A couple of weeks back I received a surprise visit from Jim Wright, the President of the Kirkwood - DesPeres Area Chamber of Commerce.  He poked his head into my office door and said, “Have you listened to your phone messages lately”?  I laughed and told him I was a lousy businessman when it came to remembering to check for messages.  He smiled and said, “I just came by to congratulate you on being named the Businessperson of the Year and you tell me you’re a lousy businessman.  How is that going to look”?

I was caught totally by surprise!  I was stunned, then honored and humbled, and I had a hard time believing Jim was telling me the truth.  All the men and women that I have admired flashed before my eyes.  I was now one of them.

I’ve been going to awards ceremonies of one kind or another, my whole life.  With the Cub Scouts, Jaycees, Church, Rotary, Chamber and all the other organizations I’ve been active in; it represents at least 150 “banquets” over the last 50 years.  There have been a few of these ceremonies where I have been the recipient of an award but mostly I sit and applaud as someone else steps up to be recognized by their peers.  I always think to myself, “Wow, what an honor.  I wish that were me going up there right now.”  But I would remind myself that it takes more than a wish to be recognized; it takes a commitment to doing something to the very best of your ability.  It means going “all in” with your time and effort so that you get the very best results.

I know this because of the people who have preceded me.  I’ve admired them for their dedication and commitment; their desire to do the right thing.  Without the examples they set, I would never have understood the importance of giving back or paying forward.  These people have been my unofficial mentors and by studying and learning from them, I guess some of their qualities have rubbed off on me.  I would not have known that the best way to run my life and my business is by doing the right thing, no matter what.  I would not have realized that we must contribute our time and resources for the betterment of others and that the more we give, the more fulfilling our lives become.

It’s difficult for me to believe that the tide has turned and now I’m the old guy that the younger generation is saying, “Gee, I wish that were me up there”.  Now that I have achieved this honor, I have the responsibility to pay it forward to those who may look to me as their mentor.  I have four children; my oldest two, Amie and Bill are with me every day as co-owners of Riggs Construction & Design and there is Maddie who is a nurse and Emmy who’s a freshman at Kirkwood High School.  I hope the good in me will rub off on them and the mistakes I’ve made will be forgiven.  I have three grandsons and one more on the way and I want to show them by example that doing the right thing, no matter what, is what integrity is.  And personal integrity is the path to true success in both their personal and business life.

Tom Life In General

Riggs Construction & Design turned 50 years old this month.  Amie, Bill and Lauren Kolbe of our PR firm, KolbeCo Marketing Resources, planned a celebration that had all the elements of a great party including great food from McArthur’s Bakery, wine, beer, games and raffles.  Best of all, we had a fantastic idea to raise money for breast cancer research.  Since it was our “golden” anniversary, we asked everyone to bring any gold jewelry that they could donate to the Young Women’s Breast Cancer Program at Siteman Cancer Center.  Jim & Martha Durbin from Durbin Jewelry here in Kirkwood were kind enough to spend their time collecting and evaluating what was brought in.  If course, it rained all day, the temperature was in the 40s and the plan was to hold the party outside!  Fortunately, they planned for all possibilities by setting up a tent with heaters and a direct connection to the office interiors so that our guests would stay dry and comfortable.  But would all our past clients, trade contractors, suppliers and other friends of the company come?  The weather conditions made that question even more doubtful.

Before I answer that question, let me give you a little inside story about a division within the company that this party created.  We have the “older” generation with me, Steve, Pam and Kathy whose parents grew up during the great depression and have lived through some pretty rough times ourselves and then we have the “youngsters” who have experienced a steady paycheck and boom times over the last 20 years.  That would be Bill, Amie, David and Brett.  Chris, our estimator is in between and I think he had some reservation but tried his best to be enthusiastic and encouraging.  The rest of the crew had their own opinions and I’m pretty sure what they were.

We old folks thought that not only was this party a waste of money, but no one likes coming to these things anyway!  How embarrassing it will be to hold a big party and have no one show up.  I wanted to say no to the party but in letting go of this company over the next few years, I have to let Bill and Amie make decisions and carry them out regardless of the outcome.  It’s the best way to teach them how to run this business.  In making mistakes and suffering the consequences we all learn the most enduring lessons.

Then, on the day of the party it started to rain and the temperature began to drop.  We said, “See, this is never going to be successful.”  They said, “Let’s party!”

Our guests started to trickle in at 4:00 PM; slowly…We were worried.  By 5:00 PM it started to get a little crowded and I saw past clients that I hadn’t seen in 5 years!  We were surprised.  By 6:00 the place was rocking!  Even clients we had done little repair jobs for showed up!  Our trade contractors, suppliers, fellow Rotarians and Chamber members were there.  Art McDonnell, the Mayor of Kirkwood gave us a proclamation making that day “Riggs Construction & Design Day”.  The wine ran out and Kathy ran out and bought more and she was happy.  The beer ran out and Pam went and bought more and she was happy.  The pile of gold kept getting bigger and bigger as did Jim and Martha’s smile.  More past and present clients kept showing up, some that I wouldn’t have guessed would take the time to come in a million years.  Even the food began to run out and McArthur’s brought enough to feed an army.

It rained all night.  It was cold, wet and miserable but people just kept coming.  Kathy, Pam, Steve and the rest of the old folks were amazed.  We were smiling and laughing and shaking our heads in disbelief. The youngsters just partied on.

We old folks happily admitted that we were wrong and I think we enjoyed the party more than anyone.

I didn’t know that crow would taste so sweet.

Tom Life In General, Uncategorized

My father began teaching me about managing time when I was about 5 years old.  He was very much from the old school of work hard, earn your keep and keep your mouth shut.  I vividly remember him stopping me in mid stride and asking, “Where are you going?”  I replied, “I’m going outside to play.”  He said, “Well, take something with you when you go.  Don’t ever go anywhere without thinking about what you could take with you to save a trip or what you should get done before you go.  Always be thinking two steps in front of where you are.  If you do that, you’ll never waste time or energy”.

I thought he was crazy!  I heard him say that same basic phrase at least a thousand times over the next 10 years and I still thought he was crazy.

It wasn’t until I went to work for him as a laborer that I really started to understand the importance of “keeping two steps ahead”.  He had me carry wall framing materials from the drop site onto the sub floor where the carpenters were going to build the outside walls of the house.  He took a red marker and drew lines on the floor and told me, “I want the wall studs right here and the plates right here. Put the sheathing right here and don’t let any of the lumber get outside these lines or I’ll make you do it again.  When you carry lumber in, stack it like I told you and when you go out for more, don’t go empty handed.  Grab some trash or debris and throw it in the dumpster.  You’ll note it’s right next to the lumber pile out there.”

I thought he was crazy!  All I was doing was stockpiling lumber for the carpenters.  What difference did it make if I stayed within his lines?

The next day, when the carpenters showed up, I got to help build those walls.  The foreman started laying them out and we started building them.  As we were working, it came to me that the subfloor was cleaned off so we weren’t stumbling over a bunch of junk that would slow us down. I also noticed my lumber pile wasn’t in the way of building any of the walls.  There was room to swing a hammer, raise them up and brace them off.  Not one stick of lumber had to be handled twice!

Maybe he wasn’t so crazy after all.

You see, his business depended on how well he managed his own time and how well the carpenters he employed managed their time.  He taught his men never to go anywhere empty handed and to make sure that every step they took was thought out far enough in advance that they wouldn’t work their way into a corner.  He would say to them, “Think first.  Think about the big picture, then think about the steps you need to get there.  If you do that, it will be right the first time, every time and you won’t have to work so hard.”

That is time management the old school way.

Tom Life In General, remodeling building, jobsite management, remodeling, time management

I’ve always thought that the busier I was the more important I must be and that I must truly be needed if my calendar was full.  It doesn’t matter what the endeavor, I’ve allowed it to consume me to the exclusion of just about everything else.  When I’m at work, it’s for 10/12 hours at a time and not once do I stop to take a deep breath. If it’s a volunteer project, I usually wind up running the whole show and I use up all my energy, favors and time being the very best volunteer.  There’s no “piddling” around the house for me.  I can make the simplest home project into a full day of butt busting work.  I’ve always had to give it my all; go the extra mile; make it perfect.

It’s hard to take stock of yourself when you’re in your mid – well, late fifties and discover there might be a better way to approach life.  I can see all that I’ve missed while crashing through life proving to the world how wonderful I was.  I’ve missed the beauty of the moment, the value of a relationship, my children growing up.

Fortunately, I still have time.  My commitment to myself is to recognize the moment and not be looking beyond it.  My promise to my wife is to value her as she is and hear her when she speaks with her voice or her soul.  My kids are still around me everyday as are my three grandsons so my promise to them is to stop and listen; to stop and really pay attention, so they become the most important people in the world.

You may think I’m in trouble with my wife or kids but I’m not (at least I don’t think I am!).  It’s 4:00 PM on Tuesday and I have accomplished all my tasks for the day.  That made me nervous because I must not be important or needed if I’m caught up.  I thought about writing a blog and this is what came out.

I don’t think my blogs always have to be about remodeling.  In fact, if just one person reads this and it makes them think about their life, it will be the most important blog I’ve ever written.

Tom Life In General

Water pressure in some parts of Kirkwood and other older towns can be very frustrating for those trying to bathe, water their lawn or even wash their car!  In fact, some dishwashers and washing machines will not function properly due to low water pressure.  This can be a combination of many things other than just the older water mains that can’t stand any more pressure without bursting.  St. Louis water is considered “hard” water with more minerals in it than “softer” water often found in the southern states.  Those minerals build up over time throughout the pipes in your home including the main line coming into the house and the water meter itself.  Typically called calcium deposits, it’s much like the clogged arteries of someone with plaque buildup due to too much cholesterol in their system.  Those deposits eventually constrict a typically sized one-half inch water line to as small as one-eighth of an inch.  This can affect your entire plumbing system starting at the tap into the Water Department’s main line and running all the way to the faucets and hose bibs in your home.
 
Another cause for low pressure is the elevation of your home compared to the water tower connected to your main.  I live on Way Avenue in Kirkwood which is one of the highest elevations in the area.  Combined with the high elevation, very old water mains and very old homes with galvanized pipes full of deposits, when some of my neighbors try and water their lawn, they have to move it six times to cover an 80’x 50’ front lawn!  Unfortunately, I’ve replaced all the galvanized pipes (including those pipes in the walls, not just the basement) with new ½-inch copper, increased my water main to 1 ¼-inch and replaced the meter, and it hasn’t helped my pressure much at all.  It makes me wonder if our local fire department has enough pressure to effectively fight a house fire on my street and others like it.

Prior to replacing all my pipes, I installed a well pump and pressure tank that greatly improved the water pressure in my home.  It worked great for showers and short bursts of water pressure.  In fact my neighbors said they could tell when I was running water because their pressure would drop due to the well pump sucking the water from the main line in the street!  The system was rather noisy and with the 40 gallon pressure tank, it wasn’t long before our pressure would drop off to a greatly reduced level.  While trying to water the lawn, the pump would run in vain trying to catch up with the pressure gauge in the tank.  Although the first few minutes of watering was very impressive, with the sprinkler arching from one end of the lawn to the other, it wasn’t long before the sprinkler would barely work back and forth due to the low pressure even with the pump working its hardest to draw water from the main and filling up the pressure tank.

There is one thing that I do at least twice yearly and more if needed.  Most of the faucets in your home have an aerator that can be unscrewed right at the spout either with your hand or with a pair of pliers while protecting the finish of your faucet with a rag.  Once you’ve taken the aerator off be careful to see how the interior parts are aligned so you can put them back in the same order.  Some of those little parts will be clogged with the mineral deposits and can severely restrict water flow.  Rinse them off (being careful not to drop them into the sink), put the aerator back together and screw it back on to the faucet.  For the shower heads and faucets without easily accessed aerators, you can remove the entire head and soak it in Lime Away or CLR (Calcium, Lime and Rust) being careful to follow the instructions so as not to damage the finish.  You might be amazed at how much better your water pressure will be at those points.

Tom Life In General, remodeling

My two oldest children are co-owners of Riggs Construction & Design.  Amie and Bill just came back from our bi-annual meeting of the Remodelers Advantage networking group.  There are about 200 companies broken up into10 or 12 members in each group.  Riggs has been a member since 1996 and now, instead of me attending the meetings, Bill and Amie go.  It’s always a great learning experience for them as it has been for me.  Each group has members from all over the country (none from the same city) so there is a diverse and experienced brain trust willing to reveal all and help all to become better business owners and better, happier people as well.  One of the great advantages is that my children hear from the best and brightest remodeling contractors in the country that the Riggs Construction & Design business model and culture is the right way to do things.

When they first started attending the meetings with me, both Amie and Bill were considered the “kids.”  Although they were treated with respect, they weren’t allowed to come without me.  Now, after attending for 5 or 6 years they are both considered peers and equals.  Their advice and opinion are valued and they can hold their own when discussing any area of the business whether it is marketing, financials, production, leadership or sales.

Now the group has asked me to stay away and give Bill and Amie the chance to grow without their father “getting in the way”!  What a compliment to both of them.  Who would have thought that they would grow into such competent business owners so quickly?  My original motive was for them to hear from other remodeling company owners the same stuff I was telling them. Advice is never as powerful coming from a parent as it is coming from someone considered an “expert” in their field even if the parent is considered an expert by those experts.  Now the “kids” are the ones being listened to.  Go figure!

Tom Life In General, remodeling

It’s been a long, tough year for the construction industry.  Well, come to think of it, it’s been a long, tough year for every industry and every household!  All the pundits say it will be another year before the economy stabilizes and most say it will take a long time to bring our 401Ks and investments back to where they were.  It’s depressing isn’t it?  Well believe it or not, there is some good news out there.

That good news is there are some signs of improvement.  In a completely unscientific study I’ve been collecting some data to prove that St. Louis is beginning to make the turn toward a healthier attitude about spending.  I’ll start with my wife’s observations and actions.  Sally used to be a real estate broker so she always notices the “for sale” signs in people’s front yards.  She also notices when they are sold and she stated just the other day that a number of homes that were sitting on the market forever have been sold recently.  Also, the amount of time between a house going on the market and being sold has reduced considerably in the last few months.

My wife is also a shopper and I say that with the utmost pride.  She can find a sale like my dog can find a bone.  Sally prides herself in buying $200.00 worth of stuff for $25.00 and she does it all the time!  But over the last year her joy of shopping had dwindled to practically zero and it was depressing to see her come home with nothing to show for her hard work.  Oh, the deals were out there but she just couldn’t bring herself to spend any money because “things” were so tight.

I’m happy to report that she is bringing home some great deals recently!  Her joy for shopping is starting to come back and our household is again well clothed and well fed!

That’s proof positive that things are looking up…

Tom Life In General, remodeling

It’s old news now, but in 2007-08 the firestorm over infill housing was at its peak and had the city of Kirkwood divided on how to handle its citizens’ concerns.  Those who didn’t want any new development in Kirkwood were in favor of ordinances so strict, no one could build anything.  Those against it wanted to “leave well enough alone”.  The City Council appointed Council Member Tim Griffin as the liaison between the most ardent supporters of a new ordinance and the builders and developers.

I am a lifetime citizen of Kirkwood and a remodeling contractor - so Riggs Construction & Design understood both sides clearly.  I’ve been (and remain today) a member of the Landmarks Commission, and always show my love of the historic homes in Kirkwood through my business and personal deeds.  So I gained the trust of  supporters.  Riggs’ Construction’s 50 year history of remodeling here gained me the trust and understanding of the construction community working in the city.  So, put that whole picture together, and I became the chosen candidate to assist Mr. Griffin in mediating the debates between the two sides.

Three meetings were held in Riggs Construction’s conference room where those for and those against, had the opportunity to voice their opinion and work toward a compromise.  During those meetings, Mr. Griffin and I were able to find some common ground between both sides and an outline of the new ordinance was created and presented to the City Council.  The recommendations made by Tim Griffin to the City Council were accepted as read and the new ordinances were made law.

Since then, the economy has tanked and new home construction has reached all time lows in production and sales.  Yet, if you drive around Kirkwood, you can still see new homes popping up and remodeling projects are present all over town.  Filling out floor area ratio and total lot coverage forms took a little head scratching and it was a little tough at first figuring out just how big a house or how much addition you could build.  Some citizens have been confused and disappointed that they couldn’t build what they wanted because of the new ordinances.  But surprisingly, there has been very little outcry from them or the developers that fought so hard to keep the status quo.  The infill housing currently being built does fit better into the neighborhoods and the “McMansions” that were overwhelming the lot and the houses around them are no longer an issue.  Is everyone happy?  Probably not; but it seems the citizens and developers are both accepting of the new regulations and by in large, they have not created any undue hardship for either side.

Tom Historic Renovation, Life In General, remodeling Historic Renovation, kirkwood remodeling

My next door neighbors tore down their home on December 31, 2005 with the intention of building a new one starting spring of 2006.  It’s now April 2009 and they’re still not in!  The hole from the old house was there until March of ’07 and construction has been going on ever since.  Not a good way to make friends and influence people.  In fact, our neighbor across the street may never talk to them again.

It doesn’t matter if it’s a remodeling project or a new home, proper planning is the first step toward making sure your job goes smoothly and quickly and that will make your neighbors happy.

Here are some more tips I can give you to keep them happy during your project.
•    Let them know what you are up to before the trucks pull up!
•    Share the time line with them so they have an idea what to expect and when.
•    Make sure they have the contact information of your contractor so in the event there is a problem, they can call and get it resolved quickly.  It may not necessarily be the phone number on his sign, but the cell phone number of your project manager.
•    Keep your project site clean and orderly!  There is nothing worse than having your neighbors picking up wind blown trash from your construction site or driving by each morning and evening to a messy, disorganized site.
•    Have your contractor make sure every trade parks on the same side of the street.  Trying to squeeze your car in between two pickups with side mount mirrors can be a real aggravation.
•    Never have deliveries made prior to 7:00 AM.  The sound of the backup alarm on a delivery truck is not very pleasant at 6:00 in the morning.
•    Make sure your contractor follows all OSHA safety rules so that when you invite your neighbors over to get a sneak preview during construction, no one gets hurt.  (You will invite them over, won’t you?  Everyone is curious!)
•    Make sure the Port-a-potty get cleaned weekly.

Of course, if you hire the right contractor, he/she will make sure all of these systems and etiquette rules are in place; so you don’t have to…

Tom Life In General, remodeling

Leadership is a difficult quality to put a definition to.  Is it charisma, confidence, intelligence, or a willingness to take on responsibility?  It’s all of those, I’m sure but I think it goes much deeper than that.  I’ve known many people that had all of those traits and still weren’t good leaders.

Leaders have an inherent sense of right and wrong.  Their moral compass is always pointed in the right direction no matter what the circumstances.  They know that their ability to lead successfully depends entirely on the team they are leading and they must treat those people with respect and loyalty.  They recognize when there is a wrong and they make it right but if there is no wrong, they will stand their ground and fight for what they believe in.

They say that integrity is doing the right thing when no one is looking and I believe that, but true leaders understand that someone is always looking, even if it’s just themselves.  They understand that everything they say and do is magnified, scrutinized and emulated by their team. If not today, then tomorrow or the day after but their actions will always be remembered.  One slip up of emotion over value and it’s like starting again from scratch.  A leader knows if they do “slip” they have to openly recognize it, say that it was wrong and that they will do everything in their power to not let it happen again.

It helps to have the charisma and confidence but without integrity, it won’t matter if you own a business, manage a division or are the captain of the high school football team, no one will follow you for very long.

Tom Life In General