Today we’d like to introduce you to Ricky Diaz.
Hi Ricky, I’m so excited to have you on the platform. Before we get into questions about your work life, how can you bring our readers up to speed on your story, and how did you get to where you are today?
Hello, my name is Ricardo, but everyone has called me Ricky my whole life. My brother Hector and I are first generation here in the US. My father, Sije, and mother, Nelba Diaz, came to Austin very young for a better future. Starting, it was more like a nightmare for them. They are both very hard-working individuals. Unfortunately, my father took a turn when I was a child and became a drug addict. His choice of drugs was heroin, but I’ve seen him high on different drugs growing up. He was in and out of our lives a lot, so we were evicted from our homes, sometimes living with friends or family until my mother got back on her feet. Besides the struggle we went through, my mother never gave up; she is probably the reason I work so much and so hard because I’ve seen that lady work up to 2 full-time jobs delivering pizzas during the day and newspapers from 12 am to 6 am making it back home to get my brother and me to school.
My father decided to go to rehab and came home when I was 9 or 10 years old. I saw him work extra hard for many years to fix what he messed up. We lived in Motel 6 close to Rundberg in North Austin until they had enough to rent a duplex behind Dobie Middle School. Even though it was a big accomplishment for my father to finally put us under a roof so we could start our life again, it seemed like the hard times weren’t over yet. We lived in that duplex for a little while without electricity or water. Having a generator, my dad got one from a friend of his that we plugged in one lamp that we kept in the hallway so it would give light to both rooms & stole buckets of water from the neighbor’s water hose to fill up the tank on the toilet when we had to go to the bathroom. This was our life for a short time until my dad could get things straight at home. Honestly, I was just happy to have my pops around. The struggle was real, but I knew my parents were doing their best! Eventually, with time, things got better, but still A lot of hurdles we had to go through to live an everyday life.
Growing up in the Rundberg area introduced me to many negative things. At 14 years old, I was selling drugs for my friends’ parents, who were known well in the neighborhood, and then I started hanging out with a gang that ended up getting me put in by 6 members. This is where things got crazier for me. My life of crime started and lasted till my first son was born. At this time, I was 19. He was my angel sent from heaven. I knew I had to change my ways of living; I did not want him to see or go through what I’d seen or done. I was an 8th-grade dropout with no goals or plans. The only thing I knew to do was paint houses because my father had opened a construction company, and I would help him from time to time. So, I decided to open a painting business at 20 years old. I had no clue what I was doing, but I knew how to work! I failed 3 times and ended up at different 9 to 5 jobs because tho I had a business, I did not have the funds to run one. With rent and a family to feed, it was hard. The last 9 to 5 job I ever had was at Home Depot. I worked hard there, giving up on my dream to own a paint company, and now I am working towards moving up at Home Depot because all I wanted was to provide for my family. But that quickly got shut down when the assistant manager commented on me when I asked him what I had to do to become manager of my section, which was the building materials section. He told me people who talk like me and look the way I don’t usually get hired for those positions.
This gave me the fuel I needed to get back to my dream; a week later, they gave out our 9-month bonus check in a store meeting we had at 5 am. I was scheduled to clock in that day at 6 am, but as soon as I got my check, I clocked out and headed to the door; the same manager who commented asked me if I was staying for work. I told him I was taking this bonus check and opening my business back up as I walked towards the door. He looked at me and laughed at me sarcastically. “Good luck,” I responded with a dog named Lucky, and he got Ranruner. There’s no such thing as luck; I will make it happen!
Now, I run a successful Remodeling company in Austin that has revenue of over 1 million dollars as of this year. Although my dream was to own a paint-only company, God determined me to belong in the remodeling field. I’m an 8th-grade dropout fortunate to work alongside big companies like Kxan, Kvue, Journey Men Construct, etc. I’m still new to all this, but I have so many people depending on me that I can’t see myself giving up.
Would it have been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It has been a challenging road; I compete with businessmen & women who actually went to school for this. Those same people don’t usually look like me, full of tattoos. I know I can come off a little rough, but I am very knowledgeable in my field; plus, I’ve been a hustler all my life, so I know how to sell a job pretty well. Our work speaks for itself. I’ve been blessed with great workers who do awesome work, making it easier.
Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
We specialize in residential home remodeling and have worked with some very talented designers to make our work look even better. What set us apart from our competitors, I feel, is the family-oriented employees who love to do what they do; we work with many merchants who take pride in their craft, and we all respect each other’s work, so our Finish products are great plus the small business feel that we try our best to keep. However, as a company grows, we still like to have that personal relationship with our clients.
Where do you see things going in the next 5-10 years?
I’ve always been a go-with-the-flow type of guy, and it’s got me this far; I’m always looking for ways to improve and make everyone’s job easier, so I’m just planning to go as far as God takes us.
Contact Info:
- Website: Www.capitalpaintingandremodeling.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cpr512?mibextid=ZbWKwL
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@capitalpaintingremodeling4214
