Beth Noska didn’t plan on a career in construction. There was no childhood dream, no family trade to inherit, no grand vision. A friend called and said she needed backup at a construction company. Beth said yes without really knowing what she was agreeing to. Seven years later, she’s the General Manager at Clark Custom Homes in Texas, overseeing custom builds that range from modern farmhouses to 7,500 square foot homes with interior courtyards.
This episode follows that unlikely path and gets into the real stuff along the way.
Beth talks openly about what that first year looked like. Subcontractors would listen to her instructions, then go up the chain to double-check if she actually knew what she was talking about.
“I remember days when I would get home from work and I just wanted to throw my hands up and say, this is not for me. I have no clue what I’m doing. I’m failing at everything I’m doing. And then some days I come home and say, wow, I really knocked it out of the park today. It took a really long time for there to be any middle road there. I always felt like I was winning or losing and nothing in between.”
What changed? She kept showing up. She asked questions, even when they felt dumb. She sat with tile guys and framers and learned the work from the ground up.
“I would just say, hey, I know we need to do this. Can you show me how it’s going to get done? Can you show me what you need? I will get everything here you need. I’ll sit out here with you all day long. Just help me learn.”
Over time, the testing stopped. The trust built. And eventually, the crews started treating her like one of their own.
“I think sometimes now, they forget that I’m not just one of the guys because the things that come out of their mouth is no different than if I was there or not. And that’s how I want it.”
The conversation goes into what respect actually means on a construction site. Michael and Beth dig into the difference between demanding it and earning it, and why one sticks while the other doesn’t. Beth’s take might surprise you. She argues that in some ways, being a woman made things easier. She could ask more questions without ego getting in the way. Guys were more willing to teach.
“I think in a lot of ways, it’s easier being a woman. We’re able to ask more questions, and they’re more willing to show us. They probably test men a little bit more than they do women, to be honest.”
There’s a good chunk of the episode dedicated to how Clark Custom Homes operates. Beth walks through their process, from the initial question-and-answer session where she wants to see your Pinterest board and understand exactly what you’re picturing, to the electrical walks where they figure out where your switches should go when you enter a room, to the cabinet walks with the cabinet maker on site. The goal is simple: no surprises at the end.
“What I love about Clark Custom Homes is most builders you can drive through a town or a neighborhood and pick out their houses. You can’t pick out our houses. Ours are all as unique as our clients are.”
She also gets into the business side. How they keep budgets transparent with 50 line items visible to clients in real time. Why she thinks some customers walk away believing Clark is too expensive, when really they’re just being honest upfront about what things cost.
“I even think sometimes we lose customers because they feel like we’re too high, but I just feel like we’re transparent and honest from the get go.”
The Friday-at-five updates that keep clients informed. The daily photo logs in BuilderTrend. The FaceTime walkthroughs for out-of-state buyers.
One of the more interesting threads is Beth’s approach to managing people. Her rule for project managers: if she tells them to do something a certain way and it doesn’t work, she takes all the blame. When it goes right, they get the credit.
“Every single sub or every single project manager on my job sites knows that if I line them out and tell them to do something a certain way and it doesn’t work, I will take all the credit for that. I take all the credit for the problems and I give them all the credit for the successes. And that seems to keep me earning their respect.”
When it comes to hiring, she’s not looking for the most experienced resume.
“I’m not necessarily hiring off of knowledge. I’m hiring off of give a shit.”
And for the crews working on her projects, trust is non-negotiable.
“I don’t let anybody work on your house that I wouldn’t trust in my house when I’m not home.”
The episode also touches on one of the funnier realities of managing job sites: getting grown men to actually communicate with each other.
“I cannot tell you how many times I’ve had a painter call me and say, hey, I’m almost done painting the outside of this house, when’s your trim guy going to be done? And my trim guy’s supposed to be there finishing up right now. So I get my trim guy on the phone: what are you doing? I’m finishing up the trim, I’m almost done. I’m like, you’re there at the house? He’s like, yes. I’m like, is the painter there? He’s like, yeah, he’s outside.”
Beth has worked hard to get her subs to actually know each other, follow each other on social media, show up at the same time in the morning. It sounds small, but it changes how they leave a project for the next trade.
Even after seven years and a promotion to General Manager, she’s honest about the doubt that still creeps in.
“I still have that feeling at least once a day, like I don’t know what I’m doing. So it’s a roller coaster for sure. I mean, now I feel more confident because I don’t hardly hit any situation that I don’t at least have somebody that I can phone a friend.”
When asked if more women should get into construction, she doesn’t hesitate.
“Absolutely. We need women that are paying attention to detail, that are smart, that are there to have fun. I mean, where else do you get to go work all day every day with no HR department?”
Beth Noska is a lifelong Texan who grew up in Garland and has called Royse City home since 1997. She discovered real estate at 17 and spent years building hands-on construction experience across North Texas before landing at Clark Custom Homes. Her background spans site prep, material selection, custom builds, renovations, and insurance claims. She’s worked her way from project manager to general manager, earning trust through showing up, asking questions, and getting it right. When she’s not on a job site, you might find her driving her 1981 Z28 or taking a side-by-side through the mud park.
Beth on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bethnoska
Clark Custom Homes: https://clarkcustomhomes.com
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