Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about waiting. That stretch of time that feels endless—where there’s no clear sign of hope, no guaranteed outcome, just… waiting. It can be painful, filled with questions, doubts, and the kind of silence that makes you squirm. What if? Why? When? These questions echo in our minds during seasons […]
Growing pains are the worst. I remember as a kid having aching legs and wishing it would stop. The reality was if they stopped then I would have never grown. A harsh reality for a youngster I know. Trees share a fundamental similarity: both represent necessary struggles for growth and development. Just as a tree […]
Did you know that 60-70% of your Homeowners Association (HOA) dues are typically allocated to landscaping? In California, your home is likely your greatest asset, and its value can be significantly influenced by the quality of its landscaping. That’s where Monarch comes in. As a premier commercial landscape consulting firm based in Orange County, CA, […]
Our industry is one that encourages growth. Without growth plants die and without opportunity, people move on to something else. In order to meet that demand, commercial landscape companies have grown to incredible levels all around us. Recently, Landscape Management magazine put out their top 150 landscape companies (based on gross receipts). Bright View came […]
Recently, I had the privilege of listening to a friend reflect on how rejection can lead to new direction. This rang true for me as I realized that rejection acted as the launching pad for my current trajectory. As for many in this industry, the landscape has a way of choosing you rather than you […]
Change. We don’t like it and we live in denial acting as though this time it will be different. People change, contracts change, industries change, and we know this. So why are we so resistant? Nature is always a good model for us. Change is slow, predictable, and often glorious. The mixture of leaf […]
Have you ever watched America’s Funniest Home Videos? If so, you probably laugh the hardest when some middle-aged man wipes out trying to act cool. We have all been that guy who attempts something that seems doable but upon approach learns that we may have become overzealous. This is called collecting data. Data collection can […]
Sprinting is defined as a short spell of running at full speed. Short Spell is the key phrase. We take off on year-long and oftentimes decade-long sprints. Why is that? So much of our self-esteem is measured by how we are keeping up. Some of us get out of the gates fast and slow down […]
It is often said that the President of the United States is the most powerful person in the free world. While this may be true, the day-to-day actions of the President don’t affect you nearly as much as you think. The truth is, you have the power to control your mind, attitude, diet, exercise routine, […]
Most people want to be noticed and recognized for some historical achievement. Several years ago, I headed to a friend’s office to discuss strategy for my consulting company Monarch Environmental. After laying out my ideas and the case for what I was proposing, he pointed out two pictures on the wall. The first black and […]