Valley Home Builders, Inc.

Twice laid off from tech-sector sales positions, Mehdi Vatani, Valley Home Builder’s CEO, switched gears. He parlayed his woodworking hobby into a job as a laborer carpenter with a framing and foundations company. When he gained enough experience, his knowledge of sales and financials helped him start Valley HomeBuilders.

“I wasn’t afraid to take on big projects,” he says. “I knew I could sell the work and had the confidence in my ability to build it after we sold it.”