Employee Spotlight: Darius Greenleaf, Junior Associate

Meet Darius Greenleaf, Junior Associate, one of the newest members of our #FitzFam, who is currently developing the drawing set for a parking garage adjacent to one of our multi-family projects and prior had worked on the construction administration phase for West Point Plaza Apartments–a rapid renovation of over two hundred senior housing units, over the course of four months.

He joined us earlier this year with experience working on a few home renovation projects and on-site construction work including wall construction, laying hardwood, drywall, window installation, siding, etc. One of the projects was designed and built/renovated by his studio class in college, where he also developed a passion for wood working and furniture building–check out one of the two tables he built while at the @University of Illinois Urbana Champagne in the photos! As a post-grad, he is still active on the national level @Alpha Rho Chi Fraternity–a professional Architecture fraternity–and continues his involvement in the @National Organization of Minority Architects Illinois Chapter as a young professional.

Aside from his passion for architecture and building, Darius is a hobby portrait photographer. He loves to catch raw/genuine emotions and energy–but also loves to see the vibes someone chooses to express in their more posed moments. He not only captures people’s energy from behind the lens, but also being people that are motivated and full of energy and passion energizes him to work in a similar way. What was his first job and his insiders scoop on ‘secret menus’? Find out this answer and more in the questions we asked him below. We also invite you to get to know him further through his staff bio.

We took some time to get to know Darius, and here’s what we learned:

What energizes you at work?
“My coworkers. I feed off the energy of others. When people around me are motivated and full of energy and passion it drives me to go forth in a similar way. And when I need to take a break, just the small bursts of conversations on any given topic removes me far enough as a great moment of relief.”

What’s something you’ve done, but will never do again?
“Live alone. It’s rewarding and beneficial to do at least once. But it’s certainly not something I want to do again.”

What was your first job?
“Culver’s. I was a cashier/drive thru master. Starting pay was kind of low and frustrating. But the environment and people I worked with were so amazing. Fact: secret menus are only real for the employees that make them up.”

What book are you reading now?
“Talking to Strangers by Malcom Gladwell.”

What’s a mistake you made early on in your career, and what did you learn from it?
“Controversial to some maybe, but setting my expectations immensely high during initial post grad job search. It’s always valuable to know your worth and know what you want. But sometimes it’s more important to know you capabilities and know what makes you happy and build up from there instead of starting at the top with nowhere to go but back down.”

Are you an introvert or an extrovert?
“Extrovert. ESFP to be specific.”