American Dreamers Renovations: Building More Than Homes

Morgan Young with American Dreamers Renovations

"Morgan, your head is in the clouds again."

I didn't think I was anywhere different, but if I was, I liked it there. In my imagination, I would envision cool tree houses, new home designs, and interior spaces that looked like art.

I can't remember a time when I wasn't thinking about construction & design. One of my earliest memories is with my Pappap who took a straight board, drilled two holes, and strung some rope through it to build me a swing. My whole world grew then - I went from standing outside with just a tree to a tree with a swing through a few simple steps. From that day forward, I never stopped thinking about what else I could do to improve the space around me.

I wish I could say that my path to homebuilding was easy and straight, but it was anything but. The obstacles, unfortunately, started pretty early with the idea that "tools are for boys." One Christmas, I asked my Mom for a saw- a real saw. She laughed and said, "You'll hurt yourself!" That holiday, I got a plastic microphone instead.

As time went on, my desire to work in construction grew but the opposition continued, "Do you know how hard it is to work in construction?", "The pay is so bad in construction!", "Income is not consistent - how will you support a family?" The fear of those answers led me to a steady, high-paying career in IT ... and I hated it.

In exciting news, I was able to take the income from that career and put it where I wanted to be ... building. For a few years, I would work all day in an office with a suit, but then I would head home and spend all my nights and weekends renovating. Like many, I started the projects in my own house first, but when friends and family would see what I did, it wasn't long before they asked me to work in their homes too. That expanded pretty quickly to real estate, rental properties, and more renovations.

Morgan Working on a Dream Home

I didn't stay in this limbo for too long. I asked myself, "What is holding me back from taking a leap into this full time?" I realized quickly the answer was me; I was the only one letting the fear of the rumors I heard hold me back. That was in 2010 ... The year I decided to get comfortable betting on myself ... the year my company, American Dreamers Renovations, was born.

For a few years, I didn't do anything but work and grow and work and grow. Construction is absolutely a busy and hard industry, but when you're doing what you love, it's so rewarding! There is nothing more satisfying than stepping back to view something you have made with your hands. A few years ago, my team also encouraged me to submit some of our projects to some industry competitions. It was something that didn't necessarily cross my mind, and quite frankly, the idea of being compared to my peers sounded a little scary - but ever since the day I made pursuing my interests my priority, I never let fear get to me. I applied for the awards - and I won them! That was the next level in my journey.

Now that I'm almost two decades out with a dozen awards under my belt, it's exciting I can spend more time in other areas that are important to me, too, like focusing on the pipeline of our next-gen professionals. Sometimes I would think back and ask myself, "Why didn't I just go for it from the beginning?" Outside of that general entrepreneurial fear, the answer was a lack of visibility of women in the construction space. People told me, "Tools are for boys," and I believed them because I didn't see any women with them. This is why I wrote my children's book, "Morgan Wants to Build." Would my path to construction have been more direct if I could see more women in construction? Maybe, maybe not. But I like to think that by writing this book and getting it into the hands of little dreamers, like I used to be, our next generation doesn't have to spend so much time in a gray space. Construction is a viable career, and it can support families. It's also really fun!

Morgan Young is an Award-Winning Homebuilder, Designer, and Author who resides in Pittsburgh, PA with her family, dogs, and pet pig, Bacon. Outside of the field, when she’s not dreaming or building, Morgan is out and about working on the very important topic of empowering females in the construction industry. To connect and collaborate, please join her social community: f: AmericanDreamersRenovations, IG: AmericanDreamersRenovations, or visit the company website: www.americandreamersrenovations.com

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