Good morning, Team! It’s Friday!

The holidays are over. People are back at it. 

I recognize I’m most content when I’m grinding… and my intense focus leaves most wondering why I am so angry. 🤨

The wrinkles in my forehead are there due to focus, not frustration. I can see what the project in my hands, rubbing up against the stone, will be … and I’m anxious and determined for it to realize its potential, and I’m nudging like a persistent parent (or maybe an armed guard).

I got home late last night and I’m back in the airport today under different conditions. Travel for other reasons provides the opportunity to look up from the project, the purpose, the focus … to see humanity, if but for a moment.

For example:

I normally don’t travel with checked bags and a kind attendant pulled me out of a long line to use touchless (since that was quicker) but my first thought was I was moving from a short line to a different, longer line. Grumbling to humbling; gratitude and apologies.

Still in “get ‘er done” mode, I’m waiting for the sky club to open. I get there early, a line forms, I approach the group waiting for the elevator and figure I’ll take the stairs only to find out all are being delayed to let the first wave of folks check in before the next wave goes up. More humility…

Life will continue to teach you lessons until you learn them.

Deep breath. Take a seat.

Observations:

Most people I see this morning are traveling in pairs.

-The Mom who tries to guide her 2 year old to the right row of seats picking up the trail of toys, etc.

-The dutiful wife escorting her somewhat absent-minded husband to his correct row and manage his backpack.

-The blind partner holding on to the backpack of her leading man.

We are all codependent to some extent.

Life will continue to teach you lessons as long as you are open to recognize them.

Have a blessed weekend and stay open to what life is trying to teach you. 

Eric

Good morning, Team! It’s Friday!

“Thank you for the butter and the prayers…”

We were out with family at an event Christmas Day when my phone alerted me someone had entered our condo. I got a little nervous but Anne was not available to speak to at the moment, so I waited, anxiously, for the right time to understand if she knew something I didn’t. I forgot about it until we got home.

We returned from the event and she clarified our neighbors across the hall had returned from a trip, didn’t have a critical cookie making ingredient so Anne gave the code to get in and directed them to the right spot in the fridge. When we got home, there were some chocolate chip cookies as a thank you with a note, some of it shared above.

Our neighbor across the hall is fighting cancer. Her husband posts on caring bridge, we follow, sometimes comment online and sometimes see them in passing, in the elevator or walking the dog. They are sweet people, going through a hard time, and doing it with the utmost grace and courage.

We are reminded daily of the hard things; challenges, pain, brokenness. How we react to the issues we must face is the essence. How we treat others as they face hard things  is the opportunity for civility, neighborly, humanity.

As you go out into the world today, this week and this new year of 2026, be gentle. Everyone is fighting a battle of some kind.

Eric

Good morning, Team!  It’s Friday! …and my last blog for the year.

I’m sitting on yet another delayed flight over the past few weeks. Safety first, always. But it’s relative. I see logistics mistakes made every single day and the aviation industry is … not immune.

To my topic for the day.

There are natural patterns in life. An old boss called one out he named, the “bullshit tolerance” curve. It goes like this:

When we first get out of school/college, we are willing to make a name for ourselves and put in the time, effort, etc. As we age, we get married, buy a car, buy a house, have kids and with each step, we are so invested that we will tolerate…more bullshit. It escalates until the kids are out of college, the car is paid off (or you start leasing), the mortgage is done, or close, depending on how much the weddings cost and if you took a second mortgage out… and the descent begins. Usually just as treacherous as the ascent because now you’re whooped, older and wisdom may or may not make up for your inflexibility. (Is this guy sarcastic or just excessively candid?)

Bending:

In this instance, we try to bend the curve DOWN, flatten the mountain as it were, so recovery isn’t quite so long, arduous and painful…labor of love or not.

We’ve all seen the thought process that “I’m in so deep now, what’s another $50k?”

Answer: It might be your sanity, your health, or your willingness to keep going.

This is too important to stop at one example so this might spill over into the New Year. We should explore moving some curves to the right, some to the left and some up instead of flattening.

No matter what, if you give in to the pattern, you’ve accepted mediocrity as the only answer. This is a leadership blog at its core and average, typical, take-what-the-world-gives-you is like giving up. Something I can’t accept, nor should you.

Have a blessed weekend, happy holidays and an awesome new year! 

BTW-If you are thinking about making a resolution…consider a commitment not tied to a calendar but linked to the benefits that will come from your choice of healthier habits. 🙂

Eric

Good morning, Team! It’s Friday!

I had a few meetings this week, bracketed by delayed flights, and a visit to the field to greet the difference makers, the men and women who build transmission lines and substations on the most complex system the modern world has ever experienced…and it gets more complicated by the day.

I was … vocal, specific, categorical and pointed in my delivery, because I care and because sometimes “knowing” needs a nudge before “doing“ gets traction. Several pushed back on my assertions and the defensive response means I pushed limits and stepped on toes. Complacency does not wake up with a smile.

I received a text from a meeting participant afterward who said I was passionate and followed up by saying “it wasn’t a bad thing”.

What happens when a team doesn’t meet expectations?

•defensiveness

•excuses

•assignment to others

If delivered correctly and consistently, a tough but accurate message may trigger the grieving process (DABDA):

•Denial

•Anger

•Bargaining

•Depression

•Acceptance

What are we grieving? 

Loss

Loss of what? 

Performance, notoriety, significance, predictability, security…and the list goes on.

What can we do about it?

Own our shit.

No one is perfect and we learn so much more from mistakes (when we are open to it) than we do from success.

Yes, I am passionate and I can be intense and positive at the same time.

Have a blessed weekend!

Eric

Good morning, Team! It’s Friday!

A lesson on perspective:

Many have heard the passage, from Matthew 7:3

“Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the [log] in your own eye?

The analogy is intentionally exaggerated to show how our own perspective is often more flawed than we realize. 

A similar perspective,

“We judge ourselves by our intentions and others by their behavior.” Stephen Covey

The quote reveals that judging intentions (internal view) versus behavior (external view) creates a mismatch in moral and social evaluation due to perspective asymmetry. To build better relationships, trust, and fairness, individuals must actively shift perspectives and consider intentions behind others’ actions as well.

Walk a mile in my shoes before judging me sort of thing.

Food for thought on a Friday morning.

Have a blessed weekend!

Eric

Good morning, Team! It’s Friday!

Thanksgiving, the holiday, is behind us and retailers have converted Black Friday from one supercharged day to two weeks of advertising overload and “deals” as we anticipate $1T in spend this season.

While most of us were taking a break for turkey, some of our crews at Brink were powering through the holiday to meet deadlines and keep the infrastructure build moving ahead. The weather, the shorter days, collaboration with other sub-contractors, all require maximum effort and when our customer asks for an expedited schedule, we bring in more help, more equipment and work to meet or exceed expectations. 

Our President and other leaders committed time over the holiday to hand out meals and support our field staff as they deliver a significant project. We work in challenging conditions on the regular. We make sacrifices, like being away from family at special times, because we understand the importance of reliable and sustainable power. Our leadership gets it as well. That’s how you set the tone…at the top.

I’m proud to be part of an organization that places such a high priority on safety, people, customers and performance. While there is a significant amount of work on the horizon for the power generation and power delivery industry, we are taking care of each customer, one project at a time. 

We are still at it!

Have a blessed weekend!

Eric

Good morning, Team! It’s Friday!

Am I the only one clinging onto the sentimental memory of multiple generations relatives crowding around a large table in a modest living room with the kids sitting at a wobbly card table in close enough proximity so passing the mashed potatoes still happen before they get cold?

This is the time of year we celebrate harvest, demonstrate gratitude for what we have and who we are with. (It’s also a practice that should extend 365, regardless of the type of harvest you celebrate)

My traditional Thanksgiving world has been transitioned a few times in my life and I must be getting old and grumpy like Andy Rooney, from CBS’ 60 minutes fame.

From early memories,

I enjoyed setting the table, getting out the fancy silverware and goblets, smelling the turkey in the oven and stuffing on the stove, the nuts in a silver dish with special cracking tool next to it, and peanut brittle … and the lighter mood everyone enjoyed. It was special.

I enjoyed going to Aunt Hazel and Uncle Carrold’s farmstead for dinner with so many other relatives. Excellent food and hospitality. (Definitely sat at the kids table back then)

Once married, the new family sat at a different table with different faces but maintained a strong resemblance to the traditions I had grown up with.

Fast forward 40 years-

There are a lot of new faces, a lot more considerations and a much different view of what tradition is, like:

•Whose table are we at, or is it a restaurant?

•Who is at the table? 

•Why do they prioritize being at the table? 

Most importantly,

•How do I come across to my loving wife if I am less than welcoming to every suggestion being made about what this beloved tradition transitions into next?

Ann Landers would say it’s important to set boundaries.

Coming together as a family is far more challenging and complicated today with multiple generations weighing in and trying to balance all of the things…than I recall growing up.

•I love our blended and extended families

•I enjoy spending time with them even if simultaneous gatherings have become nearly impossible

•Supporting decisions is typically easier than formulating solutions with this social calculus

We will see many of our loved ones this season but not everybody at one table for one meal. It will still be special, just maybe a little more spread out than we became accustomed to many decades ago.

However you choose to spend your time and whomever you choose to spend it with, be gentle, be open, be kind.

Have a blessed weekend and a memorable Thanksgiving!

Eric

Good morning, Team! It’s Friday!

No one has been able to predict the future. Nostradamus had a pretty good record for those willing to give license to his poetry but a little digging debunks any myths around real accuracy.

So as we wander through our life, we can’t predict what will happen to us no matter how much we want things to stay the same, or change…If things are good, we long for consistency and continuation. If things are bad, we pray for positive change.

We certainly live in interesting times where the stories of someone working in the same job at the same company their entire career is more rare than ever. Whether challenge or opportunity, change and ensuing disruption seems to be the only constant.

Heraclitus said, “No man steps into the same river twice, for it’s not the same river, and he’s not the same man.”

If someone moved your cheese, are you continually scampering back to where it was or are you charging forward looking for more?

As we consider what made for more might mean in this context:

•Is it a longer day, looking harder for what used to be (i.e. your old block of cheese)?

•Is it a dramatic change of pace where you have higher impact on more people, an increase in influence?

•Is it doing something that resonates so deeply that no matter the amount of time or degree of influence associated, it feels like this is what you were made to do, with more personal significance?

The older I get, the stronger the feeling that everyone has high potential. We are all made for more. You can’t expect to reach your goals and aspirations without being pushed, pulled, scared, coerced or whatever event might serve as the catalyst to get you to realize your full potential.

We are all made for more. To be bigger and better than what we were (or are). It might look like a promotion or it could be a layoff. Regardless, change is inevitable, you can’t predict the timing and how you react is the only thing in your control.

Have a blessed weekend!

Eric

Good evening, Team! It’s Saturday!

Pardon the late post, I did not prepare well enough for a Friday morning blast.

Anne and I have a few places we go to enjoy time together. There’s a little steak place that has a terrific vegetarian menu (if you know to ask for it) that we enjoy going to maybe once every three to four months. The happy hour on the weekend suits us well. The chill in the air, a booth for just us, some soup and our selection…and we are set!

What we enjoy most about this place is not the well-made drinks or the presentation, temperature or taste of their outstanding food…it’s the customer service.  It’s an experience with a lingering feeling. We are made to feel special in anticipation, while we are there and after we leave. Today, I tried to show some appreciation beyond a promise of a return visit. Our waitress, Pascal, was delighted when I called her by her name. The manager with a stylish shave head was a bit surprised when I showed more enthusiasm than he did, and he’s high energy, and shook his hand while reassuring him how good of a job he’s doing.

What I took away from this enjoyable respite from the chill, the wind and the crowds was a full stomach, a full heart and a bunch of questions:

•“How do we show up?” 

•“What can I share with my coworkers, business partners, and colleagues that might get them more engaged, more aware and more excited about how we leave our customers feeling?”

•”Is doing a good job enough?”

•”This place has competition with more name recognition, more experienced staff, a fancier menu – but we haven’t been there in a long time. Why not?”

Customer service.

I will be thinking of ways we can make our customers feel like they’ve had a positive experience. As a colleague shared recently as we spent time in a booth at a local conference, “We want them to like us!” It never hurts to have that brought to the top of mind.

Have a blessed weekend!

Eric