Sunday, August 25, 2013

Helping you Keep Surging Forward

Hello fellow tradesman ( and women ) summer sure has flown by. I have spent a lot of time speaking with many of you and answering emails. There are a lot of questions I get where people are just asking that simple question; "How do I get ahead and make a more money or even just make a difference."  well that is why I will be starting a series on just what does it mean to keep Surging Forward. Also what does it mean to stay positive in a negative world. Lets begin by asking you a few questions. Keep in mind there are no right or wrong answers all of us have different traits, desires, and goals. Finding that balance is the real key to being able to stay positive in a negative world.
First question: What is it about the trade do you really enjoy?
Is it simply making something work from scratch?
Is it fixing something that is broke?
Is it helping others and meeting new people?
Is it the money?
Understanding this basic question is the foundation that will help you succeed in any trade. Knowing what makes you want to do what you do , will help you when the job is not so easy and the goal seems so far away.  The answer lies within yourself , so all I am here is to give you some things to think about. Remember I said there is no right or wrong answers. with that in mind it will also help you see if your motivations are correct and if you have the basic foundation to even come close to reaching your goals. The foundation is important for any thing we do or build, If the foundation is not solid than when trouble comes and times get tough your whole career may come tumbling down. The Bible talks about two people I like to think of them as being in the trades. One took a lot of short cuts and built his house on the sand with little or no foundation. When the storms came and the winds blew the whole building came down. All the hard work was now laid to waste. On the other hand there was the wise man who built his house on solid ground he may have even use a bit of concrete. when the storms came and the winds blew even when the big hurricanes came through. His house stood. Simply because he had a firm foundation the house was able to with stand the elements. There are a lot of shortcuts we can take in our lives but be assured the short cuts we take can become over whelming in the future. Many times we forget how we even got into a particular problem.
The questions above can help you shape your foundation as to why you are even in the trades. They can also be a basic question on who you are personally and what drives your life.
If I may also shed a little light on how to be positive in a negative world. Think about those that you know that are always self centered and negative. Many of them brag on themselves and how great they are. How do they make you feel does this create a positive attitude? Not really many of these people have one goal in mind and that is whats in it for me. well if everyone had that kind of goal nothing would get done in this ole world. What do you think might be the alternative? have you ever worked under some that you highly respect? so much that you would go the extra mile just to make him look good. Maybe you never have, than what if you had a boss that always looked out for you and encouraged you, taught you new things, treated you with the ultimate respect. ( we will talk about respect in a later blog this always seems to be a big one) how would you like working for him. So it takes us back to the questions? If it is only for the money, ask yourself this simple question. If you were given the opportunity to be alone and have all the money you wanted and be alone or be dirt broke and have family and friends around, which would you choose. something to think about. It reminds me of an old twilight zone where a person was given a stop watch where he could stop time it was really cool until he decide to rob a bank. once inside he stopped the time and walked right into the vault. He than started to walk out with a boat load of money and wouldn't you know it he dropped the watch. The watch broke and he could not start time back up again. where are you in your life are you working simply for you and your goals or are you trying to make a difference it others. strange how that works. something else to think about until next time feel free to drop me a line or share your jobsite issues. and Remember Stay safe and keep Surging Forward.