It all began in Golden, Colorado when R.J. Duarte was eight years old and started cutting grass for his family and neighbors. It was at a young age that Duarte first learned the value of hard work and the power that determination has to fuel success. Work ethic is one of the most effective qualities to have within any workplace, and Duarte embodies this trait. In 2008, Duarte used his ambitions alone to create a small business for himself that he could use to make money in preparation
he knew was already full of success and was efficiently bringing in hundreds of thousands of dollars a year. Green Worx’s business was booming while he was in high school and there was no reason, not even college, for him to throw it all away. With this, he went to work reframing his business model and projecting future growth inclusive of some model changes. He repositioned his goals for Green Worx and turned a high-volume, small-client business into a premium landscaping-and-maintenance company that would pose more of a risk, but allowed for the potential of a much higher reward.
He made the right decision in doing this, and today Green Worx operates four trucks and a peak-season crew of a dozen-plus people. When Duarte made the big decision to stick with Green Worx and skip out on college, people questioned him extensively. They always ask, even to this day, “How’s college going R.J.?” and he just tells them the truth. He is a hardworking person who gives jobs to other hard-working people. This sort of question has R.J. saying, “They [society] want(s) to hear about your degree, not your company.” An important question to consider is this: What is more valuable in life, having a piece of paper recognizing four years of effort you put into it, or, a lifetime of hard work and dedication to the success and growth of a business that you have poured your heart into? Well, both are valuable, but one is entrepreneurial, the other, not so much.
R.J. is not only a man of notable work ethic and ambition but an entrepreneur.
He took a risk, he innovated the process in which Green Worx landscaping does their job, he continues to grow in annual revenue, and he undertakes challenges. R.J. proves that you can very well make $750,000.00 a year on ambition, determination, and work ethic alone, any college degree aside. Entrepreneurs are people who undertake challenges as a means to a successful end, and R.J. Duarte undertook.
It was really interesting to read about how someone took such a common job and turned it into something so big. I also enjoyed reading about R.J’s entrepreneurial spirit. He truly wasn’t afraid to risk everything, and go against the norm, when he decided to not go to college. I’m very glad it paid off for him, and that he is clearly on the path he is meant to be on.