FROM THE TAILGATE
Sage advice from the trenches
By Ron Jones
Leadership, by Design
When you have a chance to learn about the award winners in this issue of Green Builder there is a common theme that emanates from the diverse set of stories you’ll find in these pages and on our website. The trait each of them shares with one another is that they lead from the front.
They don’t predicate the performance of their projects and success of their operations on reacting to rules and regulations—or somebody’s pet set of points. Those are simply metrics they use to give further credibility to their superior results and validity to their message.
They don’t waste their valuable time hand-wringing over bad economic news and dismal market projections, or relying on the talking heads of some trade association or traditional gloom-and-doom industry information source to give them direction—they are all too busy building great projects.
Above all, they have an understanding about the fundamental nature of sustainability and its importance to the future of not only their personal livelihoods, but the quality of everyone’s future. For these folks, sustainability is not some obscure theory or borrowed strategy, it is a core value. It runs in their DNA.
They have all realized, well ahead of many of their wannabe competitors, that building sustainably is not a punishment: It is a reward. It’s not a hurdle, but an elevator that lifts them above the crowd and into the light where potential customers can see them and how they intentionally separate themselves from the herd.
What is perhaps most interesting is the wide geographic distribution and diverse market sectors we find in this inspiring group of building professionals. They occupy practically every market niche, residential building type and price point. They build in extremes of climate, a multitude of cultures and a wide range of styles.
My hunch is that many of them could trade places with one another and continue to succeed equally well. Leadership is not site-specific. It is oblivious to the weather, the market conditions, the poor economy and all the other external limitations that endlessly haunt those who only follow. GB
12.2011
www.greenbuildermag.com 64
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