Make Technology Your Ally

I have been called a dinosaur when it comes to technology. Many business colleagues of mine have expressed frustration that I don’t personally email them. The fact is, I think technology has become a huge aide to doing business. My company, Buena Vista Custom Homes has been quick to add the latest in construction industry software to manage our overall business. We were also the first to launch a state of the art website, winning the award from our trade association (The Home Builders Association of Metro Portland) for the best web site by a builder. And now, I am blogging?

My personal philosophy is this. As an entrepreneur and CEO of a company I look to my job as providing overall direction for my company. I know this, many of my employees personally send hundreds of emails daily. I look at my role as providing the vision for my company and then managing oversight. My work at Buena Vista Custom Homes often requires me to be away from my desk. And when I’m in my office, there always seem to be so many other tasks to address: phone calls to return, plans to review, meetings to attend, etc.

To be totally honest, I appreciate not being tied to my computer. I know colleagues who can slip into a frothy panic if separated from their email for too long. For me, rather than wasting valuable time slogging through all those communications, I rely on my assistant to relay the messages that require my immediate attention.

Plus, given my curious cast of mind, I know I could very easily get myself mired pursuing this or that question. I would challenge that many business owners or high level managers make this very mistake, thus falling into a myriad of details which hamper overall productivity.

Still, there is obviously a great deal more to the Internet than email and the occasional search. So “this dinosaur” is learning, wanting to enjoy the myriad benefits of the Internet without letting it distract me from my goal of building quality, state-of-the-art homes. My advice is embrace technology, but don’t let technology embrace you.

The Secret of the American Dream

There is a secret to the American Dream. And it’s not even a complicated thing—in fact, it couldn’t be simpler. My advice is: Do what you love.

Doing what you love is the one non-negotiable requirement of the American Dream. The instant you put your passion first, you turn the tables on conventional thinking and make the journey more important than the destination. And unlike the destination, which exists in the far-off future, the journey can begin today.

By making such a choice, you have also instantly distinguished yourself from the world of people who struggle for the next title or promotion. To succeed, to truly succeed, you have to love what you do first, and love the results second, if you pay much mind to them at all.

Have you ever wondered at the incredible energy of some people? How they achieve what seems like a tireless level of dedication? The secret is when the mission is your own, and not someone else’s, and inspired by real passion, words like “dedication” no longer apply. You work because you’re driven to.

Now, you might say “I don’t know what I love” or “I don’t have a passion.” But you do; we all do. It can be so close sometimes we can’t even see it until we really look. So break down the wall that separates “work” from “pleasure” in your life. See what happens when the two intermingle. Allow yourself to think big. That’s where the American Dream starts.

The Heart of Giving – Make It Personal

It’s true that making any sort of contribution to your community, be it in time, money or resources, is welcomed by those in need. Unfortunately, as a single company we can’t give to every group or help every person. This can be a painful reality when we’re faced with contributing to one organization to the exclusion of another.

My advice to business owners is to apply the same standard to our philanthropic efforts as we do to our business in general: do what you love. In other words, your contributions are going to have the greatest and most meaningful impact when they are motivated by your own life and what has personal meaning to you.

For me, being a father of five and one who has experienced the challenges of recovery, I feel the greatest connection to youth-oriented organizations and to those groups dedicated to helping people overcome substance abuse.

That’s where my heart is. Where is your heart? Consult your own personal history to discover where you can make the greatest contribution to your community. And then dive in.

Choosing the organizations you support based on your own life and experience will make those efforts resonate all the more profoundly with both you and the charitable organization. And much as loving what you do fuels your business energies, following your heart when it comes to your philanthropic efforts keeps you galvanized. I will leave you with this closing advice, develop an annual plan for giving for your company. It should be based on what you feel your company can give back, both through monetary resources and through donated time. Whatever you do stick to your plan and follow through, you will be glad you did. Good luck!

Welcome!

Welcome to my online blog. I hope share my insights about Oregon Home Building and the Oregon Home Building economy with everyone interested. Read on to find out more.