Mostly to share, and hope that others might have a chance to reflect on why we are where we are this year. I truly believe that you reap what you sow, and you do so tenfold.
I have been thinking lately about how influential my assosciation with one friend in particular has been to me, my business, my success. This guy, when I met him, I recognised off the bat that he was brilliant as a business thinker, but I did not for a second think that he and I would ever be more than people who shared a dinner table on occasion. We both are involved in construction, but I am remodeling, and he was new construction, with a decent chunk of that in commercial work. Two very different animals.
Long story short, the evolutions of life occured. I have gotten involved in new construction, he has gotten involved in remodeling. We have helped each other stay out of potholes. We have found a way to make our two separate entities remain separate, and meld flawlessly when the job suits it. We have both gained in client base, prosperity, and prestige.
In looking at my books last night, my sales this year have almost doubled over last year, and about 60% of that addition is directly attributable to this relationship. I find that fascinating – that one person, one friendship, the will of two people to work together to reach a common goal, can in such short order produce such abnormal results.
I am not a particularly religious person, but I have no other way to describe how I feel other than to say I am blessed to have the opportunity to assosciate myself with such people. And I’m saying it here because we’re approaching a time of year where people by nature, regardless of religious affiliation, tend to think more about what they have to be thankful for. We quit thinking so much about overhead costs and profit margins and think more about our families, our friends, and that really really outstanding client that we had this last year who just made months of the year flow by effortlessly.
Say thanks to those people. Those relationships are what separate those who succeed from those who wish for success. It is a time of year where I have to reflect on the idea that I am not an island. All the things that make this business what it is wouldn’t be there without all of the people that influence it from outside.
We would do well to tell them of our appreciation.
Happy Holidays
Edited 12/3/2004 8:25 pm ET by RW
Replies
Thanks for an uplifting post....we get so caught up in our potholes here that sometimes the rewarding things about our careers get sidelined a bit.
I'm a small G/C, one or two custom homes per year. Last year, I had two difficult customers, one in particular a real piece of work (to say the least), who had me ready to throw in the towel.
But now, I'm back with a good customer on a nice project, a good stable of subs, and two full-time employees and a couple of part-timers that make me happy that I stuck it out.
You have described the word Synergy very well it is like a good marriage. I am glad it worked for both of you. I developed a phrase that I used when working with other people. "If you pull a piece of string it is very strong. If you push it???
Cheers
Mac