I remember as a child my dad having me get outside on the weekends or when we weren't in school to help on projects around the house. It may have been working on fences, something to do with the pool, or fixing one of the many broken pieces of equipment that he's owned over the years. My part was typically just the simple stuff, following his directions step by step while we worked on that day's project. And I honestly never realized the thought and planning that went into some of these seemingly small tasks at the time.
But this weekend, we finally began doing some of the more serious landscaping at our new (1 year old) house. Before we could start the actual work, Britt and I had to decide where flower beds were going to be, where the walkway would be, which bushes and flowers to buy, what kinds of stones, etc. There were a ton of decisions to make before we ever even got dirty.
Next came the calculating and buying step. We had to figure out how much of this and that we would need, check prices, then go to various stores to buy everything we needed. Or so we thought. After working until too dark to see Friday night, it became apparent that:
1. You should always read instructions (modern day watch YouTube videos) BEFORE starting the installation process.
2. You should really do your math and thinking on the amount of supplies you'll need instead of just eyeballing it.
So, after three more trips to the store and more money spent than I want to count on Saturday, we hopefully now have enough to complete the rest of the projects. Don't worry, we'll post pics one day...soon...hopefully. But for now, the moral of the story for me was the business lessons I learned playing in the dirt.
I learned that there is a lot of thought and planning that goes into a project being completed successfully, on time, and within budget - successful outcomes don't just happen. I'm pretty sure that many of us have seen a situation at work that needs to be resolved. For us lower level employees, it seems simple: start this program, go with that vendor, fire/hire him/her, sell this, buy that, the list could go on. But just like I learned with my landscaping project this weekend; there's much more to it than meets the eye. Our managers are putting in a lot more thought, consideration, and money than we realize to make the companies that we patron and employ us successful. A great manager may make their job look effortless, but it's not. Whether your goals are to move up the corporate ladder, get a merit raise this year, or just to find a good or better job, be patient with those managers out there. Most of them are just like us - human beings trying to do the best job they can do too.
But this weekend, we finally began doing some of the more serious landscaping at our new (1 year old) house. Before we could start the actual work, Britt and I had to decide where flower beds were going to be, where the walkway would be, which bushes and flowers to buy, what kinds of stones, etc. There were a ton of decisions to make before we ever even got dirty.
Next came the calculating and buying step. We had to figure out how much of this and that we would need, check prices, then go to various stores to buy everything we needed. Or so we thought. After working until too dark to see Friday night, it became apparent that:
1. You should always read instructions (modern day watch YouTube videos) BEFORE starting the installation process.
2. You should really do your math and thinking on the amount of supplies you'll need instead of just eyeballing it.
So, after three more trips to the store and more money spent than I want to count on Saturday, we hopefully now have enough to complete the rest of the projects. Don't worry, we'll post pics one day...soon...hopefully. But for now, the moral of the story for me was the business lessons I learned playing in the dirt.
I learned that there is a lot of thought and planning that goes into a project being completed successfully, on time, and within budget - successful outcomes don't just happen. I'm pretty sure that many of us have seen a situation at work that needs to be resolved. For us lower level employees, it seems simple: start this program, go with that vendor, fire/hire him/her, sell this, buy that, the list could go on. But just like I learned with my landscaping project this weekend; there's much more to it than meets the eye. Our managers are putting in a lot more thought, consideration, and money than we realize to make the companies that we patron and employ us successful. A great manager may make their job look effortless, but it's not. Whether your goals are to move up the corporate ladder, get a merit raise this year, or just to find a good or better job, be patient with those managers out there. Most of them are just like us - human beings trying to do the best job they can do too.
I had the opportunity this past week to use our CFO's office for a demonstration. Over the years, I've often joked with him (somewhat seriously) that one day I want that to be my office. Will that happen? When will it happen? I don't know. For now, I hope that one day it will so that I can stay with a company I like working for and living in a town that I love. But I also hope that "one day" doesn't come before I'm ready. Don't rush your career, your fitness, your finances, or your life. Trust God's timing and just know that when the time is right and you're ready - the big desk, and all its stress, headaches, and heartaches, will then be yours.
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