Construction business owner: How I got my job and where I'm going
About this video
Michael Walker explains how, after studying environmental studies, he started his own container tiny-house business and took an auction-house job for extra income. He learned construction from YouTube and contractors, and advises following your passion while not spending money too fast.
You'll be able to
- name what Michael needed to start his business.
- describe how he learned construction skills without formal training.
- explain his advice about spending money when starting a business.
Key words
- Capital
- Money used to start or grow a business.
- Contractor
- A builder or tradesperson hired to do construction work.
- Inspection
- A careful check of equipment to judge its condition.
- Pitfall
- A hidden danger or common mistake to avoid.
Transcript
I'm Michael Walker, I'm 25 years old. I have two different jobs, I run my own company, which is Walker Wilderness Enterprises, which builds tiny houses and hunting cabins. And I also work for a large equipment auctioneer company. I went to college at the University of Colorado Boulder and I studied environmental studies there.
Decided when I was getting out of college that it really wasn't for me, I didn't really like some of the jobs that were some of the starting jobs with that. So I started my own business from there. And when I was you know, starting my business I needed another income as well, and so I got a job at the auction house as well.
As the owner of Walker Wilderness some of the things I needed to start it were the passion to start the company, the idea of the company and some financial backing, so capital for starting it. For the containers, I learned quite a bit on YouTube. Comparing different videos and how different people did things and how I thought the best way to do it was.
And then also, my wife's father was in construction and did drywall, and he knew a lot of different contractors. And they would come and help show me a couple of pointers and I had them, I went to a couple different job sites with him just to look at how things were and talk with different contractors on how they did things and what their opinions were on how I was doing something.
And then for my auctioneer company that I work for, I just needed to know some things about equipment and kinda have a mechanical background. And from there they had their own little training program that I went through to really become fully qualified to do the inspections.
So growth opportunities for both jobs, first for Walker Wilderness, I think the sky's the limit in terms of where to go from here. But I just have to really reach out and do more marketing and contact clients and really understand what they want so that I can, you know get the job from them, and then build more and more containers and get the word out.
And then for my auctioneer company, the growth there would just moving up the ladder in terms of being a manager of inspectors or going into sales. So for getting into a company like Walker Wilderness I think you have to follow your passion and hone the skills you need for your passion, and sell your passion.
And then I would say for a pitfall, don't spend money right off the bat. Try to figure out how you can keep money in the business before you start just spending it all right at the start.
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