Debt (53)

Unlocked Podcast ·

2025/10/30

Do you view debt as a four-letter word, or as a tool for accelerated growth? In this financially focused episode, Lars from Calgary Lock & Safe in Alberta, Tony from Assured Security in Minnesota, and Chad from Loc-Doc Security in Charlotte, NC, redefine debt and the crucial role of leverage in scaling a small business. They challenge the old-school mentality that "debt is bad" by clearly defining leverage and positive cash flow. The discussion moves from the abstract to the practical,

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01:12:13

Retention Strategies: Investing in Technicians (52)

Unlocked Podcast ·

2025/10/23

Are you an entrepreneur worried that investing in training only prepares your employees to become your next competitor? This episode dives deep into the high-stakes problem of technician turnover in the security and locksmith industries. Lars from Calgary Lock & Safe in Alberta, Tony from Assured Security in Minnesota, and Chad from Loc-Doc Security in Charlotte, NC, workshop strategies to build a culture people won't want to leave. The hosts discuss the financial hurdle of a $10,000-$20,000

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00:55:21

The Secrets to Being Sticky—Why Customers Keep Coming...

Unlocked Podcast ·

2025/10/17

It's the half-century mark! For Episode 50, Lars from Calgary Lock & Safe in Alberta, Tony from Assured Security in Minnesota, and Chad from Loc-Doc Security in Charlotte, NC, dive into the question every business owner needs to answer: Why do customers come back? Moving beyond the cliché of "great service," they explore what truly makes a business "sticky" in a competitive market. Chad introduces his company's core value of "Outrageous Kindness" and the critical need to build that culture

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01:09:49

From Break Fix to Six Figures: Scaling Your Business...

Unlocked Podcast ·

2025/10/09

Are you ready to stop rolling trucks for $250 tickets and start landing $100,000+ projects? In this episode, recorded live from a conference in Windsor, Connecticut, Lars from Calgary Lock & Safe, Tony from Assured Security, and Chad from Loc-Doc Security dive into the intentional shift required to morph a small service company into a large-scale project business. They reveal the hidden complexities of managing six-figure projects, drawing from their own experiences with jobs involving thousands

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01:05:57

Business Consulting: Workshop our Problems (49)

Unlocked Podcast ·

2025/09/26

In this episode of Unlocked, Lars from Calgary Lock & Safe, Tony from Assured Security, and Chad from Loc-Doc Security do a deep dive into an "uncomfortable truths" workshop, tackling real-time business challenges. Moving beyond their usual format of hindsight wisdom, they openly discuss current struggles in their own companies. The conversation covers a wide range of issues, from the emotional and logistical pain points of inventory management to the strategic challenge of changing

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01:02:23

5 KPIs We Use to Drive Our Business (48)

Unlocked Podcast ·

2025/09/18

Are you a business owner who feels like you’re just guessing at what's working? In this episode of Unlocked, Lars from Calgary Lock & Safe in Alberta, Tony from Assured Security in Minnesota, and Chad from Loc-Doc Security in Charlotte, NC, get tactical with a discussion on Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and how they use simple scoreboards to drive their companies forward. They share five specific metrics they track, including the weekly volume of service tickets , the conversion rate of

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01:07:07

Strategic Planning: From Vision to Reality

Unlocked Podcast ·

2025/09/11

Are you struggling to plan for the future of your business? In this episode of Unlocked, Lars from Calgary Lock & Safe in Alberta, Tony from Assured Security in Minnesota, and Chad from Loc-Doc Security in Charlotte, NC, dive into the critical topic of strategic planning. They share their experiences, successes, and frustrations with annual planning sessions. Tony admits his struggle with thinking in large, long-term chunks, preferring to focus on smaller, more immediate tasks. Chad and Lars

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01:06:36

Breaking the $3 Million Ceiling (46)

Unlocked Podcast ·

2025/09/04

Are you an entrepreneur stuck in the "messy middle" of growth, hovering around the $3 million revenue mark? In this episode of Unlocked, Lars from Calgary Lock & Safe in Alberta, Tony from Assured Security in Minnesota, and Chad from Loc-Doc Security in Charlotte, NC, tackle the infamous "glass ceiling" that many small businesses hit. They discuss why, at this stage of having around 10-15 employees, the owner often becomes the biggest bottleneck to further growth. The

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01:07:40

Uncomfortable Truths of Entrepreneurship (45)

Unlocked Podcast ·

2025/08/28

In this episode of Unlocked, Lars from Calgary Lock & Safe in Alberta, Tony from Assured Security in Minnesota, and Chad from Loc-Doc Security in Charlotte, NC, dive into some of the uncomfortable truths of entrepreneurship that they wish they had known earlier. They discuss the unexpected necessity of understanding human psychology—for both customers and employees—and how to communicate effectively with each. The hosts reflect on the E-Myth, sharing how being a skilled technician doesn't

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00:49:45

Price vs. Value: A Masterclass in Selling in the...

Unlocked Podcast ·

2025/08/21

Are your customers focused solely on the lowest price? In this episode of Unlocked, Lars from Calgary Lock & Safe in Alberta, Tony from Assured Security in Minnesota, and Chad from Loc-Doc Security in Charlotte, NC, dive into the critical difference between selling based on price and selling based on value. They share their philosophies on pricing strategy, the psychology of customers, and the art of justifying your value proposition. Drawing on insights from "Never Split the

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00:43:50

Price vs. Value: A Masterclass in Selling in the...

Unlocked Podcast ·

2025/08/14

Are your customers focused solely on the lowest price? In this episode of Unlocked, Lars from Calgary Lock & Safe in Alberta, Tony from Assured Security in Minnesota, and Chad from Loc-Doc Security in Charlotte, NC, dive into the critical difference between selling based on price and selling based on value. They share their philosophies on pricing strategy, the psychology of customers, and the art of justifying your value proposition. Drawing on insights from "Never Split the Difference" and

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00:36:47

Elevate Your Career: Beyond the Job Description (42)

Unlocked Podcast ·

2025/08/07

Want to impress your boss and accelerate your career? In "Elevate Your Career: Beyond the Job Description," Part 2 of our "Top Things You Want People to Know" series, Lars from Calgary Lock & Safe in Alberta, Tony from Assured Security in Minnesota, and Chad from Loc-Doc Security in Charlotte, NC, continue to share invaluable insights for professional advancement. They delve into why building positive habits early (drawing on "Atomic Habits" principles) is crucial

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00:38:49

Top 10 Things Your Boss Wishes You Knew (41)

Unlocked Podcast ·

2025/07/31

Want to impress your boss and accelerate your career? In this episode of Unlocked, Lars from Calgary Lock & Safe in Alberta, Tony from Assured Security in Minnesota, and Chad from Loc-Doc Security in Charlotte, NC, reveal the "Top Things Your Boss Wishes You Knew." Drawing from decades of combined experience as employees and owners in the security industry, they share actionable insights that don't always require technical talent. Discover why showing up on time, being

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01:19:22

Navigating Employee Termination with Honesty and...

Unlocked Podcast ·

2025/07/24

Navigating the difficult terrain of employee termination is a challenge every business owner faces. In this episode of Unlocked, Lars from Calgary Lock & Safe in Alberta, Tony from Assured Security in Minnesota, and Chad from Loc-Doc Security in Charlotte, NC, tackle the sensitive but critical topic of "What the Firing." They delve into the "no surprises" philosophy for terminations, emphasizing the importance of consistent, documented one-on-one feedback with specific,

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60 results

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