Greg Owens 21:57
That’s right. Right. What what was also surprising is that Got up there and it was dark. And there’s an I thought, you know, like for the last like, hour of the ride, it was in the dark kind of going up to the top. And then I was thinking like, Oh, this would be great. I’ll get up there and I’ll have like the mountain to myself I will be able to look at the stars. I get up there and it’s filled with people it was packed. I couldn’t believe it. Like all these people, and they said it was all different countries represented like different like tourists, basically, or different people, maybe
Katrina Hayes 22:28
they drove, right?
Greg Owens 22:30
They drove
Katrina Hayes 22:34
you’re coming up the mountain when your bike and you’re like,
Greg Owens 22:38
ah, but it’s good. It’s you know, it’s gotten me out outdoors more other changes you’re seeing at your facility there because I know you have some empty space. And that’s probably a really good opportunity for a new tenant to come in and kind of reworked the space and maybe maybe they’re not going to have such big open spaces anymore. And More cubicle style or smaller offices.
Trevor Truax 23:03
WeWork actually took all the space we have left. We’re hundred percent leased at this point not occupied but leased. So,
Greg Owens 23:13
gotcha.
Katrina Hayes 23:13
That’s gotta be nice a little bit
Trevor Truax 23:15
It is yeah.
Katrina Hayes 23:17
Not occupied but least
Trevor Truax 23:19
and a good sign I think for us is that ownership is really
planning on we just did
before facade renovation and paint and
we’re doing a lobby upgrade,
renovation renovations and also restroom renovations so they’re not, you know, terribly in need, but I think that’s a good you know, I think it will help and really Paramount kind of wants to help take this property, help it shine, you know, and help kind of Give it the love that it deserves, you know, and kind of, but it’s a good sign, I think that they are seeing through this and still investing in it and
playing the long game. So,
Greg Owens 24:13
yeah, yeah, that’s great that as I’ve talked to other building owners and property managers, we’re seeing that a lot is like kind of a reinvesting into the buildings themselves and kind of capital projects, like letting get and getting those sort of going so that they can get some, you know, when this when things turn around that they’re sort of there and are ready for it.
Trevor Truax 24:37
Yeah, now’s a great time, because work can be done during hours that would normally have to be done after hours because
dentists are from home. So.
Greg Owens 24:50
Right, right. Yeah. Well, and one of the things I’m like to ask questions about because I think being a facilities manager Property Manager is such a great career for certain types of individuals. And but a lot of times, like the younger generation doesn’t even know these jobs exist or what they entail. And I know for myself that they look, they always look really interesting because it’s not necessarily a job that’s behind the desk. And what’s your thoughts on that?
Trevor Truax 25:22
Oh, yeah, I love it. You know, it’s not it’s not glamorous. And I kind of fell into it. It’s not something I like, planned on, happening. You know? I, you know, I think when I was when I was a kid, people used to ask me, you know, what I wanted to be when I grew up, I used to say, psychiatrists, I was trying to make sense of the world, you know, and like things, but no, that didn’t happen. So, I mean, let’s just face it working on you know, buildings is a little more concrete than working with people you know, is a little more easier.
Greg Owens 25:57
Right, that’s, those are two different directions. Dare psychiatrist to working on a building?
Trevor Truax 26:05
Yeah, um,
let’s see. Do you mind asking that again?
Greg Owens 26:12
Yeah, we’ll just like, well, you can go into a little bit about, like, what do you see as some of the other benefits of being a facilities manager? And, you know, that I think one of them is that you’re not behind a desk you came up through as a mechanic and so you’re mechanically inclined, which that’s a skill set, right? Like, not everybody, um, possesses that or even wants to have it. And, and sometimes it’s needed for facilities management and sometimes, you know, in certain types of facilities, you don’t have to have it, what’s your thoughts on that?
Trevor Truax 26:47
I’ve worked several roles.
And I was, you know, I worked as a journeyman engineer this fully just doing, you know, repairs and maintenance, you know, and then I Two years into it, I got promoted to Chief Engineer, and I was overseeing four properties or high rises. And this was one of them under another company. And that that was very interesting. It was kind of a stretch. I had to step into like, kind of a role of authority, and they had, you know, four guys working under me and, and that was definitely some growth for me, but but I really enjoy, you know, doing the mechanical sides of things, and then also interfacing with people. And so it’s a nice mix for me. I’m not always that outgoing. And I’m kind of an introvert, you know, and, and so, it allows me to kind of take a break and then I do get to like, you know, do repairs or or you know, sometimes and I really, I really love that creative part of it, construction management, and that, you know, When I get to, like, get involved with design, and that really feeds me, so it’s, uh, you know, I hadn’t planned on this as a career, but it’s really nice. It’s an it’s fitting for me. So I also know, I have friends, you know, that are also chief engineers that are really like, they don’t want to get their hands dirty anymore, you know, and they just want to, like, manage. And so there’s quite a variety. Here, I’m what’s known as a working chief at this property where I don’t have any assistance or no, it’s just me. So you know, gets lonely sometimes no one to know and to complain to me, it’s my responsibility when things aren’t happening. So I kind of gotta, you know, work that angle too. But it’s
Greg Owens 28:54
Yeah, that’s a big that’s a big change because I can imagine you go from being sort of hand And taken care of as problems come up and problem solving and being able to fix it yourself to where you’re, you have four properties, and you were managing sort of multiple people. And now you can’t get to every problem yourself. And then you have to sort of rely on sort of the people underneath you to take care of things or vendors, because you’d have to bring in vendors. And then now even at the buildings that you’re at now, I can imagine that you’re you have to still kind of rely on vendors to get because you you can’t possibly be at all the different places that a building like this needs.
Trevor Truax 29:36
a certain extent. Yeah, definitely. I had you gotten I had a, I worked for Bentley holdings for 10 years, and I had had an opportunity to really oversee a lot of large projects, and it kind of gave me a taste for project management. So I kind of enjoy that and I look forward to those little, you know, jobs. We put in a gym here a couple years back and I got to manage that. You know, I really, I really enjoy it because I do get to wear a lot of hats. And also, like you’re saying, I, I get to get out and walk around, get exercise, you know, I get to, like, walk around the building and do rounds and stuff. It’s, uh, you know, this may not be for everyone, but I get my 10,000 steps a day and you know, and I think overall for the, you know,
it really benefits my health.
Greg Owens 30:36
Yeah, that’s great. Any any thoughts on for somebody that’s looking at becoming a building engineer, chief engineer, facilities manager like what, what they should look into and what they should study?
Trevor Truax 30:50
Yes, I’ve had I have had quite a few people come to me actually and even recently just from seeing what I do, and You know that I’m happy and it’s like, they’re curious, you know? And, you know, one of the work managers did, it’s like, hey, I want to become an engineer.
What do I do?
It’s, it’s, uh, I’m not sure exactly, you know, I mean, I would have to say, you know, check in with the union, there’s, there’s an apprenticeship program, really quite an opportunity. Where you get, you know, $5 an hour pay raises every six months, you know, during that time, it pays fairly well to begin with. So yeah, the thing is defined a company that will sponsor you at that point also, that’s, that’s kind of challenging. So I would say, to start out with if you’re really new to it, I would go through ABM or Abel, engineering services and get a attempt position.
They and
there’s kind of a
it’s called utility engineer. And it’s the four guys do all the dirty work, you know, light bulb changing. You know, they’re, they’re, they’re prohibited from using tools. So it’s like lots of cleanup and lots of Shadow Work, you know, right, um, you know, lift this, bring this over here, you know, that kind of thing, but if they’re interested it, you know, it pays decently also start there, and then you’ll get an idea of what the job actually is. And, you know, I’ve hired two apprentices over the years and it’s, um, it’s, yeah, that’s exactly the route. You know, we’ve chosen and you just find some you get in and prove yourself as being reliable and trustworthy and I think you’re interested and it helps to have a mechanical aptitude to win. And I’ve heard that kind of thing, but it’s not fully necessary that can be learned too. So. Right, right, I would say there and, and, you know, opportunities will, will unfold. There’s definitely a need. There’s, it’s most, you know, me, I was looking for a software job these days, it seems like to place themselves in tech, for the most part. And this is something that not a lot of, you know, kids are interested in these days in and it does kind of have a nice, you know, work life kind of balance to it. And
yeah, so that’s the route I would say.
Greg Owens 33:44
Yeah, that’s, that’s great advice, because I think it’s, I think the younger generations don’t realize that there’s these programs out there like an apprenticeship program. And to sort of end you have to sort of earn your keep and away and work hard. Cuz you’re gonna be the low person on the totem pole there, but you kind of, you get a good feel for the job and you prove that you you’re able to take on responsibilities and problem solve and fix things. And you can move up pretty quick. And I think it’s a, it’s really good info that I think is sort of a forgotten world that the apprenticeship programs that are out there and they’re still there, which is great.
Trevor Truax 34:23
Yeah, I think there’ll be a lot of opportunity here in the future to you know, as the kind of the older generations are starting to, you know, cycle out and retire and it’s pretty much just, you know, family that’s that I see that are really following that.
Greg Owens 34:42
Yeah, that’s not with me, I I dropped out I wasn’t very good at school and my uncle, Fred McCarthy, you know, said hey, you know, if you want to come and I moved from New York at the age of 16, to San Francisco here to start painting and, you know, I painted and did all I can like what you said did all the grunt work all the time. And, you know, last started at the bottom and learned my way through, but I also had a knack for fixing things like I was in the dirt bikes and I was into cars and that kind of stuff. So I was always taking things apart and fixing them and that kind of stuff, which definitely helped, you know, in my my path, right? Yeah. Um, any any books or apps or anything like that, that you recommend or you you’re reading right now, right now doesn’t have to be even related to facilities management.
Trevor Truax 35:33
Hmm. That’s a good question.
I think I think this is kind of like out there a little bit, but
one of those some of the best advice I got
was, you know, from from from the, the ABM headhunter guy that found me. He’s like, you know, don’t worry, you got this, you know, skill levelwise. Otherwise, you don’t have to prove that to anyone. But what’s most important is that you remain teachable. And hear out the tenants, you know, whoever you’re working directly with or for, and hear them out, just just give them an A here pay, you know, pay attention to them, and, and keep them in the loop, you know, because, and that’s like 90% of it, you know, and as long as you remain teachable, and, you know, at first I thought this was all about, like, learning and knowing everything right. And then I realize it’s like, it’s more about just remaining open all the recent level resources that are available online now. So you don’t have to have it on your head. And, yeah, anyway, so So, I guess there was a book. I can’t remember the name of it, but they’re really helped me it’s called emotional intelligence. Right. That’s a great book. I read it. Yeah. It’s blue blue cover right. And I remember getting that early on and just kind of nice for us to like work, you know, with with, you know, keep on going relationships with people and you get a lot projected at it at you know, it i’ve you know, as a chief engineer someone sees me in a you know, you know, uniform and says you know, hey no one picked up my my recycling and starting to smell get this out of here, you know, it’s like talking down to you, Hey, you know, janitorial didn’t clean this up come you know get in here. It’s like wait a second. But you know more than a few times, you know, you get barked orders barked at you and it’s really it’s important, career wise to be able to defuse that and not get triggered and to say, you know, know that Whatever that person is saying, at you or even about you really isn’t about you, it’s about them, you know, and just to remain grounded and calm and, and, you know, you can talk to someone about it always, you know, but, and that’s helped a lot, you know, and just kind of help get behind the psychology of things a little bit and, and to help relieve the pressure and help me through a lot of situations where, you know, I could have easily blown up it, you know, and, and ended up in HR, you know, so and then also these days that, you know, doubling down that same, that same book, but just, you know, it is a much more socially conscious world now than it was 15 years ago. It’s different, different game and so, to really have that, you know, know what’s safe to say and what’s not, you know, and it was really important
Greg Owens 38:59
Yeah, I think that that was what some of the things I got out of that book too. It’s like, like you are in control of your response. Right? And there’s a there’s a delay and if you can see that delay between like what’s what’s the incoming sort of whatever the incoming is what triggers you the delay in the response, right? But you can choose that response and choose a direction and then know that you can like maybe you do have to like step away and cool off or and then come back to the situation which is, you know, which is a total valid thing to do.
Trevor Truax 39:35
Yeah, yeah.
Greg Owens 39:37
One of my teachers are always talked about it too is like when the triggering info is coming in is to kind of watch it come in and land like next to you to help with that delay. And I when she told me that I was like, That’s brilliant, right? Because like this, you know, the incoming, the incoming trigger, whatever it is, somebody’s mad at you. somebody’s talking down to you, whatever it is. If you’re like It’s landing here. Hmm, isn’t that interesting? And you get curious about it. Right? And then you like you said, you realizing that it’s, that’s really all about them and where they’re at. And you know, and the times, like, you know, was when people get really triggered. It’s like, wow, they are they’re really upset. It’s like, wow, they’ve got a lot of, I look at it as they have a lot of difficulties going on in their life. Right, that this thing is, is the thing that’s upsetting them right now.
Trevor Truax 40:30
Yeah, yeah. Well, you know, hold hold it with the situation with some compassion. Yeah, there anything. Yeah,
Greg Owens 40:38
That’s absolutely great. Great advice. Good. Any any parting thoughts? It was great having you on this podcast?
Thank you that went by quickly. Yeah, I think I’m fairly complete. Nice and where can people find you if they want to learn more about you or learn more about Paramount Property Company? Is it LinkedIn or email or what? How would they
Trevor Truax 41:02
is I’m on LinkedIn is Trevor Truax. And under Paramount Property Company, yeah, I think all my information is on there. So
Greg Owens 41:08
yeah. Okay. That’s great. And this has been the Watching Paint Dry Podcast podcast and we’ve had Trevor Truax from Paramount Property Company on here. It was a pleasure talking to you, Trevor, and I’ll talk again soon.
Trevor Truax 41:25
All right.
Katrina Hayes 41:26
Thank you.
Outro 41:36
Thanks for listening to the Watching Paint Dry Podcast podcast. We’ll see you again next time. And be sure to click subscribe to get future episodes.