Pub. 1 2018-2019 Issue 4

8 could be, you are missing out on opportu- nities tomake you and your business better. It’s that simple. There aremany benefits, ranging fromnet- working to educational opportunities, and they are all exceptional. But my personal opinion is that if you are not better today than you were yesterday, you have wasted a day. Membership in the trade associa- tion of your industry improves your odds of being better. Do you have past experiences in anything that will help your leadership in UAPA? I believe I do. I am dedicated to contin- uous learning, and I think that in and of itself fosters growth. I read more than 40 books per year – physical books. I like paper. I just finished Trillion Dollar Coach: The Leadership Playbook of Silicon Valley’s Bill Campbell, by Eric Schmidt, and it was a great read. I work at leadership. I have a company to run, and I want to do it well. What inspired you to serve as a leader within the association? Well, two things happened. I heard from several of our customers that I should con- sider joining and become engaged with UAPA. I alsomeet Reed Ryan, our Executive Director, who “voluntold”me into helping him realize UAPA’s industry mission. Since I believe in the mission and admire Reed, it was an easy move. What are your priorities and goals for UAPA as President? What’s in store for UAPA in the short term and/or long term? Well, as I said inmy comments at the UAPA conference – I suppose it would have been my inaugural address – asphalt matters. Infrastructure impacts people’s lives inways that we don’t think about. Yes, there’s the economic value in that it provides jobs for people. But it’s more than that. It brings families together for the holidays. It brings millions of people to state parks. The roads we build connect us all to each other and to our lives. What we do is important. I think this is where I start in on my pet peeve about the minimization of manual labor. I attended my son’s school for a career-day event, and all over on the walls therewere posters on colleges anddegrees. I didn’t see one poster on the trades and the career opportunities that are offered. I think our young people are almost shamed into a college degree, which I think is very short-sighted by educators and parents. For instance, a young person can’t get their CDL until age 21. As an employer, I can’t insure them until age 23, which means that I amat a disadvantage in finding good employees, and young people are at an equal disadvantage in finding a career path. Between the ages of 18 to 23 many young people are looking for an alterna- tive to college. For commercial drivers, I can offer jobs starting at 45K to 50K per year, which is comparable with what many college graduates are being hired at. Only the jobs I can offer don’t come with the college debt. Don’t get me wrong, I think our young people should be able to follow their interests, which for some means a college degree. I just don’t think that the trades are doing enough to educate about jobs – good jobs – that don’t require a college degree. Are you involved in any civic or charitable organizations? I amvery involvedwithmy church, and I am also a board member of the Utah Trucking Association. If you look back at your career and life, what would be three things that you have learned, that you would pass on to a younger member within the asphalt pavement industry? First, I would say to not underestimate the value of hardwork. I think we put toomuch emphasis on talent and not enough on the work. In using a sports analogy, we all have pretty much the same time on the court, but it’s the practice between games that dictates howwe use the time on the court. Second, work on developing skills, because the passion will follow. As humans, we like to do what we are good at, and to become good at something, we need to develop the skillset necessary to do it well. And last, it’s important to look above and below. Ask for help from those you admire personally and professionally, and in return be generous with helping others. No one becomes successful on their own. If you could describe the best day in this business, what would it look like? My best days are the ones when I can hand our performance bonuses to our employ- ees. I like to write a small note and include it with the bonuses. I had one employee tell me that he has kept all the notes over the years, and that those notes havemeant more to him than the bonuses. My first thought was that I need to do a better job on those notes! But it also reinforced my belief that it is all about relationships. It’s not necessarily what we do – although that’s important – it’s who we do it with. We’re very lucky with our employees.We’re like family, and we have very little turno- ver because of it. Tell us about your family. Mywife, Brooke, and I have beenmarried 19 years. I alreadymentionedmy son, Brandon, who is 16. Our daughter Annie is 13, and our youngest daughter, Haylie, is 11. What is your favorite way to spend your free time? Any unusual hobbies? I golf a little, ski a lot less than I’d like. I read, and I ride dirt bikes with my son. It’s our thing. Nothing unusual. I love to spend time with my family. 3 continued from page 6