Near Miss!
Wednesday, April 23, 2014 - Joe Kiedinger
Fourteen years ago, I had the opportunity to partner with my brother Dan on a piece of heaven in Tomahawk, WI. On the property is a dwelling that we affectionately called, The Cabbage, pronounced Ka-Bage – combining the words Cabin/Garage.
It had electricity and a sink that emptied into a 5-gallon bucket and an outhouse. We had heat, beds upstairs and could comfortably (kind-a) stay there over night. Once our partnership was sealed, I brought up a group of friends who helped to organize and clean up our paradise.
Anxious to have a bonfire pit, we found a spot a “safe” distance from trees to have our bonfire pit. This year we decided that fourteen years was enough to not have a comfortable dwelling. We decided to do a modest remodel and create a 900 square foot cabin. The work crews called in digger’s hotline and it revealed the power line being about a foot from our pit. YIKES! We should have looked down before looking up.
Sometimes, the thing that will stop you from achieving your goal is actually under you, not above you.
Planning is a big part of success. Sometimes you can get excited about something and jump in with everything you’ve got. It’s true, sometimes success can be found. I’ve learned that planning goes a long way to help increase your success ratio. Had we dug just a foot to the right, there could have been catastrophic results that day, fourteen years ago. It’s often been said, “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.”
I’ve learned my lesson!
Joe Kiedinger
ACTION PLAN: Make a plan for your success! It’s too important.