Being a leader for our industry
In April, I attended the National Lumber and Building Material Dealers Association (NLBMDA) Legislative Conference in Washington, D.C., for the first time. All I...
The most powerful word in your vocabulary
During the building boom, I ran a region of a company that sold tens of millions of dollars to a national builder. One day,...
You can’t judge what you don’t measure
My wife thought I was crazy when I told her the reason that I majored in finance in college was because it was the...
Go big or go home
When talking about commitment, there is a well-known comparison of the difference between ham and eggs. With regard to the eggs, the chicken is...
Hire slowly, fire quickly
One of the hardest tasks we face as leaders is building our team. Most often, we inherit a team, rather than build from scratch....
Technology: Poor planning in = garbage out
With the start of the new year, many of us are trying to figure out how to make our businesses better and more efficient....
Your first loss is your best loss
As our business cycle is winding down, I like to look back over the year and review what we accomplished and what we could...
Get out from behind your desk
Nearly anyone can tell you that sitting at your desk for long periods of time takes a toll on your physical wellbeing. You need...
Perfect is the enemy of good
One of the traits I look for in members on my team is a sense of urgency. This does not mean I want people...
You have to fail in order to succeed
When I was 24, I came back from working in corporate America and, with my brother, took over my father’s lumber company while it...