It was a very cold day in January a few years ago and my friend Craig and I were getting prepared to put up the rafters for an addition to our barn. The barn addition was a modified do-it-yourself project for me. I know enough about construction to build many things alone but I welcomed Craig's strong expertise when it came to more difficult construction projects. We were slow moving since we were wearing bulky winter "Carhartt's" and the footing on the frozen hay loft floor decking was slippery. I was not looking forward to cutting "birdsmouths" in the rafters and then anchoring them so that we could later push up pieces of plywood for the roof decking. Hot chocolate and a nap sounded much more inviting for the afternoon, but discipline demanded that we get the job done.

If you are experienced with construction and the building process, you will immediately understand the importance of having materials in place, ready to cut and install. Smooth, effortless flow and a functional work area are always the goal for a building job. Any construction project will attract an array of problems due to one of those Murphy's Law corollaries. I figured there was no sense in starting a project with an open invitation for problems with an inefficient workspace. Even though it was a chore, I suggested to Craig that we hold off cutting the rafters for ten minutes while I retrieved two saw horses from the basement of the house and carried them up the ladder to the open hayloft deck. Craig hesitated for a second and said we could cut them on top of the 24" high pile of plywood destined to become the barn roof deck. It could act as a very low- tech saw horse. He paused again for a longer period and said, "Why don't you get those horses, after all it only takes a few minutes more and we can Work Like Gentlemen."

Craig filled me in on a past experience of his working with some veteran carpenters. They used the term "Working like Gentlemen" to emphasize the process of getting your work space set up to be as efficient as possible to save time and your back. Gentlemen knew from experience that messy, improvised work areas are environments that always lead to reduced productivity and accidents.

One of my goals for the New Year is to apply the Work Like Gentlemen theme to my office at home. I am the first to admit that from time to time, I am guilty of some bad filing habits and lack of organization in my home office. There are pictures that need to be hung on walls and shelves ready to be installed. I want to begin 2004 with a workspace that has that image of the shop of a Gentleman instead of the postal car after the train wreck.

How about you? Is your work environment that of a Gentleman or a Gentle Lady? Are you proud of your work environment be it a garage, cubicle or the cab of your truck? Do you feel relaxed when you walk into your work environment every morning? I began using this method in my business office several years ago and will testify that a tuned up workspace makes going to work much more fun and productive. The home office is getting notice that the old ways are done and that a gentleman will be working there, too. My appreciation goes out to those old carpenters who used "cordless" hand tools exclusively but still made the time to do it right.

Does your workspace invite productivity or is it sucking energy from you before you start?

Gentlemen and Ladies,
Have a Healthy and Prosperous New Year!

Others have said about work:

Get happiness out of your work or you may never know what happiness is.
Elbert Hubbard (1856 - 1915)

People forget how fast you did a job - but they remember how well you did it.
Howard Newton

People who work sitting down get paid more than people who work standing up.
Ogden Nash (1902 - 1971)