In the home improvement industry, CEOs spend years learning how to grow their businesses, lead better teams, and serve more homeowners. They attend industry events, listen to experts, study new strategies, and seek advice from people who have already found success. Yet even with all this knowledge, many still struggle to make the changes they know they need. Some put off hard decisions, while others repeat habits that hurt their health, family life, or ability to lead. This raises an important question about how CEOs turn knowledge into action when knowing what to do is no longer the problem.
Justin Roethlingshoefer, Founder of OWN IT, believes the answer lies in wisdom, not simply learning more. Having spent ten years working in health and performance leadership in the National Hockey League and helping athletes, entrepreneurs, and top business leaders improve their lives, Justin knows that knowledge alone cannot create change. Despite his years of study and experience, he faced serious health struggles and burned himself out. Those experiences helped him see the difference between knowing what is right and understanding how to apply it in everyday life. His message challenges CEOs to stop measuring growth by how much they know and start looking at what they actually do with that knowledge.
This belief became the focus of a PowerChat conversation hosted by Greg Cummings, CEO of Power100. Through his years of speaking with successful CEOs across the home improvement industry, Greg has seen how the strongest leaders turn their experience into better choices for their businesses, employees, families, and communities. He also understands that even great leaders can struggle when they fail to act on what they know or find it hard to move forward after making mistakes.
Power100 is the only unbiased third-party platform that recognizes and elevates the top leaders and most impactful companies in the home improvement industry. Through PowerChat, Greg brings these important leadership questions to light, giving CEOs a chance to learn from the real-world experiences of people who have faced similar challenges.
His conversation with Justin explored why knowledge without action can hold people back, how understanding helps leaders make wiser choices, and why personal standards must leave room for learning and growth. Together, they challenged business owners to look beyond what they have achieved and ask whether they are using what they know to build better lives and stronger companies.
During the PowerChat interview, Greg Cummings raised a concern that many business owners know too well. What happens when someone understands what they should do but keeps making choices that go against it?
Justin Roethlingshoefer, Founder of OWN IT
A CEO may know that better health will help them lead with more energy, yet continue putting their own well-being last. Another may understand the value of spending time with family but keep allowing work to take over. Greg pointed out that knowing what is right without acting on it can create guilt and frustration. He also recognized that no one gets everything right all the time. People miss goals, make mistakes, and sometimes fall short of their own expectations. His question to Justin was how leaders can forgive themselves, learn from those moments, and keep moving forward without allowing one mistake to become a pattern.
Justin Roethlingshoefer approached the question by challenging the way people think about knowledge. He explained that the world has no shortage of information, but having access to advice does not mean someone has the wisdom to use it. He also questioned the growing influence of people who share advice without showing a deep understanding of what they teach. For Justin, the real value of learning comes when people understand how that knowledge fits their own lives and begin making choices based on it.
“And there’s a lot of knowledge out there, but there’s not a lot of wisdom,” said Justin Roethlingshoefer, Founder of OWN IT.
Justin described understanding as the bridge between knowledge and wisdom. His point was that two people can hear the same advice but face very different challenges in life. What helps one person may not be the right answer for another. He also challenged the idea that money, success, or an outward appearance of happiness can tell us how fulfilled someone truly feels. A person with little money may appear happy, while a wealthy business owner may appear to have everything. Yet neither person’s true struggles or sense of purpose can be judged by what others see. This is why better decision-making for business owners requires more than copying someone else’s habits or following popular advice. Leaders must understand their own needs, values, and challenges before deciding what to do next.
For CEOs, the conversation offers an important lesson. The next breakthrough may not come from another book, event, or new business strategy. It may begin with taking a closer look at the knowledge they already have and asking why they have not acted on it. Justin’s message invites leaders to move beyond simply knowing the right answers and begin developing the wisdom to make those answers part of their lives. That shift sets the stage for a deeper look at how understanding, daily action, personal standards, and self-awareness can help leaders grow into the people they want to become.
Great leadership is not about having every answer. It is about knowing how to use what you have learned when life and business put you to the test. During his PowerChat conversation with Greg Cummings, Justin Roethlingshoefer challenged CEOs to think about the gap between what they know and how they live. He explained that wisdom grows when people understand themselves, learn from experience, and make choices that reflect their values.
Greg Cummings, CEO of Power100
For business owners who spend years learning to lead others, this message refocuses on something more personal. Before they can guide their teams through change, they must learn how to make better choices in their own lives. That is where knowledge begins to turn into real growth.
A CEO can spend years learning from successful people and still struggle with the same problems. They may know how to build a strong team but find it hard to trust others with important tasks. They may understand the value of taking care of their health but continue putting work first. Others may know their company needs a change but keep waiting for the right moment to act. Justin Roethlingshoefer believes these struggles show why having information is not the same as knowing how to use it.
During the interview, Justin pointed to a problem that goes beyond business. People have access to many voices telling them how to succeed, yet not everyone offering advice has the wisdom needed to guide others. He questioned the growing number of influencers who share what they know without showing a deeper understanding of how that knowledge applies to real life. For CEOs, this creates a challenge. A strategy that works for one company may not work for another. Advice that helps one person may lead someone else in the wrong direction if they follow it without first understanding their own needs.
“And the difference between knowledge and wisdom is what I call the bridge of understanding,” said Justin Roethlingshoefer, Founder of OWN IT.
Justin’s point was that leaders must do more than hear good advice. They need to understand why it matters, how it fits their situation, and what it will take to put it into practice. A home improvement CEO may hear another business owner explain how they grew their company. That story can offer useful lessons, but the CEO still needs to consider their own team, customers, company culture, and goals before making the same changes.
This is where leadership wisdom for home improvement CEOs becomes valuable. Good judgment helps leaders decide which advice deserves their attention and which ideas may not serve their business. It also helps them recognize when the answer is not another new strategy but a change they have been avoiding.
Justin’s message encourages leaders to become more thoughtful about what they learn. Instead of asking how much more information they can collect, they can begin asking what they truly understand and how they plan to use it. But this also raises another question. If knowledge and professional success do not always lead to better decisions, can the success people see on the outside truly tell them how well someone is doing in life?
Success can look different depending on who is looking at it. One person may see a large home, an expensive car, and a growing business as proof that someone has made it. Another may value the freedom to spend time with loved ones and enjoy a simple life. During the conversation, Greg Cummings raised this difference by sharing what he had seen among people from many walks of life. He described meeting people who had very little money but appeared happy, relaxed, and able to enjoy each day.
Justin challenged the idea that anyone can understand another person’s life simply by looking at them. He explained that a person may seem happy while facing struggles that others cannot see. The same can be true for someone with great wealth. A successful business owner may have everything that money can buy but still feel lonely, worried, or unsure of what gives their life meaning.
“You don’t know what their life is going through,” Justin explained.
His response was not about deciding whether people with more or less money are happier. It was about recognizing how little we may know about what someone else experiences. A person’s income, lifestyle, or public image cannot tell the full story of their health, relationships, or sense of purpose.
For CEOs, this offers a different way to think about CEO success and personal fulfillment. Business owners often compare their progress with that of other leaders. They may look at a competitor’s revenue, the number of locations another company has opened, or the awards another CEO has received. These results can show business progress, but they cannot reveal whether the person behind that company feels fulfilled.
Justin also questioned the idea that reaching a certain level of success automatically brings peace. A leader can continue reaching bigger goals while carrying personal struggles that remain hidden from employees, customers, and even close friends. Without taking time to understand those struggles, more success may not answer the questions that matter most to them.
The lesson for business owners is to look beyond the numbers when thinking about their own lives. Revenue, growth, and professional recognition can all be meaningful achievements. But leaders also need to understand what makes their work worth doing and whether their success reflects the life they want.
That kind of understanding can help them stop chasing someone else’s idea of achievement. It can also help them recognize the personal changes they need to make. Once leaders become clear about what matters to them, the next challenge is learning how to turn that understanding into action.
Understanding a problem is an important first step, but it does not solve the problem on its own. A business owner may recognize that their company needs stronger communication, better planning, or a healthier approach to work. They may even know which changes could help. Yet without taking action, the same challenges can continue year after year.
Justin Roethlingshoefer understands this gap from personal experience. His interest in health began when he was a child. As he grew older, he studied the human body, pursued higher education, and spent years working with professional athletes. He learned how nutrition, physical health, mental health, and other parts of a person’s life work together. But despite all that knowledge, he still faced serious health struggles of his own.
During the interview, Justin shared how his life included struggles with his weight, mental health, and severe burnout. These experiences challenged him in ways that his education alone could not prepare him for. They also gave him a deeper understanding of what it feels like to know how to help others while struggling to take care of yourself.
That experience adds an important lesson to how CEOs turn knowledge into action. Learning something from a book or an expert can help a leader understand a problem. But living through a challenge, making changes, and learning from the results can help them see that problem in a much more personal way.
Justin connected this process to the trust people build in themselves through daily action.
“Confidence is created by building undeniable evidence that you are who you say you are,” Justin said.
For a CEO, this means confidence grows when personal commitments become real actions. A leader who wants to become more patient can begin by listening more carefully during difficult conversations. Someone who wants a healthier life can start by making time for habits that support their well-being. A business owner who wants to lead with greater trust can begin by giving capable employees more room to make decisions.
These actions may not produce major results overnight. Their value lies in helping leaders apply the lessons they have already learned. Each time they follow through, they gain experience that can help them make the next decision with greater care.
This is also why Justin’s message reaches beyond professional education. CEOs do not always need a new lesson to improve. Sometimes, they need to return to something they already understand and begin putting it into practice.
Still, knowing what to do and trying to do it does not mean every day will go as planned. Leaders can make the right choice one day and fall short the next. Greg’s concern about guilt and forgiveness brought the discussion to an important part of growth: how leaders can learn from their mistakes without allowing those mistakes to define them.
Even the most focused leaders have moments when they fall short. They may miss a personal goal, react poorly to a difficult situation, or fail to keep a promise they made to themselves. Greg Cummings recognized this when he asked Justin how people can forgive themselves and continue moving forward. He understood that a single mistake does not have to cause lasting harm, but allowing it to become a pattern can lead to greater problems.
Justin explained that people often search for motivation when what they truly need is a clearer understanding of their personal standards. Motivation can change from one day to the next. A leader may feel excited about a new goal in the morning but lose that drive when work becomes stressful. Clear standards offer something more stable. They remind people of what they value and how they want to act, even when circumstances become difficult.
But Justin also shared how the desire to achieve great things once placed heavy pressure on his own life. For years, he pushed himself to succeed because he believed being impressive made him valuable. He felt that he had to keep proving himself through difficult work and major achievements. That belief made it hard to separate his personal worth from what he accomplished.
Over time, he began to understand that high standards did not need to come from a desire to impress others. They could come from knowing who he was and choosing to live according to that identity.
“Perfectionism is setting a standard without grace,” Justin explained.
This became one of the strongest lessons in the conversation. Justin believes leaders can expect excellence from themselves without demanding that every day be perfect. There will be times when an important personal need calls for a change of plans. The key is understanding whether that decision reflects their deeper values or simply allows them to avoid something they know matters.
Justin gave an example from his own routine. He makes time each morning for prayer, exercise, and other habits that help him prepare for the day. Those activities form part of his personal standards. But when his family needs him, he may choose to spend that time with them instead. He does not see that choice as giving up on his health. He sees it as caring for another important part of his life.
For CEOs, this shows why personal standards for successful CEOs must include both discipline and good judgment. Leaders can take their goals seriously while recognizing that their responsibilities sometimes change. Missing one workout, facing one difficult day, or making one poor decision does not mean they have failed as a person.
What matters is how they respond. They can look at what happened, understand what they could have done differently, and return to the standards they want to live by. This allows them to take responsibility without becoming trapped by guilt.
It also helps explain why personal growth must begin with a clear sense of identity. A leader who knows what matters to them can make room for grace without losing direction. But when someone has never taken time to understand who they are, it becomes harder to know which standards deserve their commitment.
The strongest lessons from Justin Roethlingshoefer’s conversation reach far beyond the decisions one person makes for themselves. They also raise an important question about the people who depend on that person’s leadership. When a CEO learns to make wiser choices, how does that change the business, the team, and the surrounding community?
Justin Roethlingshoefer, Founder of OWN IT
Justin believes the answer begins with identity. Before leaders decide what they want to achieve, they need to understand who they are and what they have been called to do. When people become clear about their identity, they can begin making choices that reflect their beliefs rather than simply following the path that others expect them to take.
“When you know who you are, you know what to do,” Justin explained.
To show how this works, Justin shared the experience of a successful basketball coach who was thinking about leaving the profession. The coach had earned great financial rewards, won major honors, and reached a level of success that many people dream of. Yet he was still struggling with his future. Justin helped him look beyond the titles and achievements that had shaped his career.
Through their conversations, the coach began to see that coaching was more than a job. He had an opportunity to help young men become responsible adults and provide guidance to those who lacked strong father figures in their lives. Basketball gave him a way to carry out that deeper purpose.
That new understanding changed how he viewed his work. His achievements still mattered, but they were no longer the only reason to continue. He could see that his knowledge and experience gave him a chance to make a difference in the lives of people who reached beyond the basketball court.
For home improvement CEOs, this offers a meaningful example of purpose-driven leadership. A contractor may start a company to earn a living or build financial security. As the business grows, it gains the opportunity to create jobs, develop future leaders, help homeowners, and support the community. The work becomes more meaningful when the CEO understands the impact they want the business to create.
Greg Cummings connected this idea to the role personal identity plays in shaping a company. He explained that when leaders understand who they are, they can give their businesses a clearer sense of direction. Their beliefs influence the culture they build, the way employees work together, and the experience customers receive.
“We don’t believe legacy is something that you leave when you die,” Greg said.
He explained that legacy begins while leaders are still making choices, building relationships, and creating opportunities for others. In his view, it grows from the values they live by and the impact they create through their work.
Justin took that idea further by describing the influence leaders have on the people around them.
“Leaders are multipliers,” Justin said.
He explained that leaders can multiply healthy behaviors or harmful ones. A CEO who brings care, clear values, and good judgment into the workplace can help create an environment where employees feel supported and know what matters. But a leader who carries unhealthy habits, constant pressure, or poor ways of treating people can also spread those problems through the company.
This gives wisdom a much greater purpose. It is not only about helping one person make better decisions. It is also about understanding how those decisions affect the people who trust them to lead.
A business owner who learns from mistakes may become more patient with employees who are still growing. A CEO who values personal health may begin to understand why their team needs a healthier work environment. Someone who finds greater meaning in their work may look for more ways to give back to the community.
These are the choices that can turn personal growth into a lasting benefit for others.
As the conversation drew to a close, Justin’s message pointed to one final lesson. Leaders may already have much of the knowledge they need, but busy schedules and constant demands can make it difficult to determine what to do next. The question is how to create enough space to listen, reflect, and act on what they have learned.
As business leaders look ahead to 2027, one of the most important things they can do is take a closer look at the lessons life has already taught them. Throughout his PowerChat with Greg Cummings, Justin Roethlingshoefer made it clear that growth does not always come from finding new answers. Sometimes, it comes from having the courage to act on the answers we already have. A leader may have years of experience and still face choices that test their judgment. They may make mistakes, question their direction, or struggle to change old habits. But those moments do not have to hold them back. With a clear sense of purpose, strong personal standards, and the grace to learn from difficult days, CEOs can turn past experiences into wiser choices. They do not need to have everything figured out before taking the next step.
When Greg asked what leaders should prioritize in 2027, Justin offered a simple practice to help them put this lesson into action. He calls it the SLOW framework. Each day, leaders can set aside 15 minutes for stillness and silence, away from the noise and demands of work. During that time, Justin encourages them to listen to their thoughts, their instincts, and what they believe God is guiding them to do. They can then write down what becomes clear and take steps to act on it. He also recommends having trusted coaches or mentors who can offer guidance and help them stay focused. Rather than searching for another answer every time they face a challenge, this practice gives leaders the space to understand what they already know and decide what to do with it. For CEOs who spend most of their days responding to others’ needs, those quiet moments may help them recognize the changes they have been putting off.
For Greg Cummings, the value of this conversation reaches far beyond one person’s growth. The home improvement industry needs leaders who can turn experience into good judgment, use their knowledge to support others, and make choices that build trust within their companies and communities. As 2027 approaches, Justin’s message offers a reminder that even the most successful CEOs still have room to learn, change, and grow. What matters is not how much they have learned over the years, but how they use those lessons to improve the lives of the people who depend on them.
And that leaves every leader with one question worth asking: What is the value of everything you have learned if you never use it to become the leader you know you can be?
Power100 uses a five-layer ranking system to evaluate leaders across growth, community, and company culture. The platform reviews business data, uses AI to assess results, brings in experienced industry leaders for human review, and checks feedback from customers, employees, and partners. Power100 states that companies cannot buy their way into its rankings. This process aims to make home improvement CEO rankings reflect business performance, leadership, and real industry impact rather than fame or paid promotion.
Yes. Power100 runs an Expert Contributor program that gives qualified industry leaders a place to share their knowledge. The platform says it reviews and approves contributors through its ranking and verification process. These contributors include CEOs, founders, and experts who bring experience from their fields. Through articles, interviews, and leadership stories, Power100 aims to provide vetted advice on home improvement leadership that business owners can study and apply. The goal is to help contractors learn from people with relevant experience rather than simply following popular opinions.
No. Justin Roethlingshoefer believes knowledge plays an important role in personal and professional growth. However, he argues that learning alone cannot create change. CEOs must understand what they learn and apply it to their own challenges. During PowerChat, Justin explained how his education and work with professional athletes gave him valuable knowledge, but his personal health struggles taught him lessons that went beyond the classroom. His message encourages business leaders to use education as a starting point and develop wisdom through understanding, experience, and action.
OWN IT uses health testing, personal coaching, and progress tracking to help clients understand how their bodies respond to their plans. Its program looks at areas such as sleep, recovery, nutrition, fitness, and daily habits. Coaches review the results and adjust each client’s plan as they learn more. The company also describes a follow-up testing process to measure changes over time. This approach to executive health coaching helps clients track their progress rather than relying only on how they feel. Results can vary from person to person.
No. Justin explains that money, awards, and business growth cannot reveal everything about someone’s personal life. A wealthy CEO may face struggles that others never see, while someone with fewer financial resources may find joy in different parts of life. Justin encourages leaders to avoid making quick judgments about other people’s happiness. Instead, business owners should think about what success means to them. Their health, relationships, values, and personal goals can all shape how fulfilled they feel, regardless of what others see on the outside.
CEOs should first understand why the advice worked and whether it fits their own company. Justin describes understanding as the bridge between knowledge and wisdom. A growth strategy may help one contractor but create problems for another because their teams, customers, and business needs differ. Leaders can support business owners in making better decisions by looking at their own situations, asking questions, and choosing actions that align with their goals. The lesson is not to reject expert advice, but to understand it before deciding how to use it.
Not when leaders combine grace with clear personal standards. Justin explains that forgiveness does not mean giving up on important goals. It means understanding why something happened and making a better choice moving forward. For example, Justin sometimes chooses family time over his usual workout because caring for his family also reflects his values. He does not treat that choice as a reason to abandon his health routine. His approach to personal standards for successful CEOs encourages leaders to take responsibility, learn from mistakes, and return to the habits that help them grow.
Justin recommends the SLOW framework to help leaders create space for clearer thinking. Each day, CEOs can spend 15 minutes in stillness and silence, listen to their thoughts and spiritual guidance, write down what they notice, and act on what becomes clear. This practice does not promise to solve every business problem. Instead, daily reflection for business owners can help leaders recognize issues they have avoided and think more carefully about their next steps. Justin also encourages them to seek guidance from trusted coaches who can help them turn those insights into action.
Power100 is the only unbiased third-party platform that recognizes and elevates the top leaders and most impactful companies in the home improvement industry. Led by CEO Greg Cummings, the platform gives outstanding CEOs the recognition, support, and resources they need to grow stronger businesses and create a lasting impact. Through its national CEO rankings, PowerChat interviews, and leadership insights, Power100 shares real experiences and valuable lessons from leaders who are shaping the future of home improvement. Its mission is to help CEOs turn knowledge into action, build strong company cultures, serve their communities, and lead with purpose while raising the standard of leadership across the industry.
Membership unlocks every Power100 interview, PowerChat episode, and expert playbook - free for industry leaders.
Power100 is the nation's premier CEO ranking and media platform for the home improvement industry. Using a proprietary 5-layer evaluation system, Power100 identifies and celebrates the top CEOs, companies, and strategic partners driving innovation, customer satisfaction, and leadership excellence across the country.
