Construction Brothers

Some people call it by name, and some people refer to it less directly, but anxiety is a real thing. And it can keep you from doing your best work and living a full life.   The experiences we describe in this episode might seem totally unfamiliar to some of you. But we’d bet that some of you are going to find yourself saying, “Hmm. Yup. I’ve experienced that…”   The anxiety we’re talking about in this episode isn’t just the general, mild sense of anxiousness and unease that arises in specific, somewhat stressful situations. We’re talking about clinically diagnosable anxiety, which often involves a racing heart rate, shortness of breath, shaky hands, nervous sweats, and inability to concentrate. It’s a physical and mental state that may keep you from functioning normally on some level.    We discuss the fact that admitting to anxiety can make you feel weak, out of control, and vulnerable. You might be hesitant to acknowledge the reality of the condition because part of the solution may be a visit to the doctor or a counselor.    Both Eddie and Tyler have experienced this sort of anxiety.    Eddie shares the fact that for several years he would feel anxious any time that he was not actively working. He wasn’t able to sleep well, and he’d find himself excessively analyzing things that didn’t need to be analyzed.    Tyler’s experiences started with music performances many years ago. It reached the point where the shaky hands and racing heart led to him avoiding performance opportunities. Then he’d find himself experiencing anger with some of the daily frustrations.    Both of us eventually spoke up about our symptoms and discovered that there are medications and other measures that can dramatically reduce the symptoms and effects of anxiety. Getting help gave us a tremendous sense of freedom.     Our advice: Be willing to admit it. Don’t assume you can wish away these symptoms. Mention it to someone you trust. Then set an appointment to discuss it with your doctor. It doesn’t mean you’re “crazy.” We go to coaches, trainers, and mentors for help in sports, construction–all kinds of areas. Why would the area of mental health be any different?   Even if you haven’t experienced anxiety of the sort that we discussed today, there’s a good chance that someone on your team or in your family has. We discuss some ideas for how you can help someone you’ve seen experiencing these symptoms. Open the door for the discussion.   Megaphone moment: There are tools that can help with anxiety. Reach out and grab them.     Resources:

• Find a Counselor:
  https://www.betterhelp.com/
• How Do You Know If You Have Anxiety: Signs, Symptoms, And When To Get Help: https://www.betterhelp.com/advice/anxiety/how-do-you-know-if-you-have-anxiety-signs-symptoms-and-when-to-get-help/
• What are Anxiety Disorders?: https://www.verywellmind.com/anxiety-disorder-2510539#toc-treatments

 

• Anxiety vs. Depression Symptoms and Treatment:

https://www.verywellmind.com/am-i-anxious-4045683  

• Is Anxiety a Mental Illness?:

https://www.verywellmind.com/is-anxiety-a-mental-illness-5271630  

• How to Help Someone With Anxiety:

https://www.verywellmind.com/how-to-help-someone-with-anxiety-5089005   Find Us Online: BrosPodcast.com - LinkedIn - Youtube - Instagram - Facebook - Eddie's LinkedIn - Tyler's LinkedIn If you enjoy the podcast, please rate us on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to us! Thanks for listening! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Work, family, finances–all of these things are wonderful, but they also cause stress. Sometimes, that stress can accumulate to the point where it becomes something more substantial and name-able: anxiety. It can be easy to downplay symptoms and brush aside concerns, but you’re not doing yourself any favors when you do that.    Today we discuss some signs that might indicate a level of anxiety worth discussing with a health care provider: 

• Nervousness and irritability
• Difficulty sleeping 
• Avoidance of places that cause stress
• Worry about things that happened in the past
• Stress surrounding social interactions

  We’ll be circling back around to this topic later, but if you’re feeling some combination of these things with some consistency, it might be wise to share that with someone who can help. Find Us Online: BrosPodcast.com - LinkedIn - Youtube - Instagram - Facebook - Eddie's LinkedIn - Tyler's LinkedIn If you enjoy the podcast, please rate us on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to us! Thanks for listening! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We’ve talked about some complicated things over our 138 episodes. Everything from laser mapping equipment to $15 billion petroleum-processing factories. The complexity of today’s topic exceeds all of those. Today we talk about parenthood. Since we’re the Construction Brothers, our focus is primarily on fatherhood.     Between the two of us, we have eight kids. That’s a bunch of years to travel that long learning curve. We start by touching on some of our parenting highlights:

• A gross-out story involving massive regurgitation
• The year of flu, black mold, and a pandemic 
• A gifted Sharpie artist  
• A very non-Easter-y egg story (This one’s not for the squeamish.)

  Then we proceed to reflect on the challenges, which are numerous. It’s normal to feel like you’re doing it wrong most of the time. Remember that every single kid is going to be unique. They’ll all present you with special challenges and special joys. Some will sleep like… well, like a baby, and some will resist sleep with all of their power.   Here are some more fatherhood nuggets we examine: 

• How to avoid giving your kids nothing more than your leftovers
• The importance of emphasizing relationship over household tasks
• The difference between 11:00 Daddy Eddie and 3:00 Daddy Eddie
• The importance of setting aside time for your wife or partner
• The challenge of mustering energy for late-night time with thirsty philosophers who need a hug 
• The fact that dogs are not the same as kids

  Fatherhood is intense. Give yourself some grace.    We hesitate to repeat the cliché, but… It goes so fast. Treasure this opportunity while you have it.   This week’s megaphone message: Be Dad on purpose as much as you can. Find Us Online: BrosPodcast.com - LinkedIn - Youtube - Instagram - Facebook - Eddie's LinkedIn - Tyler's LinkedIn If you enjoy the podcast, please rate us on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to us! Thanks for listening! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today we build on last week’s FMF episode, when we discussed the importance of approaching your work like you’d approach a game of chess rather than Fortnite.    It’s about being deliberate–thinking several steps ahead. As a manager, it’s easy to get caught up in the expectation that all progress is visible to an outside observer. The problem is that different human workers function differently. Those who appear to be working the hardest may not be working most intelligently.    Let people take the time to come up with jigs. Provide space for them to roll ideas around in their heads in order to come up with creative approaches to problems. Celebrate the different working styles that various team members bring to the table. These differences will likely increase your company’s productivity in ways that you wouldn’t expect. Focus your managerial monitoring on output rather than what you see during work time.    Don’t kill thinking time. Find Us Online: BrosPodcast.com - LinkedIn - Youtube - Instagram - Facebook - Eddie's LinkedIn - Tyler's LinkedIn If you enjoy the podcast, please rate us on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to us! Thanks for listening! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sometimes you hear a podcast that’s so good you want to produce your own version of it. This episode finds us reflecting on an Entreleadership podcast with Dr. Henry Cloud. Cloud is a bestselling author, psychologist, and leadership expert. He is best known for his popular book Boundaries. (You can see the video version of this podcast here.)  Before we get into all of that useful stuff, though, we watch a dude get reckless and almost blow himself up. It’s another of Ed Davidson’s videos. We then acknowledge that our own backyards are sometimes pretty dang close to that with our crazy s’more-crazy kids. It makes us worry that we might experience something like this KISS cover band lead singer.   The meat of today’s episode is our reflections on Dr. Cloud’s podcast. We run a bit long on this one, but it’s good stuff.  It’s hard to cultivate trust in a business or organization that deals with complex processes and systems. It can seem like someone has a grasp on a process and is ready to meet expectations… Then things can go frustratingly awry.  Five characteristics make up the anatomy of trust (adapted from episode): #1: Understanding - It’s much easier to give someone trust when we feel understood. Most leaders simply want to persuade the people around them. Persuasion isn’t trust though.  #2: Knowing Intent - It’s important to make your intentions for your teammates genuine. 

• Protect them when they aren’t in the room.
• Want them to win.

#3: Ability - Part of trust is knowing that someone merits it. The right person for the wrong job is the wrong person. Competency matters.  #4: Character - True character is more about the fabric of our being than it is about the outward actions that people see. We’ve said it before: integrity is shown by what you do when nobody is in the room.  #5: Track Record - Humans create mental maps to help us deal with life. Those mental maps are experiences that lead us to expect behavior. If you’re looking for the power of track record, check out the contrasts in loyalty shown to leaders in Band of Brothers.  Our mental mapping leads us to create labels: 

• The company that misses deadlines
• The project manager that sandbags everyone to get his way
• The hot head
• The detailer that never gets it right

Today’s Megaphone message: Trust is not owed; it’s built.   Find Us Online: BrosPodcast.com - LinkedIn - Youtube - Instagram - Facebook - Eddie's LinkedIn - Tyler's LinkedIn If you enjoy the podcast, please rate us on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to us! Thanks for listening!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today we channel our inner Kasparov to discuss the fact that things are better when you think several moves ahead. Whenever possible, it’s best to be methodical and avoid the need to make decisions on the fly.    We discuss how we’ve seen people do this effectively–including a former colleague who would occasionally head to the back room, pop in his earbuds, and do the dishes. Sometimes it even bothered us because not doing anything doesn’t feel or look like hard work. But thinking is doing something. Thinking is working.    It feels counterintuitive to simply marinate in silence, but it’s essential. It enables you to stitch up those seams today so things won’t unravel tomorrow. 

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We’re just sitting here talking… but it’s different. For those of you who are listening to the podcast rather than watching the Youtube video: We’ve redesigned our recording space to allow for more movement and some occasional video integration. We’re experimenting with a slightly different format that will hopefully involve some in-person interviews among other things.    Watch the video: https://youtu.be/7yKIf6FrwhU   Also, there might be nachos.   Today, we use our new space to test the new style of safety helmet.   We proceed to discuss that LinkedIn often seems to be for little other than humble brags–except for people like Ed Davidson. Even Dad follows Ed. Here are links to the videos we mention on this tangent:

• Toronto crane guy
• Ed Davidson’s post about sign installation
• Car falls into sinkhole

  After the hardhat test aggravates Eddie’s back injury, we proceed to the therapy portion of the show, with a focus on Tyler’s first year running his marketing business (Storybuilder Creative).    Because entrepreneurship is tough, Tyler compares himself to Rapunzel.    All of this leads us to the meat of today’s discussion, an exploration of mentorships: 

• When you’re starting something, give yourself room to bounce around a bit. 
• You can’t learn what works unless you engage in some experimentation.
• Sometimes that first year of a new venture succeeds only due to grit and willpower.
• Seeing every obstacle as an opportunity to grow and learn (like Jocko Willink says). 
• Symbiotic mentorship is a wonderful thing–the pairing of two different strengths in a relationship where coaching can happen in both directions. 
• Having to answer questions can force you to learn new things and to rethink things that have become automatic.

  We’re better together–like a pair of draft horses whose pulling capacity together is three times the capacity of a single horse.   Find Us Online: BrosPodcast.com -Youtube - LinkedIn - Instagram - Facebook - Eddie's LinkedIn - Tyler's LinkedIn If you enjoy the podcast, please rate us on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to us! Thanks for listening! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tyler shares about a recent experience with creative shutdown. His new role required a different form of insight than his previous role, and he needed to figure out how to shift gears.   What he learned is that it’s okay to step away from the situation. Get outside. Get away from the pressure and create space for the ideas to grow.   It takes both discipline and openness. And a playful attitude. And also time.   Give yourself the time and space to innovate.

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Jeff Sample is known to many as The Ironman of IT. That title is not metaphorical. He’s an actual “Ironman” athlete and he works in construction-related IT. Jeff has worn many hats within the construction world, but he’s currently the primary host of the ContechCrew podcast and the “Industry Evangelist” for Join, which specializes in helping owners, designers, and contractors improve workflow through increased collaboration. Information Jeff is all about data. Well, to be more precise, Jeff is all about information. He wants to see everyone in the construction industry use data to make better decisions. Jeff helps others use building information modeling (BIM) data to work more smoothly and efficiently. As we discussed what he does, these insights were shared:

• Contractual obligations can cause digital waste. 
• Our goal should be to encourage collaboration.
• It’s not data-driven; it’s data-informed. The data is there only to support the human decision-makers. Data leaves room for each party to have their own focus and creative freedom (within reason).
• The design-bid-build structure creates an adversarial relationship between contractors, which unnecessarily complicates the building process for everyone.
• Communication is part of our job. We need to help other people make sense of data that means something to us when viewed through the lens of our unique experience.
• We need to create a climate of collaboration rather than fear of litigation.
• “Communication is contractual. Collaboration is cultural.” 

The Shift Toward Manufacturing We spent a good deal of time discussing the shift toward a manufacturing mindset within construction. We agreed that this will bring as many opportunities as it will bring challenges, and we explored these thoughts: 

• Wise contractors will niche down because increased specialization is on the way.
• Robotics will assist to an increasing degree, but they will not replace humans for a very long while.
• Nuance is not going away. Builders and their “amazing minds” will continue to be essential to the construction process. 

Other tidbits and shout-outs in this episode: 

• Eddie and Jeff are both Adam Grant fans, but Eddie’s fandom has gone further with the hairstyle imitation.

• Shout-out to Kelly Doyle for his insight that “Slow is smooth and smooth is fast”
• Props to Pete Dumont for his work toward setting up an OS2.0 for construction so we’re living in a “neighborhood” together 

When handed the megaphone, Jeff explains that we need all parties within the construction industry to work thoughtfully and conscientiously toward making a profit. He explains that our ways of thinking have the ability to drive us into a recession, but he reminds us that construction is critical to the success of our economy and our country. We can employ people. We build the environment. We create the infrastructures. We build the supply chains. If you can look at what the country needs and fulfill that need profitably, you can help this recession be a speed bump. You can be a key component of a vibrant economy. Find Us Online: BrosPodcast.com - LinkedIn - Instagram - Facebook - Eddie's LinkedIn - Tyler's LinkedIn If you enjoy the podcast, please rate us on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to us! Thanks for listening!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today we’re going all-out with the construction analogies. Yes, it’s poetic. But it’s also pretty darn insightful and valuable.    When you’re a part of an organization, you pass information up and down the line all the time. If you fail to be a reliable link in that information chain, things fail to function smoothly. In electrical terms, if you fail to ensure that the current of information moves efficiently up and down the wire, you’re causing impedance.   When you notice this, seek to resolve the issue by connecting the parties who need to pass information back and forth. Put them in touch with one another in order to increase the quality and efficiency of your organization.    Don’t inhibit. Don’t impede.    Insulate.

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