Darcie Burroughs: From Sport Illustrated to the World of Construction
Episode #85: Welcome to the She Builds Show, I’m your host, Stefanie Olson and today I excited to introduce to you Darcie Burroughs! Darcie is a Content Marketing Specialist at STACK Construction Technologies and owner at Steel Pines with her husband in . Before working in Construction, Darcie was a senior editor at Sport Illustrated and and played a key role in helping the SI Swimsuit brand move beyond traditions to include more diverse models representing women in real life.
Listen in as we talk about work, family and living our best life…
ABOUT DARCIE BURROUGHS:
Content Marketing Specialist at STACK Construction Technologies and Owner at Steel Pines
Darcie Burroughs is the Content Marketing Specialist at STACK Construction Technologies. She also owns a General Contracting and Portable Sawmill business in Edinburg, NY with her husband and is busy raising a three-year-old boy, and wrangling nine chickens, two horses, and a dog.
Darcie is passionate about advocating for more women in construction, spreading the good word about the benefits of construction technology in a mostly laggard industry, and incorporating her professional life with her personal business.
CONNECT WITH DARCIE:
• Website: https://www.steelpines.com
• Website: https://www.stackct.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/steelpines
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/darcie-burroughs-8b592279
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/darcieinthesticks
WAYS TO CONNECT WITH STEFANIE…
• Website: https://shebuildshomes.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shebuildsbetter
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shebuilds.homes
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/shebuildsshow
EPISODE TRANSCRIPT:
0:01 Welcome to the She Builds Show.
0:03 I’m your host, Stefanie Olson, a licensed general contractor who builds new construction, renovates and designs your vision today.
0:12 More than ever we need raw, authentic women who are willing to rise above society’s norms, break those glass ceilings and encourage each other to boldly build the life we were meant to live.
0:24 So, honey, what are you building?
0:27 Welcome to the She Builds Show.
0:29 We have a incredible guest today.
0:32 Her name is Darcie Burroughs.
0:33 Welcome to the show.
0:35 Thank you, Stefanie.
0:36 I’m happy to be here.
0:37 Yes, of course.
0:38 OK, so Darcy give me like a two sentence snippet of what you do.
0:44 I am the content marketing specialist at stack construction technologies.
0:49 I work a lot on our editorial content, writing blogs, press releases.
0:55 I run the social media accounts and calendar.
0:58 I do press outreach and try and get editorial opportunities for stack.
1:02 So you’re like all things content, marketing, all things content marketing over here.
1:09 And what is stack? Stack is a construction technologies company that works from all phases of construction.
1:19 So we started out as a preconstruction tech company.
1:23 Take off and Estimating. that was our our baby.
1:26 And over the past few years have expanded exponentially acquired two companies and now we have an incredible field of productivity software.
1:36 We have a project management software.
1:39 We’re really just trying to focus on subcontractors while we do cater to general contractors and owners and suppliers and manufacturers.
1:50 Subs are our baby and there’s not a lot of tools out there in the industry that cater to subs.
1:57 So we see a lot of concrete and landscaping and interior work.
2:03 But truly anybody can be successful with stack.
2:07 Ok.
2:07 So give me like in a real world example of a sub that would come to you and use this program.
2:16 Yeah.
2:16 So say you have a concrete contracting business and residential commercial, it doesn’t matter.
2:23 You would use stack for your takeoffs, you upload your plans, you do digital takeoffs, you can add your items in assemblies and then stack has an incredible functional and easy to use estimating platform as well.
2:37 So all your takeoffs get pushed into the estimating feature and it’s awesome.
2:42 We just pushed out a new estimating feature that kind of feels like Excel.
2:46 So you can change all your accounts, your costs, your labor, your overhead, the your markup and then develop a really professional proposal, the scope of work and your logo and it feels all in one and really tied up.
3:02 And then if you’re like a really big sub and you know, you’ve been brought on by a G C, you can use our field productivity or project management software to be in the fields and connect it back into the office and do daily reports and do scheduling and do you know, mark up when a delivery came in, mark up the safety incident.
3:22 So it’s all really collaborative and efficient and productive and 2023.
3:28 That’s awesome.
3:30 I love it.
3:30 So, you know, a lot of subs that work for generals are like tend to be like estimate what’s the right word like they just like knock them out, right?
3:41 Like estimates, estimates, estimates, estimates all the time.
3:44 So you’re really trying to help them kind of streamline that process and have one stop shop to be able to do that.
3:53 Exactly.
3:54 And then you start to produce this like incredible gold bank of data that you can access, say you bid 10 jobs you can go back and look at, OK, how accurate were we in this job with this G C?
4:07 What could we change?
4:08 What could we add on?
4:09 How can we get more precise and not just a guessimate but an accurate estimate for?
4:15 And then yeah, yeah.
4:17 And then you build the relationships with them and then you have the consistent work and contracting is such a hard industry to be successful in.
4:25 So we are really trying to help businesses be successful.
4:30 That’s beautiful.
4:31 OK, so now I wanna dive into a little bit more about you.
4:34 So tell me, you know, in a kind of short version of like how you got into this.
4:42 Why do you love construction?
4:44 And are you here to stay?
4:47 What’s kind of like your little story?
4:51 I’m here to stay girl.
4:53 I had zero construction industry experience.
4:57 So I graduated with a journalism degree.
5:00 I moved to New York City and I worked at Sports Illustrated swimsuit for 15 years.
5:06 Yeah, a lot of production traveling the world, like, really glamorous life, the wildest years of my life.
5:13 And towards the end of that, I met my husband to be husband who was at the time in commercial contracting and we were long distance.
5:23 I lived in Brooklynn, he lived in upstate New York and it felt so awesome until the city just depleted it.
5:29 Out of me.
5:30 There’s a lot of energy, a lot of living out of a suitcase.
5:33 And so I moved up here with him and we had our son that and COVID were kind of the tipping point of like, I want something different for my life.
5:43 That’s a little more catered to family first.
5:46 So we have a general contracting business that we always kind of did side work while he was full time in the commercial contracting business.
5:55 So with our portable saw mill as well, we’re doing tons of rough cut orders for local contractors, local people who just wanted to build, you know, something on their property upstate and it’s started to really thrive in COVID times because no one was getting lumber.
6:12 It was like $80 for a 2×4 at Home Depot.
6:15 And they’re like, how can we not go to a really busy store and just work with our neighbors.
6:22 So, and having our son just really, I needed more support.
6:26 He was working in and out of Albany and it was a very tough time for me.
6:30 I went through like a really bad bout of postpartum depression and anxiety.
6:34 And so I needed to bring things a little more local.
6:38 So I left my job.
6:39 So this is a very long story.
6:41 No, it’s fine.
6:42 I love it.
6:44 I left my job in the city and my goal was to focus on Steel Pines or contracting company.
6:50 And while I was doing that and I was taking online courses on blueprint reading and introductions to the construction estimating just to like be better at our family business.
7:01 I found this digital takeoff and estimating company and I tried a free trial of Stack at the time, I didn’t utilize their free training, which I wish I did at the time.
7:12 But on Linkedin popped up a an open position there.
7:15 And I was like, wow, this could be really cool.
7:17 Like I could write blogs.
7:18 I do that for Steel Pines.
7:19 I can run the social media.
7:20 I do that for our business.
7:22 And I ended up getting the job at Stack and it was so funny because I was like, yeah, I’m a free user and yeah, so it’s been amazing working there and also working on our business and also being a mom and also being myself, you know, so I’ve had incredible flexibility, support and nurturing in terms of like my passion to learn more about the industry.
7:53 Like it’s always encouraged for me to like join a different webinar, take a different class or hop off line and go to the job site and watch them put dresses on a house we’re building.
8:03 You know, because it all comes back to helping staff.
8:07 It’s been pretty awesome.
8:08 That’s so amazing.
8:09 So, how long ago did you join staff?
8:12 I’ve been with them for about a year and a half now.
8:14 Ok.
8:15 Cool.
8:15 And how old is your son?
8:17 He’s three and a half.
8:19 He’s a feral, wild child.
8:22 That’s not the best way to raise them.
8:25 I always call my Children free range Children, free range.
8:29 And maybe that’s a little nicer if I’m still.
8:31 Yeah, they get food and things.
8:34 Yeah, I feed them.
8:37 Yeah, they have warm beds.
8:39 What do you think has been the, the healthiest thing for you in this change with your family, work life?
8:49 Like, what do you see in yourself that has benefited?
8:54 I think I have respected boundaries in my current job and it’s me respecting them too.
9:00 I was a workaholic.
9:02 I didn’t know when to put my phone down or my laptop down and having our sons really just put things into perspective on like, ok, he’s more important than anything right now.
9:15 And I also am my mental health and physical health and like the whole picture of me needs to be put first too.
9:23 So focusing on that and kind of cleaning up life’s edges and then having this wonderful job who respects family first and really gives me flexibility to work at 5:30 in the morning when I’m up and then take a break when I’m driving to daycare and then come back and hop on some calls and then go pay our supplier for that, you know, order exterior siding.
9:50 It’s nice.
9:50 I can handle more with less stress.
9:54 That’s amazing.
9:55 So you feel like it’s been like a good move?
9:59 Yeah, it feels great.
10:01 That’s amazing.
10:02 Is there any advice or I’m in the middle of working on a course with some friends on what it means to, I hate the word balance but to give attention to the multiple areas of your life and to know that even though you’re like a driven successful woman that your health, your spouse or your partner’s relationship, your relationship with your kids, being a mother, you know, your overall energy, your joy and that sometimes success, I think when I was younger was only defined financially.
10:46 Could you maybe describe to me what you think success means to you now, with this transition?
10:53 Yeah, absolutely.
10:54 I think like you said, when I was younger, success meant financial success.
11:00 It meant the glitz and glam and the bragging rights and the who knows who?
11:04 And now I think success is when I can feel joy and feel productive with work and feel passionate about work and not feel a deep guilt for putting me first or my son first or my husband first ahead of work.
11:24 The job’s never gonna love you back and human connection has been restored in my life.
11:32 And I just think like watching my son grow and his imagination bloom and him exploring like, you know, he found a snake the other day.
11:40 I would have never seen it because I’m up here and he’s down here in the ground.
11:44 You know, it’s just these little things that kind of slap you in the face like, oh none of that sh*t mattered.
11:51 That was in my old life.
11:53 I call it I’ve like been reborn into this the construction industry.
11:59 Yeah.
12:00 It just feels empowering to be able to, I feel like I’m really living now and I’m happy again.
12:08 I was not happy for a long time and to invest back in myself and our family business and my relationships around me has been so wonderful.
12:22 That’s awesome.
12:23 Yeah, we were calling it the unlived life because I think so many of us.
12:28 So you saying that is kind of like a description of what we’re after.
12:32 It’s like you think when you’re, you know, younger that none of these other things matter.
12:37 And then like, you get there, you get to the point, like I was just cleaning off my desk the other day for a new hire.
12:44 She’s gonna use my desk at the office.
12:46 And I had a goal that was like 2019 that I wanted a million dollars in capital.
12:51 And I had written that down and I had achieved that goal and I was just like scraping it off my desk.
12:56 And I’m like, what did that feel like to achieve that and move on?
13:02 And I’m like, Stefanie, all you did was make another goal and move forward and push to the next thing and did that.
13:08 What did that bring to your life?
13:09 And, and so to me, it’s like this unlived life of all these other parts of my life.
13:14 Why is there not a goal stuck to my desk that says, like, pick your kids up every single day, you know, or you know, make sure you’re intentional with your husband for a date night every single week?
13:26 Like why are those not plastered all over my desk in my office that those people are just as important that this as its monetary goals, I guess with age and experiences and things that we, I, I don’t know how I wish there was a way to teach the younger generation or to show them or to impart the knowledge that like start now.
13:46 Don’t wait till something terrible happens or don’t wait till you, it gets so bad that you’ve blown up your life and you’ve got to rebuild it.
13:53 How do we teach people coming in, you know, to the industry or into just business or entrepreneurship or just work or being a mother that there’s other things that need to be imbalanced from the get go.
14:05 Yes.
14:05 Oh, my God.
14:06 He said it so beautifully and I love the unlived life.
14:09 Yeah, it’s hard because, well, at least for me as a teenager especially, you don’t tell me anything.
14:17 I had to experience a lot of stuff too. Me too.
14:20 I’m pretty damn stubborn.
14:23 Maybe it’s just the story of life, but at least I’m not letting it go, you know, unlearned or I’m not doing something about it and I’m having to learn the lesson over and over again.
14:35 At least I hope not that it’s not gonna come out again.
14:38 I hope so.
14:39 Well, I feel like there is a generational shift in terms of like talking about things like mental health and self care and investing in yourself and work life balance or what integration, whatever you wanna call it.
14:51 And so it’s more quote normal for 20 year old’s to talk about their feelings and having empathy and compassion, expecting that out of their future employers.
15:05 And really hopefully looking for the signs of like toxic environments and you know, hopefully we are empowering them.
15:13 Yeah, with better choices and to have their own voice for it as well.
15:18 That’s the other thing that’s tough and it circles back to women in construction in general.
15:22 It’s hard to have a voice in an industry that’s male dominated.
15:25 And so if you want to, you know, I live in upstate New York.
15:30 It’s very old school, old school thinking.
15:34 And so I kind of have to be loud and proud and sassy to get some respect and I can’t go and start talking about things.
15:42 I don’t know, like I’m still learning about sockets and still plates and you know, the the different phases of construction and that an extra stud goes at this corner.
15:52 And you know, my husband bless his heart, has so much patience for me because these are things I’m learning as we’re going.
15:58 But him and I compliment each other because I do the business side of things, the marketing side of things, the accounting and he would be lost without me.
16:07 I would be lost without him.
16:08 So it’s a good balance, hard sometimes working with your partner.
16:12 But absolutely.
16:15 Well, gosh, Darcie, this has been amazing.
16:17 Is there a place that, you know, our listeners could find, you follow you work with you if they live in upstate New York.
16:25 Yeah, our general contracting and portable sawmill business is called Steel Pines, SteelPines.com.
16:33 And you can find out more about stack construction technologies at StackCT.com and find us on LinkedIn.
16:41 I’m on LinkedIn.
16:43 You can follow my crazy funny farm Instagram, @darcyinthesticks post about my horses and chickens and whatever else goes on in upstate New York.
16:53 That’s amazing.
16:54 Well, thank you so much, Darcie.
16:56 It’s been such a pleasure to meet you and to hear about what you’re doing and I love that you’re on like the other side of, you know, feeling out of control and you know, settling into something that feels a lot more healthy for your life.
17:10 I love it and thank you for sharing.
17:12 Absolutely.
17:13 Have an amazing day.
17:15 You too.
17:16 All right.
17:16 Talk to you soon.
17:18 Thanks for joining me today on the She Builds Show.
17:21 My name is Stefanie Olson.
17:22 My hope is that this episode leaves you feeling empowered and ready to boldly take that step into building the life that you envision 2×4 at a time.
17:32 And if you can do me a quick favor, please leave me a five star review on iTunes giddy over reading the reviews each week and I will choose one special person to win some she build swag.
17:42 Make sure you add your name to the review and I’ll reach out if you’re the winner.
17:46 Thanks again for hanging out, be sure to visit me at theshebuildsshow.com where you can ask me questions and share with me what you’re building.