Elevate Construction

Jason shares the story of Jack, a father-son reconciliation story about a dad who chose unconditional love over control, and connects it to a breakthrough he had at a Tony Robbins training about the difference between leading from fear and leading from love. He gets personal about how shifting from a controlling, stressed out superintendent to a loving, connecting leader completely changed his best project.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• The story of Jack and how one father's love repaired a broken relationship
• Why leading from love produces better results than leading from fear or control
• How Jason's own leadership shift transformed his best project
• Why environmental control matters, but controlling people never should
• How small acts of connection, like breakfasts or barbecues, build real culture

Are you leading your team from love, or from fear and control?

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

Jason gives a quick, genuine shoutout to Canva after realizing how much it, alongside Miro, Zoom, and Snagit, has transformed how Elevate Construction creates training materials, graphics, and site logistics plans. He makes the case that being a great builder isn't just about what you know, it's about how clearly you can communicate it.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• Why Miro has become the visual backbone of Jason's entire team
• How Canva lets anyone create professional training materials with no design skill
• Why keeping everything in Canva makes updates instant instead of painful
• Practical ways superintendents could use Canva for flyers, logistics plans, and more
• Why communication, not just knowledge, is what actually moves projects forward

Could Canva help you communicate your plans more clearly than you do now?

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

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Jason, Kate, and therapist Barbara Hedger dig deep into what healthy boundaries actually look like, the difference between rigid, loose, and healthy responses, and how self-awareness, not walls, is what protects both our relationships and our peace of mind.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• Why boundaries are personal and cannot control other people's behavior
• The difference between rigid brick-wall boundaries and healthy flexible ones
• How loose boundaries often come from fearing rejection or not being enough
• Why self-regulation, like the traffic light method, comes before setting boundaries
• How safety boundaries on a jobsite protect people without ever needing anger

Are your boundaries protecting you, or just walling everyone out?

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

Jason shares reflections from a Tony Robbins wellness training on why happiness is a choice built through daily habits and mindset, not circumstances. Drawing on the book Solve for Happy, he breaks down the math of happiness, the trap of feeling permanently stuck, and a simple seven-second method for moving from an unhappy thought back to a happy one.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• Why happiness is closer to a math formula than a circumstance
• The three feelings, permanent, personal, pervasive, that create hopelessness
• How to move a thought from complaining to problem solving in seconds
• Why compounding small positives changes your actual biochemistry
• How aligning your expectations with reality is the real happiness trick

What's one compounding positive you could add to your life this week?

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

John Coffman shares the hardest story he has ever told, the day a work zone traffic accident took the life of Terry, the equipment and tool man everyone on his Dallas bridge job relied on and loved. He walks through the crisis management response that followed, OSHA's grueling week-long investigation, and the lasting weight of losing a friend on the job.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• Why crisis management training must feel real, not routine
• How a well-rehearsed crisis plan guided the response that day
• Why OSHA's investigation shifted from suspicion to genuine respect
• How a single driver's confusion led to an unpreventable tragedy
• Why safety on a jobsite is never something to grow numb to

Do you treat every safety training like it could be the one that saves a life?

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

John Coffman shares a reflection from his years working on the U.S. Embassy project in Berlin, where conversations with European colleagues revealed a striking difference in how multiculturalism works abroad versus in America. He introduces his diamond analogy, why a nation of distinct cultural facets shines brighter together than any single blended culture ever could.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• Why Europe's multiculturalism differs sharply from America's approach
• How a coworker's fear of moving within Germany revealed hidden cultural divides
• Why Bavarian, Catalan, and other regional languages surprised John
• How the diamond analogy explains why cultural facets make America shine
• Why attending cultural fests is a way to polish that diamond yourself

What's one cultural fest near you that you've never actually attended?

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

Jason hands the podcast over to John Coffman, who reads Rudyard Kipling's poem "If," a piece about resilience, integrity, and grace under pressure. It's a short, reflective episode built entirely around Kipling's words on how to handle triumph, disaster, and everything in between.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• Why Kipling's poem has stuck with John Kaufman throughout his career
• How the poem frames triumph and disaster as equal imposters
• Why patience and restraint matter as much as ambition
• The poem's message on risking everything and starting over
• Why staying grounded with both crowds and kings defines real character

What would change in how you lead if you lived by every line of this poem?

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

Jason wraps up his reading of the Field Engineering Methods Manual, covering math formulas, chaining corrections for accurate measurements, sticks and strings for batter boards, construction control methods, and Professor Crawford's closing field observations on double checking your work.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• Why cloth tape measures often throw off distance measurements
• How to properly set up batter boards and strings for anchor bolts
• Why control layout should be checked with strings, not just a total station
• Where to find construction control methods for nearly any building element
• Why stepping back to question your own layout work prevents costly errors

Do you double check your layout work, or trust it the first time?

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

Jason continues reading the Field Engineering Methods Manual, covering Chapter 11 on office practices, drafting, reading construction drawings, and lift drawings. He shares why learning AutoCAD or Revit builds a lasting mental frame for reading plans, and why creating lift drawings is one of the most valuable skills a field engineer can ever develop.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• Why learning drafting builds a lasting 3D mental frame for plans
• How to study drawings using symbols, notes, and cut sections
• Why reading plans should be a daily habit, not a one-time task
• The three real purposes behind creating a lift drawing
• What every lift drawing needs, from reference lines to a title block

Have you ever actually created a lift drawing yourself?

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw

Wrapping up his tour through the technical heart of the Field Engineering Methods Manual, Jason gives a fast-paced summary of Chapters 4 through 10, distance measurement, angle measurement, total stations, leveling, lasers, GPS procedures, and equipment calibration, pulling out the practical revelations that shaped his own career as a builder. From why you should never trust a cloth tape measure without calibration, to the power of three-wire leveling and level loops, to the sobering fact that roughly half of all tribrachs arrive out of calibration from the manufacturer, this episode is a rapid-fire but substantive tour through the fundamentals every field engineer needs to actually get elevations, distances, and angles right the first time.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• Why an uncalibrated cloth tape measure can be off by as much as three-quarters of an inch over 100 feet, and why that matters in construction
• The three factors that affect chain measurements (temperature, sag, and tension) and how to correct for them in the field
• Why three-wire leveling and closing level loops back on a benchmark are essential to catching errors before they become expensive
• Why tribrachs, levels, lasers, and prism poles all need routine calibration, since a surprising percentage arrive out of spec from the manufacturer
• How to vertically transfer benchmarks up through a building using an independently checked method

Do you have a regular calibration routine for your levels, tribrachs, and lasers, or are you trusting equipment that might already be off?

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free, and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw