When I created Crimmins Construction, I wanted to flee the norms.  I wanted to embrace new methods, create magnificence, and work alongside true craftsmen.  Not only that, I wanted team.  True synergy worthy of rivaling the greatest companies out there.  I wanted to use this synergy to change the experience for the clients we worked with, from previous disasters to the positive anticipation for future project. I wanted to bring out the best from the workers around me by placing them in appropriate roles and calling out of them the greatness that resides in our profession and in themselves.

From my previous experience in the construction field, all to often workers and leaders use negative means  to elevate themselves to a greater position than the one laboring next to them.  This is carried out  in a multitude of ways.

1. Constant bickering or inward fighting.

2. Withholding important knowledge or information from co-laborer for selfish gain.

3. Badmouthing the co-laborer to foreman, head boss or team member.

4. Resisting new information that contradicts their existing knowledge.

For leaders it is easy to blame this behavior on outside influences.  “Lack of education, their lower middle class ways.”  The lack of action has a few consequences: Continued stress, reduction in energy, and ultimately discarding the failed relationship.    How will those around us change if greatness is not called out of them. The dissolution off the relationship only enforces their incorrect attitude towards the world.  This then is our challenge, to call greatness out of all people we interact with.

The definition of a leader that I hold on to is how many lives you change for the positive. Changing lives by calling greatness out of those around us not only takes guts, but it takes energy.     Here are a few ways I want to do this:

1. Teach and model celebration for the successes of our employees and subs.

2. Creating a team mentality that will foster a mentoring attitude.

3. Never discipline a failure where the aim was to invent and create new.

If performed correctly, this will spread much further than our immediate company.   I spoke with an architect a while back and was recounting  a lunch meeting with another builder that I had.  The architect said, “I can’t believe you want to know them, whenever I meet another architect I think negative things about them.”  Even though this particular architect delivers a decent product, he will only ever produce, not multiply!

What are ways you use to replicate greatness?

In business, there is no need to compete with mediocrity, there will always be an abundance of that. Good business, the business I want to be in is the business of magnificence.

I have always believed that the way to a successful business is do what everyone else is doing but better. That is true, but I am wanting to go a step beyond that.

To those filled with fear that they won’t be able to get cheap and meaningless work if everyone focuses on magnificence.
Mediocrity in the construction field is a pandemic. We will not be rid of that anytime soon. Your fears are safe.

For the rest of us, what is that step beyond? Am I perfect? Is magnificence perfect? I do not think that magnificence has to be perfect, but it must be pointed towards that direction. Not arriving, but the journey towards. So perhaps the step beyond is just that, one step ahead of us.
We must remember that if we are not moving forward, we are moving backwards. So the drift is either upstream or down. Its easy to be mediocre, incredibly difficult to be the other.

Magnificence is not multi million dollar homes, although it could be. Magnificence is doing what is right, not only in building standards, but in dealing with the customer. Contracting is very much like a dance.
If we lead, and we should, the dance can be beautiful. This can happen changing out light bulbs, or restoring Victorian homes.

So this is my call, for you and me. Lets lead our team, and our subs into excellence. Always striving.