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Hi Team,

So here we are again; a week into Lockdown 4.0 and I am feeling an overwhelming sense of deja vous. I just hope the latest Covid outbreak is bought under control as soon as possible and without Victoria being pushed to breaking point?

One thing I am incredibly thankful for right now, is that we sold our house in St Kilda the week before this lockdown. The saying that “a week is a long time in real estate” is feeling so true. Also; “timing is everything when selling a house” because if we had not sold when we did, we would now be in real trouble, with all inspections and auctions being cancelled for the next few weeks!

Thankfully, the real estate gods have looked upon us favourably and this sale will no doubt prove to be a defining moment for the McCallum family. However, we now have some big decisions to make as there are so many different ways we could go with buying, or renting, or developing, or investing etc etc; but this is exactly the kind of problem solving I dream of doing.

“life is one big problem that takes a lifetime to solve.”  D. F. McCallum

This is one of those “sliding door moments” when I need to draw on my knowledge, experience and intuition, in order to steer the family in the right direction and launch us into the next phase of our journey together.

I have previously written about making these big decisions in email #116 + #117, explaining that it’s all about knowing what you are prepared to give up and that making good decisions requires controlling your emotions, managing your fear of the unknown and being willing to go outside your comfort zone. 

“No skill is more valuable in life and harder to learn than the ability to critically think through a problem.”  Shane Parish

Solving complex problems is one of those vital skills that is rarely taught at school or university. Effective problem solving involves a lot of critical analysis and self-awareness and these are skills or insights not on any school curriculum and must therefore be learnt from one’s life experience. People with good problem-solving abilities end up having a real advantage throughout their lives and those that avoid solving problems are often left behind.

“If you only have a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail.” Abraham Maslow

One of the main reasons that I love my job is that building is not an exact science, and it involves solving complex problems on a daily basis. I experience the effects of how well my team solves a myriad of different problems each day. If we are on top of any problem’s, I personally have more time and space to be creative and to make better decisions. It literally feels as though I have more energy and enjoyment on these high-performance days. But poor thinking and problem solving on the job chews up large chunks of my time and my team’s resources trying to correct mistakes and finding out what went wrong.

Thanks for reading,
Stay safe and jump through sliding doors.
David