About us

My name is Michael, and I've lived in Joplin area my entire life. I've been the proud owner of Miller Cleaning Services for 9 years. I didn't start out as the owner though. I was just a humble employee of the company for 6 years prior. It wasn't until my boss, Richard Miller, had a heart attack, that I was thrown into a leadership position out of necessity.

I had never enjoyed being a leader and the idea of running a business had never entered my mind. But I had suddenly been cast into the position and, out of my loyalty to Richard (who was the best employer I ever had), I did my best to manage the business while he recovered.

I learned more in those six months of assisting Richard than I had in six years of working as an employee. It was a challenge, but I learned to enjoy the change in my routine. 

After Richard recovered I assumed things would go back to normal, but I was wrong. The heart attack had made one thing very clear to Richard, life is short, and he was ready to enjoy what time he still had. So one day he told me he had decided to close up shop and retire. 

In that moment, I knew what I wanted to do. I loved the cleaning industry and I loved Miller Cleaning. So I offered to buy the business. It was a risk. I didn't have much money saved, but I took a chance. In honor of Richard Miller, who made me the hard worker I am today, I decided not to change the name of the business.

Being a business owner isn't the dream job everyone makes it out to be. Instead of having one boss, you have dozens, with essentially each account becoming your boss. I quickly learned this and had to adjust.

For the first few years I worked as a sole proprietor, too scared to hire any employees. I muscled through injuries and sickness, doing all the work myself and, for a number of years, I managed. But one day I injured my shoulder and it wasn't the kind of injury that I could just shrug off. I tried muddling through the work but it became miserable. It was then I realized I couldn't do everything myself anymore.  

I started hiring people that I trusted and, little by little, we started growing. In 2017, I met a beautiful woman who would later in 2018 become my wife. It was her loving support that helped anchor me through some challenging times both in work and life. The businesses growth was beginning to slow. We only relied on word-of-mouth advertising and little else. But, little did I know, that was all about to change. 

Then 2020 happened and I assumed things for our company would take a turn for the worse. I took a small amount of money we had saved up for the business and put it all into advertising, on the slim hope that it would help keep us going. It was a gamble, but I had learned over the years to take chances.

And the gamble paid off! The phone was ringing daily. We grew, so much that we had to hire 4 more employees! Miller Cleaning continues to grow into 2021 and beyond and I look forward to the challenges that lay ahead of us! 

Thank you so much for taking time out of your busy schedule to learn about my humble beginnings.  We would love to serve you! Give me five minutes and I can show you why we're the best choice for all your cleaning needs.

 Call: (417) 438-5123

Email: mcox64870@hotmail.com