It's been a crazy ride thus far. It has been amazing to see how the pieces of the puzzle have come together to get me where I am today. I thank God for the doors he has opened and especially for the ones he has shut.
I'd also like to reach out to a TBH member here who offered to rent me a room to help me get my journey started. Chris, I'm eternally grateful and am in your debt.
I moved to Dallas at the end of October 2019 and immediately hit the ground running. Working for a group of architects it was a whirlwind of meetings with high dollar clients spending millions on remodeling and or designing new homes. There's some STUPID money up here for sure. The largest home project I worked on was adding a bowling alley to a 30million dollar estate. Words can't describe the enormity of this home.
Then came COVID...(Door closed) When the economy puckered up so did the partners in the firm as a big chunk of their projects were put on hold due to the uncertainty of the market. Well the "last hired first fired - large salary" guys took the initial hit. In an instant they laid off a large portion of their staff on the commercial and residential side. As far as I could tell my 5 months in Dallas had come to an end. By this time I had rented a house of my own and was ready to start putting roots down for what was going to be my life.
I prayed and waited on God as I felt that this couldn't be the end. Why would he open the doors only to pull the rug out in such a short period of time? Admittedly part of me was angry and frustrated. This was a HUGE leap of faith for me. To pick up and leave my home of 22yrs along with my wife and family. What a total slap in the face.
I had put out the feelers in hopes of keeping the dream alive while another opportunity might come along. Two weeks went by and it was radio silence. I finally decided that it was time to call it...time of death, March, 2020.
I reflected on all that transpired and how I got to where I was. I thanked God for the strength to step out of my comfort zone. I had conquered complacency and challenged myself beyond what I thought imaginable. I went back to San Antonio with a new found "bring it on attitude" I was ready to fight for the future.
Fast forward one month later. Enjoying home projects and taking some small design/drafting projects to keep things afloat, I decided to make the call to my landlord in Dallas and inform him that I was going to break the lease. I had already communicated when I was furloughed and told him I would hold on as long as possible in case things changed in Dallas. One of the toughest calls I ever had to make.
Then it happened. I had just made the call to break my lease. An hour or so later I was working around the yard and got a call from an unfamiliar number. I DO NOT answer calls from numbers I don't recognize. Yet...this number had a Dallas area code. Probably a telemarketer but WTH, I answered it anyway even if just to tell someone to GFYS. "Hello can I speak to James Ramirez? This is Eric from Chesmar Homes here in DFW."
Some background...I have been doing some out-sourcing design/drafting work for Chesmar Homes in San Antonio, Austin and Houston for 10yrs. I am very familiar with the company and know the plans backwards and forwards. The Dallas division was the smallest of the four but was the fastest growing. Turns out they had gotten to the point where they needed to have someone on staff to design new product and maintain their architectural plans. After talking with the Directors of Design in the other divisions my name kept coming up. They had done their research and they felt like I was the man for the job.
I immediately called my landlord back and told him to pump the breaks on terminating the lease. Now I was on my way back to Dallas for an interview. Officially I had rented a house in Richardson and needed to find out where the Chesmar corporate office was for our initial meeting. Holy ****-ake' mushrooms Batman! The corporate office is only 2.8 miles from my house. I could feel the stars aligning. I had my interview with the VP of operation and the division president and it was an instant connection. My first day on the job came at the end of April 2020 and it's been a blur since then. A very family oriented company with good core values. This particular branch is fit for self disciplined people who don't need to be micro managed. Being self employed for over 20yrs allowed me to jump right in and have an impact right away.
My official one year anniversary is coming up in a few months and I don't see myself going anywhere any time soon. I'm excited about this new chapter in life and enjoy the new memories that we're making. The wife and I love to travel and I look forward to exploring nearby states like Oklahoma and Arkansas. Although 2021 will have it's challenges with Covid and the crazy election BS, I'm grateful for where I am and know that even though hard times WILL come I can continue to rely on my faith, family and friends to help me through it all.
Here's to 2021 and whatever the future may bring...CHEERS!
I'd also like to reach out to a TBH member here who offered to rent me a room to help me get my journey started. Chris, I'm eternally grateful and am in your debt.
I moved to Dallas at the end of October 2019 and immediately hit the ground running. Working for a group of architects it was a whirlwind of meetings with high dollar clients spending millions on remodeling and or designing new homes. There's some STUPID money up here for sure. The largest home project I worked on was adding a bowling alley to a 30million dollar estate. Words can't describe the enormity of this home.
Then came COVID...(Door closed) When the economy puckered up so did the partners in the firm as a big chunk of their projects were put on hold due to the uncertainty of the market. Well the "last hired first fired - large salary" guys took the initial hit. In an instant they laid off a large portion of their staff on the commercial and residential side. As far as I could tell my 5 months in Dallas had come to an end. By this time I had rented a house of my own and was ready to start putting roots down for what was going to be my life.
I prayed and waited on God as I felt that this couldn't be the end. Why would he open the doors only to pull the rug out in such a short period of time? Admittedly part of me was angry and frustrated. This was a HUGE leap of faith for me. To pick up and leave my home of 22yrs along with my wife and family. What a total slap in the face.
I had put out the feelers in hopes of keeping the dream alive while another opportunity might come along. Two weeks went by and it was radio silence. I finally decided that it was time to call it...time of death, March, 2020.
I reflected on all that transpired and how I got to where I was. I thanked God for the strength to step out of my comfort zone. I had conquered complacency and challenged myself beyond what I thought imaginable. I went back to San Antonio with a new found "bring it on attitude" I was ready to fight for the future.
Fast forward one month later. Enjoying home projects and taking some small design/drafting projects to keep things afloat, I decided to make the call to my landlord in Dallas and inform him that I was going to break the lease. I had already communicated when I was furloughed and told him I would hold on as long as possible in case things changed in Dallas. One of the toughest calls I ever had to make.
Then it happened. I had just made the call to break my lease. An hour or so later I was working around the yard and got a call from an unfamiliar number. I DO NOT answer calls from numbers I don't recognize. Yet...this number had a Dallas area code. Probably a telemarketer but WTH, I answered it anyway even if just to tell someone to GFYS. "Hello can I speak to James Ramirez? This is Eric from Chesmar Homes here in DFW."
Some background...I have been doing some out-sourcing design/drafting work for Chesmar Homes in San Antonio, Austin and Houston for 10yrs. I am very familiar with the company and know the plans backwards and forwards. The Dallas division was the smallest of the four but was the fastest growing. Turns out they had gotten to the point where they needed to have someone on staff to design new product and maintain their architectural plans. After talking with the Directors of Design in the other divisions my name kept coming up. They had done their research and they felt like I was the man for the job.
I immediately called my landlord back and told him to pump the breaks on terminating the lease. Now I was on my way back to Dallas for an interview. Officially I had rented a house in Richardson and needed to find out where the Chesmar corporate office was for our initial meeting. Holy ****-ake' mushrooms Batman! The corporate office is only 2.8 miles from my house. I could feel the stars aligning. I had my interview with the VP of operation and the division president and it was an instant connection. My first day on the job came at the end of April 2020 and it's been a blur since then. A very family oriented company with good core values. This particular branch is fit for self disciplined people who don't need to be micro managed. Being self employed for over 20yrs allowed me to jump right in and have an impact right away.
My official one year anniversary is coming up in a few months and I don't see myself going anywhere any time soon. I'm excited about this new chapter in life and enjoy the new memories that we're making. The wife and I love to travel and I look forward to exploring nearby states like Oklahoma and Arkansas. Although 2021 will have it's challenges with Covid and the crazy election BS, I'm grateful for where I am and know that even though hard times WILL come I can continue to rely on my faith, family and friends to help me through it all.
Here's to 2021 and whatever the future may bring...CHEERS!
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