Today we’d like to introduce you to Jake Edwards.
Jake, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I launched Make It Jake’s Handyman Services in September of 2023 after two decades in pastoral ministry. I was looking for new and fresh way to both connect to my community and provide for my family. I had tried my hand at a few different options, but my heart gravitated towards home repairs and small construction, something that had been a hobby and passion of mine for years. I had never been an entrepreneur and was intimidated by the idea of “launching a business”, but I ultimately decided to take a bet on myself and jumped off the deep end. At first, I thought this would be a part time adventure that helped supplement other revenue streams, however; 1 Facebook post and a few weeks later, I was full time, and it’s only grown from there!
That’s the short version. The more detailed but condensed version is that I was raised in a pastors home in Indiana. I began preaching when I was 15 and went to college to study pastoral ministry, like my father. Upon graduation, I moved to Kansas City to study at Nazarene Theological Seminary, where I graduated with a Masters of Divinity in 2010. After graduation, I married my wife (KU alum) and we moved to Daytona Beach, FL for our first youth ministry assignment. From 2010 to 2023, I was a youth pastor in Port Orange, FL, Lenexa, KS, and Lee’s Summit, MO. I pastored the New Beginnings Congregation in Lee’s Summit, MO from 2016-2020. It was near the end of my pastoral assignment at New Beginnings that professional ministry and faith in general grew to be very confusing for me. I struggled with making a living off something that is inherently abstract and deeply personal. My own faith had lots of doubts, and I found that trying to pastor honestly and authentically while living in the tension between faith and certainty was impossible for me to do. Being with people, helping navigate the mysteries of this world, being with others in the throws of both difficult and joyful periods of life – this is what brought me joy and a deep sense of purpose. So, when I needed a new way to provide for my wife and two kids, I looked for a way to still be involved with people and help navigate life with them. Small home repairs, new fixture installations, and light construction became a way to genuinely assist others in my community. I have found that providing an honest service where homeowners have need has fulfilled me greatly. I also just really love working with my hands and finding a solution, quickly, to a problem.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
No, it has not been easy. I left everything I knew and had studied for to something I knew nothing of, outside what I had done at my own homes.
I was 40 years old when I walked away from a successful career in professional ministry, all my contacts, friends, and career knowledge was in that field or adjacent fields. To reinvent oneself overnight is not for the faint of heart, and had it not been for a deep conviction that I needed to find another way to serve my community, I could not have done it. Entrepreneurship is not my hearts passion. It is the reality of what I do, and I have to work at growing my proficiencies as a business owner, and it is something I take seriously, however; my passion lies with helping people and being with them when they need guidance. In the last three years, I have been blow away by how deeply fulfilling my new business has allowed to lean into my true passion.
I have struggled with work/life balance. When you work for yourself, you are always on, and there is a sort of consistent dread about cash flow and new business.
I am in my third year of owning and operating Make It Jake’s, and it seems that we have gotten over the hump of the early dread – will I be successful, will people hire me, will I stay busy enough, etc… To now, the obstacles are more about long term success – how to hire the right people, when to hire, what do you focus on first, how to have consistent engagement with customers that is authentic and valuable, etc…
When I first launched, I thought it would take at least three years to get my “sea legs” underneath me and then another two years to figure out to do with what I had built. That seems to be a very true trajectory of where I find myself today.
We’ve been impressed with Make It Jake’s Handyman Services, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Make It Jake’s Handyman Services launched in 2023 to help home and property owners with home repairs, installations, and minor construction. I serve the 5 counties surrounding KC, MO, and specialize in a variety of small jobs like, re-caulking, drywall patching, light fixture installations, plumbing fixtures, and small room painting. I strive to be honest, fairly priced, and a contractor that listens to the client. I have found in my short time as a handyman that those three values sets me apart. Make It Jake’s is a handyman business that genuinely cares about their workmanship and the client’s needs.
Are there any important lessons you’ve learned that you can share with us?
To trust myself. No one truly has it figured out – we are all growing and learning. For me, success has come in the commitment to learn from the mistakes, to not give-up, and to always do the right thing – no matter the cost.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.makeitjakeskc.com
