Skills Needed for Managing a New Build

Disclaimer

Here on Selfmadesns.com I’m only giving you my life experiences. So, you may learn and benefit from my mistakes along the way. As well as learn from all of the good decisions I made. What may work for me in some different experiences is not always what you should be doing on your own. Always do your own research or speak with a professional on the subject. Better yet do both guys. It will be way more beneficial for you at the end of the day. If you want more information on our terms, please visit our terms and conditions page along with the privacy policy page as well.

So, for my first new I did not understand what I was getting myself into at all. I had an idea of what to expect but when you’re on site of the new build, everything you plan for goes out the window. Let me tell you guys about how I taught things was going to go. I was thinking I get the plot of land, get with a construction company after seeing some bids, pick a floor plan, and everything would handle itself. boy was I wrong.

Not What I Expected

So, from day one I didn’t think I would have to be on site at all. I thought it would be like the tv shows. You know just come every once and a while to see how things are going and have the big revel at the end. I quickly found out that you have to be hands on with the project. Also, this is where I found out the first set of skills I needed. If you don’t do some research on the company, you pick to do your new build you can have some long days ahead of you. Make sure they have a good reputation. See how people they worked for in the past speak of them. Hopefully you can even see some of their work.

Construction Knowledge

My friends you are going to need some construction knowledge if you plan on being the project manager for the job. You need to know the process, methods they will be using, and materials as well. Some of these companies will cut conners if you let them. not giving you what you paid them for. I found that out the hard way. Especially when they see you don’t fully understand what’s going on. I quickly got me someone with someone with experience in construction to walk the site with me each day. It was a friend of mine who had done this before. He said he would show me how to manage a new build my first time for a small fee. He did offer for me to use his project manager, but I wanted some hands-on experience first.

I find out I would need a few other skills as well. Like being able to read blueprints. You have to know what you’re looking at when they are bringing you them blueprints. Also, with knowing construction comes quality control as well my friends. Knowing how things are supposed to be done right. Being able to identify any risk that may take place. All your legal and regulatory knowledge will all be need for this area as well.

Budgeting

You need to know how to budget for a project like a new build. Part of taking bids is budgeting. Effectively negotiating terms, agreements is all a part of the budget as well. Seeing who fits best with your budget. But remember that you also get what you pay for. So cheaper will not always be best for you. It can end up costing you more at the end of it all. You have to be able to make sure everything is staying with the budget as much as possible. I myself like to have some extra put to the side just in case as well.

Communication

You will need your communication skills on full display. You will need to be able to communicate with your contractors and project managers once you find one you like. Being able to communicate with them everything you want and expect from them is important. So hopefully your communication skills are up to part.

Management Skills

You will need great management skills as well. You will need to be able to manage multiple teams of people that will be handling different projects for different parts of the new build. Being able to make informed decisions quickly and effectively will also be needed form you as well. having good time management skills will be needed as well. Prioritizing tasks and managing time efficiently to meet deadlines is super important to the project. being the one who has to solve problems for everyone is something else that will be needed my friends as well. Making sure everything is going smoothly and everyone is safe. You will need a little software knowledge as well. It’s a lot easier to make changes on software nowadays.

Bonus – Time vs Money

 Is your time more important than your money. Let me tell you about this young man named Joey and how he learned the value of time vs money. It was the summer of 1998 and Joey’s last day of middle school. Joey was excited about the summer but in the back of his mind he was nervous about high school. He really wanted to make a good impression on his first day of high school. He thought to himself what better way to do that, than with a pair of new shoes. Not just any shoes but the newest pair of Air Jordan. Only problem, was the price. Joey didn’t want to ask his parents because he felt he should be able to get them on his own. Going into high school he thought he better learn how to be more independent.

  Joey went up his bedroom to come up with a game plan. Joey first idea was to cut grass. He didn’t own a lawnmower but his dad did. So he asked his dad if he wanted to loan him the lawnmower for 50 buck a week. His dad agreed.  He also asked for gas money for the lawnmower. His dad gave him 20 bucks that he didn’t have to pay back! Now with everything he needed all he had to do now was get to work.

  In no time Joey was cutting 2 yards a day for $20. That’s $200 a week but don’t forget the $50 he had to paid to his dad for the lawnmower. $150 a week still great money for a freshman. One day after cutting grass his dad asked him if he wanted to make some extra cash washing his car. Joey couldn’t turn down the opportunity for some extra cash. So, he put away the lawnmower, grab what he needed to wash the car, and got to work. While washing his dad car his neighbor asked if he could do his next.  That’s when Joey’s next big idea hit him. He should start a cash service for his neighbors.

  But he couldn’t spend all his time washing cars because he had yards to cut. So he talk to his dad and  his dad said, “ sometimes your time is more valuable than money “. Joey thought about this for the rest of the day. Right before he went to bed it hit him.

  He would pay one of his friends $80 a week to cut the yards. While his friend cuts the yards he’ll wash cars. Out of the $150 he only ended up paying his friend $50. And the rest came from his second business, washing car. Which he was making an extra $200 a week. In no time he had enough money to pay for 3 pair of shoes. But now, Joey goals had changed. He wanted the shoes and he was saving up for a new car!

  Moral of the story is you have to know when to spend your time and when to spend some cash. Some time it’s better to spend some extra cash to free up some time to do different things.  In this case the extra cash Joey spent, turn into an investment. Allowing him to make extra cash and set new goals for himself my friends. So should you be meagering your new built or paying someone. Having the knowledge to do so is always a great thing to as well. Keep that in mind friends.

Summary

I believe I covered all the skills set you would need to have a successful new build under your watch. Believe me my friends, I have a few project managers now that can handle these tasks for me now. I would say it’s best to know most of this stuff for yourself first. But if your time is more important elsewhere spend the cash to have someone knowledgeable to help you out. Well, hopefully this post helps someone out there. I hope you guys enjoyed the story time lesson as well. Thanks for your time and the visit today. Let your friends and family know about the blog if you feel it might help them out. Good luck!