As spring break quickly approaches (many of you may already be home from spring break), I couldn’t help but think about spring break road trips. Our family is set to take off early Saturday morning for a 5 day road trip through Kentucky and the mountains of Tennessee. Thankfully my kids are old enough these days that we don’t have the dread of long road trips with little ones. In the old days, we were always told “good luck” traveling that amount of time with two little kids. Back then my wife and I did very well because we planned ahead. We made sure they had movies downloaded from “insert your favorite streaming service here”, arts and crafts along with lot of snacks of course! The hours typically went quickly with no major incidents or melt-downs.
Why did the road trips, that had every chance of going badly, go so well? The answer is “we prepared before we started”. Just like all building projects, if you don’t prepare before you get started, the chance of the project going well greatly decreases.
Three questions to answer before you start your next building project:
What Do I Value? Wants vs. needs must be balanced on every project. The answer to another question “Does it bring value to the project?” will determine which want or need stays or goes.
Where am I Compromising? Compromise is not a bad word, it is only bad when you compromise and didn’t know it. As you prioritize the “value added items” on your list, compromise may need to take place. That is ok because you are doing it purposefully.
When Do I Need the Project Completed? Having an overall schedule with milestone dates will keep the project on time and your stress level under control.
We always had fun & built memories along the way because we prepared for the trip. I knew what I valued, which was time with my wife and kids, and understood there would be compromise. The kids normally had all the snacks eaten before we crossed the first state line, but the trips still went smoothly!
Let us help you prepare for your next project. Give me a call; we would like to take the trip with you.
Comments