Meet Chris McGurrin | Custom Woodworker and Van Builder

We had the good fortune of connecting with Chris McGurrin and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Chris, can you share the most important lesson you’ve learned over the course of your career?
As you could imagine, running your own business teaches you a plethora of lessons. Throughout my journey I learned valuable lessons across a variety of disciplines, such as financial, marketing, operational, managerial, etc. That said, these learnings are fairly pragmatic, and can easily be overcome with basic awareness and discipline.

But a far more enigmatic lesson I have learned in my journey is that the hardest part of running a business is managing yourself. As a small business owner, your business is completely reliant on you – no one else is going to run it for you. If you want something done, you need to do it.

Think of your business as a car – maybe your marketing is the paint, your operations the drivetrain. But at the end of the day, you are the engine. And if the engine isn’t working, then the whole car is useless.

Having your own business is a deeply personal journey that teaches you a lot about yourself – how you motivate yourself, what makes you anxious, what gives you joy. It is so important to understand how you work on a personal level, so that you can adapt yourself and your business in order to properly align them.

When you have your own business, it is easy to get burnt out, to get stuck in habits, and to feed into personality traits that can either benefit or damage your business.You don’t want your habits to damage your business and how you work, and you don’t want your business to damage your spirit and wellbeing. You need to figure out how to keep the engine running smoothly and efficiently so that the car can continue to drive forward.

This was one of the most valuable lessons I learned – that if I can properly understand and manage myself in relation to my business, then I can build a successful business, and everything else will fall into place. Ultimately, it comes down to creating an environment for yourself that allows you to perform at your highest level in a sustainable way.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
My favorite part of my job as a custom van builder is the creative freedom that I have when I build. While vans are all about functionality and utility first and foremost, they are also a living space – a place you can find comfort and familiarity in. A place that gives you peace and relaxation.

I love design, and I love coming up with new ideas. With a background in fine furniture design, I try to bring new, fresh ideas to each van that I build so that every van is different from the last. Each van gives me a fresh opportunity for a new interior design concept, with the possibility of new textures, new colors, new light fixtures, new layouts, etc.

There are a lot of vans out on the market now, and it can be hard to differentiate as a builder. That’s why I try to incorporate fresh new design elements with every van, so that each client can hit the road with a a home on wheels that really is uniquely for them.

That said, I didn’t have much of a creative/design background prior to this, so this job has been a beautiful opportunity to discover and hone my own creative voice. Before starting my company, I had no idea that I had all of these creative ideas within me, and one of my most valuable learnings has been that we all have a lot of creativity within us – it just comes down to finding the right way to unlock it.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Considering I live in Boulder, CO, the first place we would go to grab some food would be Southern Sun. Their menu may not be the most exciting, but the food isn’t the main reason why we go anyway. Southern Sun has the best atmosphere in Boulder – it is cozy, familiar, and it just feels like you’re surrounded by a bunch of friends you haven’t met yet. It’s a nice, easy spot to grab some food, drink some beer, and play some cards. And then of course, ya gotta top it all of by grabbing some ice cream from Sweet Cow across the parking lot!

It wouldn’t be a trip to Boulder without hitting the trails, so a quick trip up Lion’s Lair to Sanitas would be in order, followed by the Boulder Farmers Market. After hangin by the creek for a while, we’d get the best tacos in town which (in my opinion) are up in NoBo at Tierra y Fuego, or if you’re feeling fancier, you could always go to Bramble & Hare, a great farm to table spot on Pearl.

And last but not least, it doesn’t hurt to enjoy a good sunset by having a picnic with friends either in North Boulder park or in Chautauqua, having a catch and playing with some doggos!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I need to give a huge shoutout to Jessie Shafer. Jessie was my boss when I worked at my first job out of college in the natural and organic products industry, and was a huge role model for me.

I am fully aware of the fact that I wasn’t the easiest person to manage – I was pretty chatty, always wanted more autonomy and freedom, and thought I knew more than I did. Jessie worked so well with me, exercising patience, encouragement, and always seemed to find the right balance between giving me the creative freedom I craved and carefully guiding me in other moments.

I was always in awe of how Jessie operated, and she was well-admired within our company for her incredible character. Kind, creative, strong, fun, driven, focused, and empathetic, it felt like she could wear a million hats at once. She taught me a lot about myself, and was always so tactful in giving me valuable feedback to help me grow both in my career and as a person.

She showed me what great leadership looked like, which I strive to replicate. And to top it all off, she is one of the biggest reasons why I have the van building business I do now. When I was debating whether or not I should buy a van and live in it (while working remote), not only did she give me the okay, but she strongly encouraged me to bite the bullet, telling me “if not now, then when?”

I am forever grateful for Jessie, and she is a huge reason for why I have a successful business today.

Website: https://dicotdesigns.com

Instagram: @dicot_designs

Linkedin: @cmcgurrin10

Facebook: Dicot Designs

Youtube: @dicot_designs

Image Credits
There is only one image that needs credit – the one of the dining table with the spider-like legs. Please give credit to Be Boulder Photography.