The Parks Way with guest Chris Bradley, Estimator

Tune in to hear Chris's amazing story of leadership.  Chris shares his personal experiences which helped mold him into the leader he is today!

Transcript

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Good morning. Good morning. It's another beautiful morning here. This is why it's your host of the parsley podcast I'm sitting across from Mr. Chris Bradley. Chris, how are you? Oh, another day in paradise man. Good. Yeah. Well, thanks for being a guest and coming on the podcast. You know, since the COVID thing, we've not been able to have our quarterly employee appreciation. So we're giving you a little small token of the ward winners, because people still had to excel and do well with work Gwon, even throughout this. And so we decided to move to having a podcast to share, so everybody could kind of, you know, individually listen to, you know, why, what, who the stories of people that have won? Oh, no. So Sounds like a plan to spar and talk about that a little bit? Yeah. Shoot, where you want me to start? Alright. So, you know, Chris, you won the Van Buren, you won the Spirit Award. And that Spirit Award goes to people who have the most positive spirit and have, by example, have gone above and beyond and showed that, you know, they have positive energy, especially during these times of crisis and things that are going on in the world, you know, to have that, that speaks volumes about your leadership and talk in speaks volumes of Hughes a person. And so you know, we're gonna get to that, right, bring it to you now as the as the head estimator, and, you know, probably, if not the smartest person, your top three here at the entire organization, but just kind of we go back to Chris, where we born raised, Concord, North Carolina, so yeah, right up there, Ed, like 45 minutes from here. So you've been there the whole time? Yeah. Oh, wow. Yeah. Where'd you go to high school? Concord? Yeah. Concord through and through. Andrews a kannapolis. Guy, so yeah, that's a little issue there. I hear you never beat us in football. Just want to go for the record. Good. That's exactly so mom, dad, sister brothers. Me. Yep. Just one little sister. So yeah, I'm the oldest. And I'm still Mama's baby, because I'm the only boy so yeah, perks of that, I guess. Yeah, but just yeah, mom, dad, Sarah. Have a dog pretty much forever. Um, so we always have like one dog and a couple of cats. Something like that. So. So growing up, what do you want to be? Shoot? Um, probably first, I wanted to be like an action sport athlete like Travis Pastrana, huh? dirt bike, stuff like that. And then I'd say probably like six or seventh grade runner. I just wanted to be a runner. wanted to go to Oregon for running sooji did you do like cross country running in high? Oh, yeah. So in fourth grade, I think we had like a mile time trial or something like that at elementary school for like Field Day. Another kid in my class beat me. And after that, I started running six days a week, every day from or every week from fourth grade on till I did a marathon. Right before I turned 20. So yeah, quite a few years of left foot right foot. Yeah. So fast for a little bit. You know, High School. He, you know, I think you can quote me from wrong here. But you have a school came to you pretty naturally, right? Yeah. Yeah, definitely. Huge. Was that smart? Or like what I mean, obviously, that they are but like, you know, where did the whole? Um, I don't really know. I know. My mom's sister. My mom's older sisters in Mensa. So, I mean, there's definitely a lot of intelligence on my mom's side of the family. It's like, International Society for smart people. I think it's the 98th percentile in the world in general and intellect or something like that. Yeah. So yeah, definitely something that I'd like to try to do to at some point. When did you When did you kind of realize like, you know, man, I'm, you know, I'm smarter than other kids and not and I say that in a bad way. But like, where, when in your life did you? Did you kind of comprehend like, dude, I'm, I'm getting all A's like, this stuff's coming to me like, easy. I think it was less the all A's and more the trouble that came after. So like, I would finish all my work, and I just be done. So I goof off, like, I'm a high energy person anyways. So I just Yeah, I'd be done with the stuff that they told me to do. So I couldn't be mad at me for that. But they didn't have anything else to give me. I'm thinking like first grade. Yeah, yeah, exactly. Yeah, I was bored. And so I was filling the gaps with distracting other people from doing the work. But I mean, now That's been as long as I can remember. Okay, as far as school goes, yeah. So were you always a troublemaker? Kinda? Yeah, like troublemaker but also, kid. Yeah. So weird dynamic there. And I'm loud too. So that doesn't help loud talk a lot. That's all right. Everybody's loud. I don't mind talking either. So going through high school, obviously, I don't think you went to Oregon to run Yeah, no. What? Tell me what was your plan man, junior senior year like what? What was what was Chris's point, um, math and science, at least hard sciences. So chemistry and stuff like that always came super easy. So I did all my AP classes for like calculus and chemistry and stuff like that. ended up going to NC State for chemical engineering. I knew I wanted to do something engineering, just cuz why chemical? Just Just curious. My cousin did it. Yeah. And I think like two days after he graduated, he had a job. So what job placement? Yeah, what do you what do you do with that? Like, after a gas? A lot, a lot of stuff in the gas industry. So I act Exxon or like p ma? Yeah. Yeah. I think which one's based out of Dallas Fort Worth? My cousin's down there to round energy? Maybe not as Yes. It's might be BP something like that. He's down there working for them. Yeah, just a bunch of jobs like that. Now, they're one of my buddies. He works for a chemical company. So he goes around like paper mills and stuff like that, and distributes chemicals and fixes their machinery. There's a bunch of stuff really, I don't think it was like, what I would be doing that drove it. It was just the fact that that program had an exceptional like, job placement rate. Okay, so I think it was like 98 99% of the people who graduated from that program. And this one specifically I was doing I was doing paper science in chemical engineering dual major. So we you know, we both got a got some in common there that's that stuck out to me when I interviewed you and this and the others that he went to state right. Yeah. So backup, though, you know, they don't to get it to get in the state is hard. But to stay in the state is extremely hard. I know. Because I've had my tenure there. flirted with it, but but I always remember talking to the counselors are going through that process, right? That you just want to get in like it don't, it doesn't really, they don't really pick out let you pick your major out of high school. You're in this kind of like a pool, and then they'll pick out the best of the best to move their major to that. And that's stuck out to me when I interviewed you because you got into chemical engineering like Concorde. Yeah. And that is like that is very rare, just like a foreword to that. So before all of that I was the park scholar nominee for my school route. Yeah, so I made it through like the second round of the park scholarship. Wow. Yeah. So I wasn't, I mean, I, I'm a terrible example. For anyone listening. I only applied to NC State. I didn't ever have like a doubt that I would get in. You ever don't say that? You're not but were you valedictorian? No, I was fifth. So again, I school right. 273 was my graduating class. So decent size here, three a, the two girls and the top of my class had perfect GPAs. One of them took one more AP class and the other one. And then the two people above me just tried. Like, yeah, cuz I didn't really have to do much. Yeah, do much. Test testing was really easy for me standardized tests. Yeah. So yeah, huge blessing there. But yes, I think a fifth Yeah. Fifth was my Yeah. placement at the end. Yeah. So you know, there had to be a proud moment that you got into state. Oh, yeah. Hundred percent your chemical engineer kind of what you're wanting to do. Right. And where do you what was your first door? Tucker? Tucker? Yes. Right. I remember they said on the interview. So, you know, that goes on. And then you know, now, right, your estimator parks, we don't do chemicals. No, we don't we don't do anything like that. You know, I know that you've had a few bumps in the road. Right? Yeah. And, you know, the beauty of this podcast right is outside of one person who said like they as soon as they got out of high school, they were in they got an H back, right. That you know, most of them were either forced, or they didn't get the first or they've had they've had life experiences or they've had you know, they didn't get their first choice of a career. And they got into they got into this industry, right. And, you know, I know that kind of happened to you a little bit. Yeah. Right. And, and again, we won't, you know, don't share anything on here and you don't want to do that. But at the same time, you know, it kind of is in the, in the culture of the whole industry is set and the other is kind of like a safety net, or it's kind of like a almost like a downgrade of getting into this kind of industry and doing this. And, you know, the job, our jobs as owners and leaders is to, you know, let people see and smell that you don't have to be a chemical engineer to one have a successful life, right? And be in and make money, right? Because that's or have job placement. It's the same kind of version, but in a different realm. I mean, you know, you can go anywhere with what you've learned anywhere in the world and get a job, right. We tell it to technicians and installers. They could go anywhere in the world and have a job and it's almost recession proof, right? I know, some chemical engineers may have probably been laid off, or they lost funding from the government and that they shut down that department or this or that. Whereas here, man, everyone needs air as a nice heating and air. Exactly. And it's kind of this morning on this podcast, I'm kind of wanting to go to that angle of showing that, you know, you you did it the way that you were you taught to do it, right. I mean, I think you know, especially during your era to set nearby like four year college, four year college, hundred percent, four year college, four year college, Hell, I think there's guidance counselors get a commission for sending people in. And it doesn't have to be that way. Right? It really at the end of the day, it doesn't have to be that way. And and so you know, I want you to speak a little bit about that. speak a little bit about, you know, when you came to us, I mean, you're bussing tables, bro. You don't I mean, like you, it was not a glamorous time, probably in your life. And, again, I want you to be careful in what you share. I'll share, but I want you to understand that there's a lot of people that I think that need to hear the story, right. You got a fantastic story, man. And and you know, so I'll let you go, bro. Okay, uh, yeah. And yeah, I mean, you don't have to worry about me being nervous about sharing. It's on Google Sheet. It's been. It's been, what, five years now? So yeah, finally over it five years later, let's just say let's just say that Chris got in a little bit of trouble. Oh, yes. Leave it at. All right. So Chris got a little bit of trouble. He politely got asked to leave NC State. Okay. And let's go. Let's just fast forward to that. So you go from being a chemical engineer. And have, you know, a very sexy attractive. No, I got the plan all laid out. Yeah. Getting out and doing everything else. And then bam, right. Yeah, some things happen in your life. And you go from all that to back living at home. Yep. And bussing tables? Yep. Yeah, so that's a that's a gut check, bro. Oh, it was a that's a gut check. It was something else. Yeah, definitely. Definitely different. A lot of a lot of self reflection. Just kind of figuring out what got me to that point. I'm definitely lost track of like, focused. I mean, I had the path laid out for me. All I had to do is lock in and walk it and I was more concerned with party in doing other dumb stuff. Yeah, they got got sidetracked got caught up and all that. And then yeah, one day just woke up and it was all different. Had a record. That was not fun. And then like you said back home, so So then, but also during that right, like you can't he can't speed up time. Right? Like it just it every day. It's like staring you in the face? Yep. And you just have a court date looming. And I mean, it got pushed back seven times before they told me to stop filming. But I again, I don't want to go there that much. I want to go I'm talking about the reality of what has happened. Oh, I'm like, like, you know, you can't just reapply to NC State next semester. Yeah, Ram can't You can't go and get a chemistry job. You know, like that. And you know, you're at home and your your, your whole world has been upside down and changed. And you real it's very hard to get out from underneath that to do anything. Talk about that, man. How did you get through that? Um, so yeah, the first I'd say it happened in early December, December 1, I'd say all the way up until January, mid January. I sat in a room with the lights off, just watching TV every day I'd wake up, lights off TV, go sleep, repeat the cycle. I'm just kind of like, feeling sorry for myself, I guess I'm not sorry for myself, sorry for everything that had happened. And then of course, you can't contact anyone. So I can't like apologize for anything to any of the people who are actually affected. And all these people are my friends. That definitely mess with me a little bit. And I ended up going to a church service with my girlfriend at the time and her family, and it was around the holidays. But basically, the the sermon was essentially that you don't write the plan. Like if if your life's a book, you don't write the book, God writes the book. It's not your job to write it. It's your job to walk the path that's been laid out for you. It may be coincidental when you go to church like that sermon is, it was right on time. Yeah, it was right on time. And I've had two or three of those, like kind of moments of faith, I guess, where it's just like, I can't find any answer for it other than man upstairs looking out. So that happened, and yeah, next day, I woke up called the guy that I was working for, like over the summers, doing part time stuff catering, called him. Of course, they already knew conchords, a small town, I made it on the news in Raleigh. So everyone already knew my story that was part of the issue was coming from a small town where everyone already knew me anyways. And then they all hear all this crazy stuff. And no one gets to talk to me about it or whatever. So yeah, that's always interesting having to deal with that. But went out the next day and talk to him told him the whole story, everything that happened. We got done with that conversation. He was like, you know, I already knew, right? I was like, yeah, figured he was like, it was good hearing it from you, though. He was like, we don't think anything differently of you as a person, as my character or whatever. And yeah, he gave me gave me a chance. And I think, a lot of help you. Yeah. Oh, yeah. It gave me purpose. It gave me something to do. So then I would work, go home. And it was at least something to get my mind off of it. I just run a marathon before I got arrested. So didn't want to run anymore. I was kind of over that I'd been running since fourth grade, joined the gym and started working out. And yeah, that was six, six or eight months of at the gym for two or three hours in the morning, work for seven or eight hours during the day, go back to the gym for another two or three hours and repeat the cycle. And the more I work, the more I realize that everyone has things that happen to them. Yeah. And there's really no you stressing over it. Yeah. Like the pastor said, it's just your job to walk the path. Yeah. And I mean, I've always been like a super happy person. Like upbeat in general. I'm fairly positive person. Yeah. That's why you're on this bucket. So after those after those two months, just yeah, it was just like, well, it happened. I mean, there's no use trying to fight it. You can't change past. So I just had to had to look forward. And yeah, just grinded. grinded at the restaurant, did really good with catering got asked to join the kitchen, then join the kitchen. And then I became like basically second in command over the catering operation. did that for about three years. And right about that time. Y'all had an opening here for the estimator and knew someone that was working here and he got me got me in front of you think that NC State thing worked out? Well, for me to do at least got me a place. You know, thanks for sharing a lot of that right. My thing on is, you know, my, my dad said this early on, I don't know where he got it. And it did resonate with me, it still does, and I try to share this as an old geezer now feel like, though young bucks around is a, you know, decisions that you make between 18 and 25. Right, will impact the rest of your life hundred percent. And, you know, it That is so true. And so, import again, don't always have to be bad, right? But I mean, you know, people have kid right? Or they take a job and it spits them out at this place and they meet their wife and girlfriend there or, you know, in bad things to you know, all that all that those decisions right impact the rest of your life but the beauty of yours your story and the beauty of the saying that is that even though if it is a good or bad choice, right how you handle that speaks volumes about who you are as a person, a leader, your character, and everything else. And you know, you You gave us a shot to man I mean You didn't have to take this, I think you're going, you're either getting or going back to school at the time, right here locally UCC and, you know, but I knew that you really just, I don't want to say second chance. But But I knew that if you had all the intangibles, right, and again, back to sports, you know, you see the, you know, let's just use Nick Saban or any of those guys, they see these five star four star athletes out of high school, or just raw, you know, they just the big fast, I don't know much about football or than take Give me the football and run right? Or I catch it or whatever else. And then they mold them into the superstars. And then it do well with that, and not saying we've done that with you. But what I'm saying is that you had all those intangibles, when you add your interview, and what you did, I remember what you wore, you had a tie on, and I did your resume. And I mean, you just were you were on point the entire time. And that's that that's, that's great. And, you know, now fast forward, right? You have a multimillion dollar, double digit, you know, million dollar company revenues far as this division over here, like all the stuff starts and ends with you with the estimating, right, and you start the assembly line, as we talked about. And there's a lot of pressure and a lot of stress into that. And you got to know your stuff to be able to do that. And man, you just picked up on things. And it was so quick and so fast. Yes, not chemical engineering. But you've done a fantastic job of that. And so I do want to say thank you, right for giving us an opportunity. He bails out some of some tough situations at that time. And it's kind of cool to hear how, you know, you've you've rebounded right, in five years is not a long time. But it is a long time. It felt like it parts Yeah, it felt like it dragged a little bit, but but it so you know, to see you on the flip side of this and see how you've come out and see how you turned out and see what you've done and meeting your little sister on a yard. yard tight Boy, that's good. You know, has been quite a story in itself. And, you know, I just wanted to kind of shift in in tours, you know, because especially right now with COVID. And everything has gone on in the world and the economy and everything else that there are people that have lost jobs. Yeah, I didn't didn't have to do anything bad or did and there's plenty of those that have happened to and, you know, what advice or what wisdom do you have for them? Or what would you share? Maybe bugging this industry? Maybe not but but just in general as a young dude that you know, has been through some stuff. Right? And and, you know, you talked about you being in a room right and doing that and I totally understand that. I mean, that that makes sense. To now right? You have a lot of spectrum here you're on the tactical team. You're on this dude on the parks podcast for winning Spirit Award you're always been a go getter. Guys, I had a you had a rap video. Right here that is that is taken off and it's fantastic. We got a new concept that I want that I want to run by that talk to Brian about yesterday. But you know, what, what would you share? share with them? I guess it's a killer story. Yeah, um, probably two things. First, is perspective. And then the second is perseverance. The whole perspective thing. kinda just that sermon the the point of view switch, it was like, Whoa, is me Why did this happen to me type thing to all right? This happened to me, what do we do about it? If you if you take things, because everything can be seen as either negative or positive? You can you can make anything seem positive if you give it the right spin if you give it the right perspective. So it seemed like a catastrophic loss. But it put me at home. It put me in a job with people who knew who I was outside of all the other stuff. And yeah, gave me an opportunity to like, just work hard and get somewhere for it. Without everything that happened. I would never be here. I don't know what I'd be doing. I have no doubt that I'd still be successful. Because that goes to the second point, perseverance, but if I treated it as a like a catastrophe the whole time. I'd have either gone insane or I've probably been in trouble. Yeah, just right back in the same position. The second thing his perseverance. That's kind of always always been a thing for me. Why do you think that is? Because I'm small. I've always been a little kid. So it's like, oh, you can't do this. And so it's like, oh, watch me. Like, it's hard. Yeah. I mean, I've always been the small guy. So yeah, funny, but but Friday compared to all my six foot friends. Yeah, that makes sense. But, but what about being small, dig a little deeper there has ingrained in you to persevere like, What What about that? Just I guess that like, like, the assumption that like, I couldn't beat dude in the race in fourth grade? Yes, exactly. You have a lot of, I refuse to not be successful. Okay. And I think that's, that's a big thing for everyone. If, if no matter what happens, you get back up, when you get knocked down. There's no one that's going to stop you. You keep getting back up. True. So that's, that's just kind of how I've always been. I think it especially showed in running. I mean, I ran myself in my face one time, my eyes were the whole way rolled back in my head, like, only the whites of my eyes were shown and I was still running. Just like, to that point, you know, I mean, I mean, I guess that could be like, a little obsessive or disastrous, but I don't think that it's a bad thing. to not give up, especially when you're not giving up on yourself. Because at the end of the day, that's, yeah, that's how you sleep with as yourself. Yeah. So I mean, given up, given up on you is probably the worst thing that you could do. Yeah. So and, and, you know, to end on this is about, you know, john Maxwell, he spoke at an xR PA, peer group A while back, and he's actually gonna do it here soon. And, you know, he said, everybody, I don't care who you are, right? When they look at you, they're gonna look above the look above you. And they're either got a plus beside your name, or they got a negative saggi. Right. And, you know, you've at times I'm sure throughout that whole experience, people looked at you with a negative above your head, right? They don't know you, but they do. They know the statement is stories and everything else that goes on and blah, blah, blah. And now man around here, dude, I mean, it's like a plus plus, right? And you've You know, when I look at you, it's a plus, and you you have a lot of value here, you add a lot of value. A lot of people respect you and do it. I mean, just the rap video, man, I mean, they people are still shocked at how well you can do that. Right? And and it takes a lot of confidence. It ain't easy to be an on camera, man. I mean, yeah, this is on audio do I see it smell nice, whatever. But when you got video in this setting, the other end of the deliver to the point of that, dude, that's killer man, that is killer in itself. I don't care if the stuff makes sense or doesn't just doing that is speaks volumes about you, man. So I appreciate you and I appreciate you being a plus man. Because you know, you could have soaked in what he could have come and worked here and just you know, ruined it right and not really done what you said you've done and because there's some monotony to the job or some harder stuff that job that is difficult and it's it's agonizing it's tough and everything else in you've stayed positive, which was not what we had in that position prior which is huge. And you've picked up on things so quickly, man and so always keep that positive above you always been above your name, man and I think you will I have no doubt with what you've been through done that you'll have that possibility so can do Congrats, man. Thank you way to kill it. Way to do good way to come out of this on a freakin fantastic side. I've been a bit excited about doing doing this podcast with you get a killer story. We're gonna do this again. I want to part two of this. Yeah. But no, but thank you, Chris. Thank you for morning. Any final thoughts? Any final things you'd like to say? Nah, man, just I mean, those two things really are big perspective and perseverance. It was like you said you don't even not necessarily like a plus above your name is how people view but just a plus above your name is even positive or negative. I mean, it's it's always going to be easier. If you look at things in a good light. Doesn't matter. Hey, man. Yeah. So that's Yeah, that's the big, the biggest thing. Just keep a good outlook on things and keep moving forward. Awesome. Awesome. Well, thanks again, Chris. So this is why the host we've had a great morning session here with Chris Bradley. Congratulations on winning the Spirit Award. Thank you. Thank you for the quarter and sharing your story. And that's the parsley podcast and we're gonna sign out I hope everybody has a great day and again, Thanks, Chris.