If you had to build with your knowledge with the materials you would find locally, what would that look like?  Oh yea, you also have no cash.

I recently had the pleasure to visit a few countries in the Western Carribean.  Instead of staying close to the tourist routes, my wife and I tried our best for the brief time we were there to see what the locals would see, to experience their world.   I couldn’t help but take pictures of their homes.  By far, the homes in Guatemala were the barest, and simplest.  Some built with  no more than what you could find in the forests and trash dumps.

The home pictured above was one of the nicer homes, more put together than the rest.  I am sure this home builder had some experience building.  Bumbling around the local streets, I passed many abodes, few with any architectural elements incorporated save for walls, and a shed or gable roof.  Many cooked beside the road, over stick fires, with palm fronds to shade their head.  Babies were washed in 5 gallon buckets, transportation was tied to a fence post refueling on the grass at their feet.  Their was something simple about all of this.  Something organic.  Yet I still was an onlooker, never really able to be in their shoes.

I observed as much as I could, and left Guatemala with two main thoughts:

1. The need for education. From cleanliness and health safety, to organization.   The world benefits with being shown how.  In building houses, some quick information can go a long way.  The modern world seems to forget the education of the past.  Each generation relies on their own experience to build.  This usually results in a few sticks holding up a square of tin, or rubber.  Crowded in cities, people seem to be waiting for deliverance.  How are such great building practices of our past buried and never passed on.  I’m not sure, but its time to re-educate.  All should be able to use resources around them to survive. Our industrial world has quite a bit of byproduct.  If only we could harness that, and come up with a way to teach and house the have nots of the world.  In the back of my mind, their lies a thought on how to build a home the least expensive way possible, where it would fight the elements, and give someone a place to call home.  Many people in the world are calling old shipping containers home.  At 8′ X either 20′ or 40′, they are an economical shelter.  Here in Nashville, you can purchase one for less than $2000.  Cities are being built from these that even I would love to live in.

2. What we feel we can’t live without, we probably can! I know Americans that will pay their cable bill before their water bill.  There has been a push for larger homes over the past few decades from lenders and developers, to codes officials.  Do you know that there are laws that govern how small your house can be.  Many cities and neighborhoods have further size restrictions.  I am seeing a swing in the other direction though as evidenced in one of my favorite sites dedicated to the small house.    I love to remodel small homes, reworking them so that they flow and live better.  Tight homes that are more energy efficient and more comfortable for their inhabitants.  Personally, I have an 1800 square ft home.  We live in 1200 sq ft of it rarely going upstairs.  I believe we could live in a smaller home, but we try and put what we love to good use.  We entertain, and actually house couch surfers quite a bit. Its essential to try and share what we have with those around us.  I look at the picture above, and wonder if I could live there.  Would the Thoreau in me come out enough to find joy there? Who am I kidding, I would want to remodel it!

We humans are intertwined.  Giving to those around us, living life with those close to us is vital to a thriving community.  If we start with our neighbors, and extend that further, it won’t matter what you live in, you will feel fulfilled.

Questions?

What kind of repeatable home can you dream of, invent that could change the way others live?

What resource can we make available to aid the health and home of those around us, around us as living on the earth?

Every time we finish a project I think to myself  “what is the last image the company will be remembered for?”

For most construction companies, the last thing the client remembers is how thankful they are to have that project completed. Usually over time and over budget the positive feelings have long passed.

Since one of the cornerstones of our company is to be on time and on budget, we typically receive great feedback and references at the end of projects. However, many of the subcontractors never receive this praise from the client, nor do they see a finished project.  Also their is the need to celebrate the return or turnover of the home to the client. To remedy these issues we, when possible, throw an open house party. The goals of the party are:

1. Create a positive last image of our company in the mind of the clients

2. Allow friends and family of the client to come by and see the work we’ve accomplished first hand.

3. Invite the subcontractors to see the finished product and be thanked for their hard work.

4. Celebrate our team including project managers and subs.

5. Create a network with other potential clients

Every party we have thrown meets all of these goals and more. We have drinks, listen to music, have a photo slide show of before pictures, a portfolio of our other complete work, and most importantly get to show off a great finished product.  Sure it costs a bit of money, but the value is well worth it.  So go for it, give the gift of a celebration to not only those that work with you, but to those that chose to have your company in their lives!

I want to bring special attention to a Herculine effort on the part of our crew.   This inner circle of our team shows that they have much more than just knowledge, they have a passion for what we do.

If you live in Middle Tennessee, you know we have had major rain this week.  So much rain that it is easy to justify staying home.  We are currently running two projects, one a small basement bathroom install for a repeat client of ours (West), and kitchen remodel addition (Fields/Newton) . Friday night about 8:30 I received a call from Fields/Newton letting me know that the side door was not locking and that there was rain water accumulating in the unfinished basement.  Now to set the scene, Tuesday we excavated and placed footers, Wed and Thur we laid block.  All of this in between bouts of rain.  Our goal is to have them back in by Thanksgiving, so keeping time is of importance.

I myself am in Kentucky camping so the first thing I did was call Eric (project manager) and Jeff  (carpenter) to see where they were.   Unbelievably on Friday night at 8:30 they were just heading home after working through some kinks at the West project.  I got ahold of Jeff and he volunteered to turn around and head to Sylvan Park.  Eric called shortly after, he was having dinner with West, and said he was heading over there too.  I touched base about 10:30 and they had solved the problems and were chatting with our clients.

Jeff and Eric get it.  They had been working since 6:30 A.M. and still had the desire to make sure things were right.  What they get doesn’t have anything to do with working a 16hr day, it has everything to do with why we are here.  Not only is the quality of a project necessary, but the client experiences is of equal importance.

I have always dreamed of construction being an experience you can’t wait to be a part of.  Skilled artisans, well thought out plans, impeccable design (thanks to Mary)  and clients willing to enjoy the process.  I see that dream becoming a reality on weeks such as this.  When our inner team steps up and is willing to help build that goal.

For those of us in the building industry, don’t settle for what you can get away with.  Embrace quality construction and thoughtful planning.  Allow the client on your team. Most importantly tell the story of your entire team, from accounting (Thanks Kurt) to cabinetmaking. (Thanks Chris Barber).

For clients, you can be a part of this too.  Allow construction to be an art.  There are men and women working harder than they should be striving to make your home a better place.  Celebrate the wins, laugh at the kinks.  Most importantly join in the experience and become a part of something that matters.

Eric and Jeff, you rock.  Your work this week has been exemplary.

Questions:

Who do you need to acknowledge for their efforts? Be specific

What are you a part of that matters?