Make Trades Great Again
Whether you're a seasoned professional, a newcomer, or simply interested in the trades, the "Make Trades Great Again" podcast offers something for everyone. Our goal is to promote the value of skilled trades, provide essential resources, and build a strong community of passionate individuals.
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Make Trades Great Again
Ditching Corporate Life: Brent McCauley talks major career change
Ever wondered how it feels to switch careers and dive headfirst into a completely unfamiliar field? Meet Brent McCauley, a project manager at Aarow Building, who transitioned from university fundraising to the construction industry. His unique journey, filled with challenges and learning experiences, is a testament to the beauty of career exploration. We delve into how Brent found his passion for problem-solving within the building industry, a far cry from his decade-long stint in fundraising.
As we dissect Brent’s career trajectory, we navigate through the detours and pit stops that led him back to construction. We talk about the challenges of learning on the job, and how he returned to his roots in Missouri, bringing his unique skills and experiences to Arrow Buildings. Brent's boss, Jake, plays a significant role in his growth story. We also discuss the apprenticeship programs within the skilled trades and the effects of the pandemic on career transitions.
In our final segment, Brent shares his ambitions for growth in building and construction. We explore his desire to take on more project management roles and his knack for connecting with diverse clients. We also discuss how Brent’s love for the team approach in construction drives him to excel in his projects. From managing a 1800 square foot house in Millersburg to his social media insights for building professionals, Brent's journey is a treasure trove of inspiration and practical advice. Join us for this riveting conversation and learn from Brent's unique career path.
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Eric Aune @mechanicalhub
Andy Mickelson @mick_plumb
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I'm ready to go, you ready.
Speaker 2:I'm ready.
Speaker 1:Hey everybody, welcome to the Make Trades Great Again podcast. This is a little bit special of an episode here. I'm on the road and I don't have Andy with me. I don't have him on a computer, we're not looking at each other. This is the first time ever where we've done just kind of a solo mission. But I have a special guest today.
Speaker 1:I'm on the road down in Columbia, missouri, visiting job sites, shooting videos, everything for the Build Show Network, doing some Instagram for Mechanical Hub. It's been a lot of fun. I've met a lot of people. But I've been with my friend, jake Bruton, owner of Arrow Buildings. But that's not who's on with me today. I actually have a guy who is new to the construction industry, really kind of professionally been around it for a number of years and that's what we want to talk about today. So we have Brent McCauley, who is a job soup officially for, or maybe is a job superintendent, project manager, project manager that's a better term. Yeah, I don't know what I'm talking about half the time. Brent McCauley, project manager for Arrow Building. How are you doing? Man, doing great.
Speaker 2:Thanks for having me on Awesome.
Speaker 1:Thank you for having me. We don't have video on this one. A lot of times we have video on our podcast, and so today we're audio only. We're on the road. I've never done it without my co-host. My very important co-host Keeps me in line, andy, so we're winging it. Man, that's the first for both of us, because you said you hadn't been on a podcast yet. No, it's probably one of many. It's one of many. It's one of many. I can tell already. Right.
Speaker 2:Right.
Speaker 1:He's smiling at me and he's thinking what in the world is this guy talking about? But actually what we wanted to talk about, brent, was how you got to where you're at today. So you graduated college what 10,? A little over 10 years ago.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I guess, what are we at 14 years ago? 14 years ago.
Speaker 1:But you didn't go to college for construction management or anything like that. No, what is it that you? I want to know what 18-year-old Brent was thinking. He graduates high school and what You're like I'm going to college or everybody's telling you you need to go to college.
Speaker 2:Yeah, college was important in my family. My dad was in admissions at a university back in my hometown, but we were always I didn't go there, so actually none of his children did, even though he was in charge of getting people to go there. Because I think there's something beneficial to going away and opening your eyes, and it's the same thing with what you see on the build show and seeing what other people do. It's just trying new things. So Columbia was three hours away from home far enough away and I actually walked on and played football here.
Speaker 1:Oh wow, I don't think you knew that. I didn't know that.
Speaker 2:At 5' 9". We didn't have a fullback or anything so long. Snapping was my ticket in.
Speaker 1:Nice.
Speaker 2:But while at Mizzou, I then went down a leadership track and ended up having the desire to work at a university and got the best way to make money. I'm not a faculty member. I'm not going to read. I don't like to read one specific topic that much. So, I said how do I make money in higher ed? And it was fundraising. I can talk to anybody. It's fun making connections with alumni and people that have the means to give back and making a difference in students' lives. So I did that for a decade.
Speaker 1:Really, yeah, and you enjoyed it. You said earlier before we started recording. It was correct me if I'm wrong, but it was your dream job.
Speaker 2:At the time. I'm an optimist, so I'll certainly I'll find a way to say anything is my dream job. But what I had worked towards was I had worked up and I spent a decade at Mizzou and then I went out to be the boss of a team at the University of Kentucky, leading their fundraising team for the College of Agriculture and Extension. And it turns out I love fundraising for one-on-one conversations. I don't love administration that much. It was just. It just wasn't my cup of tea.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:In the same time, for about the last decade, my wife and I have been working on our house.
Speaker 1:So that's the connection right there.
Speaker 2:That's where we worked on the weekends. So Jake's senior project manager, brad, is a great friend of mine and he is the one that got me started on one weekend, just toward three windows out of the front of a house Our own house Two months before we had our first daughter, oh yeah, and we started Remodeling the basement and all kinds of craziness and I love that. I loved having that tangible piece with my hands and that's kind of what the difference was In fundraising. I loved it, but you couldn't touch or see or feel, or you shouldn't touch any you could see some you don't know who your hands off.
Speaker 1:You could see some of what came from your hard work and efforts and the planning and I'm sure that long, long time planning, a lot of execution to make it happen. But yeah, I mean the building industry of any sort. As you know, andy, my co-host, were plumbers. We do heating systems like every day we are literally solving problems. That's doesn't get much more tannish, tangible than that something's broke. We come in. Hopefully it's fixed before we leave, right, yep, like that's satisfaction. And so the building industry you're, you're, you know getting into it, basically at home, diy projects with your, with your pal who is Brad, who's from arrow building. He's helping you Complete tasks probably that were a little outside of your pay grade as far as experience and tools and and things like that go.
Speaker 2:Oh yeah, well he wasn't with arrow at the time.
Speaker 1:Oh yeah, we're working in a furniture shop. Oh really, oh yeah he's.
Speaker 2:He's a creative guy that had a background in in that world and had had some remodeling experience. So no, we were just on the fly and he's more thoughtful. I am like Blow and go.
Speaker 1:I'm the speed guy and he's.
Speaker 2:He's like well, let's step back and think for a little bit. So we're the perfect balance here on the arrow team to play off each other, with Jake in the middle with the knowledge and the foundation he has. Well, our second house we were working on just so happened to be down the site from that, from the arrow Spring Valley Road house, which is Jake's personal house, and all of a sudden one day all these dump trucks are driving by and I'm like what the hell is going on, and Brad was looking for another job at the time. So I went down and there's an arrow building sign and their website said they were hiring. And so Brad walked down there and the rest Is history. He's been with arrow for five years and Learned a lot more along the way. I remember him coming to me and saying yeah, jake's doing this Build show thing. Like there's people with video cameras coming up here to watch us we're what is going on?
Speaker 2:Yeah, clearly paid off. And so a decade later, I wasn't happy in my job. My wife saw it and she said you want to do this for 30 years? And I said no. And she said well, let's go. Go see if Jake has an opening. You've been talking about it and I took a 50% pay cut to come do it. Yeah, but I'm happier for it. It's better. We'll find that the money's not everything. We also had the perspective that Columbia is where we wanted to raise our kids.
Speaker 1:Okay.
Speaker 2:Lexington was great. It's fun being around horse racing and bourbon and.
Speaker 1:Great food, but but not in a job that you weren't passionate about anymore. You're losing interest, and it was yeah, was it like a stress thing or kind of that? Corporate.
Speaker 2:Lifestyle. Plenty of stress because in it, in a college of agriculture that has an extension program, there's 50 academic chairs that have fundraising expectations of you and there's a hundred and Kentucky 114 counties. Missouri has 120 counties, kentucky has 114 and there's a an extension office in every county.
Speaker 2:Oh, wow and they have needs and expectations and it just, man, I had I had, it just was more than I was ready for at that point in my career and I had made a big leap and and but I, but it turns out I think I'd been burned out before we went out there. Yeah, and so, getting the to do to get into the building, and I came back for Jake, and I was just a carpenter, sure, and it's not just that's not.
Speaker 1:You know what I'm saying. Yeah, you started out labor in.
Speaker 2:Yeah, on the carpentry team for eggs on demoing so many plaster bathrooms and yeah and dusty messes, but I learned so much and it was fun. I got to ended up tiling one of those bathrooms and I ended up Doing well observing the plumbing on that on the project and putting in a crazy awesome mahogany door with With stained glass. That cost more than my college education. Do all this and the first year in the industry has been awesome and Take you with arrow.
Speaker 1:Well, you jumped in feet first, but it sounds like the experience you were gaining early on was setting you up to get to where you're at now. Yeah, and admittedly so we had. We visited a couple year Jake and I visit a couple your job sites today, one of which you were Still at and and we got to see you in action and it was so cool to see you. You know, you and Jake kind of went off to the science her talking about some plumbing and things like that, and it wasn't. It was more of an opportunity for because the two of you were on the job together at that moment For him to just kind of relay some information to you, just kind of a teaching moment for you because ultimately, every day you're, you're in the learning phase of your position and within the company you've.
Speaker 1:I think 20. While I say that I Not, I'm not making any assumptions, I mean yeah we had the conversations last night at dinner and stuff, and you just came out and said like look, this is new for me, I'm, and what we've talked about so far today. You said how many years you're five years into it now no one one year. Oh my gosh, see how misunderstood that I was a.
Speaker 2:I was started the car we moved back to Missouri a year and a couple months ago.
Speaker 1:Oh, wow, and so you're your Fresh. Yeah, that's into this.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I'm, I was a carpenter for six months and then it. We've had the growth that required some projects for Prad to Focus on more. And Jake said one day you guys think Brad is stretched a little thin and Travis and I Travis is our lead carpenter. We both said yeah. He said all right, brent, your project managing and and I got thrown into it.
Speaker 2:If you listen to one of Jake and Steve's, if you listen to the unbuilt at podcast yeah, they did an episode in both Steve and Jake and Peter said that this house that was my first project was the worst. They couldn't imagine having to remodel it because there was termite damage. It was an old house with settling issues and I learned so much.
Speaker 2:Yeah that was a perfect house. It sucked. It sucked early on and there was a. It was a big mind-eath, but it was awesome. Like I learned so much from that and I've made a lot of mistakes. I am making tons of mistakes and break and luckily Jake gives me room to make mistakes.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:I asked him what. I said hey, jake, if I was working for you 10 years ago and this or that happened, what Would you have reacted the same way? He said oh no, yeah, no, not a chance, because he what? He didn't have the war chest to Weather a mistake that cost a certain amount of money or anything else, and so well, his patients have grown too.
Speaker 1:And yeah, you know, I think he's he's definitely gonna listen to this episode.
Speaker 1:He listens to all of our podcasts religiously and I think, just given his advanced age really, and you know, not just his experience- yeah but as he's advanced in age over the years and and become a little bit more wise, probably more patient, especially bring no, but be honest like to bring you on and and you're very new to this and he knows that See, that's, that's a huge opportunity for the owner of a company in his position to Hopefully train you and see you grow into what he needs you to be right, yep, oftentimes we talk about like in the skilled trades of, like, plumbing, heating, electrical, we, we have apprenticeship programs and there's a reason why because there's a lot of technical information and know how you need, by the time we can trust you to, you know, start and complete these jobs on your own Right.
Speaker 1:You work with these trades all the time. Now, yep, and you could see the value of somebody Training daily, oh yeah, as somebody shadowing them and showing them the ropes every single day. Well, in your position, he can't be there all the time before him to end up at, you know, one, let's say, one job, one project at a time, because who knows how long it really takes right for you to be to finally say, like I'm confident in this, but for him to run his, you know, train you into that position for his company, like specifically how he wants the job from things like that. That's huge. And I, as you talk about this, is so cool because your eyes are like huge, you like smile. I wish everybody could see this. You're excited to talk about it and I let me ask you how old are you?
Speaker 2:thirty seven just turn.
Speaker 1:Thirty thirty seven, and we just had an episode recently and we talked about changing careers. Like yeah, like, literally, like would you ever consider you know we're both plumbers would you stop doing plumbing and just try something different? Like do you have any inkling at all? Like I wanna be an electrician and like just go work, start an apprenticeship at our. You know it's the age, let's call it you know because we're not.
Speaker 1:We're not eighteen, twenty, twenty five years old anymore, so that was a huge step for you. You talked about it already, but you know it was a. You know you took a pay cut. That's. That's a given, though right, you're not generally gonna move from you know one career path to another and be anywhere near where you were when you've already established yourself. But that decision talk about that for a second like that was a decision you made with your wife. There's no way this I know she.
Speaker 1:She asked you. You already said are you happy? And you said I'm not sure if I wanna do this forever. Yeah but like what was there's gotta be like a moment. You probably just knew like what was there? Was there anything big that happened that? Just I don't wanna do this anymore.
Speaker 2:It was some of the stress and the way it was presenting itself physically. Yeah, not sleeping and certain pieces like that.
Speaker 2:So you know, I think With the, with the pandemic and the, we're all more willing to talk about mental health. Yeah, and I probably been saying for four or five years he actually see someone and talk to someone and never did. And then during the pandemic, everything went virtual and it was provided for free and I'm a frugal guys like all barriers to To being better mentally were removed and so I undertook that on top of my wife seeing it, and here we are and it worked out. I talked to someone. It's been great to see them and talk through just that. I actually haven't. Yeah, you found a new person here in columbia needs to get. That's actually been on my list to do because things are good now so I don't need it right, but I gotta find a way to To be better there.
Speaker 1:Well, sometimes we think we don't need it right legs that well, that's it.
Speaker 2:What needs to be talked about that? I don't know.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's really cool though that I'm gonna make an assumption now though, but just talking to you, got to know you a little bit over last two days, like in, like I just said, like you're, your smile, like you I can tell you're happy. You're happy Because you made these changes.
Speaker 2:yeah, but it's fresh right so yeah, tell me, tell me think quickly.
Speaker 1:You don't have to get in detail or anything, but like Quickly think over the last year, like what was something that was like I opening, maybe a little fresh, and like did you and maybe that? Maybe you don't have a scenario, so don't make anything up. Yeah, I wanna know for for fact. But Like, can you think of something that was like made you second guess the switch? No, nothing.
Speaker 2:No, there are harder days than others yeah I am.
Speaker 2:So what? The closest thing to that? Alright, so jake and all the folks went out to see again to or they were in switzerland, yeah, and jake came out. His biggest takeaway was like hey, everybody in switzerland ages out like thirty six, so that's why they're moving to use cranes, are using to be More thoughtful with how we're using our bodies and moving, and I've got a bad back at times. So I'm like jake, you know that you're in. Everybody on your crew is like thirty six years old, yeah, and they're all geriatric here in Switzerland.
Speaker 1:We are yeah.
Speaker 2:So we're finding ways to be better about not carrying that 2,000 pound sliding glass door. We just installed it on one of our projects to bring out the boom jig, the boom jib and with the suction cups and do all this really cool stuff and so that would be the closest thing.
Speaker 2:But that was just more of a. You know, we just joked about that. There's some monotonous when it comes to a window replacement project and it's the same thing over and over again. And then it was even more difficult because it was kind of a mid-century modern house here in Columbia where all the trim on the interior was tied into other trim. So it's that trickle effect If you touch this, then it affects that and then that. And that was a mind that really had my mind going and at some days was just kind of got a little boring. But we filled it with podcasts and you get in the repetition and now I know how to install a window really well. I know how to flash it appropriately, I know how to check it for plumbing level, I know how to check, set control lines and make sure everything's level. So I learned a lot. It did get monotonous in the moment, but never once did I say, nah, maybe I'll go back.
Speaker 1:How about this, though? Okay, great answer, by the way.
Speaker 2:That's awesome.
Speaker 1:I got to tell you for a day and a half now that I've been in. Maybe it's only been like 24 hours. I've been in Columbia, missouri, and I'm from the Midwest, so I get both extremes of weather where I live to. But right now there is, like this crazy weather thing happening. What do they call it? Like a heat dome or I can't remember what they called it. I don't know what they call it? I think it might be called a heat dome.
Speaker 2:Our electrician today called it Miami. Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1:No, kidding, it is so stinking hot right now. But it's not the temperature. I'm just going to do the most Midwestern thing. It's not the temperature, it's the humidity. Right yeah, it is, folks listening, I'm not kidding you. I'm walking around on a job site, a new construction job site, not air conditioned, anything like that. It's just in the rough stage and I'm sweating through my pants. It's so stinking hot it's crazy. So I halfway expected you to say like anything make you second guess, like your career change. I halfway expected you to say like well, you know, sometimes the weather sucks, no, no.
Speaker 2:I've been good man. I've lost weight, I've gotten more. Just being like my back is better because I'm on my feet.
Speaker 1:Well, you're using muscles you didn't use before and you're active, and that changes a lot of things too. I love that piece too.
Speaker 2:Yeah, just using the body.
Speaker 1:I know that when I spend a day in the office. It affects me physically in a way that I don't necessarily experience when I'm just out there climbing up and down ladders and turning wrenches and you know, whatever it is that I do, you know who knows really what I do, but so, brent, we weren't maybe.
Speaker 1:I just want to tell everybody we were maybe going to call you Trent McBrenterson, because I think earlier before I have to apologize, I think earlier before we even started recording I might have even called you Brad, but I didn't mean to. So I'm sorry, I'm so terrible. Like I have to look at my co-host, andy, just to remember his name, that's how I call it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1:It's crazy. You know you're a boarder, you're in and you're gaining like this massive, like super charged kind of classroom experience on the job through Aero Building. What do you think is in front of you in the next year? Just do you want or what do you hope to see in front of you, like, are there any jobs that have happened this past year that you didn't necessarily you weren't able to take on yourself or maybe oversee, but you're hoping, like, maybe in the next year or so I can take on that kind of project? Or what is it about this last year that you like the most and you hope to do more of?
Speaker 2:over the next year. Oh man, you know where we're going to is that more project manager model and really being the connector between the trades, between our trade partners and our clients, and making sure projects move smoothly. So I I got this year With boots on the ground, bags on experience so I could talk the talk. I got to frame a house, we got to set the trusses, we got to do it all, got to tile a bathroom, got you know just everything. But now it's gonna be moving into that more of my strengths in my background, that relationship management and fundraising.
Speaker 2:There was a word being a social chameleon, sure, and I grew up in rural Missouri but kind of on the edge of its city, so I know the rural folks can connect with them. I know people from the big city, I can somewhat connect with them, and so it's the same thing in building and construction. We you know our clients may very well be on one of those two spectrums are Get put on a different hat when we're talking with our different trade partners, and so I just got a. Really I want to. I tried to grow too quickly in my previous career and right now I got it and I'm constantly in the back of my mind, talking myself like no, just just get some reps, you're gonna get some reps this year and that's where I'm focusing on.
Speaker 2:But we've got some awesome houses coming down the pipeline and I'm building a 1800 square foot house out in Millersburg right now. That's my project now. We take the team approach here. Brad and I talked through things, jake and I talked through things. We poke fun at each other for stealing each other subs or whatever, but we're always like it's fun and again Brad's thoughtful, I'm let's get moving and we meet in the middle of Jake and it's. It's a great balance.
Speaker 1:Well, so I just need the reps. That sounds awesome. Dude, I'm so glad to have met you. It's refreshing to talk with somebody that's so. I you know that is new at what they're doing, they're new to the trades and I mean you're happy again. I said it like three times already but I can tell, yeah, like it's genuine, and a lot of times I it's probably your. You were established and you're mature and You're not 20, you know, I talk. I talk with apprentices that are just a year or two into the maybe it's a plumbing program or its HVAC program or something and they just lack the Experience that you have with your training and your real-life experience in your previous career.
Speaker 1:So congratulations to you because, like everything you just said about the Social chameleon, just having that experience and sales and being able to speak with different people, really no matter who they are, that is the position that you're working into right now. Well, I mean you're doing it but as you grow and grow into that position that you took all the right training, you just were in the wrong career.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, I've thought back. What if I had, you know, gone straight into the trades and I don't know where I'd be? You know, I probably wouldn't be here, though I'd probably I would. Maybe I would have heard of the build show, but I Just love where I'm at the stuff we're doing it there. It was cool to be on on, you know, with Jake always trying new things and being open to that, and Brad and I bring hey, we found this and saw this.
Speaker 1:It's cool. Let's be honest, you would have been a plumber probably.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean, that's where the money's at really. I don't know.
Speaker 1:I saw community and it seemed to me like the HVAC guys are the money's at, but you're not wrong. Especially around here. Oh my god, on a day like today, on a day like today, earning their paychecks. Yeah, well, they're earning it, but they're gonna be cashing it for months. Yeah, alright, guys, hey everybody. Thanks for listening, brent, thanks, man.
Speaker 2:Thank you coming on.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's been so nice to meet you. I wish you could meet my co-host, andy. Yeah who I'm like pointing to right now that isn't here with us, looks friendly, he is super, is way more friendly than I am, I promise you. But no, I appreciate you coming on, and when. Where could somebody find? Yeah, are you active on social media or do anything?
Speaker 2:like that. I lurk on social you lurk, yeah, I did make a handle and I do observe. Okay, but I don't need to you're not advertising that, just yeah. I posted stuff early on and then I just I don't have the bandwidth. I can just learning so much that I I Don't take the time. I know Jake is said yo, you should, you should post and you should get on the forums at at JLC and Final. You know I'm not there yet, Okay.
Speaker 1:Well, that's so much, that's fine. Don't do, I don't do Facebook. Yeah, no, no, no, no, I don't. Maybe I caution people. Actually these days I caution no tick tock, don't do it.
Speaker 2:It's not worth it. Just that, just because of Instagram. You know it build build show seems to be Instagram and so I, we follow all that. We do market research for Jake to make sure he's got interesting topics and everything.
Speaker 1:I know he's always. You guys are always in on my videos.
Speaker 2:All right man.
Speaker 1:I do appreciate you coming on everybody, thanks for sticking through this long. We will not be on the road too much longer. I think we're gonna try to do one more episode with Jake, but if you do want to follow along with like Jake's Instagram, for example, jake that Bruton, the owner of arrow buildings, your boss, like you could see what the projects you guys are working on, which is exciting to me. All right, man, I'm gonna sign it off. Sweet, you're good. Thanks, yeah, all right, awesome, all right, dude, see ya.
