Meet Ryan Claterbaugh: Serial Entrepreneur

We had the good fortune of connecting with Ryan Claterbaugh and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Ryan, looking back, what do you think was the most difficult decision you’ve had to make?
Deciding who to let into my life and who not to. Your time is the most valuable asset you will ever own. Unlike money, you don’t get the ability to earn it back or compile it over the years. This one was hard for me. Sometimes the people who are closes to us can be the ones who are dragging us down. Deciding to become an entrepreneur can be a lonely decision. All things with the business at the end of the day fall onto you. Customers do not care what you have going on, you better deliver. So you don’t have that extra time waste spending it with people who do not have the same or greater vision as you do in life for what you define as success. That will slow you down more than anything else. There is a quote from Jim Rohn. “show me your friends and I’ll show you your future”. I would expand that and say also show me where you spend your free time, and what news, social media, articles, books you consume and I will show your future. 

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
We are a mosquito control company based out of Atlanta GA. We started in 2013, with zero customers and have since grown into the largest single location, a non-franchise company in the United States. We started with a few simple goals. One was to always have fun, and two was to keep it simple. We are killing mosquitoes not doing open-heart surgery, so no need to over complicate things. Over the last 7 years, we have acquired two of our competitors and committed a strong spend on our marketing budget which has accelerated our ability to add new clients. We have had our ups and downs in business just like everyone. One of the things that have gotten us through that is our team, and that we all are able to step up and wear different hats when needed. Almost everyone on our staff can do most of the jobs required in our company. So when trouble arises or we get super busy during the mosquito season, it’s easy to come together and overcome. One of the things that I think helped lead to our success, is though we provide a service and product we focus more on the customer service experience and efficiency of being able to provide that experience simple and fast.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Honestly, I wouldn’t create an itinerary. Atlanta is filled with so many cool neighbourhoods and things to see, I don’t think you can go wrong by just winging it. One of the spots I would start at though would Ponce City Market, I feel like that gives you a true since of what Atlanta is really about. Good food, and good vibes.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I joined an organization led by Aaron Walker out of Nashville TN. It’s a masterminds group for entrepreneurship, it helped accelerate my journey by giving me access to people who have done it before. https://www.viewfromthetop.com/ Also my business Partner Matt Brill. We make a great team.

Website: www.mrmr.biz
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MrMisterMosquitoControl