This architect told us that, "Architects suck at running businesses." Here's a look at an owner of a 7-year old firm with 10 employees located in a mid-sized city in the Rust Belt of the US.

Projects:

60% of our projects are residential and 40% are commercial. On the residential side, about half are new homes.

Office Situation:

I own the building personally and the firm rents from me.

Salary:

I pay myself $90k, which has never changed. I keep investing back into the firm.

Work/life balance:

It's great! We work 9 hrs/day Monday thru Thursday, which gives us all a 1/2 day on Friday.

Debt:

We use the Capital One Spark credit card because it has good points. Our rolling credit card debt is $15k.

Revenue:

We tickle $1MM in annual revenue with a 15-18% profit margin. We've had steady growth year over year, but 2024 was our first plateau. Our #1 goal in the near future is to expand into a new region to access higher fees.

Best & Worst Expenses:

I hate paying for Autodesk–it's a total scam. But my best expense has been hiring a Director of Business Development.

Savings & Investments:

I try to maintain 3 payrolls in a savings account, just in case.

Book Recommendations:

My favorites are Unreasonable Hospitality by Will Guidara and How To Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie.