For Anna David and the writers at Legacy Launch Pad

Ricky Regalado, Before the Outline Call

Anna, this is the sample you asked for after our call, read a second time for your writers. I went through 18 of Ricky's public interviews with the question a writer has before an outline call. What can this person already say, and which book does it add up to?

  • 18 public interviews
  • About 13 hours of interviews

Each window is one interview, with the oldest at street level. Select a window to see which one it is.

A six-story brick office building at night with all 18 windows lit and a floor sign in the lobby.

How This Page Is Organized

Ricky sells a cleaning contract in three steps. He walks the building, he works out the price, and he sends the proposal the same day. He calls it the one two three step process which is the walkthrough estimator and proposal altogether AJ Simmons, first visit, 17:14

I used his three steps on his own book. If your writer has five minutes, the call sheet is the part to print.

  1. 1 WalkthroughWhat the 18 interviews already hold. How he thinks, the methods he teaches and the stories he tells.
  2. 2 EstimateFour possible books, sized by how much evidence each one has.
  3. 3 ProposalA sample chapter spine for each possible book, then the questions for your one-hour call.

Walkthrough

This is the material a writer would otherwise spend the hour collecting. All of it is already on the record. Ricky's words are in blue, and each one links to the moment he said it.

Names You Will Hear

How He Thinks

The Fingerprint found six patterns in how Ricky thinks. Here is each one with what it changes for the person writing his book. The advice to your writer is my reading.

  • Your Worst Day Becomes the Product

    Each method he teaches has a bad night behind it. Open the chapter on the night, then give the method.

    So everything we've ever built is from manual pain points. The Profitable Cleaner, ep. 198, 19:54

  • Never Alone

    He will want other voices in the book. Plan to interview his wife, his cousin Tony and two or three of his partners.

    everything i've done is with somebody AJ Simmons, second visit, 22:06

  • The Old Embarrassment Became the Brand

    This is chapter one, and it tells you who the reader is. It is an owner who still feels what he felt.

    i did not like being known as a cleaning service owner Smart Cleaning School, 38:01

  • Beat Yourself First

    He gives up his failures before anyone asks. Use the call to get what he changed afterward, and the number that goes with it.

    how do I beat myself first and everything that we're doing first The Profitable Cleaner, ep. 198, 24:19

  • Starting Over Is Part of the Plan

    The restarts are the turns of the story. 2012, 2015, the software company, and the rebuild of Route in 2025.

    I'm doing it again with Route over here. Like re reinventing route, starting from zero. The Profitable Cleaner, ep. 198, 8:49

  • Expertise Without the Program

    Ask him what happened and let the method come out inside the story. Your writer names it and numbers it afterward.

    I I I don't like to give opinions. Carolyn Arellano, 19:22 love to give shared experiences. Carolyn Arellano, 19:55

The Methods He Already Teaches

Ricky says he has no playbook. Across 18 interviews he gives most of one, a piece at a time. I put the pieces together. Each method says whether the name is his or a working label of mine.

A steel key ring with brass and nickel keys and a blank round tag.

Of the cleaning companies he brought in as partners he says I would trust this person that owns this cleaning company with the keys. Cleaning & Cocktails, ep. 109, 23:59

1The One Two Three StepWalkthrough, estimate and proposal, done the same day.His name

Still missing. The questions he asks on a walkthrough. He says he tells the client he will ask questions. The questions are not on any recording.

2The Account MathA revenue goal turned into a number of accounts.Working label

Still missing. The worked calculation. He offered it and held it back. I won't do it here but I'll give it to you so we could put it up somewhere right Six Figure Cleaner, 25:13

3Accounts Into PeopleHe judges an account by the job it creates.Working label
  • it takes two five day a week, four hour a night accounts to to to have a full-time employee Carolyn Arellano, 34:08
  • five six hours a night five days a week that's a that's a that's a role for somebody Money Games, 12:19
  • when you get to six seven eight employees you need to have a supervisor Six Figure Cleaner, 28:33
  • His test for any account. just Revenue but how quickly can they help you build a team Six Figure Cleaner, 29:06
  • His name for the opposite. I call it the logistics game if you're playing the one two three day a week accounts kind of game Spring Studio, 12:12
4Five Reasons to Be a SubcontractorWhat working under a larger company pays, besides money.Working label

A host asked him why an established company would work under another one. He said he does not give opinions, then gave five reasons. The answer starts at Carolyn Arellano, 19:55.

  1. Paid training on a kind of building you have never cleaned. I'm going to use this as a training ground Carolyn Arellano, 21:36
  2. The larger company's sales team. getting in front of decision makers that we as small subcontractors just can't do Carolyn Arellano, 21:01
  3. Cash flow. and then finally, uh cash flow and growth funding Carolyn Arellano, 21:01
  4. Mentorship, which he adds after saying "finally".
  5. Practice on extra services such as carpet, windows and floor work.
  • The lower price is the cost of a lead you did not pay to find. probably going to be 20% less, 15% less, 12% less Carolyn Arellano, 33:34
  • The work trains your next supervisor. I'm not trying to make money on these subcontracts. I'm trying to build my team members to become the next layer of management Carolyn Arellano, 34:41
  • His proof is a production rate he learned by doing the work. I learned that a clinic at 8 to 12,000 square feet 90% hard surface is going to take me 3 and a half to four hours Carolyn Arellano, 35:16
5Two Ratios That Sound Like OneHe says 80/20 about two different things.Working label
  • When you are the subcontractor. 20% of your business should be as a sub to another prime Carolyn Arellano, 23:14
  • When you are the prime contractor. I got like a 75 25 8020 role The Profitable Cleaner, ep. 198, 38:37 This one is the share of his own work done by employees against the share given to partners.

On the call. When he says 80/20, ask which one he means.

6Business ReadyHis test for a company that wants work from a prime contractor.His term
7Going Into a New CityHow Rozalado followed one client out of Chicago.Working label
  1. Say yes before the model exists. I said yes. I didn't know the model yet, but I said yes Cleaning & Cocktails, ep. 109, 20:45
  2. Find local cleaning companies by search and in Facebook groups.
  3. Interview the owners in person. I would get a hotel room and a conference room and I would go to the city and set up interviews just like you would for employees. Cleaning & Cocktails, ep. 109, 23:28
  4. Train the owner and hand over the keys.
  5. Choose by distance. We were big on maps. Cleaning & Cocktails, ep. 109, 24:32
  6. Use time and attendance and photos to see the work from Chicago.
8Earning the RaiseWhat a subcontractor does to be paid more each year.Working label
  • Treat the prime contractor as the customer. They are not your colleague. They are your client Carolyn Arellano, 22:09
  • the more you do for your prime, the more they will pay you Carolyn Arellano, 35:49
  • His list of what "more" means is a monthly inspection report, a monthly quality review, supply orders, proof of attendance and photos. Carolyn Arellano, 36:21
  • every six months or every year we're going to talk about an increase Carolyn Arellano, 36:21
  • From the prime's side, price the bid so the partner can make money. price as if you were the one who have to service this account Six Figure Cleaner, 29:40
9The Money GuardrailsWhat he built after the cash crisis of 2018 and 2019.Working label
  • we have a trio right our accountant our banker and then my brother and our team Money Games, 19:07 They meet each quarter.
  • we get cards that decline on purpose because that means I'm out of budget I do it intentionally Money Games, 20:49
  • The cause he names. I'm a Topline guy till my brother came in to show me that bottom line Money Games, 15:42

One source. All of this comes from a single interview. Confirm it on the call.

The Stories He Has Already Told

Your writer does not need the hour for these. Each count is the number of the 18 interviews where I found the story, so read it as "at least". The link plays the fullest telling.

Told inThe storyFullest tellingWhat to check
10 of 18The cousin's franchise. Two years of holiday pitches, a loan, and the purchase in 2012.ISSA Media, 2:02The dollar figure changes.
9 of 18Selling it all back in 2015 and putting his own name on the company.Spring Studio, 9:29By his own account it was not a start from zero.
8 of 18His wife asks why he is back doing every walkthrough. The start of Route.The Profitable Cleaner, ep. 198, 20:26The year moves between 2017 and 2019.
7 of 18His father. Double shifts, his first employee and first investor, his death.dojolive, 1:38
4 of 18The income that was not there. The cousin had done all the cleaning himself.AJ Simmons, first visit, 2:48
4 of 18Four years without a license. A DUI two months in, his girlfriend drives, the first van.Money Games, 3:59Only one telling says it was his second.
4 of 18Embarrassed at networking events, then "Ricky the cleaner".ISSA Media, 7:56
4 of 18A big family in a small house.Five Door Media, 9:31The head count differs.
3 of 18The client who asked whether he could follow them to Michigan and Indiana.Cleaning & Cocktails, ep. 109, 22:24The client is not named.
3 of 18The first event, held in his own office at a loss.Cleaning & Cocktails, ep. 109, 8:46Attendance differs.
3 of 18His son asks him to get off the phone.The Modern Man, 15:44
Eight more stories, each told once or twice
2 of 18Did you lock the door. Home at 2 a.m., then the drive back to check.Smart Cleaning School, 19:57
2 of 18The medical clinic he learned by cleaning it for someone else.Carolyn Arellano, 19:55
2 of 18The bar hidden in a janitor's closet, where the podcast began.Cleaning & Cocktails, ep. 109, 4:50
2 of 18The subcontractor nobody has heard of, earning millions from one prime contractor.The Profitable Cleaner, ep. 198, 32:32The captions do not show who is speaking. Listen before using it.
1 of 18Hundreds in the bank. Factored invoices, a client who would not pay, his father's death, a year of telling nobody.Money Games, 15:42One source. The host says he also told it from a stage.
1 of 18The $2 pack of gum and three declined cards.Money Games, 21:58
1 of 18The partners who learned his model and outgrew it.Carolyn Arellano, 36:53No names given.
1 of 18Selling cologne at gas stations at 19.Five Door Media, 17:17

Estimate

The interviews support four possible books, listed here in alphabetical order. Each one shows how many interviews carry it, his own working titles and what is still open. Which book Ricky wants is his choice, and the call is where he makes it.

The Book for His Son

Anna, this one is yours. Twelve chapters, one for each year he has been in business, built from interviews and ready for his son's 12th or 13th birthday.

1 of 18 interviews names it. 7 more carry his sons or his father.

The Evidence

  • He credits you by name. there's this woman Anna David who came to speak at one of our events in San Jose Spring Studio, 3:55
  • The plan as he retells it. by his 13th birthday or 12th birthday he will have known every year that you were working while he was growing up Spring Studio, 5:02
  • His reason. my dad doesn't love me he's not here he's at work it's like let's give the kids let's give them some context Spring Studio, 5:34

What to Weigh

  • One interview names it, and it is written for a private reader, so it builds little public authority.
  • It is also the only book in 18 interviews that Ricky describes himself, and he describes it with energy.
  • The interviews for this book would gather most of the stories above. One set of interviews could feed this book and any of the other three. This is my reading.

A line worth asking about. In the middle of that story he says you know I've been on chapter one for the last two years Spring Studio, 4:29 The captions do not show whether those are his words or part of the conversation he is retelling. If they are his, he had started a book before this one.

Working titles, each from his own words
Some Contextlet's give them some context Spring Studio, 5:34A son learns what his father was doing in each year he was at work.
He's at Workhe's not here he's at work Spring Studio, 5:34The same promise, from the child's side.
Read against your LEG Method

Your three letters lead to a fourth word, Legacy, and this book sits there. It is not built to win business.

What the recordings cannot settle

Where this book stands today. The interview that names it is from about the start of 2025.

The First-Million Operating Book

The working numbers for getting a small cleaning company past its first million in revenue.

8 of 18 interviews teach it. 4 more name it.

The Evidence

  • The wish. i hope and i wish small cleaning companies get to the one million in revenue and surpass it Smart Cleaning School, 15:00
  • The Account Math, Accounts Into People and the One Two Three Step, all above.
  • His mistakes, each with what he changed afterward. The Money Guardrails are one.

What to Weigh

  • The pieces come from interviews about six years apart, and the figures changed as the company grew.
  • He has turned down the role this book would give him. i got no agenda i've got no curriculum Smart Cleaning School, 58:53 That line is from about 2021. By 2025 he says we've just launched a new mentorship program Live Bright, 20:32, so this may have changed.
  • By his own account the gap for these owners is ongoing help. there isn't that much coaching out there there isn't that much mentorship there's boot camps galore The Profitable Cleaner, ep. 31, 8:50

The Reader

An owner still cleaning the accounts personally. His advice to that reader is check your ego at the door Smart Cleaning School, 17:13 This is my reading.

Working titles, each from his own words
To the Pennyi knew to the penny how much it would cost me Smart Cleaning School, 52:48The first million, worked out one account at a time.
The Logistics GameI call it the logistics game Spring Studio, 12:12Which accounts build a company and which ones only keep you busy.
83,000 a Monthit's 83 000 a month Smart Cleaning School, 51:09A revenue goal turned into a number of accounts and a first hire.
Read against your LEG Method
L
The opportunities are the podcast audience and the mentorship program he says has launched.
E
His positioning is the operator who shows the arithmetic.
G
The business it could grow is the mentorship program and the sales software.
What the recordings cannot settle
  • Which of his three contract figures is current.
  • Whether he wants to teach beginners now that his company works at a national scale.

His Own Story as the Book

A memoir of a first-generation owner in a trade that gets little respect. He starts out embarrassed and ends up introducing himself as "Ricky the cleaner".

10 of 18 interviews tell the origin. All 18 carry some part of his story.

The Evidence

What to Weigh

  • Ten interviews tell this story, and on its own it has no method. He sets that test himself, about pitching. have you delivered on product Spring Studio, 26:31
  • My reading is that it could also be the voice that carries the Subcontracting Book or the First-Million Operating Book. Each of those needs a narrator, and this is the narrator.

The Reader

Owners who still feel what he felt in his first five years, and people outside the trade. This is my reading.

Working titles, each from his own words
Ricky the Cleanerhey I'm Ricky the cleaner ISSA Media, 8:36Pride in a trade, told by someone who once hid it.
Did You Lock the Doorhey did you lock the door did you lock the door Smart Cleaning School, 19:57The first years of a business that nobody sees.
The Unsexy StuffSo, I figured out how to just do the like unsexy stuff sometimes. Five Door Media, 7:20Take the job nobody wants and be great at it.
Read against your LEG Method
L
The opportunities are corporate speaking invitations and an award he says he received from the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.
E
His positioning is the face of a trade.
G
The business it could grow is speaking.
What the recordings cannot settle
  • How much of the family material he wants in print. He has spoken in public about a DUI, his parents' divorce, his father's death and a year of money trouble.

The Subcontracting Book

How a cleaning company grows by working with other cleaning companies, first under a larger one and later over smaller ones. Told by someone who has done both.

8 of 18 interviews teach it. 6 more name it.

The Evidence

A caution on the count. The five heaviest interviews on this subject are all from the summer of 2025, when he was filling seats for his own event on the same subject. Some of the weight is promotion. The older interviews show the practice was already his. i grew by subcontracting AJ Simmons, second visit, 5:04

The Reader

Owners of small and mid-sized cleaning companies who want larger contracts and cannot yet win them alone. He counts them. 93% of those companies don't get past a million in revenue, right? Cleaning & Cocktails, ep. 109, 28:58 A second reader is the prime contractor who needs partners in cities where it has no staff. This is my reading.

Working titles, each from his own words
A Seat at the Tablegetting a seat at the table through them Carolyn Arellano, 22:09A small company can reach large contracts through a bigger company before it can win them alone.
The Prime Is Your ClientThey are not your colleague. They are your client Carolyn Arellano, 22:09How to be the partner a large contractor keeps, and pays more each year.
Raise the Barby raising the bar and elevating who we are as business owners Cleaning & Cocktails, ep. 109, 19:05Subcontracting done to a professional standard, with the stigma answered.
Stronger Togetherwe are stronger together I just said it by accident The Modern Man, 26:30Growth through partners and rivals. It is already his motto, so it would need to be cleared with him.
Read against your LEG Method
L
The opportunities he already has are a marketplace, an event with a Deal Bar, and a podcast with more than 100 episodes.
E
His positioning becomes the person who set the standard for subcontracting.
G
The business it could grow is partners for the marketplace, seats at the event, and prime contractors who call him first.

This is my reading of what the interviews show. None of it is a result he has reported.

What the recordings cannot settle
  • Whether he will publish partner terms and margins.
  • What he wants the practice called. I'm not a fan of the name of subcontracting. Five Door Media, 25:09
  • Whether the marketplace launched and is working. The interviews end before the date he gave for it.
  • The story he promised and has not told, about the partner who nearly took an account.

Proposal

A sample chapter spine for each of the four books, built only from what he has already said. Then the two lists your writer should have open during the call.

Four Sample Spines

One for each possible book, in the same order as above. Chapter names are working labels, and every line comes from what he has already said.

The Book for His Son. One chapter for each year, so this spine follows the calendar. Here is what the public record holds for each year. The interviews are thin for 2013, 2014 and 2021 to 2024, so those chapters need the call.

The First-Million Operating Book. Seven chapters. Each has the story that would open it, the method it teaches, and a line a writer could pull.

  1. A Mop Bucket and a Vacuum

    Opens on how easy the trade is to enter.

    Teaches who the book is for.

    go to Home Depot and buy a a mop bucket, a broom, a vacuum Find Your Leadership Confidence, 14:36

  2. Do the Work Yourself

    Opens on the 18-hour days and the locked door.

    Teaches what doing every job yourself teaches before you hire.

    it was 18 hour days 18 to 20 hour days for the first two and a half years Smart Cleaning School, 18:51

  3. The Math

    Opens on the sum that turned a million into 83,000 a month.

    Teaches the Account Math. Method 2

    i got to 83 000 a month first then to get to 2 million i doubled that Smart Cleaning School, 51:42

  4. Sell First

    Opens on the notebooks and sketch pads he filled when he did every walkthrough himself.

    Teaches the One Two Three Step. Method 1

    i've got notebooks and sketch pads of my walkthroughs The Profitable Cleaner, ep. 31, 14:57

  5. Stack the Team

    Opens on the first full-time hire, his mother-in-law, on a salary of 30,000. Money Games, 6:46

    Teaches Accounts Into People. Method 3

    it takes two five day a week, four hour a night accounts to to to have a full-time employee Carolyn Arellano, 34:08

  6. The Money

    Opens on millions in revenue and hundreds in the bank.

    Teaches the Money Guardrails. Method 9

    we get cards that decline on purpose because that means I'm out of budget Money Games, 20:49

  7. Past the Wall Needs the call

    Opens on six months stuck at two million, with his wife asking why he is back doing every walkthrough.

    Teaches what he changed to get past it.

    when i was at the two million in revenue mark we hit a wall it was a six-month wall Smart Cleaning School, 1:01:36

His Own Story as the Book. Five chapters, each built on a turn in his story. Each one carries one hard story.

  1. 2012, The Franchise

    Opens on two years of holiday pitches from his cousin Martin, then the leap with his girlfriend, now his wife, and his cousin Tony.

    Turns on a DUI two months in and four years without a license.

    it was about two years in that me and my wife said you know what let's do it ISSA Media, 2:02

  2. 2015, His Own Name

    Opens on selling the whole franchise back, with an account he was ready to win.

    Turns on building a brand of his own.

    we're going to sell the whole thing back and we're going to start from scratch Spring Studio, 9:29

  3. 2018 and 2019, The Software and the Cash Crisis

    Opens on his wife's question that starts the software company, then millions in revenue, hundreds in the bank and invoices sold to stay afloat.

    Turns on his brother teaching him the bottom line.

    I'm a Topline guy till my brother came in to show me that bottom line Money Games, 15:42

  4. 2020, The Janitor's Closet

    Opens on a bar hidden in a janitor's closet and a podcast that did not exist yet.

    Turns on becoming a voice for the trade, first on air and then at his own events.

    There is no podcast. I'm like in the moment. Cleaning & Cocktails, ep. 109, 4:50

  5. Now, Rebuilding Route

    Opens on software people signed up for and stopped using.

    Turns on starting over with more care.

    right now is our new Fresh Start to do things with more intentionality Spring Studio, 29:48

My reading is that the turn from hiding his trade to calling himself Ricky the cleaner runs under all five.

The Subcontracting Book. Ten chapters. Each has the story that would open it, the method it teaches, and a line a writer could pull.

  1. The Cleaning Guy

    Opens on people walking away from him at networking events.

    Teaches who is speaking and who the book is for.

    I pump my chest now about it ISSA Media, 8:36

  2. The First Three Years

    Opens on the franchise, the loan, the lost license and the locked door.

    Teaches what doing the work yourself gives you.

    you are gonna be a cleaner for the first three four four years of the business and that's okay you should be proud of that Smart Cleaning School, 17:13

  3. The Game Worth Playing

    Opens on selling the franchise back in 2015 with one or two large accounts in hand.

    Teaches the Account Math and Accounts Into People. Method 2 Method 3

    I had one account that equaled all 30 so I was like this is the game I want to play Spring Studio, 10:01

  4. Rick, Can You Do It

    Opens on a client saying it is going to Michigan and Indiana.

    Teaches Going Into a New City. Method 7

    I said yes. I didn't know the model yet, but I said yes Cleaning & Cocktails, ep. 109, 20:45

  5. Why Work for Another Cleaning Company

    Opens on the medical clinic he cleaned for someone else.

    Teaches the five reasons and the 20 percent ratio. Method 4 Method 5

    I'm not trying to make money on these subcontracts. Carolyn Arellano, 34:41

  6. The Prime Is Your Client

    Opens on the partners who learned his model and outgrew it.

    Teaches Business Ready and Earning the Raise. Method 6 Method 8

    the more you do for your prime, the more they will pay you Carolyn Arellano, 35:49

  7. Both Sides of the Table Needs the call

    Opens on the partner who nearly took an account. He has only promised this story.

    Teaches employees or partners, and pricing so the partner can make money. Method 7 Method 8

    Take care of what you control your client relationship. Cleaning & Cocktails, ep. 109, 33:56

  8. Nine Primes, Nine Regions

    Opens on the first event, in his own office, at a loss.

    Teaches how he seats competitors together.

    So, we're not competing, right, dude? Cleaning & Cocktails, ep. 109, 18:01

  9. What It Cost Needs the call

    Opens on hundreds in the bank and a $2 pack of gum. One interview holds all of it.

    Teaches the Money Guardrails, trusting too fast, and finishing first. Method 9

    everything that went wrong could have gone wrong Money Games, 16:50

  10. A Face to the Cleaners

    Opens on his sons at the office.

    Teaches why the trade deserves the standard.

    to really like level up cleaning and have it be respected as a trade The Profitable Cleaner, ep. 198, 41:25

What He Said He Would Share Later

Seven times on air he put off a number, a slide or a story for another day. Each one is a ready question.

He also mentions material that already exists in some order. A training deck for his regional leaders, i put together powerpoint and stuff The Profitable Cleaner, ep. 31, 1:04, sessions at his own event, and videos on pricing. Ask for all of it before the call.

Facts to Check Before Print

These are the same events told with different figures. Revenue and headcount also change, but those grow with the years and are left out.

A yellow folding floor sign with a blank face.
The factOne tellingAnotherA third
What the cousin's franchise was making. The first figure is the business. The other two are what he believed his cousin took home.eighty five thousand a year AJ Simmons, first visit, 2:12He was doing over 100k a year. Carolyn Arellano, 2:48this guy's doing like 100 150,000 a year Spring Studio, 8:56
Accounts that came with the franchisebusiness had like 35 Money Games, 2:18the 40 accounts that we had with the franchise Smart Cleaning School, 54:28the entire 37 accounts Money Games, 8:26
Accounts he kept in 2015I had one account that equaled all 30 Spring Studio, 10:01two accounts equal 40 that they had given us The Profitable Cleaner, ep. 31, 2:48
Starting from zero in 2015we're going to start from scratch Spring Studio, 9:29so we started at zero but we really didn't Money Games, 8:26you could say we started back over from scratch but we really it was parallel Smart Cleaning School, 54:28
The DUItwo months in I got my second DUI Money Games, 3:59Two months in, I get a DUI and lose my license for four years. The Profitable Cleaner, ep. 198, 5:35
The pitch prizeI win $40,000 Money Games, 33:08I won like 50,000 at Capital One headquarters Find Your Leadership Confidence, 17:26
The first venture round1 Point 7 1.8 million Spring Studio, 42:34we raised about 1.9 million from VCs Find Your Leadership Confidence, 19:03about $2 million in VC money The Modern Man, 33:09
Family members in the companyi have 22 family members that work in our business The Profitable Cleaner, ep. 31, 3:54I have 24 family members in that business The Modern Man, 10:41
The house he grew up in10 family members in a three-bedroom house Five Door Media, 9:31probably 13 14 people in a two-bedroom ISSA Media, 6:37Right after this he says it may have been a three-bedroom. Only the head count differs.
The first eventwe had over a 100 cleaning companies show up here to the office Cleaning & Cocktails, ep. 109, 8:46130 cleaning business owners from 26 different states The Modern Man, 26:30
Prime contractors at the Deal BarLet's have nine primes from nine regions of the country. Cleaning & Cocktails, ep. 109, 17:28So, 10 primes from all over the country are going to be there. The Profitable Cleaner, ep. 198, 28:07
Where "stronger together" came fromHe said it by accident at the first event. The Modern Man, 26:30His cousin Tony said it during the pandemic. we're stronger together when we when we operate as one Find Your Leadership Confidence, 13:27It was on a wall, and a videographer asked the crowd to say it. we had never really said it or come out like that with it Live Bright, 27:10

He also uses three industry figures with no source given. That 93 percent of cleaning companies stay under a million in revenue, that there are 1.2 million cleaning companies in America, and that about nine percent of the general labor workforce is in cleaning and maintenance. Each needs a source before print.

Ricky Regalado, Call Sheet

The One-Hour Call

The origin story is left out on purpose. He has told it in ten interviews, so the hour can go to the things no recording holds.

Before You Dial

Sixty Minutes, Eighteen Questions

Questions 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11 and 12 are written for the Subcontracting Book. If Ricky chooses another book at question 1, skip those seven and ask the set for his book at the end of this list.

60 minutes

A suggested order. The times add up to the one hour your writer already has.

The Book and the Reader About 10 minutes

  1. On Spring Studio you described a 12-chapter book for your son. Is that the book you want first, or is there a book for owners in your trade as well?
  2. In that same story you mention being on chapter one for two years. What was that book?
  3. Who is this book for, and what should it give them? If it is for owners, which ones? An owner with five accounts, an owner at five million, or a prime contractor?
  4. What do you want the practice called in print? Subcontracting, affiliate partners, or a new word?

The Method About 20 minutes

  1. You told Six Figure Cleaner you would share the contract-size math later. Walk me through it now, with the numbers you would use today.
  2. You say 20 percent of a company's work should be as a subcontractor. You also say 75 25 or 80 20 about your own work. Are those two different rules?
  3. When you walked into a hotel conference room to interview a cleaning company owner, what was on your checklist?
  4. What does a partner have to send you each month before you will talk about a raise?
  5. You mentioned a slide on employees against partners. Can I have it, along with the training deck for your regional leaders?
  6. Which three words do you want in print? Sales, staff and strategy, or sales, scaling and subcontracting?

The Stories About 15 minutes

  1. Tell me about the partner who nearly took an account. What happened, and what did you change afterward?
  2. Which partners outgrew you, and would they talk to me?
  3. In 2018 and 2019 you had millions in revenue and hundreds in the bank. You have said talking about it is what got you out. Who heard you, and what did they see?
  4. What did the first event teach you that you have never said in an interview?

The Facts About 10 minutes

  1. Some facts change between your interviews. For each one on this list, which number is right?
  2. Where do the 93 percent and 1.2 million figures come from?

What Stays Out About 5 minutes

  1. You have spoken in public about a DUI, your parents' divorce, your father's death and a hard year with money. Which of those belong in a book with your name on it?
  2. Who else should be in it? Your wife, your cousin Tony, your brother?

If He Chooses Another Book

  • The Book for His Son. Which years should the twelve chapters cover? What do you remember from 2013 and 2014? When did your father pass, and what was the company going through then?
  • The First-Million Operating Book. What do you ask a client on a walkthrough? Which contract size would you give an owner starting today?
  • His Own Story as the Book. When did you first introduce yourself as Ricky the cleaner? What year was the first event, and what did it cost you?

What This Adds to an Outline

On our call you told me how the outline works today. Your writer gets one hour on the phone with the client and turns it into four pages. Here is what that writer would have in hand for Ricky before the hour starts.

The same building with every office window dark and only the lobby lit.

Today

  • One hour on the phone.
  • A four-page outline.
  • The client's own account of what the book should be.
The same building with all 18 windows lit.

With the Fingerprint First

  • About 13 hours of interviews, already read.
  • His origin story in ten tellings, with the fullest one marked.
  • Nine methods assembled from pieces across 18 interviews.
  • Four possible books, sized by evidence, with working titles in his own words.
  • Twelve facts flagged where his own tellings disagree.
  • Seven things he has promised on air to share later.
  • Eighteen questions only he can answer.

What the Recordings Cannot Settle

  • Which book he wants. The interviews show what he can carry. Only he can say what he wants written.
  • Whether the marketplace and the 2025 event went as planned. Every interview was recorded before them.
  • His current numbers. The latest figures are from mid-2025.
  • Five more recordings. YouTube blocked their captions on the day I pulled the rest. Four are interviews with him. The fifth is an episode with his wife and his cousin, which would be the first evidence in their voices.
  • Everything private. This is built from public material only. It has not been tested with Ricky.

How I Checked This

  • Every quote is copied from YouTube's automatic captions and kept exactly as written, so a few words read oddly. Each link plays the moment.
  • A script checked each quote word for word against the captions, within 90 seconds of the linked time.
  • The captions carry no speaker names. I read each quote in its surrounding text to confirm it is Ricky speaking. No audio was checked.
  • The captions carry no dates. Where I place an interview in a year, that comes from what he says in it.
  • Anything marked as my reading is interpretation. Counts, quotes and what he said are evidence.

The 18 Interviews

In the order of the windows, from street level up.