Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/418584
38 • DECEMBER 2014 • WORLD FENCE NEWS Be Sure To Visit Us At Booth No. 1009 Living and working with a positive attitude BY TOM LUBY, PRESIDENT, PROFIT BUILDERS INTERNATIONAL Having a positive attitude about your job and, even more critically, about your life, is so very important. And it is so easy to do, and costs noth- ing to achieve. Conversely, I have seen all too often the havoc a negative atti- tude can play in personal and business life. Many years ago there was a pop- ular slogan in the media generated, I believe, by the Nike corporation, (or maybe it was Pete and Jake at Boss Fence, ha, ha): "Attitude is every- thing". Research- ing the origin of the slogan I found only a woman's soccer team in Wichita, Kan. claiming its origin. No matter, truer words were never spoken. Attitude is so important that if it isn't everything, it is darn close. Both in life and in every phase of business, our attitude and the attitudes of those around us are critical to success. In the shop, in the field, in the yard and even in the office and sales department, the attitude of the em- ployees directly contributes to the suc- cess, or failure, of the department and even the entire company. Another thing: attitude is conta- gious, both good attitudes and bad. That is why clarity and transparency in your business is so important. If you are unclear about your job or your responsibility in the company, ask your boss. Don't let confusion fester into a bad attitude or assume anything in areas of uncertainty. Clarify, and if you have "something on your chest," ask questions and get answers. Resolve issues before they be- come greater problems. Conversely, bosses, always re- member to "praise in public." If one of your employees has done an outstand- ing job, let him or her know about it in a very loud and public way. Encourage others to achieve the same high standards and goals; this is a key to improving overall company morale and promoting the rewards of maintaining a good attitude through- out your company. But don't just take my word for the importance of attitude; look at what a few famous people in history have commented about the state of mind we call attitude. Because that is what attitude is – a state of mind. Consider this… "It isn't what you have or who you are or where you are or what you are doing that makes you happy or un- happy. It is what you think about it." – Dale Carnegie "We can complain because rose bushes have thorns, or rejoice be- cause thorn bushes have roses." – Abraham Lincoln "The greater part of our happi- ness or misery depends upon our dis- positions, and not upon our circum- stances." – Martha Washington For years I have spoken and writ- ten about the importance of attitude not only in the workplace, but in life in general. This, therefore, is not a new topic, but one that bears repeat consideration, es- pecially as we ap- proach the Christ- mas season and another year's end, and begin to reflect and reevaluate our business and ourselves. Are we happy in our jobs and do we make the ones around us happy? Can we do better or are we just con- tent to struggle through another day to get our paychecks at the end of the week? How we, the employees, feel about ourselves and our jobs can make or break any company. Over the years I have seen so many companies whose employees appeared to be comprised of the latter – people just struggling through the week to get to pay day. I am sure many of you recognize that symptom. Apathetic employees of apathetic companies will experi- ence problems in almost every phase of business. The crews and superin- tendents are not getting enough work done; it seems that with the same amount of manpower they are gener- ating 20-25% less yield. In the office, yard and field in many fence companies I visited I have witnessed a lot of finger pointing; ev- eryone else is at fault; you may know the drill. This can be especially true in the sales department. At many fenc- ing companies across America I have seen occasions where every time that something went wrong in the com- pany, everyone wanted to blame the salesperson. They mis-quoted the job. There was not enough money in the bid; there was mis-information on the work order; the bill of materials was incorrect and there was a wrong ma- terials list for the yard and unclear in- structions for the crew. Everyone was very unhappy and dissatisfied with their job and their bosses. What do we do? Overall, this has never been an easy problem to solve and it takes the continued on page 40 Attitude is so important that if it isn't everything, it is darn close. Both in life and in every phase of business, our attitude and the attitudes of those around us are critical to success. 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