#600......THIS IS WHY I DO IT!

STORY TIME!.......

People ask me all the time..... ""Why are you so passionate about helping people?"".

In 1991, I was unemployed for Five Months.....My Wife was pregnant, and my son Sean was three years old. Not being able to support my family was extremely painful. I made over a thousand phone calls during that time, I called every architectural firm at least four times. The amount of phone numbers that were disconnected was disheartening. I can't express the pain I experienced every Sunday after reading the Boston Globe and there were no Want Ads to respond too. My Unemployment Checks were running out, I was days away from going to get a job pumping gas.

Finally I got a position at an architectural firm in Boston as a Job Captain - $15/hour. They were taking advantage of the crisis by hiring everyone as "consultants" (no benefits), they wouldn't even put our names on the phone list! They hadn't mentioned that during the interview or when they made me the offer. My first day I started asking about health benefits, the sad expression on the receptionist's face when she explained the situation is something I will never forget. I thought I had gotten a job....We had celebrated as a family but we shouldn't have. When I approached my Project Manager who had hired me to discuss the subject I was completely dismissed......""you should just be happy you have a job""...

Then they told me if I did a great job on the project they would "HIRE" me....……..

While unemployed, I had injured my knee playing basketball. To show my commitment to the firm I delayed my surgery so that I wouldn't miss any time at work. Every month we had to keep paying the COBRA insurance from my last job with money we didn't have. My wife pleaded with me to have surgery but I said no...I wanted to "do the right thing".

They kept telling me I was working hard and doing a great job so when they put me on a second project..... I asked about becoming an employee?...…...

Their response......””we are going to keep the arrangement the way it is for now"".....…I have never felt more gullible and betrayed at any point in my professional life. I wrote an angry three page letter that my wife convinced me to throw in the barrel. I Understood Why....We Needed the Money. I had walked around in pain for months, in order to pay the COBRA insurance we had gone into credit card debt for thousands of dollars. My payback from the firm was to be "Played" like a fool.

I Wanted to Quit!...….

Given the Economy in 1991....I had No Choice but to Stay.

It was a very Painful Pill for Me to Swallow.

**Score; Steve 0 - Firm 1

Then I got Lucky.....

The Clerk of the Works on the project they assigned me to do construction administration on got pregnant....so I APPLIED FOR THE CLERK OF WORKS POSITION!....At the next meeting with the city, members of the Building Committee thanked me for applying and said they were looking forward to meeting with me about the position. All of this was said in front of the Principal and Senior Associate of the architectural firm. In my peripheral vision I could see both of them turn their heads towards me.....""welcome to the game boys""......

The next morning the Senior Associate took me out for breakfast and made me an “employee" with a small raise/benefits. He was so proud of himself.....I'm sitting there thinking....""you didn't do the right thing, I had to force you to do the right thing""...….I smiled and thanked him. It was a funny moment, me knowing that he thought everything was fine and him not understanding that the game was just starting.

**Score; Steve 1 - Firm 1

Before I had gotten involved with the second project the construction documents had been sent out by the firm for public bidding at 80% complete! On a Public Bid/Chapter 149 project that is the kiss of death and opens up the client to unnecessary claims and lawsuits. I was working +12 hours a day trying to do construction administration and resolve the deluge of RFI's. As an example of the depth of the problems with the drawings...none of the student bathrooms met the required handicap code clearances, they all had to be redrawn before they could do the layout for the underground plumbing.

Throughout the project I would come back from the weekly site meetings and explain to the Senior Associate that the client was very upset. I would share with him that we might get fired! He would always dismiss my concerns...""you're just in the heat of the battle everything will be fine."" He would do damage control with the other Senior Associates and the Principal of the firm by downplaying the reality of the situation. I couldn't get anyone to listen....I finally gave up.

Unfortunately for the firm the Chairman of the Building Committee had taken the position as the Clerk of the Works. He became incredibly angry about the number of sketches/change orders and MONEY required to keep construction moving forward. The general contractor was happy to point out all the problems to him in every weekly construction meeting.

Finally the Building Committee called a meeting to "Fire" the firm from the next School Renovation project that we were supposed to work on. They also explained to the Principal of the firm that....””if Steve doesn't show up to do construction administration on the Library Renovation you'll also be fired from that project!""..........Music to My Ears!

On the car ride home I stepped on his throat.....I requested and received a 47% Raise. The CFO asked to speak with me the next morning, she was shaking she was so angry! She opened the meeting with.....””you took advantage of an old man in his time of need""...…..I leaned in towards her and closed the meeting with........""that old man squeezed my balls when he had the chance I'm just better at it than he is"".....

They took advantage of the crisis and when I leveraged my advantage....I'm the bad guy???They set the rules I played by them!

**Score; Steve 2 - Firm 1

This experience had a profound impact on my life and started me on this path to help others. It certainly made me very empathetic to people who are unemployed. Five months was a long time, even though its been 29 years since this happened the pain and humiliation is right under my skin. Anyone who has seen me struggle not to cry when they've asked me....""why do I do this?"''....in person or on the phone already knows that...….

Given my limited network as an architect and construction manager it was tough having very much success helping people. In 2002 when I got a position in Business Development more opportunities existed to help others but it was only happening organically.

2008 Changed Everything!

In 2008 as the AEC industry collapsed and people were laid off, (including me) I started making phone calls to check on people. Every call pretty much ended with...…... ””Me..Me..Me..Me””.....It got to the point during most phone calls, I would ask him/her about someone else we both knew and the answer was usually...""I don't know, I'm focused on getting a job for myself"".... This really pissed me off....angry isn't a strong enough word for how I felt. I just couldn't understand why everyone didn't have the mindset of...””We are All in this Together!!""

That’s when I started posting the ""Success Stories"" on LinkedIn! I Created the Numbers and Established the Goal of Helping "100" people. (5 people/year x 20 years left in my career) I only started writing and sharing these posts to show everyone what we should ALL be doing. I worked hard to be successful at it, I wanted to rub it into these people's faces....to make them understand that they should STOP focusing on themselves. Focus on Everyone!

I had no understanding at the time how publishing these success stories would impact my ability to help people. The visibility of these posts provides a wave of opportunities to help people! In 2013 when we helped "29" people, I knew we were on to something. A few years later I was able to revise the goal from "100" to "250" and then I raised it again to "500". After reaching #385 in May 2023...I raised the goal to #600!.

Its been an Amazing Journey! The joy and satisfaction that I get from this is overwhelming. When someone I've never met calls me and says..."I got the job"...and then they start crying and then I start crying because I knew how much they needed the job.....that's a Great Day!

Has helping people with the mindset that ""We are all in this Together""...Accidently helped me professionally....Absolutely! That is not the reason why I started #TheGAME!......I will continue to play as long as I'm able to....in the meantime I'm Building a #COMMUNITY....that will carry on!

2020 feels a lot like 1991 + 2008.

I want everyone to know how much I appreciate all the help I receive to Play this Game. I also LOVE that a few people who I've positively impacted have established their own Goals! We may not get to #600 but its going to be a hell of a ride!

Given our present circumstances we all need to act now...”We are All in this Together!”

Get in the Game!