The dos and don'ts ,Interview of Alcon Construction by Juan Manuel Guajardo
Introduction
Small
Businesses, they make the economy go round.
Some will say that to own one is the American Dream, but what is it
really like to own and operate one? The
following is based on an a personal interview of different aspects of owning
your own business. The interview is of
Mr. Alfred Guajardo of Alcon Construction; Alcon Construction was a general
contractor’s business based in Sacramento, CA around the 1970’s. With just his tools, a contractor’s license,
and his knowledge of construction, Alfred was ready to make his contributions
to his hometown.
What was the
inspiration for Alcon Construction?
Alfred comes from a family of
construction workers, it was what his grandfather, father, and brothers did for
a living. Therefore feeling as if he
should follow the Guajardo legacy, he started by becoming a Journeyman
Carpenter. He explained that a
Journeyman Carpenter was one who worked as an apprentice for about four years
in order to gain experience out in the field of construction. After doing his time as an apprentice, he
decided he wanted to get his license, and that he did. “And that’s how it really started, it’s
nothing that I had planned” stated Alfred.
The average day at
Alcon
The average day for Alfred was,
“Getting up early in the morning, trying to have a good breakfast because you
know you’re going to have a long day, then just going out and getting to the
job at hand, whatever that may be.” Some
days when he did not have a
construction project at the time he
would be out in the city or the county looking at bid sheets in order to find
out where the work was or maybe catch up on some paperwork. Then if he did have a construction project to
work on, they would be the long days because he knew he would have to be hands
on and then later work on paperwork.
Why start a small
business?
There are a number of reasons to
start a small business, but Alfred’s main reason was because he could do things
the way he felt that they should be done.
“You’re not going to have a boss over your shoulder telling you to do it
this way or that way...the boss might have you do it a different way, and he’ll
come up with the same product, it’s just that you’re doing it your way” said
Alfred. When it comes to construction
there are some different ways to do the same job and still produce the same
quality, therefore being your own boss allows you to do it the way you
prefer. At the same time, this does not
just apply to construction, being your own boss is probably the best part of
owning any small business.
The downside of a
small business
The disadvantage of owning your own
business, according to Alfred, is that even after you put in your eight hours,
you still have to work. He says, “It
might be paperwork, or it might be going out into the field doing some work
that you have to catch up on.” Either
way, your work is never really done, and sometimes you tend to bring it home
with you, which might not always be a good thing. When you become to entangled in the work
world you tend to put aside some things that may not affect you now, but could
change things in the long run; this goes for any small business owner.
What was the dream for
Alcon?
To Alfred, Alcon Construction was
like building a large nest egg for his future along with being a part of
building Sacramento. “That says a lot to
a particular person, that you helped get it to where it’s going and you are a
constructive person of the city as it gets bigger and better, and you know that
you’re a part of it” His dream was to
leave his mark on the city, knowing that his hands were one of many that helped
bring it to life. He had actually
achieved his goal by later being part of a construction team that restored Old
Sacramento. Their job was difficult, but
he was up for the challenge; the team had to restore the town in order to look
as it did back in the 1800’s.
Alfred’s words of
wisdom
Some advice that Alfred would give
to someone who is considering becoming an owner of a small business would be to
have a plan. “You should definitely have
plan B, if plan A doesn’t work that's
something to fall back to; now if you feel like you’ve got to have plan C, D,
E, and F etc. you’re better off not having a business… If you’ve got to have
more than just two plans, you better double or triple think about what you’re
doing” explains Alfred. You want to put
all of your time and planning into something that you feel confident doing so
you can focus all of your attention on that.
Another bit of advice from him
would be to find and interview someone who has , or had a business. “Find out
why this business is successful, find out why this business faltered and didn’t
make it, there’s obviously a reason.”
Conclusion
To sum up Alfred’s experiences and
journey through owning a small business, if you do start a company, you would
be “above and beyond just a productive person.”
At the end of the day, you are going to help the economy by putting
people to work along with giving back to your community. Not only is it beneficial to society, but it
also makes you feel good like you have meaning and purpose.
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The above Interview was sponsored by "Al the Green Rain Train" an environmental book for children, If you would like to make purchase or read reviews please click on link, Thank You and have a Great Day, Al https://www.amazon.com/Green-Rain-Train-Alfred-Guajardo/dp/145679924X
"Al the Green Rain Train" at Sunnyside Elementary School
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