Been reading more about President Trump’s infamous wall…Got me thinking about the time I sat down to chat with this master mason.
What is a master mason?
It’s a person who is an expert at cutting bricks and stones, designing (and building) walls, walkways, and a bunch of other structures.
Anyway, something stood out to me as he was telling me about his job: it’s really difficult to build something as simple as a stone walkway.
I mean… this guy was explaining the basics and it was not at all obvious how you would build it (AND do a GOOD job) just by looking at the finished product.
Same with walls, bridges, patios, and everything else he built.
Oh there’s more:
It’s a boring job. You have to come into work and be patient, be willing to do the same thing day in and day out.
When you’re building a wall, for example, speed doesn’t count. What counts is consistency. Attention to minute details.
And that’s for laying brick.
It’s even harder to do a good job laying a stone wall.
Brick (or stone) by brick. Lay one down. Then lay another. And another. And another.
Next day?
What’s on tap?
More bricks. Lay that one down. Pick up another that looks just like the last brick and lay that one down too.
Oh god.
I wager it’d drive most people insane.
But the finished product?
Everyone loves a walkway or a wall when it’s finished.
And a well-laid structure will be around longer than the mason (or even the person who commissioned the job).
But to actually do the job yourself?
No way.
It’s not pretty. It’s not secksy.
You know what looks beautiful?
A Japanese garden.
Wife and I went to Duke Gardens recently. Let me tell you something. It’s beautiful.
You walk into one section and you can see and smell all the flowers and if you get bored… you walk to a different area of the garden.
Problem solved.
Point is… a lot of the good stuff that happens in financial planning is like laying bricks.
Most people avoid it because it’s painful and boring.
But at the end of the journey? They have a “bulletproof” structure that can last practically forever.
But…
Most people also get distracted or bored and want to build a Japanese garden. It’s fun and pretty, but also very delicate.
Easy to destroy.
Which do you prefer? I have no idea.
I can tell you this though: if building foundations and walls sounds boring or uninteresting to you, then good luck to you my friend.
There’s nothing wrong with Japanese gardens. We just don’t do that.
We build solid structures. Brick by brick.
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