We recently connected with Frank Wickstead and have shared our conversation below.
Frank, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today How do you think about vacations as a business owner? Do you take them and if so, how? If you don’t, why not?
I go places but I don’t know that I take vacations. Meaning that I don’t typically detach from my professional life. And that is okay; I’ve designed a professional life that doesn’t really weigh be down (26 years into my professional life). It isn’t something that I need to escape to find relaxation or joy. On the other hand, I really love going places. And when I go places, I find myself reflecting on myself and my business and coming back with a better version of each.
Frank, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I self-describe as a built-environment professional with an understanding of design, construction & development. I’ve always had an emphasis on high-performance, energy efficiency, and sustainability.
I grew up with a decent & diverse work ethic learning trades in construction jobs & learning customer service in food service jobs. I started my professional life as an architect but moved to a very basic version of design/build 2-3 years later. After trying partnerships, I settled on a business without one. About 20 years later, I sold that business after being offered an interesting consulting job that allowed me the professional travel, collaboration & high-level problem solving skills that I’d missed in my small business. 7 years later I went back to design/build/development from a place of higher understanding & less ego. I also started teaching at The Georgia Institute of Technology. Teaching keeps me on my toes in a classroom filled with smart people where I can both teach & learn. 2 years ago, I started another business with a mentor/partner with a focus on low-income housing that incorporates my understanding of sustainability. The new company offeres me the ability to share my knowledge in a new and meaningful arena.
Everything I do has a common theme. The product is important. The client & client experience are important. My life & time with my family & those I care about is the most important.
Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?
My family steers my professional life. Or at least, I figured that out once I was a parent. When my son was born in 2009, I realized that I was not the rockstar that I thought I was. The truth was that I was only good because I worked all the time. 10-12 hours, 7 days a week. That didn’t align with the dad I wanted to be. A year after my son was born, I was offered a job as a consultant out of the blue. I was not looking for a job but I was miserable in the push/pull between being the boss and a dad. So I took the job and worked 5 days a week, 8 hours a day. It felt like a retirement. 7-8 years later, I’d done well, the next step-up involved 50% travel. That wasn’t going to work so I jumped ship and went back to what I knew. But the new version involves delegation & less stress. I pick up my son from school & we continue to grow up together. My wife & I play hooky for lunch on a patio when the weather insists on it.
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
My shift from architect to general contractor was an eye-opening experience. My perception went from trusted advisor to untrusted overnight. The reputation of my newly adopted industry proceeded me. I almost immediately went about finding ways to separate myself from the herd; finding ways to differentiate myself. I did that by earning a LEEDap designation, entering design/construction awards, finding editors that would tell my story, going back for a MS in Building Construction, teaching at the collegiate level, & regularly going to war for my clients. It was a very long process that that took consistent messaging from those that knew me, those that worked with me, an my clients. It was never my words, it was my actions.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.jonespierce.com & https://bc.gatech.edu/people/frank-wickstead
- Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/wickstead
- Other: https://lookbooklink.com/wickstead
Image Credits
Jasalyn DeRyke Frank Wickstead Luke Dreser