The Winning Path for Construction

You don’t have to wait for things to be ideal before you win, you can win right now.

The world of construction requires mental toughness. While there’s not just one thing you need for success, grit is one of the top ingredients. Grit is more of an attitude than a skill set. That attitude means you are always going to find a way, and people who work in the construction industry tend to have a gift for this.

In the changing world of construction, one of the challenges faced by the industry is the rapid pace of technology and innovation. For someone who has always done things a certain way, this can cause difficulties. Thus, mental toughness, flexibility and adaptability are imperative, whether on the part of the individual, the team or the company.

Construction entrepreneurs and business leaders need to have a heightened tolerance to risk, because the field of play is constantly changing. Creativity and decision making are needed on a daily basis to carve out your company’s niche. You cannot be as successful if you try to mimic other businesses. If you try to do that, you trap yourself into someone else’s field of play. Thus, your imagination plays an important part in your personal and professional success.

You can’t be all things to all people, so you need to decide what your specialty is. Be aware of your unique skills, assets and resources. Two important questions to ask yourself: What is your market? What kind of projects is your business tailored to win? Take inventory of the assets and resources you already have that you can win with. You will struggle if you try to do things a different way than you’re equipped for – someone else’s way.

Time is a resource that cannot be controlled. But you can control the quality of activities that go into the time you have. There are people who hide behind busy work. For that reason people need to be accountable for their actions. In companies with accountability, there is a high level of trust and a low level of drama. Trust and planning are at the core of peak performance.

Planning involves setting priorities. Try to do more high value work and less low value work. As a business leader, you need to be accountable to yourself. Take a look at the quality of your work and the value of your activities. While you can hide the value of your work from others, you can’t hide from yourself. When you start to organize your activities by the value they bring to the business, you will look at time differently going forward.

For more practical advice about becoming a high achiever in the construction industry or any type of business, tune in to Bridging the Gap Podcast episode 205 with Todd Herman, creator of the award-winning leadership and skills development program “90 Day Year” and author of the WSJ bestselling book, “The Alter Ego Effect: The Power of Secret Identities to Transform Your Life.”