This is always one of my favorite days of the year! The day we bring the entire company together at our headquarters to get ready to kick off the landscape season. It is a day filled with nine different training stations (everything from Irrigation Controller programming to Company Policy Manual), to a Plant Identification Challenge with nice prizes to the winners, and ends with a BBQ lunch for the whole team. I get to lay out my plans and vision for the upcoming season in a rousing motivational speech (at least that’s the intent) and it is a great time for everyone to get a feel for the various parts of our growing company. I mentioned a few weeks ago in this blog about a company meeting where I asked everyone to think about “WHY” they do this work. What drives them? What gets them excited about their job? I told them if it’s just about a paycheck then they may want to think about whether we’re the right fit because what makes our company different is the curious, knowledgeable, and passionate people in this organization. If you’re not curious to learn more and working to improve yourself then you may find that you just don’t fit here. Well, today I asked everyone to write down their “WHY” and here are a few of the responses….
“Safety”
“Relieving stress and staying in shape”
“Me gusta aprender cosas nuevas cada dia y aprendes a conocer mas la naturaleza.” ( I like to learn new things everyday and to learn more about nature)
“To make the world a beautiful place.”
“Creating long-lasting, unique projects to be proud of”
“Teach People”
“The challenge of figuring out solutions to difficult situations”
“Me gusta el arte del paisajismo para mi es una pasion crear un ambiente saludable” ( I like the art of landscaping becasue for me it’s a passion to create healthy environments)
“To be the finest, most progressive sustainability company in the country using cutting edge technology and a focus on restorative efforts.”
“Estoy aqui porque tengo familia que mantener” (I am here because I want to take care of my family)
Wow. Thanks to all my great co-workers! You are my reason why I do this, to see each of you develop and work together like a well-oiled machine. That’s the beauty that I hope to create each day.
Dean