re: Construction Project Management and Career Changes

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For those that don't know, this job is like sitting in a giant pressure cooker of stress and anger day in and day out. There is always someone to fight with, always someone to argue with, always a problem, always someone unhappy, and always someone blaming you for things that you don't and will never have control over.


You just described almost every job with a decent salary attached to it.

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This is also very true. There are very few easy, nonstressful, high salary jobs.

If the high paying jobs were easy, everyone would do them

It sucks even more when a client thinks they know what they want and really doesn't have a clue.

I was basically in your exact same shoes at almost the same age. I graduated from LSU in CM and started working as an estimator at a good sized commercial GC in the New Orleans area. Moved up to Assistant PM then to PM. Worked in those three positions for about 8 years.
The company I worked for was great. The owner took care of his employees. They did great work and had a very good reputation in the industry but I eventually grew into hating what I was doing. For me personally, the stress that came along with what I was doing just wasn’t worth it. To me, all I felt like I was doing was fighting with people to get them to actually do what the said they were going to do and what they were contracted to do.
I was literally running three jobs with roughly 25 different subcontractors on each job. Just to name A FEW job requirements, I wrote all subcontractor agreements, built and maintained all schedules, reviewed and processed all submittals, balanced job budgets, reviewed and processed all RFI’s, change order proposals, change orders, produced bills to the owner, reviewed and coded all invoices for every aspect of each job, held weekly architect/owner meetings and typed the meeting minutes, held weekly subcontractor meetings and typed the meeting minutes. The list goes on and on. Lots of people don’t realize what actually goes in to building something and the GC is obviously on the front line of the whole thing.

My blood pressure got to the point to where I needed medicine. I didn’t sleep well because I always woke up worrying about schedules and potential problems. I was fighting with my wife because I was very irritable. I finally decided that this job wasn’t for me. It just didn’t work with my personality. I made a change at age 31 and it has been the best decision of my life. I now work in the equipment rental business and many of the contractors I dealt with, are now customers of mine. I love the construction industry but just didn’t like what I was doing in that industry. I make a lot more money now and I’m no longer on the BP medication. To the OP, make the change ASAP.

(no message)

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hate to break it to you but if that’s your life you work for a shitty contractor. I’m a contractor and my days are nothing like that

I love my job, my customers love me and my employees are living the dream. Every day we do our part to keep the wheels of commerce turning by designing, building or improving facilities that our owners use to employ others and generate revenue

you need to go job hunting

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Said it better than I did

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Unless you own the business.

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Explain that more please?
Are you implying that business owners have it easy and stress free?

I'm sure it helped you, but the way I see it if you need a therapist to help you do your job (and you aren't in a direct combat role in the Military) you probably should not be doing that job.

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I was basically in your exact same shoes at almost the same age. I graduated from LSU in CM and started working as an estimator at a good sized commercial GC in the New Orleans area. Moved up to Assistant PM then to PM. Worked in those three positions for about 8 years.
The company I worked for was great. The owner took care of his employees. They did great work and had a very good reputation in the industry but I eventually grew into hating what I was doing. For me personally, the stress that came along with what I was doing just wasn’t worth it. To me, all I felt like I was doing was fighting with people to get them to actually do what the said they were going to do and what they were contracted to do.
I was literally running three jobs with roughly 25 different subcontractors on each job. Just to name A FEW job requirements, I wrote all subcontractor agreements, built and maintained all schedules, reviewed and processed all submittals, balanced job budgets, reviewed and processed all RFI’s, change order proposals, change orders, produced bills to the owner, reviewed and coded all invoices for every aspect of each job, held weekly architect/owner meetings and typed the meeting minutes, held weekly subcontractor meetings and typed the meeting minutes. The list goes on and on. Lots of people don’t realize what actually goes in to building something and the GC is obviously on the front line of the whole thing.

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Man, I don't know that I could have said it better than that. I always resort back to the thought "maybe I'm just complaining too much and need to suck it up. Work sucks and you have to suffer"

I am a CM around your age as well. I work for the Client/Owner though (PetroChem Plant). This may be a route you can try and take.

I'm pretty new in my roll, but the stress is less than you are talking about. As a CM on the owners side, I put all the stress on you (which I see you are getting lol). At the end of the day, I still have a boss to report to and i still have to make deadlines, but at least i can push the majority of the stress to the GM to make it happen.

When Projects fall inside of turnarounds, the stress level is definitely elevated. but once its over I can usually work 4-10's.

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Sounds like you need a company change, not a career change.

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Have you considered working for a subcontractor? Its more specialized and sometimes can be less stress than working for a GC and being pulled in a 100 different directions (don't get me wrong its still construction). I went the GC route for 4 years, the subcontractors route for 7, and now I'm on the Owner/Developer side. The stress has progressively lessoned and through my personally experience the only way I was able to pull my self out of any work funk was to move on.

To me, and I've been through this, is your scared of the change. You work in an industry that's constantly changing everyday there is the unexpected or unknown that you have to deal with and the only consistent thing you can rely on is the job you have. Its like we almost trick ourselves into thinking that staying put is better than moving on. But as you can see from most of the other posters taking the next step of moving on will help out tremendously.

Good luck either way. Its sounds like you are good, well trained PM who could work anywhere.