What makes you passionate about working at Laminators:
I am often asked… “How can you do the same job every day for 34+ years?” My answer… No two days are ever alike. I have worked in production making and cutting panels, I have built doors for piggyback railcar trailers, pool decking, and building façade. I have worked in purchasing, engineering, product development, sales, and marketing. Each has had different challenges and opportunities to grow and learn. I have always understood that the business funded my family, and the business was my family. It was always easy to think of our employees as extended family and build our culture of treating each other with respect around that concept. My passion is to build our future deliberately and by design. I do not want to merely react to opportunities as they come to us, I want to build that future proactively according to a plan. I get joy from working with family and friends every day and creating a shared fate outcome with the promise of financial success! J. Paul Getty famously said… “I don’t care who gets rich with me, as long as we all get rich!” that is a powerful mantra when building our team!
Career accomplishments and milestones:
Many of my career accomplishments revolve around the success we have built and the way our employees feel about working for our company. The longevity of the organization and the culture speak to success. It has been an opportunity to earn customer and vendor friendships, and positive relationships with coworkers and staff. These are far more important to me than trophies on a shelf or plaques on the wall. We have some of those, but the things I mentioned above are more like peeing your pants in a dark suit… Nobody notices but it gives you a nice warm feeling for a while. 😊
Skills and qualifications:
I learned a lot in school about how to learn, and I suppose it is what has given me curiosity and the desire to be a lifelong learner. I know that has been encouraged in me by my parents as well. I also figured out pretty early on that I would make my living talking to people. It helped me in sales, it helped me understand customers in marketing, and it helped me be a leader when it was time to step up and take on the mantle of ownership. I have had several REALLY good mentors along the way. They taught me how to listen and ask good questions. They taught me the value of integrity of my words and actions. They taught me leadership is a balance of making those around you better, as well as holding them accountable to do what they said they would do to reach our goals. They taught me that problems do not get better with age. They also taught me that life is only 10% about your circumstances and 90% about your attitude and how you respond. My DNA is also wired to be a fixer… and I love to solve problems. I have been involved in this company long enough to develop expertise in several market niches, but I think I am most adept at being a good leader and building good teams.
Interests and personal touch:
I am an athlete. I also love to coach. I appreciate other athletes as well and love to watch competition. I like to play golf, go fishing, take a drive in the country or along the coast. I like fast cars, boats, and motorcycles… but also like a slow cruise in a sailboat. I like to read because it fuels my learning and permits my imagination to be entertained. I also love music… playing it and listening to it. I have had a wander lust for most of my life, and traveling to sell was never a hardship. I have enjoyed visiting 3 of the 7 continents, with the others yet to come someday on the bucket list. My adventures have included rock climbing, hiking, zip lining, scuba diving, skiing, surfing, sailing, and hunting in many wonderous parts of North America and the Caribbean.