Filthy Rich Cleaners: The Cleaning Business Podcast

What happens when a college grad with zero cleaning experience decides to launch a residential cleaning company in one of the most competitive markets in the USA? You get Mighty Maids — now one of the highest-rated cleaning companies in San Diego!
 
In this episode, Stephanie sits down with owner Victor Migos, who built his business from the ground up after being inspired by watching his mom clean homes to support their family. Eight years later, he’s running 19 employees, two service areas, and a residential-first model that consistently delivers 5-star experiences.
 
Victor breaks down how he hires, trains, routes, handles walk-through surprises, manages upset customers, and develops his team, all while maintaining the personal touch that sets Mighty Maids apart ✨
 
📌 What You’ll Learn
— How Victor built Mighty Maids without ever doing the cleaning himself
— Why he runs teams of two in his business
— How to evaluate attitude vs. skill during training (and spot bad hires fast)
— What actually creates a “unique client experience” in residential cleaning
— The mystery-shopping strategy Victor used to out-serve competitors
— How to handle pricing mismatches when homes don’t match the client’s description
— Why emotional detachment is a leadership superpower in customer disputes
— The logistics challenges of a big city and how Mighty Maids overcame them
— How to create loyal employees who refer their friends and family
— Why your "why" matters more than chasing bigger revenue numbers
 
👉 Try ZenMaid free for 14 days: https://get.zenmaid.com
📞 Book a Consulting Call with Stephanie: https://serene-clean.com/consulting-services/
 
🎙️ Listen to the Podcast:
🎧 Spotify: (link)
🎧 Apple Podcasts: (link)
📖 Read the full transcript: https://www.zenmaid.com/magazine/how-victors-residential-first-model-achieved-600-5-star-reviews/

It's our 100th episode! 🥳 Oh, and it's also the holidays! So, we thought there'd be no better way to celebrate both things than by ringing in Episode 100 with a full breakdown of Serene Clean’s 2025 Naughty and Nice List 🎅
 
Lawsuits, staffing meltdowns, wild client situations, turnover chaos, and more — 2025 was a chaotic year for Serene Clean, and Stephanie gives a full rundown based on the year's memorable events. She walks through the biggest lessons, the hardest hits, the surprising victories, and the systems that saved Serene Clean from spiraling, all while wearing her Santa suit and sipping wine (and also having remnants of the flu)!
 
Whether you're new here or have been around since our first episode, THANK YOU! Filthy Rich Cleaners would be nothing without you, and we're so proud to hit 100 episodes 🙌
 
📌 What You’ll Learn
— Serene Clean's official Naughty and Nice list breakdown, including:
— A discrimination lawsuit
— What actually happens when you underbid a large commercial job
— The revenue-killing mistake Stephanie made with bookkeeping
— How turnover spiraled this year
— Why lockboxes, Slack, and OpenPhone were game-changing upgrades
— The cleaner stories you truly couldn’t make up
— How the training overhaul led to Serene Clean’s lowest complaint rate ever
— The power of giveaways, hiring videos, and strategic Indeed boosting
— What Stephanie is taking into 2026 after the hardest operational year to date
 
Resources Mentioned:
— Serene Clean Training Bundle: https://sereneclean.com/consulting-services
— Stephanie’s Maid Summit Training Program Talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9GOeByDuUM&t=1s
— Filthy Rich Cleaners episode with the bank story: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvGvFf9ypqk
 
👉 Try ZenMaid free for 14 days: https://get.zenmaid.com
📞 Book a Consulting Call with Stephanie: https://serene-clean.com/consulting-services/
 
🎙️ Listen to the Podcast:
📖 Read the full transcript: https://www.zenmaid.com/magazine/the-official-2025-naughty-and-nice-list/
 

What if we told you that the easiest way to improve your marketing...is to stop trying to market to everyone 🤔 In this episode, Stephanie sits down with Katie Pearse of Glisten Academy, a nearly 20-year cleaning industry veteran who’s built multiple commercial and residential operations across Canada and the US.
 
Katie shares how her company exploded from a weekend side hustle into a multi-city business, and why the best marketing strategy is to sell to the version of you who would hire your own company. They get into the real psychology of residential clients and how checklists, proactive communication, and clear positioning are what actually let you charge premium prices. Katie also opens up about a hard lesson in fraud, and tips to prevent it in your own business.
 
📌 What You’ll Learn
— Why the best way to sell cleaning is to “sell to yourself”
— How to communicate that you understand your ideal client (not just claim you do)
— The invisible nature of cleaning — and how checklists make clients feel real value
— How proactive communication reduces client stress and cancellations
— Differentiation ideas that don’t require rebranding your whole company
— What it really takes to scale into multiple locations and industries
— The risks of gatekeeping owner access — and why clients need a direct line
— A real fraud story that shows why systems matter more than trust alone
 
Resources Mentioned:
— Glisten Academy (Courses + Staff Training Programs): https://www.glistenacademy.com/?srsltid=AfmBOoravYMVGG2QPfsRtIVi4KGH0Er-7qIxCZN9cRLortLDmBx-DBBD
— Discount Code: FILTHY50 — 50% off any Glisten Academy course
— Contact Katie: katie@glistenacademy.com
 
— Glisten Academy on TikTok/Instagram: @glistencleaningacademy
— ZenMaid Scheduling Software: https://get.zenmaid.com/
 
👉 Try ZenMaid free for 14 days: https://get.zenmaid.com
📞 Book a Consulting Call with Stephanie: https://serene-clean.com/consulting-services/
 
📖 Read the full transcript: https://www.zenmaid.com/magazine/the-be-your-customer-marketing-strategy-and-why-it-works-with-katie-pearse/

Fear of growth is one of the most universal problems for business owners — and it shows up everywhere. "If I hire, everything will fall apart!" "I want more clients, but it might make things more chaotic." Sound familiar?
 
In this episode, Stephanie breaks down the patterns she saw in four consulting calls last week — owners stuck because of fear, lack of systems, burnout, people-pleasing, and a complete misunderstanding of what real growth actually requires. She shares the exact concepts she taught these owners, so you can apply them too.
 
📌 What You’ll Learn
— Why fear of growth appears at every revenue level
— How to understand the real reason things feel overwhelming
— Growth as a dial
— How to hire with buffers instead of panic
— When part-timers outperform full-timers for controlled scaling
— Why systems must always continue to evolve
— Must-have protections like client guidelines + employee docs
— How to fix manual chaos in operations
— Marketing that works with your mental capacity
— When to pause growth without losing momentum
— The mindset shift that finally lets you trust yourself as a leader
 
Resources Mentioned
— Chelsea Withers’ episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cphw5tKzdF8
— ZenMaid Scheduling Software: https://get.zenmaid.com
— Signrequest for e-signatures: https://signrequest.com/index.html#/
— QuickBooks for bookkeeping: https://quickbooks.intuit.com/
— Wave for bookkeeping: https://www.waveapps.com/
— OpenPhone (now “Quo”) for business lines: https://www.quo.com/
(plus ZenMaid discount link: https://www.quo.com/perks/zenmaid?utm_medium=affiliate&utm_source=partnerstack&utm_content=community_experts&utm_campaign=c92107ec7cc9&pscd=get.openphone.com&ps_partner_key=YzkyMTA3ZWM3Y2M5&fbclid=IwY2xjawMr03ZleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETBleUtsVnZtUjlJa2h5ZWpwAR7Gp8p4NVVF-Y8WODTTXb-NJi57ltYrsQs-pyFmuaRR4gMrj6TGYWpL1zlA_Q_aem_Ey2JG_AkBSk_SI8w5kDOBA&ps_xid=iGpmmTBqEJNW4d&gsxid=iGpmmTBqEJNW4d&gspk=YzkyMTA3ZWM3Y2M5 )
— Extreme Ownership (book): https://www.amazon.com/Extreme-Ownership-U-S-Navy-SEALs/dp/1250067057
 
👉 Try ZenMaid free for 14 days: https://get.zenmaid.com
📞 Book a Consulting Call with Stephanie: https://serene-clean.com/consulting-services/
 
🎙️ Listen to the Podcast:
🎧 Spotify: (link)
🎧 Apple Podcasts: (link)
📖 Read the full transcript: (link)

Most new cleaning business owners think they need years of experience and a spotless (hah, get it?) strategy before they can grow. But Chelsea Withers, Owner of Mindful Methods Cleaning, proves all of that wrong. A stay-at-home mom battling postpartum depression, she started cleaning out of necessity. With no industry background, she still built a fast-growing company by focusing on deeply systemized operations in two years.
 
In this episode, Stephanie and Chelsea talk about how your prior experience matters far less than the systems you build, the way you think, and your ability to take action before you feel ready.
 
📌 What You’ll Learn
— Why systems, not experience, determine whether your business grows or not
— How ADHD became Chelsea’s unexpected advantage in building SOPs
— The real reason her first hire exposed every gap in her business
— Why taking extreme ownership accelerates success
— How to avoid perfectionism and take action before you “feel ready”
— What a strong customer journey actually looks like in the early stages
— How Chelsea uses Slack, ZenMaid, Wave, and simple forms to streamline operations
— Why hiring for values beats hiring for experience every time
— How building systems now unlocks long-term scale and freedom
 
Resources Mentioned:
— ZenMaid Scheduling Software: https://get.zenmaid.com
— ZenMaid Mastermind Facebook Group (free): https://www.facebook.com/groups/zenmaidmastermind
— Extreme Ownership Book: https://www.amazon.com/Extreme-Ownership-U-S-Navy-SEALs/dp/1250067057
— Wave (invoicing + bookkeeping): https://www.waveapps.com/
— Slack (team communication): https://slack.com/
 
👉 Try ZenMaid free for 14 days: https://get.zenmaid.com
📞 Book a Consulting Call with Stephanie: https://serene-clean.com/consulting-services/
 
🎙️ Listen to the Podcast:
📖 Read the full transcript: https://www.zenmaid.com/magazine/why-your-systems-determine-your-success-not-your-experience/

Lots of service-based businesses skip team meetings because they feel “unnecessary” or like wasted labor hours. Stephanie did too until she realized the silent damage it was causing, including teams that didn't mesh well together, inconsistent quality, scattered communication, and a culture that never fully gelled 😬
In this episode, she breaks down the exact system Serene Clean has used for years to keep 40+ cleaners aligned and informed, even with multiple locations and Stephanie as a remote owner.
📌 What You’ll Learn — When to start holding meetings (hint: earlier than you think)— How to run meetings for solo-cleaner companies, team-based companies, and multi-location setups— A full breakdown of Serene Clean’s agenda (KPIs, wins, QC notes, reminders, housekeeping, connection time) — How to make meetings work for different availabilities, locations, and schedules — The exact cadence that keeps cleaners consistent — The KPIs you should be sharing (that don't create anxiety in your staff) — Why cleaners drift when you don’t hold consistent meetings
🙌 Free Resource:Team Meeting Agenda Template: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ko80z5SaurwA9nx1WN6J5Cj32xmqCb1MuDUsOvPZINs/edit?usp=sharing  
Additional Resources Mentioned:— ZenMaid Mastermind Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/zenmaidmastermind  — ZenMaid Scheduling Software: https://get.zenmaid.com  — Slack (for team communication): https://slack.com/ 
👉 Try ZenMaid free for 14 days: https://get.zenmaid.com📞 Book a Consulting Call with Stephanie: https://serene-clean.com/consulting-services/ 🎙️ Listen to the Podcast:📖 Read the full transcript: https://www.zenmaid.com/magazine/yes-your-team-needs-weekly-meetings-and-heres-why/

Despite what you might assume, cleaning business owners aren’t held back by pricing, marketing, hiring, or retention. They’re actually held back by their mindset. Survival mode. Chaos mode. “I’ll do it myself” mode. And for many, it never stops, even years into their business.
 
In this episode, Stephanie sits down with Amar Ghose, CEO of ZenMaid software and former maid service owner, to break down the exact mindset differences between owners who stay stuck in the field forever and owners who build a business that runs without them. They talk about all things control issues, daily habits, brutal truths, and why you need to accept that your cleaners will never care as much as you do. Hopefully, this episode will help you understand the importance of thinking like a CEO — and how to take the first steps into adopting a CEO mindset.
 
 What You’ll Learn
 — The difference between working in the business vs. working on it
 — Why 10–15 minutes of “CEO time” daily will change everything
 — How to prioritize when everything feels like it’s on fire
 — Why expecting cleaners to care as much as you do is unrealistic
 — How systems create consistency even when humans don’t
 — Why momentum beats “perfect planning” every time
 — The mindset that helps you let go of control without letting go of quality
 — How to tell if something is an actual problem… or just noise
 — Why the business you build should need nothing from you someday
 
Resources Mentioned:
 — ZenMaid Mastermind Facebook Group (free): https://www.facebook.com/groups/zenmaidmastermind
 — ZenMaid Scheduling Software: https://get.zenmaid.com
 
 Try ZenMaid free for 14 days: https://get.zenmaid.com
 Book a Consulting Call with Stephanie: https://serene-clean.com/consulting-services/
 
Read the full transcript: https://www.zenmaid.com/magazine/you-need-to-think-like-a-ceo-not-a-cleaner/

Solo or team cleaning? Should you have a company car or should cleaners use their own? Is it better to look for experienced cleaners instead of people with no cleaning background? Decisions, decisions
In this episode, Stephanie digs into three of the biggest operational decisions cleaning business owners have to make — and why there’s no single “right” answer. She shares why she runs Serene Clean almost entirely with solo cleaners, why she’ll probably never own a fleet of wrapped company cars, and how she hires for attitude over experience (and never regrets it).
📌 What You’ll Learn — The real pros and cons of solo vs. team cleaning models — Why efficiency often drops when you put cleaners together — The hidden costs and headaches of managing company vehicles — Why requiring cleaners to have their own cars can improve reliability — How to decide if hiring experienced cleaners helps or hurts your growth — When “experimenting” becomes dangerous as your company scales
👉 Try ZenMaid free for 14 days: https://get.zenmaid.com📞 Book a Consulting Call with Stephanie: https://serene-clean.com/consulting-services/ 📖 Read the full transcript: https://www.zenmaid.com/magazine/solo-or-team-cleaning-choosing-whats-right-for-your-business/

Most people want to grow their business, but few are willing to become the person required to do it. In this episode of Filthy Rich Cleaners, Misael Avalos talks about how he built his company, TimeMaid Cleaning in Arizona, from nothing after a rock-bottom moment changed everything.
 
They talk about the identity shifts, habits, and core values required to scale a cleaning business, and how Misael went from sleeping on his mom’s couch to cleaning seven days a week, handling every client himself, networking nonstop, and ultimately retiring his mother after 45 years in the field.
 
📌 What You’ll Learn
— Why personal growth is mandatory if you want business growth
— How Misael used "burn the boats” focus to scale from 0 to 24 cleaners
— The role of networking and community when you have no budget
— How your beliefs about yourself quietly limit your revenue
— Why core values must be yours first before they become your team’s
— How to fire fast without losing team morale
— The onboarding elements that keep cleaners long term
 
Resources Mentioned:
— The Cleaning Journey Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-cleaning-journey/id1843212838
— The Cleaning Journey Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cleaningjourney/
— Atomic Habits (book by James Clear): https://www.amazon.com/Atomic-Habits-Proven-Build-Break/dp/0735211299
 
👉 Try ZenMaid free for 14 days: https://get.zenmaid.com
📞 Book a Consulting Call with Stephanie: https://serene-clean.com/consulting-services/
 
🎙️ Listen to the Podcast:
🎧 Spotify: (link)
🎧 Apple Podcasts: (link)
📖 Read the full transcript:
Most people want to grow their business, but few are willing to become the person required to do it. In this episode of Filthy Rich Cleaners, Misael Avalos talks about how he built his company, TimeMaid Cleaning in Arizona, from nothing after a rock-bottom moment changed everything.
 
They talk about the identity shifts, habits, and core values required to scale a cleaning business, and how Misael went from sleeping on his mom’s couch to cleaning seven days a week, handling every client himself, networking nonstop, and ultimately retiring his mother after 45 years in the field.
 
📌 What You’ll Learn
— Why personal growth is mandatory if you want business growth
— How Misael used "burn the boats” focus to scale from 0 to 24 cleaners
— The role of networking and community when you have no budget
— How your beliefs about yourself quietly limit your revenue
— Why core values must be yours first before they become your team’s
— How to fire fast without losing team morale
— The onboarding elements that keep cleaners long term
 
Resources Mentioned:
— The Cleaning Journey Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-cleaning-journey/id1843212838
— The Cleaning Journey Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cleaningjourney/
— Atomic Habits (book by James Clear): https://www.amazon.com/Atomic-Habits-Proven-Build-Break/dp/0735211299
 
👉 Try ZenMaid free for 14 days: https://get.zenmaid.com
📞 Book a Consulting Call with Stephanie: https://serene-clean.com/consulting-services/
 
📖 Read the full transcript: https://www.zenmaid.com/magazine/couch-surfing-to-ceo-building-a-million-dollar-cleaning-company-with-misael-avalos/

Cleaning business owners who choose their pricing model and pay structure on gut instinct tend to pay for it later 😬 That's why in this episode, Stephanie breaks down all the major decisions you must make as a cleaning business owner in terms of how to charge clients and pay cleaners. She talks about the pros and cons of charging hourly, flat rate, by square foot, or using a hybrid model, as well as whether to pay cleaners hourly, via a percentage, or per job.
 
📌 What You’ll Learn:
— The truth about hourly pricing (and why Serene Clean still uses it at scale)
— Why charging a flat rate can explode profits and chaos at the same time
— The reason square-foot pricing falls apart in residential and commercial
— How to correctly run limited-hour cleans without confusing clients or techs
— How to protect your profit when clients ask for extras
— The hidden dangers of changing pay structures once you have staff
— How to plan your services + packages
— What production rates actually tell you and why your pricing depends on them
 
Resources Mentioned:
— Stephanie’s Production Rate Audit Spreadsheet and Resources: https://serene-clean.com/consulting-services/
— ZenMaid Scheduling Software: https://get.zenmaid.com/
— ZenMaid Mastermind Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/zenmaidmastermind
 
👉 Try ZenMaid free for 14 days: https://get.zenmaid.com
📞 Book a Consulting Call with Stephanie: https://serene-clean.com/consulting-services/
 
📖 Read the full transcript: https://www.zenmaid.com/magazine/how-to-set-your-pricing-staff-pay-and-packages/