When asked if he installs baseboard in a closet as carefully as he does in a living room, Tyler Grace answers, “Of course.” Why? “Because I can’t walk away from something that’s not the best that I can do. It doesn’t matter if anybody’s going to see it. It could be 100 ft. in the air. If I can do better, I’m going to do better.”

A small-scale remodeling contractor, Grace has one employee, a box truck filled with expensive German power tools, and a tattoo of a hammer on his leg. At the time of writing, he also has 70,000 followers on Instagram.

Though he went to college, Grace says, “You don’t need a college degree to do this. You need to work your butt off and be dedicated to doing nice work and bettering yourself every day.” Given that he started his company seven years ago with no tools, no truck, and no experience, the formula seems to be working for him.

“So many people told me that I would regret going into construction, that I didn’t want to ‘work’ for a living, that I wouldn’t be able to earn decent money, that I should use my degree. I would be lying if I said it was easy. I would be lying if I said there weren’t days I wanted to give up. But I would be living a lie if I didn’t follow my heart. I’ll take my dirty, beat-up hands and exhausted body every single day, if it means I get to create something from nothing, make people happy, and get paid to do so.”

Check out articles by Tyler Grace on the FineHomebuilding site.

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