construction Crips & Bloods

Did you know that construction field operators are basically divided into two gangs—Crips (Dewalt) and Bloods (Milwaukee)?

Yesterday, I ran into an old friend and former classmate.

He pointed at my Milwaukee shirt and laughed, you are reppin the wrong hood rounc chea, ya heard mey, (cue the rap music sound track).

I told him straight up—I shop for clothes at Home Depot now.

Dewalt doesn’t sell shirts yet, but when they do, I’ll probably have one of those too.

We kept the joke going, and I mentioned the Switzerland of power tools—Hilti. I told him I keep Hilti gear in my truck because it’s too expensive for most guys to own and that way, I don’t have to worry about my batteries going missing or getting swapped.

Story time

Back in 2011, Rahul Nayar, Alex Read, Michael Frogge, Meena Husein and I got thrown together in what Rice called “the MBA experience.”

To this day, I still wonder who thought that mix of personalities was a good idea.

The breakout sessions got lively, to say the least—some of the most colorful and heated conversations I’ve ever had.

At the time, Rahul and I were 100% Oil & Gas.

That stuff ran through our veins. We were both determined to climb the ladder and become CEOs of the companies we worked for.

That’s the business school mindset: check the boxes, learn the tools, climb the ladder.

But what happens when the ladder breaks?

Crips and Bloods time

Out in the field, the guys doing the real work are split right down the middle, Dewalt or Milwaukee.

Electricians? Usually Milwaukee.

Framers, where I like to hang? We’re Team Dewalt all day.

Me? My personal toolkit is a little different.

I roll with the high-end stuff, Festool and Hilti Group.

Call it bougie construction if you want, but it works.

Tying it all together

Making the jump from Oil & Gas to construction wasn’t easy, but it’s been one hell of a ride.

There’s plenty of room in this sandbox.

Selling is selling. Strategy is strategy. Hard work is Hard Work

Whether you’re on a rig or in the field, the people actually doing the work are cut from the same cloth—good old boys who get shit done.

If I had to describe my story, it’d sound like this: Wall Street meets Boys in the Hood meets Natural Born Killers meets 23 Hours meets Black Hawk Down meets a Telenovela.

I’m far from the finish line, truth is, I’m just getting started.

Every day’s a new page, and a lot of this, I’m making up as I go.

But one thing’s for sure: every bit of experience I’ve had—no matter how random, from butcher to sushi chef—has value.

So here’s my takeaway:

Get out there and write your story. You only get one shot.

P.S. - yes that is a cooler in the back of my truck, I am in Texas, it is hunting season, and I am working a 1/2 day today.