Arturo Alvarez Demalde is a Harvard educated businessman who has experience in many different industries. He has recently been featured in many interviews and mine is just one more to add to the repertoire. Right? Now he can say, “As seen on KimraBettasso.com!” That’s noteworthy, I think so at least. Anyway, onto the interview!
What type of DIY projects do you enjoy most?
I love working on my home. I feel that each dollar spent is an investment in the future well being of my home. I also feel that every hour spent is an hour devoted to maintaining my home.
What have you worked on recently?
I have two projects that I’ve undertaken recently. All of the fascia boards on my home were needing to be replaced. The previous owners had not done any basic maintenance such as painting the boards. They had also installed rain gutters over the top of the drip edge. If you’re not familiar with drip edge, it protects the fascia from water by diverting it out. Since the rain gutters were installed over the drip edge rather than under it, the water ran between the rain gutters and drip edge. This made the fascia rot even quicker than it would have without paint. This video shows a couple pictures of what can happen (not sure about the copper drip edge!). ThisOldHouse.com has a great forum discussion relating as well if you decide to do this yourself.
What’s the second project?
We have a water well that has a storage building built around it. It’s about the size of a 2 car garage which is wonderful. The siding, like the fascia was not taken care of. There was dirt and mud 2-6 inches up the sides when we bought the place and all around the bottom has rotted. It’s so rotten that you can put your finger through the wood! We’re going to be pulling off all of the trim pieces and wood siding to replace everything. I’m most excited about testing out my new nail gun!
Outside of DIY, what do you enjoy?
I love the outdoors, literally anything outdoor. Most of my work is spent inside so whenever I have the chance I’m sitting outside relaxing, walking, running and anything else. When there is inclement weather, it’s tougher so I sit inside like a puppy dog looking through the window longingly waiting for the day I can be outside again.
From a business standpoint what would you recommend to Arturo Alvarez Demalde when he was 25 years old?
I love the “what would you do different” question. It makes one stop and think about where they are now and what they thought they would become. There are many changes that I would recommend to the young Mr. Alvarez Demalde.
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Work less and spend more time with friends and family.
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When you work, work hard. Don’t let yourself get distracted while working.
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Put in a full day’s work that you can be proud of.
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Leave work at work, and if you work from home, set aside a time or place that is for work, and the rest is for play.
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Life is short. When you’re young and people tell you life is short you can’t believe them. When you realize that you’ve lived half your life, it’s eye opening.
Thank you for giving us a great interview Arturo Alvarez Demalde. You can find a couple of his recent interviews listed below.
Arturo interviewed by Ian Leaf. Arturo discusses niche marketing. Ralph Slaske talks with Arturo Alvarez Demalde about new home construction. Terry Bandy asks Alvarez Demalde about his time at Harvard.