Construction learning pays. Any decent tradesperson collects tools
over time, to get the job done better. Technical knowledge and
people skills are simply a different type of tool. Leaders on the job
site need tools to plan, communicate, solve technical
problems, and act prior to the feces hitting the
fan.
Many of us in this business love to build things. We enjoy the
satisfaction that comes from building, from seeing our work become
schools, factories, cathedrals. We challenge the stereotype that
construction workers are big and stupid and construction foreman are
loud and uncouth. Of course, there’s some truth to that stereotype. But
mostly construction work consists of thousands of technical challenges.
We must creatively solve these challenges to successfully complete a building
project. We need both technical and management skills.
Construction knowledge, tricks of the trade, rules of thumb
and Superintendent’s checklists can greatly aid you to build more efficiently, economically, safely and
faster. There’s value for everyone when we learn more and perform
better.
Learning Leads to Advancement goes beyond promotions and pay raises and
includes gaining independence, competency, the ability to reach one’s
own potential and to help others reach theirs. Move up the ranks or out
the door to start your own firm. US President Theodore Roosevelt said, "Far
and away the best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work
worth doing."
Remember the old story about the visitor to a construction site, asking
several bricklayers what they were doing. The first responded, “I’m
laying brick.” The second said, “I’m working on this wall.” While the
third stated, “I’m building a cathedral.”
I developed this website to help people learn and advance…to build their
cathedrals well. Please look around the site. Check out my
ConstructionKnowledge Blog every couple of days to see what's new. Use us as your online resource for construction
knowledge. I look forward to the interaction.
As Always,
Ned Pelger, P.E.