Contractor Tip of the Month - November 2013
Words: Damian Lang Contractor Tip of the Month
By Damian Lang
Have you ever done something you thought wasn’t possible, but then you did it? Then, when you looked back, you thought, “Wow, how did I do that? I never knew I had that potential!”
The most successful people have visions and believe they can make their visions become realities. What if you and I take our own dreams to another level by first seeing our plans in our minds, and then believing our plans can be achieved? If we can get this part right, we can achieve things we never thought possible.
As I write this, I am in a hotel room at Disney World during the Mason Contractors Association of America’s Midyear Meeting. After visiting Disney’s theme parks with the other mason contractors, I kept wondering what Walt Disney could’ve believed to create this wonderland for kids. Part of his vision had to be that if you could get the kids to come, the parents would follow.
My girls just finished dragging me to breakfast at this Disney resort hotel at a cost of $125 for four of us for a buffet breakfast. I would guess that was priced out by the resort at $40 for breakfast and $85 for the big rat, duck and dog that came around to take a picture with my girls.
At Disney, these animals are characters better known as Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck and Goofy, and, because we are not back in Ohio, it’s well worth the price for the memory for my girls. What a belief it took for Walt Disney to think he could turn a rat that people fear into a cute mouse that would create a billion dollar enterprise. Now that takes vision!
I got on the internet and pulled up Walt Disney’s vision.??What came up was One Man’s Folly. In other words, one man’s silliness, craziness, misguided undertaking. They gave an example of a Walt vision. Walt Disney, creator of Mickey Mouse, Disney theme parks, and dozens of animated shorts and movie classics, in 1934 decided to move forward with his then-unusual idea of creating a full-length animated feature film. Others in the industry, as well as Disney’s brother and even his wife, tried to talk him out of it. What adult would want to pay money to see what amounts to nothing more than a long cartoon? What child would sit still through it?
Wow, it wasn’t enough for Walt to see it in his mind, he had to believe his own vision, or he obviously would have taken the advice of others and dropped his plans. If Walt never believed his vision, where I am sitting may still be a vacant field or a Florida swamp instead of a Disney wonderland. Walt Disney could see it, believed it, and achieved it. You and I must be our own versions of Walt.
A few weeks back, I was discussing the theory of seeing, believing and achieving with my girlfriend, Rachelle. I gave her the example of my investment of $4,000 in silver a few years ago. Owning it has never been exciting, as I have never determined how much I really need to own. During the discussion, I realized my mistake of investing without a vision of the amount of silver and gold holdings I wanted in the end. I did a little math, and decided that since the government is printing money without gold and silver to back it up, I should own $100,000 in silver and gold assets in the case of a currency collapse. That was a month ago. Since then I bought $13,000 in additional silver holdings; that puts me to $17,000 or 17 percent of my vision. Without the vision, I am certain I would still be at $4,000 in silver holdings or just a percentage of a boring “non vision” as I had nothing to stretch for. Now that I can already see the $100,000 in silver and gold holdings in my portfolio, and I believe I can invest this amount in time, I know I will achieve it. After all, if a large, happy rat; a tie-wearing, funny-talking duck; and a floppy-eared goofball dog can become a child’s wonderful memory, then my one small piece of silver can become a mountain.
Determine what you want in your life, work, relationship, health and so on. Then, start out with the thought of what you can achieve in each area. If those thoughts are unrealistic, you won’t believe it and can’t achieve it. Think as big as you want, as your true beliefs will keep your thoughts in check. Then see it and believe it, and you will achieve it.
Damian Lang owns and operates four companies in Ohio. He is the inventor of the Grout Hog – Grout Delivery System, Mud Hog mortar mixers, Hog Leg wall bracing system and several other labor-saving devices used in the masonry industry. He is the author of the book called “RACE – Rewarding And Challenging Employees for Profits in Masonry.” He writes for Masonry Magazine each month and consults with many of the leading mason contractors in the country. For information on how Damian can help make your jobsite more profitable using his equipment and systems, email him at dlang@langmasonry.com or call 740-749-3512.
Contractor Tip of the Month Archives