Hey – Walker and Davis here.
Happy Saturday morning to the Laying Foundations Community!
You will encounter many facets of life in the construction industry. Whether you work in the office or out on the job site, you need to invest in learning personalities to impact the relationships around you.
Today’s issue takes about 6 minutes to read and was written for you by Davis Hambrick.
Enjoy!
“Your attitude, not your aptitude, will determine your altitude.”
– Zig Ziglar
I tried directing people in the field without investing in the relationship. Needless to say, I learned quickly that getting things done in construction requires investing in those around you.
A way you can stand out as a young person in construction is by learning the job site personalities. I remember the first week of my full-time job in New Orleans; I wrote down every name of the person I met in the first week and wrote down their personality style, what they liked, and what they didn’t like.
Is this going over the top? Maybe.
But as a young person in construction, what you have to offer is vastly different than the group’s veterans. To stand out, you must cut through what others don’t do. Most people don’t take notes, nonetheless actually take time to figure out what makes the guy or gal beside them tick.
If you choose to learn the personalities on your job site and how to approach them in scenarios, then you will vastly accelerate your learning curve in construction knowledge that you lack. People will know that you care and will choose to work with you.
Why should you understand the job site personalities?
It helps you stand out
- As I mentioned above, as a young person coming into our industry, you must learn how to stand out in humility, not pride or ego. The majority of the younger generation in the construction industry thinks, “I need to make up for my lack of knowledge by directing people that are experts in their craft”… this is the wrong approach. The only way I have been successful is by approaching each relationship with a long-term investment. With each relationship on the job site, I have to EARN the right to speak into their life. This approach takes time and hard work. By approaching the relationship with a long-term mindset, you stand out because you become the person who doesn’t overreact and fights fires.
It shows you genuinely care about the person beside you
- We are an industry built on people that usually neglects our most precious resource, PEOPLE. Our friend Jennifer Lacy says, “All people want to do is matter.” It is so true, people want to come to work knowing they get to contribute without being ridiculed every waking moment they are at the job site. Choose to care for the people around you and put others first.
It will build your leadership muscle
- My aunt taught me the more times you do something, the stronger you get in the area. If I never exercise and tomorrow decide I want to run a half marathon, I will probably end up in the hospital. But if I decided I need to run 3 times a week, varying in total miles a few months out from the race, then I am building that muscle literally. The same idea goes for leadership. The first time you do this, you may get 10 out of the 100 personalities right. THAT’S OKAY. Focus on those 10 people and figure out how you should motivate them.
Quality of the Week: Acknowledge – taking time to accept the truth or understand the existence.
20-Year-Old Self Advice – Seek to understand every person on the job site
My first internship in construction was an instrumental time for my career. I had the opportunity to spend the summer with my Aunt & Uncle and watch them both invest in me.
I didn’t know it then, but the lessons they taught me that summer has helped shape the podcast and newsletter to this day. My Aunt invested in me by teaching me about personalities.
There are 4 major personality types:
Introverted – People Oriented
– Internal thinker yet loves connecting with people
– When they speak, their words are worth their weight in gold
Introverted – Task-Oriented
– Internal thinker and loves completing lists
– Needs data to make decisions
– Great at details and finishing projects
– Neglects the people skills to further relationships
Extroverted – People Oriented
– Is the life of the party
– Has a hard time understanding the why if it is not fun
– Values relationships in every aspect of their life
Extroverted – Task-Oriented
– Will figure out a way to move the mountain at all costs
– Needs direct conversations to understand
– Lives in a 30,000-foot view
If you can learn the tendencies of the above personalities, you will begin your leadership journey by investing in the relationships around you. After you learn the personalities, go do what I did and write down every name of the people you interact with. Begin to learn their likes and dislikes.
Once you understand the above things, you can apply it all and learn how to speak that person’s personality to them. Too often in construction, we share our message without getting feedback and expect the communication to be spot on.
We all know that is not how it works; if you know your audience, you can adapt your message to each person on the job site. I am not telling you that you need to tell the team your plan by explaining it in four different ways. I am asking you to apply it to your one-on-one relationships on the job site. Once you apply it there, seek long-term growth.
Being willing to walk the extra mile with the person you are investing in or leading. Know that you can fight fires your whole career by directing and finger-pointing. Or you can plan your work, invest in the relationships around you, and seek growth over time.
Both viewpoints are ways people are getting it done day in and day out. Laying Foundations believes the latter helps move the needle we desperately need in our industry.
If you want to learn more about job site personalities, send us an email at contact@laying-foundations.com
Or check out this personality assessment: https://eaglecenterforleadership.com/make-a-difference/take-the-test
Check out episode 88 on The Laying Foundations Podcast.
This week’s podcast is with Josh Diaz, Trade Sales Representative at Pella Windows and Doors. Josh started his construction career by starting a handyman service with his brother in Seattle, WA. Now working for Pella Windows & Doors where he focuses on people. He focuses on relationships by never giving up and seeking long term commitment.
