It's been awhile!

I'm trying to keep up with this but I also want to make sure I'm keeping it new and fresh and not just rehashing the same ole' same ole'.

Today I wanted to discuss the need to connect with peers in your industry. I hate nothing more than petty competition. For me it's important to try and get to know who others are in my industry. You never know when you may need an extra hand or good advice. It's also nice to know you're not alone out there!

I am really starting to know the value of networking and not just in obvious ways. The more people you can connect with on a daily business the better off we can all be.

I once read that if you want to meet certain types of people and have a certain type of social circle you need to be the person you want to meet. In other words, do the things you would admire in others and you'll attract the same kind of people.

That's why I try to give of my time and knowledge. That's why I'm nice to my dogs. That's why I coach my son's little league team. Everyone says it's the little things that make all the difference. I hope they're right!

Work in Progress!

Here are a couple of pics showing the progress so far of our latest project. It's a coffee and wine bar located in Chanhassen Mn. It should be open mid October and I'll follow up with completed pics.

Not much to look at so far but it'll be great when it's done!

Coming Together!

I haven't posted for awhile because I've been extremely busy. I feel like everything is starting to finally come together. All of the long hours and hard work are starting to pay off, even if only in small ways. I've been trying to reach out to others in the form of friendly networking and expand our name and brand to the business community as a whole.

I've met with the local small business group in Excelsior and they are very friendly which is encouraging. I will be helping to set up a street festival this weekend and meet a few more of the members. I'm trying to subscribe to the philosophy of giving first asking second. It's a bit karmic but I think that's the way of the universe. You can't always expect to get when you haven't given of yourself.

I'll be posting some work in progress pics soon of The School II in Chanhassen. It's a sister restaurant to The School of the Wise in Victoria that we did last year. While it will be similar to the first restaurant in style, it will definitely be unique unto itself.

To Blog or not to Blog!

This is about the point that I think most newer bloggers start wondering if it's really worth the effort. When inspiration has worn off a little and you're worried you'll start sounding like a broken record. This is a business blog so I try to refrain from negativity and personal musings, so it limits my content somewhat. I promise to try and keep this as interesting as possible but if anyone has anything specific they were wondering about or wished I'd address, feel free to add a comment or suggestion. I never take critique personally so don't be afraid. I'll also try and post some more pics of current projects and fun things. I know that adds a lot to the visual interest of the blog.

So here's to keeping up with this blog and hoping it finds a voice of it's own someday.

Feeling Lucky!

Today was a good day! Not a great day, not a stupendous day, just a good day. What makes that original statement so awesome is that it's Monday and I can still say that! Mondays don't typically treat me too well but today I had nothing to complain about. And since life is too easy to complain about I try extremely hard to keep this blog positive and as complaint free as I possibly can.

With all of that being said, I think it's the good days that make life worth living and the work worth doing. I sometimes get worn out by my choice to be self employed. I think it would just be so much easier if someone else could...fill in the blank. I'm sure you know how it is. But then days like this come along when I decide what time to go into work. When I get to go home for lunch and touch base with my kids. When I can say yes to my youngest and hang out a little longer to indulge in a quick game of catch with a football. When I can go into my latest project during off hours to get some work done without the distraction of other contractors because this time it's a commercial job instead of residential.

It's the good days that I realize how lucky I am to get to do what I do for a job. And it's days like that when I truly feel grateful for the people who allow me this luxury in life. Those people would be you, my clients. Generated mostly through word of mouth, my clients are the ones who allow and trust me to be me. Not many people get to say that.

I had an art teacher tell me a long time ago that being an artist for a living was the best job you could have. "Think about it" she said,"it's like getting paid everyday to be you! Can you think of any better way to make a living?"

No, I really can't.

Thank you for allowing me to feel so lucky!

Fauxing Green!

I know a lot of people are sick of hearing about the whole "green" thing, but we take it very seriously at g3 Studios. It's really easy to throw around a lot of buzz words and green terminology but we like to think that this issue can go a little deeper than a sales pitch. In other words, anyone can buy and use the latest green product and call themselves a green practitioner.

For years we have always worked hard at being environmentally aware. I can't tell you how many job sites I've been on where anything goes as far as what makes it into the trash can at the end of the day. Or the amount of toxic materials that were used to create a certain finish. No one is perfect but I can promise you that we try as often as possible to maintain a green and clean work ethic.

Some tell tale signs of contractors that claim to be green but aren't are easy enough to spot. They still use tons of plastic instead of reusable drop cloths. The amount of paper used for masking and being tossed at the end of the job is ridiculous. The use of disposable brushes instead of washing out quality brushes. They buy product by the gallon instead of larger 5 gallon containers because they might be convenient.

An occasional shortcut too often turns into sloppy and negligent habits that have a way of adding up over the years, typically in land fills.

My personal pet peeve isn't that everyone hasn't adapted to a better way of working, it's the pretenders who are claiming to be green in the efforts of lining their own pockets with a different kind of green!

Staying positive!

I sure am glad that it's not Monday anymore! I swear that Monday's are jinxed with strange voodoo. It's so hard to stay focused and enthusiastic sometimes and when you add the burden of a Monday to that, the results can be disastrous if you're not careful. OK, so maybe I'm being a bit melodramatic but you know what I mean.

I guess the name of the game is to just try and stay positive. Even when you don't want to be. I think now more than ever it's important. It's easy to be positive when things are going well, it's when things get tighter that this philosophy is harder to maintain. Go g3 Go! Yeah team g3!

I'll have to keep working on that!

Gipson