"Aspiring CEOs…Dream it, Diagram it, Do it!"
Troy Vincent is the founder and owner of The Engraving House, which is located in Lithonia, Georgia, where he brings 16 years of experience to that role. Born and raised in New Orleans, Louisiana, he grew up as the oldest of three children. He is the father of one daughter. As a 1997 graduate of Iowa State University, Vincent has a Bachelor’s Degree in Speech Communication and Rhetoric. In 2013, Troy Vincent founded The Engraving House. There, he specializes in creating permanent keepsakes associated with customers’ memories, events, and other special occasions.
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Let’s start with a brief introduction first. Introduce yourself to our readers.
Troy Vincent: My name is Troy Vincent. I am a prominent entrepreneur out of the Atlanta, Georgia area, founder and CEO of The Engraving House. I got into the engraving business after creating a poem for my friend who was celebrating his parent’s wedding anniversary. It inspired me to eventually found The Engraving House. I’ve been able to provide services to many clients across the country.
Our audience is interested to know about how you got started in the first place. Did you always want to become a CEO or was it something you were led to? Our readers would love to know your story!
Troy Vincent: I have always had a gift for sales. The concept of buying and reselling intrigued me. I believe I was always destined for entrepreneurship. It wasn’t until 2005 that I understood entrepreneurship was part of my purpose.
“Selfmade” is a myth. We all received help, no doubt you love to show appreciation to those who supported you when the going got tough, who has been your most important professional inspiration?
Troy Vincent: My mentor, George Arnold introduced me to the engraving business back in 2005.
How did your journey lead you to become a CEO? What difficulties did you face along the way and what did you learn from them?
Troy Vincent: Being fired from multiple jobs helped me discover that entrepreneurship was where I was destined to be. There were many challenges along the way. Not having many entrepreneurs in my circle of influence was a huge hurdle to overcome.
Tell us about your company. What does your business do and what are your responsibilities as a CEO?
Troy Vincent: The engraving house is a stone works company. We manufacture stone products. Anything granite and marble primarily. Headstones and commercial signs are two main products. My primary role as CEO is to provide the company vision, put the right people in place to help realize the vision and give them the tools to be successful.
What does CEO stand for? Beyond the dictionary definition, how would you define it?
Troy Vincent: The person who identifies a problem, creates a solution, puts people in place to execute the plan.
When you first became a CEO, how was it different from what you expected? What surprised you?
Troy Vincent: I didn’t realize how much effort it takes to work with your teammates and staff.
There are many schools of thought as to what a CEO’s core roles and responsibilities are. Based on your experience, what are the main things a CEO should focus on? Explain and please share examples or stories to illustrate your vision.
Troy Vincent: Main responsibilities include identifying, inspiring, and empowering your greatest assets (your people). Also understanding your industry trends and staying ahead of them.
Share with us one of the most difficult decisions you had to make for your company that benefited your employees or customers. What made this decision so difficult and what were the positive impacts?
Troy Vincent: The decision to purchase a monument company and move the business from engraving gifts and awards to stone products. It was a market I had no prior knowledge of.
How would you define success? Does it mean generating a certain amount of wealth, gaining a certain level of popularity, or helping a certain number of people?
Troy Vincent: Success is identifying your life’s purpose and walking in that purpose daily. Being able to move from seeing life from a worm’s eye view to a bird’s eye view.
Some leadership skills are innate while others can be learned. What leadership skills do you possess innately and what skills have you cultivated over the years as a CEO?
Troy Vincent: Sales are natural to me. Being organized is a skill I’m still learning to master.
How did your role as a CEO help your business overcome challenges caused by the pandemic? Explain with practical examples.
Troy Vincent: It helps us be more creative with ways to help us connect with our customers. We became more technically sound.
Do you have any advice for aspiring CEOs and future leaders? What advice would you give a CEO that is just starting on their journey?
Troy Vincent: Aspiring CEOs…Dream it, Diagram it, Do it!
Thank you for sharing some of your knowledge with our readers! They would also like to know, what is one skill that you’ve always wanted to acquire but never really could?
Troy Vincent: Play the saxophone. Have not taken the time to learn yet!!
Before we finish things off, we have one final question for you. If you wrote a book about your life today, what would the title be?
Troy Vincent: “Worm’s eye view to bird’s eye view”
Jed Morley, VIP Contributor to ValiantCEO and the host of this interview would like to thank Troy Vincent for taking the time to do this interview and share his knowledge and experience with our readers.
If you would like to get in touch with Troy Vincent or his company, you can do it through his – Linkedin Page
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