As summer draws to a close and vacations come to an end, it’s time to get back to business and start focusing on the challenges that lie ahead. Fall is a perfect time to take a step back, evaluate your business or personal life, and take the necessary steps to ensure that you and your company are positioned for future success.
I for one have always felt a sense of renewed energy and optimism in the fall. September, rather than January, always felt like the start of the New Year for me. Maybe it’s the kids going back to school or the majority of people getting back to work, or perhaps it’s the beginning of football season where every team starts out with the same aspiration of reaching the Super Bowl that creates a sense that something new is upon us. More likely it’s because my company’s fiscal year begins on October 1 and we close the books on the prior year, wipe the slate clean, and start fresh with new goals and objectives.
For whatever reason, this time of year always reinvigorates me as I turn my attention to such things as staffing needs, training, education and strategic initiatives. I’m sure many of you feel and do the same thing at one time or another during the course of the year. The upcoming AWCI Executives’ Conference & Committee Meetings in Baltimore from Oct. 7 to Oct. 10 is perfect place to expand on those efforts and take the necessary steps to start the “New Year” off on the right foot.
Whether it’s networking with colleagues, sharing ideas, brainstorming over common problems or attending one of the education seminars to expand your knowledge about a particular issue, AWCI is there to facilitate and present topics that are both timely and crucial to any company’s success.
So whether it’s back to school or back to business, now is the perfect time to refocus and invest your time and energy into whatever endeavor you choose. Although the recent economic growth and increase in construction activity hasn’t touched every market as of yet, better times lie ahead, and you need to be prepared in order to move swiftly and capitalize on new opportunities.
In addition to being 2014–2015 president of the Association of the Wall and Ceiling Industry, Casabona is president of Sloan & Company, Inc. in West Caldwell, N.J.
