Rule 5 - Start Early

The early bird catches the worm. – William Camden

Always try to start work early because it demonstrates that you want your job and you want to be there. Most things can be taught, enthusiasm and desire, for the most part, cannot be.

Getting to work early gives you the opportunity to set the destiny of construction for the day. Otherwise you will be chasing your tail all day, trying to get construction moving in the direction you want.

The last reason is about respect. Don’t ask people to do things you wouldn’t do yourself. Your foreman and workers are starting early, so should you.

Fruits of one’s labor(s): the results of one’s work. We displayed the fruits of our labor at the county fair. What have you accomplished? Where is the fruit of your labors?

Construction work demands a lot of hours from you. Early mornings, late evenings, weekends and night shifts. But with those hours comes the satisfaction of seeing things get built. Creating something from nothing. Giving birth.

Slowly, little by little the project gets built. Until finally it is born and you get to say “I had a part in building that”. That this town has better water, sewer, safer roads, better infrastructure because of the hours I put in. That during the hard times, and all projects have them, that there is a light at the end of the tunnel. An end and it is something you can tell your kids about. You get to see the fruits of your labour.

Check out The Engineering Rule Book for the other rules.