Associate of the Year Interview Questions

I received the Associate of the Year award from the Builders Association of the Blue Ridge Mountains, and these questions were asked as part of an interview series. Here are my answers.

What drew you to the building industry?

An interest in macroeconomics and reading “The Wealth of Nations” sparked my enthusiasm for small business disruption and entrepreneurship. The building industry represents one of the last frontiers where individual operators can make a massive impact.

How has your career evolved?

Starting in marketing agency technical roles, I progressed through various small business work before focusing on construction industry clients. I launched my own consulting practice in late 2024, and the focus has been exclusively on builders and remodelers since then.

What are your core values?

Long-term relationships have compounding interest. That’s the guiding principle. Integrity isn’t abstract — it’s practical. In a business built on repeated interactions and referrals, every decision compounds.

What challenges have you overcome?

I experienced severe depression early in life. Those transformative personal experiences shape different life stages in ways that are hard to predict but impossible to ignore.

What recent accomplishments are you most proud of?

Supporting local businesses through the Disaster Relief Task Force and establishing my independent consulting venture. Both required showing up when it mattered, not just when it was convenient.

What does this award mean to you?

Recognition validates my experimental approach and the generous value-provision strategy during my business’s first year. When you lead with value, sometimes the market notices.

How has the industry association supported you?

The Builders Association provided networking, trend awareness, and NAHB connections. These relationships have been more valuable than any marketing channel.

What differentiates your approach?

My modular marketing system offers clients retained account ownership and proprietary systems. You keep everything we build together — the accounts, the data, the systems. That’s fundamentally different from most agency relationships.

Who has mentored you?

Sean Sullivan, Kyle Parks, Naval Ravikant, and Kevin Whelan have all influenced my professional development in different ways — from operational discipline to philosophical frameworks.

What advice would you give to someone entering the industry?

Avoid middle positioning. Excel either serving exceptional clients exceptionally, or scaling broadly. The middle is where margins disappear and differentiation dies.

What’s your vision for the future?

I’m enthusiastic about AI’s potential in reducing homebuilding costs and creating affordable structures in Western North Carolina. The intersection of technology and construction is where the next decade of innovation will happen.