A Typical Day
I roll out of bed at 5 o'clock in the morning. I meditate, read, and then work at my computer until 8 a.m. I am writing my second book. Those are the most productive hours of my day. At 8 a.m., I switch hats and becomes a home builder. The telephone starts ringing and I make phone calls. These are usually to "put out fires." These fires are problems that you cannot anticipate that crop up every day in the building profession. I then go out and visit every job site. I do this every day. I usually have 5 or 6 homes in production at any time, 12 months out of the year. I am a small builder with a "life-style business" and no employees. I have a CPA (certified public accountant). All my mail goes there and they write all my checks. This has freed up some of my time so that I can pursue my other interests. The telephone rings interrupting the interview. Larry on the phone : My electricians will put that in ... yeah, I know. Yes, we already have that worked out. OK, I will be down there in an hour. That was another fire. It is understandable that the customer would be concerned. He is putting a lot of money out and he thinks that the kitchen is not vented. Well it is, but we haven't put the blower in yet. I will go down there and talk to him because I want to put out the flames right away. He just needs to know we have done it right. In the afternoon I will continue my visits to the work sites. The subcontractors have certain things that they have to do on each site. I call and visit to make sure these things are done. If something doesn't get done I need to do it myself. That's part of the job. It makes you independent. Sometimes you can't find someone else to do it, so you do it yourself. I am in and out of my office several times during the business day. The subcontractors are done around 5 p.m. each day. This is when I do my office work which is a combination of planning for the next day's activity, ordering materials, and talking to suppliers. I am the vice president of the Home Builders Association and will be president next year so there are many responsibilities that I take care of in the evening. I usually get to my reading or watch a classic movie in the late evening and generally I am in bed by 11 p.m. Weekends are times when I catch up on office work and spend time with my wife and do things with friends. Then, back to the schedule on Monday. I look forward to Mondays. It is not the "beginning of the week" for me. It is the continuation of the ongoing plan. That's important; when you have the right mind-set it's not hard work, it's your life's work. |
A Day on the Job with Larry
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