relationships
Throughout my design career, I have repeatedly expressed to clients that their gardens are dynamic, constantly changing and only to a very minimal degree under anyone's control. You can plant, water, fertilize, cultivate and prune - "and if you're lucky," I say, "you'll enjoy the fruits of your labors in the form of a visual feast." But that's only if you're lucky, I continue, because no matter what we do to nurture gardens, they are always subject to the whims of Mother Nature. From the smallest annual to the most statuesque tree, no garden is immune. Even though I've always had this talk with clients, however, I've always held the mild belief that it's possible in some ways to stay a step ahead of her by being vigilant and active. I learned the other day at first hand that she
If you ask a roomful of watershapers about the toughest of the basic business challenges they face, there's little doubt in my mind that a large percentage of them would say that finding, hiring and keeping good employees is near the top of the list. That always-tough task is complicated by the fact that the vast majority of watershapers need to rely on others to get a project done. Yes, there are a few of you out there who work entirely on your own with the aid of subcontractors, but watershaping is generally a group effort involving combinations of in-house salespeople, office managers and field workers as well as designers, engineers, project managers and all sorts of
It's amazing how many people I meet in the course of my day-to-day life who do not embrace the basic idea that the single most important part of doing business is how they interact with current and prospective clients. Way too often, I'll run into someone - usually an employee, but sometimes (and shockingly) a manager or owner - who just doesn't have a clue or really doesn't seem to care. This happens so often, in fact, that I find my patience growing shorter with the laziness, incompetence or downright rudeness I encounter. It's gotten to the point where I'm
You don't have to be a football expert to sit in the stands on a nice fall day and watch the locals bash the visitors. But to get the most from the festivities, it helps to know the difference between a two-point conversion and an on-side kick. Being able to converse with your seatmates about the nickel defense and the single-wing offense surging back and forth before your eyes makes it even better. The jargon isn't just for the players and sportscasters. Electricity is a bit like that. Most of us are users, and most of us know some of the jargon despite the fact we don't work at a power plant. We know that we have 12-volt batteries in our cars and that the porch light takes a 60-watt light bulb. And for many folks, that's enough. I believe, however, that those of us who work with things electric on a larger scale can benefit from