Growth and Improvement — Lessons from the Garden

It has been nearly a year since the devastating Great Texas Freeze, coupled with widespread power outages, took the lives of at least 246 people and resulted in approximately $195 billion in property damage.

When it comes to property damage, our company did not escape unscathed. The extended freeze was a costly disaster that devasted our landscaping and gardens, killed 10 mature queen palm trees, and wiped out a decade’s worth of ivy growth.

I’m forever grateful for our maintenance team, which spent months removing dead plants and planting new ones, scraping dead ivy from our exterior walls, and then power washing and repainting those walls.

It was painful to see landscaping we’d nurtured so carefully being carted away, but the additional time we spent on our grounds was thought-provoking as well. A?garden can be so similar to a business: For it to thrive, the parts that are not productive must be removed.

That’s the approach I’ve taken to tending our wedding and event venue: Every day since beginning this “gardening project,”?I have been pruning away those areas that don't contribute, even removing parts that were growing in the wrong direction. In our case, resources have occasionally gone to programs, processes — even people — that failed to contribute to the overall well-being of our company. They were like tree branches that only sprouted a few leaves. And when I decided their presence was doing more harm than good, I chopped them off for the good of the tree and the garden as a whole.

I have also noticed over the years that some tree branches were so overgrown they were blocking other valuable parts of the garden from the sun. In other words, we placed too much emphasis on certain technological solutions, management styles, or other programs, to the detriment of our company’s well-being. When I noticed those overgrown branches, I had them cut back and cleaned up. That gave?the lower areas of the garden — other programs, ideas, and new innovations — a better chance to thrive.?

Another example: Some of our plants are very beautiful but not so happy where they were?planted. In those cases, we experimented with different areas of the garden until we found a great spot, giving them a chance to truly grow into something amazing. I’m referring to our team members: We’re always willing to work with good workers to help them find the role they’re best suited for. We help them thrive, and they, in turn, contribute to a healthy garden.

A garden is a never-ending project. A gardener must constantly work to ensure a stable environment with good soil, water, and sunlight, along with protection against insects, disease, the constant battle of unwanted weeds, and other foes like the winter freeze we had last year.

At The Bell Tower on 34th, ensuring a thriving and healthy garden is also a vital part of what we do every day. We work constantly to create an environment that consistently yields successful events. We take care of our customers, our team members, our property, and the businesses we partner with. And, as much as possible, we strive to anticipate potential obstacles to our success and prevent them.

While the Great Texas Freeze was a particularly difficult chapter of our history, it serves as a valuable reminder of what it takes to be a good gardener.

About the Author:

Roger Igo?is the founder and CEO of special events venue,?The Bell Tower on 34th, along with?Excellent Events, and?Venues in Houston. He is the author of “Keep On Going, The History of The Bell Tower on 34th,” a former radio host, a graduate of CEO Space International, and an alumnus of The Disney Institute.

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