Shownotes
The Importance of Understanding "Why"
We're welcoming back our favorite Canadian, Alex Pauls, to the Blue Collar BS podcast and you don't want to miss it.
Alex, an experienced electrician, will not only give us some entertaining stories, but he also shares a ton of valuable lessons when he worked out in the field.
We share valuable insights aimed at keeping blue collar businesses thriving across generations.
Highlight:
(0:4:40) - Alex’s experience with a transformer that exploded.
(12:34) - Alex’s experience as a leader and that he felt like things were moving in the right direction.
(16:34) - Leaders need to understand that employees really want to know the reason behind why they are doing something. Most of this boils down to communication issues.
(20:22) - Leaders should be careful of their position of power and not being scared of losing their place by sharing wisdom
Steve Doyle:
Brad Herda:
Alex Pauls:
This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:
OP3 - https://op3.dev/privacy
Transcripts
steve_doyle:
Brad Hurda, welcome back my friend!
brad_herda:
Hello Mr.
steve_doyle:
Dude, I'm
brad_herda:
Steven
steve_doyle:
fantastic.
brad_herda:
Doyle, how are
steve_doyle:
Got
brad_herda:
you?
steve_doyle:
my refreshing drink already cracked in midday. Let's get it on!
brad_herda:
I'll just do my diet Pepsi here. I'll save
steve_doyle:
Well, I mean, Alex is already getting in on his.
brad_herda:
my tequila for later tonight.
alex_pauls:
Yeah,
steve_doyle:
So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. So.
alex_pauls:
this is vodka, so.
steve_doyle:
Thank you. Bye.
brad_herda:
Yeah, it's all good. It could be vodka gin. It doesn't matter
steve_doyle:
It's
brad_herda:
to
steve_doyle:
all
brad_herda:
221
steve_doyle:
good.
brad_herda:
whatever
steve_doyle:
It's
brad_herda:
takes
steve_doyle:
all good.
brad_herda:
right So we're gonna welcome back we're gonna welcome back Alex Paul's who is our number one Canadian guest of blue collar BS
steve_doyle:
Number
brad_herda:
Number
steve_doyle:
one,
brad_herda:
one
steve_doyle:
number
brad_herda:
you are the number
steve_doyle:
one,
brad_herda:
one
steve_doyle:
number
brad_herda:
number
steve_doyle:
one.
brad_herda:
one We welcome back. We he had so much fun last time sharing stories with just myself This time Steve's gonna be able to partake in those stories and we got some great electrician stories and all sorts of fun stuff that Mr. Paul did not share with us in his first episode that he was so excited to come back to us. Hey I need to do this again I got shit I want to tell people. So welcome back to the show Alex. I am grateful you are here again
alex_pauls:
Thanks
brad_herda:
today.
alex_pauls:
Brad, thanks Steve. It's gonna
steve_doyle:
Yeah,
alex_pauls:
be fun.
steve_doyle:
so before we get started, just a reminder, a refresher for everyone, which generation do you best fit in with?
alex_pauls:
Yeah, this generation.
steve_doyle:
YEAH! Give it to us the GenX! Yeah!
alex_pauls:
Thank you. Bye.
brad_herda:
What
steve_doyle:
Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha
brad_herda:
generation are you really from?
alex_pauls:
two, maybe not part one, but:brad_herda:
Yeah,
alex_pauls:
but it was still
brad_herda:
yeah,
alex_pauls:
awesome.
brad_herda:
I was...
steve_doyle:
It was
brad_herda:
That was in first grade. That
alex_pauls:
Ha!
brad_herda:
was in first grade that year. That was awesome. That was awesome.
steve_doyle:
excellent.
alex_pauls:
I can picture Brad's afro right now.
steve_doyle:
Ha!
brad_herda:
Yeah!
steve_doyle:
Thank you. Bye.
brad_herda:
Well, I
alex_pauls:
Oh,
brad_herda:
did
alex_pauls:
come
brad_herda:
not
alex_pauls:
on.
steve_doyle:
Thank you.
brad_herda:
have
steve_doyle:
Bye.
brad_herda:
a perm. It was all the rage, but I
steve_doyle:
body
brad_herda:
did not have a perm.
steve_doyle:
that, you know, we probably need to create a couple videos with that, you
alex_pauls:
I
steve_doyle:
know.
alex_pauls:
could just picture Brad with the, with the perm, so he doesn't have to wear a bike helmet. You know, he's just biking on the street.
steve_doyle:
I'm sorry.
alex_pauls:
He's totally safe.
brad_herda:
There weren't bikes helmets
alex_pauls:
That's
steve_doyle:
Thank
alex_pauls:
why
brad_herda:
when
alex_pauls:
you
steve_doyle:
you.
alex_pauls:
need
brad_herda:
I was
alex_pauls:
the
brad_herda:
growing
alex_pauls:
perm.
brad_herda:
up
alex_pauls:
That's why
brad_herda:
Alex
alex_pauls:
you need it. It was a self-defense move.
steve_doyle:
So funny.
brad_herda:
Yeah, okay. But that didn't just gotten away. And some of us folks said that Big Bird, all right, were playing baseball or basketball or whatever, just got in the way of things.
alex_pauls:
Thank you. Bye.
brad_herda:
It just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just, it just
steve_doyle:
Oh man, that's good stuff. So Alex, welcome
brad_herda:
Bye. Bye.
steve_doyle:
back to the show. So since, you know, it's our first meeting, official meeting between you and I, and doing a little pregame before we got on here, talked a little bit about some extra stuff that we wanted to chat about today. So what was the one thing, reason why you wanted to come back and share what we're going talking about now.
alex_pauls:
Oh, I just love talking to Brad. So if, and I got lots of fun stories to tell. So we,
steve_doyle:
Thank
alex_pauls:
we
steve_doyle:
you.
alex_pauls:
only
steve_doyle:
Bye.
alex_pauls:
got into a little bit and I always tell people when we're doing a podcast, just keep the, keep the thing going. Cause all the bonus content ends up being like the better content. So
steve_doyle:
Right.
alex_pauls:
we'll just.
brad_herda:
It was the bonus content to start,
alex_pauls:
Yeah,
brad_herda:
so
alex_pauls:
exactly.
brad_herda:
we don't have to do it
alex_pauls:
So
brad_herda:
twice.
steve_doyle:
Thank you. Bye.
alex_pauls:
I'm here to have fun, tell some stories, you know, talk about my favorite experiences of being in the field, being blue collar and what I love most about it, what I didn't love. And, you know, hopefully that resonates with some people and hopefully I can pass that on to the next generation.
brad_herda:
We love that word hope here.
alex_pauls:
Oh, sure, yeah.
brad_herda:
You
steve_doyle:
Thank you. Thank you.
brad_herda:
know that, right?
steve_doyle:
Thank you.
brad_herda:
Words
steve_doyle:
Thank you.
brad_herda:
matter. Words matter. We don't hope to make an impact. We
alex_pauls:
for sure.
brad_herda:
are making
steve_doyle:
Well, we're
brad_herda:
an impact.
steve_doyle:
just going to assume that Brad got hung up there.
brad_herda:
in our little
alex_pauls:
share
brad_herda:
audience
alex_pauls:
the knowledge,
steve_doyle:
Or did
brad_herda:
world.
steve_doyle:
everybody
alex_pauls:
grow the snowball.
steve_doyle:
get hung up there?
alex_pauls:
And, you know, I like to think somebody out there is driving in their
steve_doyle:
It
alex_pauls:
van
steve_doyle:
did.
alex_pauls:
cruising around the city like I used to do in maintenance listening to podcasts. And why wouldn't you listen to the Blue Collar BS podcast while you're, you know, doing maintenance checks on different buildings and in your city. And that, I mean, we didn't have podcasts when I was on there. I just had my mix of my favorite inappropriate songs that I would blast. And
brad_herda:
your
alex_pauls:
yeah,
brad_herda:
break up tapes that
alex_pauls:
I would
brad_herda:
you had
alex_pauls:
make
brad_herda:
in
alex_pauls:
my,
brad_herda:
your Walkman.
alex_pauls:
trainees listen to all my favorite music and I'm like sorry dude like once you get to my position then Then you can have your own playlist
steve_doyle:
Thank you. Bye.
brad_herda:
Alright, so what are the top three songs in your playlist while you were being in the heavy electrician? Hey, I'm about to die
alex_pauls:
Oh
brad_herda:
if I don't wear the right gloves.
alex_pauls:
man, okay,
brad_herda:
World.
alex_pauls:
so I was just telling one of my friends this story of the greatest catastrophe that ever happened to me at work as an electrician was these really smart engineers and the telecontrol guys, they decided they were gonna keep hammering closed a breaker that kept tripping without...
steve_doyle:
Thank you. Bye.
alex_pauls:
It's like, you know, the breaker's doing its job. for a reason, right? So meanwhile, there is a CT, a current transformer, which for anybody out there, it does metering work. So you take like a high, high current and it steps it down to a metering system so that we can read it, you know, legibly inside. And so one of these CTs had exploded in the station and there was shrapnel, like three, 400 yards. Which ended up turning into a gigantic fireball all all the I mean if you can imagine just Porcelain yeah,
brad_herda:
Like a movie
alex_pauls:
just
brad_herda:
set.
alex_pauls:
big chunks like a war zone. It seriously was like Iraq and My my wife had she was super pregnant. She was like eight months pregnant at the time So she had the car, but she dropped me off at the station because I wasn't the guy on call and So I am leading into the playlist just so you guys know I am leading
brad_herda:
Oh,
alex_pauls:
story
brad_herda:
I'm
alex_pauls:
is
brad_herda:
confident.
alex_pauls:
dn't notice it and we dropped:brad_herda:
For those of us in the US leaders is
alex_pauls:
There's
brad_herda:
how many
alex_pauls:
about
brad_herda:
gallons?
alex_pauls:
four four liters in a gallon. So what's that 700 gallons?
brad_herda:
Okay.
alex_pauls:
Yeah, about seven yeah about 700 gallons of oil
brad_herda:
to that.
alex_pauls:
and that's when the transformer got a low oil alarm And we went over there and checked it out. Yeah, sure enough it was spraying spraying oil because it was punctured by some of this shrapnel and Interesting enough they dug a trench around the transformer All of the oil was kind of like seeping out of the ground because we dug it deep enough And our job all summer, me and my trainees, was to listen to music in the hot summer sun and just use these pads and wring them out of oil. All summer long. This was the
brad_herda:
Almost.
alex_pauls:
greatest job I've ever had. It was so ridiculous. And at the same time, I was helping the environment and we got to listen to music. We got to listen
brad_herda:
my
alex_pauls:
to music
brad_herda:
no
alex_pauls:
all day long and joke. And it was seriously the greatest summer ever. off this catastrophic event. So at the time,
brad_herda:
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
alex_pauls:
we were listening to this Canadian comedian. So if everybody can go out there and Google John Léjois, he was coming out with these hilarious comedy songs. And this was the stuff that we were listening to while we were working. We were just like dying, laughing. And he had the song, hit song called Everyday Normal Guy. And so once you guys, once we get off the show, you have to Google this, Everyday Normal Guy, rap songs and yeah,
brad_herda:
I'm making the notes.
alex_pauls:
ave a great time in the early:brad_herda:
Right, not
alex_pauls:
Ha ha!
brad_herda:
on my playlist,
steve_doyle:
Thank you.
brad_herda:
but
steve_doyle:
Thank you.
brad_herda:
hey, that's your playlist. It's all good.
alex_pauls:
John Lashwa will be on your playlist after this, I promise.
brad_herda:
So the latest one, so interesting, I was at the auto parts store a couple weeks ago and they're playing some music in there. And I'm like, what the, it's like Hotel California, but to this very different thing, the guy's name is Richard Cheese. And he does classic rock, hard rock, dance songs to early jazz type, upbeat 40s, 50s type tone. And like wow this it was funnier and how
alex_pauls:
Ha
brad_herda:
once
alex_pauls:
ha.
brad_herda:
I realized that I'm like it's hotel California. Hey cool This was it was bizarre. It was really bizarre listening to it. Why do I know this song? Oh, but it's not the be
alex_pauls:
Yeah.
brad_herda:
the eagle singing
alex_pauls:
You'd be surprised
brad_herda:
was on.
alex_pauls:
how much oil you can bring out of the ground
brad_herda:
the
alex_pauls:
while
brad_herda:
players
alex_pauls:
you're listening
brad_herda:
will not
alex_pauls:
to music.
brad_herda:
do.
steve_doyle:
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
alex_pauls:
We
brad_herda:
Yeah,
alex_pauls:
were
brad_herda:
it's
alex_pauls:
environmentalists
brad_herda:
taking oil all the time.
alex_pauls:
that year.
brad_herda:
You bet. That's...
alex_pauls:
It was a good time. But wow, it was
brad_herda:
Yeah.
alex_pauls:
crazy how much oil we lost and we got back. So happy ending, right?
brad_herda:
you know, you guys have a lot of oil in your
alex_pauls:
Yeah, it just goes back
brad_herda:
ground.
alex_pauls:
in the ground anyway.
brad_herda:
That's why
alex_pauls:
I don't
brad_herda:
they have the
alex_pauls:
understand
brad_herda:
tar
alex_pauls:
how
brad_herda:
sands.
alex_pauls:
that's pollution.
brad_herda:
Right.
steve_doyle:
Thank you. Bye.
brad_herda:
That's why it's that's why you got the tar sands. That's why you got the albion oil shale and everything
alex_pauls:
There
brad_herda:
up
alex_pauls:
you
brad_herda:
there.
alex_pauls:
go.
brad_herda:
So it's all good.
steve_doyle:
Mm-hmm Yeah, thanks.
brad_herda:
Welcome
steve_doyle:
I guess
brad_herda:
back,
steve_doyle:
my
brad_herda:
Mr.
steve_doyle:
internet
brad_herda:
Doyle.
steve_doyle:
is the one that decided to kick me out. It's all good. It's all good.
brad_herda:
So what's on your current playlist, Mr.
steve_doyle:
Oh
brad_herda:
Doyle?
steve_doyle:
dude, it's all over the place. We got a little bit of there's a wrap. There's country more country more country Some rap yeah,
brad_herda:
Okay,
steve_doyle:
and
alex_pauls:
That's it.
steve_doyle:
whatever
brad_herda:
alrighty.
steve_doyle:
my daughter's
brad_herda:
Yeah.
steve_doyle:
put on it
alex_pauls:
That's Spotify, did you guys do that Spotify rap thing at the end of the year?
steve_doyle:
No,
alex_pauls:
No,
steve_doyle:
what is it?
brad_herda:
No.
alex_pauls:
I don't know, Spotify does, it basically takes your data and like, you know, shows what you listen to the most that year. And I'm like, I didn't realize I was such a Sugar Ray fan.
steve_doyle:
Yeah.
brad_herda:
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
steve_doyle:
The
alex_pauls:
I'm like, I'm pretty sure my kids hijacked my Spotify or I got a problem because I mean, sugar is okay, but it's not like even my favorite. This is...
brad_herda:
Well.
steve_doyle:
Thank you.
brad_herda:
So you kind of mentioned the good things, the bad things about growing up and working in the high voltage world. So share with us, share with us, the good things that you enjoyed. And then on the backside, what were some of the things you'd like to
alex_pauls:
Okay.
brad_herda:
see changed? And on top of that, let's
steve_doyle:
Yeah,
brad_herda:
just keep
steve_doyle:
that's
brad_herda:
stacking
steve_doyle:
because,
brad_herda:
questions
steve_doyle:
you know,
brad_herda:
because
steve_doyle:
that's
brad_herda:
that's
steve_doyle:
that's
brad_herda:
what we like
steve_doyle:
always
brad_herda:
to do
steve_doyle:
good
brad_herda:
on this.
steve_doyle:
for a podcast.
alex_pauls:
Funny.
brad_herda:
Exactly. radio
alex_pauls:
So
brad_herda:
that way.
alex_pauls:
Andy Wines, the famous Andy Wines was just asking me a bunch of questions today. And I always start with the last question first and trail off on the first question and don't really answer it. So.
brad_herda:
Right, because what I really want to know ultimately is, you know, as you go through the things you liked, the things that had an impact, what would you give to the younger generations and older generations today as to what to do to solve this multi-generational workforce dilemma that we have in the trades?
alex_pauls:
I like to think that I was starting, like when I was an electrician, I like to think that things were starting to trend in a better direction. I wasn't necessarily
brad_herda:
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
alex_pauls:
like a hard ass and I wasn't necessarily really soft on the guys either. Like I never made anybody carry my tools. I would never, you know, berate anybody in front of me. And my experiences were very much, I wanted to treat the guys the way I wanted to be treated, even though I wasn't always treated exceptionally well by some of the old school guys who, you know, you gotta earn your stripes before you're, even allowed to talk or even be allowed in the room to hear what the plan is and see what's going on. I like to think that I was passing a good torch when I was in there that I really respected my trainees' opinions. I always asked them for it. I would like to see what was on their mind. with an issue and we were troubleshooting, I always wanted to see what their perspective was. And, you know, either tell them, okay, this is what I see and this is from my own experience. So like, sometimes you know the answer already, right? And
steve_doyle:
Thank
alex_pauls:
you just
steve_doyle:
you.
alex_pauls:
want to see what...
brad_herda:
Well, you wouldn't go, hey, that's
alex_pauls:
Right,
brad_herda:
really
alex_pauls:
no, I didn't.
brad_herda:
fucking stupid.
steve_doyle:
Thank you. Bye.
brad_herda:
We're
alex_pauls:
I don't
brad_herda:
gonna
alex_pauls:
think
brad_herda:
do
alex_pauls:
I
brad_herda:
it
alex_pauls:
was
brad_herda:
this way.
alex_pauls:
ever
brad_herda:
I'm sorry.
alex_pauls:
forced to do that. Like, what are you on
steve_doyle:
Thank you. Bye.
alex_pauls:
moron?
brad_herda:
The
steve_doyle:
Yeah,
brad_herda:
idea is that
steve_doyle:
check
alex_pauls:
Yeah.
steve_doyle:
the box here, check. Yep, done that.
alex_pauls:
But I even do that with my children now. When we're attacking any type of problem, I kind of want to see where the brain is at. And it's a good way for us to quickly pinpoint blind spots when we're looking at something. Because even as a technician, you can get really honed in and miss the obvious. Or maybe miss something that's not obvious. But most of the time, you get honed in and you miss the easy, obvious reason for a problem when you're troubleshooting. I was the victim of that a couple times. I got called out one time and the battery, the DC, we had a low DC voltage alarm and I was troubleshooting the most complicated scenarios in my mind and then after two hours I was just like, it was three in the morning I'm tired and I just walked over to the to the charger and I looked and the charger had been turned off by accident.
steve_doyle:
So cool.
alex_pauls:
And I was just like...
brad_herda:
There's a reason why the cable company always asks you, hey, is it powered
steve_doyle:
Thank you.
brad_herda:
on? It's
steve_doyle:
Bye.
brad_herda:
powered
alex_pauls:
Yeah,
brad_herda:
on.
alex_pauls:
and here I am thinking that that is the dumbest, least possible, you know, possibility for why I'm getting this alarm. Because I mean, nobody turns off a charger, right? But apparently somebody had walked by it, one of the construction guys, and inadvertently hit it with a ladder or something, and it miraculously
brad_herda:
Oh,
alex_pauls:
turned
brad_herda:
no,
alex_pauls:
off, right?
brad_herda:
it
alex_pauls:
And
brad_herda:
was the Hey, we know this young guy's gonna be your night. Let's just screw
steve_doyle:
Hmm
brad_herda:
with him
alex_pauls:
Yeah, it was yeah, it was that was
steve_doyle:
Mmm, okay.
alex_pauls:
not a fun night, but Okay, so I feel like I've gone off off off kilter here
brad_herda:
We've been off the rails
alex_pauls:
It's
steve_doyle:
Thank
brad_herda:
since
steve_doyle:
you.
alex_pauls:
okay.
brad_herda:
day
steve_doyle:
Bye.
brad_herda:
one, it's okay.
alex_pauls:
So I guess, you know, one of my least favorite things about being in the field was... Like a like an older technician and I really appreciate him now, but at the time He was kind of putting me through the paces and making me earn my stripes changing light bulbs doing all sorts of ridiculous like jobs like after I've already been doing things for five six years and Going back to it if he would have just explained to me why he was giving me the jobs that he was instead of just like do and I really wanted the meat and potatoes. When you're young, you really want to learn like as much complicated stuff. Like right now I could go back to the field and change lightbulbs. Like anybody can do that. I don't need to be a five-year six-year
brad_herda:
Good.
alex_pauls:
trainee changing lightbulbs. I'm not learning anything at that point. But yeah, I always
brad_herda:
Light bulbs
steve_doyle:
They
brad_herda:
are
alex_pauls:
respect.
brad_herda:
special
steve_doyle:
are different
brad_herda:
now.
steve_doyle:
now.
brad_herda:
They're different.
alex_pauls:
But I,
brad_herda:
They're
alex_pauls:
I, and I think that
brad_herda:
not
alex_pauls:
I'm
brad_herda:
just
alex_pauls:
not unique in
brad_herda:
incandescent.
alex_pauls:
the new generation and the younger generations, everybody needs, everybody wants to know why they're doing something. You know, like, what's
steve_doyle:
You're
alex_pauls:
the method
steve_doyle:
true.
alex_pauls:
to the madness?
brad_herda:
read.
alex_pauls:
And for anybody out there that's assigning tasks or something repetitive, and like, and if the, and if the young guy is maybe so green that he doesn't want to question it, or doing something. What is the benefit? Like,
steve_doyle:
All right.
alex_pauls:
once I finally asked him, like, why am I doing this? And he said, I wanted you to learn about each different type of lighting and each lighting system, not just changing bulbs, because we had many different types of bulbs. And, and he wanted me to actually learn how each of them worked. I'm like, Well, why didn't you just say that? Why did why did you? Yeah,
steve_doyle:
Yeah.
brad_herda:
What did you tell me that a year ago?
alex_pauls:
why did you just make me change light bulbs? I hated it. And I hated it. And if you would have just told me from the get-go that you
steve_doyle:
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
alex_pauls:
wanted me to learn about all these different lighting systems I would have approached it from this like oh wow, I'm learning About all these different things that maybe I kind of missed There's that blind spot that I that I didn't know and I didn't appreciate at the time
steve_doyle:
Mm-hmm.
alex_pauls:
simple and
brad_herda:
So,
alex_pauls:
yet a blind spot for somebody who might be teaching, right?
brad_herda:
So what you're saying is that we have a communication.
alex_pauls:
Sure, some people just want to be told what to do. And some people want to do things for a reason, or want
steve_doyle:
Mm-hmm
alex_pauls:
to know why they're doing something. And some people don't mind being told just to go do something and they don't care what it is, or if they learn anything from it. And that's it. I hope you enjoyed this video. I hope you enjoyed it. I'll see you in the next video. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye.
steve_doyle:
Yeah, and I see that actually across multiple generations each person is uniquely different and So with some of my contractors, they will Be very specific. I need you to do this because of x y and z and other times based on the person They're like, I just need you to go do this without any explanation explanation Again, it comes back to each person. It's it's catering the communication to each person
alex_pauls:
I spent a summer working in the sewers. I don't know if we talked about this last time. That's a wild job being a sewer rat That is
steve_doyle:
you
alex_pauls:
I'm telling you I got like I don't know how I got out of there with hepatitis
brad_herda:
Harun Bey, Harun Bey, geçmiştan da kalın.
alex_pauls:
I've seen so many other people shit
brad_herda:
I
alex_pauls:
like
brad_herda:
don't think we touched on the electrician computers.
alex_pauls:
crazy. But I was so frustrated because I was the new guy on the sewer crew and they had all these plans and all these meetings that I was not privy to. And it would just be like, here's the shovel, go do this. And I'm the kind of person that likes to begin with the end in mind. I want to know what what the goals are so that I can help work towards that. I'm not just dummy. with the shovel that, you know, I'm not a lemming. And I need to know what I'm working towards. Like
brad_herda:
Bir şey var anlaşılmıyor.
alex_pauls:
it helps when you know the goal, right? It helps
steve_doyle:
Thank you.
alex_pauls:
a lot of people know what the end goal is. And I think so many new guys, they are so many technicians, they don't let the new guys get near the table for some reason and see what the final plan is. And I think that's a detriment the team.
brad_herda:
Well, knowledge
alex_pauls:
Sure.
brad_herda:
is power, right? And that, and too many, what I have found is that too many of the elder, elder statesmen take that knowledge as power versus taking that knowledge and turning into the power of wisdom to share, to make their life easier. And I think there's a lot of times that fear of, well, if Billy knows what it is, that I'm not gonna be able to bring any value. So if the young guy, Alex knows what I know, then I'm of no value to the organization anymore, so I'm gonna hold it to myself. When the reality is, you actually make your life easier because now you can go do things that can bring the company more value. Hey, we got this new project we want you to work on, we want this, but oh, we're too busy because the young guys don't know shit yet and you didn't tell them. So therefore, I can't have you go out and not keep beating up your body, go in and work on a new, program, new procedures, new whatever might be happening. And you end up hurting yourself and the organization in the end,
alex_pauls:
rain.
brad_herda:
in the long run. And it's terrible. It's not. It's not. It's not. It's not. It's not. It's not. It's not. It's not. It's not. It's not. It's not. It's not. It's not. It's not. It's not. It's not. It's not. It's not. It's not.
alex_pauls:
And
brad_herda:
It's
alex_pauls:
there
brad_herda:
not.
alex_pauls:
is
brad_herda:
It's
alex_pauls:
such
brad_herda:
not. It's
alex_pauls:
a thing
brad_herda:
not. It's
alex_pauls:
as
brad_herda:
not. It's
alex_pauls:
information
brad_herda:
not. It's not. It's not. It's
alex_pauls:
overload
brad_herda:
not. It's not. It's
alex_pauls:
for
brad_herda:
not. It's
alex_pauls:
the
brad_herda:
not.
alex_pauls:
young
brad_herda:
It
alex_pauls:
guys too. Like there is so much there is such a thing as TMI. Like they don't need to know every single detail, right?
steve_doyle:
Correct.
alex_pauls:
But if they if they kind of know the end goal and, you know, what the goal is for that day or for that week and what what they're striving towards, that gives them that sense of at least being in control and working towards that that goal, but to be totally blind and not and not know what's going on. That's that's not empowering at all.
steve_doyle:
Thank you.
brad_herda:
setting expectations,
steve_doyle:
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
brad_herda:
right? Knowing that this is what we gotta get done. Oh, today we gotta get four miles done. Cool, you know what you gotta get done today. Now I gotta bust my ass today. I'm gonna get my ass done. I'm
alex_pauls:
Yeah.
brad_herda:
gonna get my ass done. I'm gonna get my ass done. I'm gonna get my ass done. I'm gonna get my
alex_pauls:
So
brad_herda:
ass done. I'm gonna get my ass done. I'm
alex_pauls:
how
brad_herda:
gonna get
alex_pauls:
many
brad_herda:
my ass
alex_pauls:
young
brad_herda:
done. I'm
alex_pauls:
guys
brad_herda:
gonna get my
alex_pauls:
do
brad_herda:
ass
alex_pauls:
you
brad_herda:
done.
alex_pauls:
guys
brad_herda:
I'm gonna
alex_pauls:
talk
brad_herda:
get my ass
alex_pauls:
to
brad_herda:
done.
alex_pauls:
now? Like, I always think that the new young generation gets a bad rap for not wanting to work hard. They just wanna take it easy. They just wanna work on a computer. They don't, you know, but I'm sure that there's young, strong people out there that wanna do the trades. And, but I really think that they come at
brad_herda:
Yep.
alex_pauls:
it for more of an intellectual way, like wanting the bigger picture, right? They don't want the little picture. picture.
steve_doyle:
It's what we have been finding, at least those that I've been talking to, it's more what's really my purpose for being here. For those that actually want to work because because the stigma is still getting getting them into the working environment and wanting to work. So overcome that hurdle. Once we overcome that. So we're going to push the lazy people to the side. We're only going to talk about those that that want to. What we find is it's like we've just about it's more about the purpose like what am I doing? I want to be part of a higher purpose.
alex_pauls:
Thank you. Bye.
steve_doyle:
Help me understand how I can be engaged in that higher purpose. Don't give me remedial task of going and changing the light bulb. I'm just going to get irritated with that. I'm actually not going to go do it. You're going to tell me to do it. I'm not going to go change the light bulb. You go change your own damn light bulb. But I'm not going to tell you that. I'm just going to stand there and look at you. with a blank face.
alex_pauls:
Thank you for watching. Bye.
steve_doyle:
And then you're gonna think I'm an idiot.
brad_herda:
That's what Steve
alex_pauls:
Thank you. Bye.
brad_herda:
does best.
steve_doyle:
That's what we run into a lot. Now we do have those that are just, they just get after shit, where they're not gonna question, they're just gonna get after stuff, they're gonna do exactly what they're told. Problem is they're gonna do exactly what they're told and they're not gonna learn why they're doing it. But they're gonna be excellent at completing the task. and doing the, you know, having great quality and having everything, they're gonna complete the test. But they have no idea why. They don't ask why. They've just, they were raised to do what they were told. Just shut up and do it.
alex_pauls:
That was my biggest problem in the field is I always needed to know the why.
steve_doyle:
Mm-hmm.
alex_pauls:
And I would say 90% of the time I was
brad_herda:
He
alex_pauls:
not
brad_herda:
would
alex_pauls:
told
brad_herda:
feel
alex_pauls:
the why.
brad_herda:
that more than the opinions.
steve_doyle:
You were the boomers painting the ass.
alex_pauls:
Yeah. It's a, but I'm generation
brad_herda:
Tell me
alex_pauls:
X.
brad_herda:
why
alex_pauls:
I'll still
brad_herda:
I need to
alex_pauls:
go
brad_herda:
do
alex_pauls:
do
brad_herda:
this.
alex_pauls:
it,
steve_doyle:
Right.
alex_pauls:
you know, but I'm not learning it. The way I needed to learn was I needed to know my why. And then I go do it. And then I, you know, connect all the dots, right? I
steve_doyle:
Mm-hmm.
alex_pauls:
always wanted to fix puzzles and do puzzles and troubleshoot, I like that kind of stuff. It's the why am I doing the puzzle? I'm not sure. I'm not sure. I'm not sure. I'm not sure. I'm not sure. I'm not sure.
steve_doyle:
Right. So how can we make that the conveyance of the why in the blue color space, how do we help convey that message stronger that the need is there to do that, to spend the time to do that? And so that's how we're going to do that. So we're going to do that. So we're going to do that. So we're going to do that. So we're going to do that. So we're going to do that. So we're going to do that. So we're going to do that.
alex_pauls:
I just think guys need to set aside the appropriate amount of time to communicate that properly. At the beginning of the day you have a safety meeting. Anyway, right? You check off, you go through
steve_doyle:
Ewww!
alex_pauls:
your safety meeting, you check
steve_doyle:
I
alex_pauls:
it
steve_doyle:
mean,
alex_pauls:
off.
steve_doyle:
that's kind of subjective.
alex_pauls:
That's what I would do. Well,
brad_herda:
It's different
steve_doyle:
It's
brad_herda:
in
steve_doyle:
safety.
brad_herda:
Canada. It's different
steve_doyle:
It's
alex_pauls:
we
steve_doyle:
just
brad_herda:
in
alex_pauls:
were
brad_herda:
Canada
steve_doyle:
safety.
alex_pauls:
a big,
brad_herda:
than in the US.
alex_pauls:
when I worked in our
steve_doyle:
Thank you.
alex_pauls:
company,
steve_doyle:
Bye.
alex_pauls:
it was like mega safety and I was a safety officer too. So we would have our safety meeting, but then it couldn't quickly turn into, okay, so here's our goal for the day, here's our goal for the week meeting. And either way, you have that goal for the day. And this is why we're doing it. This is, but how easy is that to say, okay, these are the things we're gonna do and accomplish. This is what you're gonna learn things and how long did that take? An extra two minutes, maybe three minutes to just say the why and what your takeaways are.
steve_doyle:
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
alex_pauls:
These are the tools you're gonna add to your toolbox in your brain at the end of this project
steve_doyle:
All right.
alex_pauls:
and you'll be able to take that going forward. And I noticed that with my children, like they're only 14 and 11, but they like to know what their takeaways are and how they'll be able to apply them later. I
steve_doyle:
Hmm
alex_pauls:
brag you're laughing at me, okay? Tell me why you're laughing at me.
brad_herda:
Nope, nope, I can't imagine. Here's the takeaway, clean up the, take care of the dishes. The takeaway
steve_doyle:
Yeah.
brad_herda:
is the kitchen will be clean.
alex_pauls:
Well,
brad_herda:
There
alex_pauls:
my
brad_herda:
you
alex_pauls:
kids
brad_herda:
go.
alex_pauls:
have heard me say, this is how you get ants about a thousand times
steve_doyle:
Yes.
alex_pauls:
when I find plates under the bed. This is how you get ants.
steve_doyle:
Thank
alex_pauls:
This
steve_doyle:
you.
alex_pauls:
is
steve_doyle:
Bye.
alex_pauls:
why we don't do this.
steve_doyle:
This is how you irritate the crap out of us. Continue to do so.
alex_pauls:
Yes.
steve_doyle:
We will firmly take away your
brad_herda:
Please,
steve_doyle:
devices.
alex_pauls:
Thank you. Bye.
brad_herda:
please do.
alex_pauls:
I think that's a huge takeaway from today is you have your safety meeting and then you have your quick takeaway about what kind of tools you're gonna learn, you know, moving forward for troubleshooting, for building, in construction, you're always learning something, right?
steve_doyle:
Okay.
alex_pauls:
And there was lots of days where all I did was just pull cable. I just pulled cable all day long, but I didn't know why I was pulling that cable. What the heck was I gonna do with it after? Oh. Then, time I'll be wiring up all the cabinets of all the cable that I just pulled. I didn't even know that. All I'm doing is pulling cable for two
steve_doyle:
All
alex_pauls:
weeks.
steve_doyle:
right. That's a lot of kitten. That's a lot of kitten.
alex_pauls:
Mile-to-gable.
steve_doyle:
That's
brad_herda:
miles
steve_doyle:
a lot
brad_herda:
and miles
steve_doyle:
of kitten.
brad_herda:
of cable.
alex_pauls:
Yeah. Construction was an interesting gig in electricity. I
steve_doyle:
Thank you.
alex_pauls:
only did that for about a year and I was mostly a maintenance technician But it's it's an interesting world Definitely I was joking that with my wife the other day, I said, I wonder what the safest trade is. And I was thinking, maybe a plumber. Maybe a plumber is the safest. And they're like, roofing, you'd think. That'd be a dangerous job, right? You fall off the roof, that's a pretty bad day. And I was like, I don't know. I don't know. I don't know. I don't know. I don't know. I don't know. I don't know. I don't know. I don't know. I don't know. I don't know. I don't know. I don't know.
steve_doyle:
Hehehehehe
alex_pauls:
Let electrical, you know, you're gonna get zapped one day and maybe not come home, but Plumber, you get some shit on you. Could be bad. Could be bad.
steve_doyle:
You could have a shitty day. You
alex_pauls:
You
steve_doyle:
could
alex_pauls:
can have
steve_doyle:
really
alex_pauls:
a shitting,
steve_doyle:
have
brad_herda:
Thank you. Thank you.
steve_doyle:
a shitty day.
alex_pauls:
eh?
brad_herda:
There's dirty plumbing
alex_pauls:
Yeah.
brad_herda:
and clean plumbing though, so just remember that too, right? You have the whole water side of plumbing that's not
steve_doyle:
Mm-hmm
brad_herda:
waste plumbing.
alex_pauls:
Drywall, that's a rough game. I mean, you're breathing in all that crap. I don't know. That's a tough game. Ha ha.
brad_herda:
Mass for that man. Let's hug you masks
steve_doyle:
Mm-hmm.
brad_herda:
and a lot
alex_pauls:
I don't
brad_herda:
of stuff
alex_pauls:
trust
brad_herda:
is
alex_pauls:
math
brad_herda:
vacuum
alex_pauls:
for
brad_herda:
now
alex_pauls:
anything.
brad_herda:
you take
steve_doyle:
Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha
brad_herda:
Vacuum Sanders
alex_pauls:
Let's go there, let's go there. Because it's funny,
brad_herda:
Hey,
alex_pauls:
at the beginning of the pandemic, I'm like, I'm gonna wear my asbestos mask.
steve_doyle:
Yeah.
brad_herda:
I'm gonna meet you
steve_doyle:
Yeah.
brad_herda:
stop it stop stop
alex_pauls:
That's a mask. That's a respirator.
steve_doyle:
Yeah, that's right.
alex_pauls:
And I had to be clean shaven. I remember I had to
brad_herda:
Sure.
alex_pauls:
be clean shaven to wear
steve_doyle:
Yep.
alex_pauls:
my respirator and I mean, that's safety.
steve_doyle:
Right?
brad_herda:
Your air filtration
alex_pauls:
I was one of
brad_herda:
device.
alex_pauls:
the first guys
brad_herda:
Okay.
alex_pauls:
questioning politicians because I know safety and I know when you look at these boxes with these blue masks, I'm sorry, Brad, you can just sweat. You can sweat this
brad_herda:
Ah,
alex_pauls:
out.
steve_doyle:
Let's
brad_herda:
ah,
steve_doyle:
mute
brad_herda:
stop,
steve_doyle:
Brad. Let's
brad_herda:
just
steve_doyle:
just
brad_herda:
stop
steve_doyle:
mute
brad_herda:
right there!
steve_doyle:
Brad.
alex_pauls:
But it even says on there, is not PPE, does not protect you from anything, and I'm the conspiracy theorist.
steve_doyle:
Right. Mm-hmm. Hehehehe.
alex_pauls:
No.
brad_herda:
Okay, great. Next topic, Muon. What are we moving
alex_pauls:
I want
brad_herda:
on to?
alex_pauls:
to say to all the crazy guys out
brad_herda:
Looking
alex_pauls:
there,
brad_herda:
at
alex_pauls:
they
brad_herda:
the time.
alex_pauls:
know what the
brad_herda:
Wow.
alex_pauls:
time is and we are the best.
steve_doyle:
Right.
brad_herda:
I'm just flying
alex_pauls:
We
steve_doyle:
Yes.
alex_pauls:
are smarter
brad_herda:
by.
alex_pauls:
than science.
brad_herda:
I'm just
alex_pauls:
We
brad_herda:
flying
alex_pauls:
are smarter
brad_herda:
by
steve_doyle:
That's
alex_pauls:
than
brad_herda:
Alex.
alex_pauls:
science.
steve_doyle:
right. That's right.
brad_herda:
We are way beyond our time here today, Alex. Wow. Thanks for
alex_pauls:
Wow,
brad_herda:
coming back.
steve_doyle:
Wow, man, Brad comes in with a hook.
brad_herda:
We
alex_pauls:
I'm getting
brad_herda:
really
alex_pauls:
a hook.
brad_herda:
do appreciate it.
steve_doyle:
We can't even mute them. I'm going to go back to the video. I'm going to go back to the video. I'm going to go back to the video. I'm going to go back to the video. I'm going to go back to the video. I'm going to go back to the video. I'm going to go back to the video. I'm going to go back to the video. I'm going to go back to the video. I'm going to go back to the video. I'm going to go back to the video. I'm going to go back to the video. I'm going to go back to the video. I'm going to go back to the video. I'm going to go back to the video. I'm going to go back to the video. I'm going to go back to the video
alex_pauls:
Man, it's just starting to get good, Brad. The vodka's kicking in.
steve_doyle:
Right?
brad_herda:
Yeah, okay, great.
alex_pauls:
As best
brad_herda:
Yeah,
alex_pauls:
this is no joke,
brad_herda:
awesome.
alex_pauls:
as best this is no
brad_herda:
So
alex_pauls:
joke, Brad.
brad_herda:
Alex.
steve_doyle:
Yeah, it's no laughing matter.
alex_pauls:
And I want to say
steve_doyle:
That's
alex_pauls:
to all
steve_doyle:
real.
alex_pauls:
the guys out there working with
brad_herda:
Right.
alex_pauls:
asbestos, you wear your masks and you clean them properly and you're clean shaven for a reason because you don't want to bring that crap home 20 years later to get your lungs all diseased.
steve_doyle:
Mm-hmm.
alex_pauls:
Because by the time, you'll be dead soon, Brad,
brad_herda:
No.
alex_pauls:
but I'm gonna be living to about 120. My day.
steve_doyle:
Thank you. Bye.
brad_herda:
Thank you.
alex_pauls:
I got a
brad_herda:
Thank you.
alex_pauls:
long life ahead of me, so I gotta make sure I take care of
steve_doyle:
in.
alex_pauls:
this shrine.
brad_herda:
Yeah, okay. I saw you
steve_doyle:
hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahah
brad_herda:
eat when you were in America. I...
alex_pauls:
I'm just a black. Yeah. I'm like...
brad_herda:
I got to see you in October, I got to see you in November last year, and you weren't necessarily treating that shrine
steve_doyle:
Oh
brad_herda:
all too well.
alex_pauls:
Love fried food. Yeah, my arteries are probably all black, but I still got time. I still got time.
steve_doyle:
Wow.
alex_pauls:
My wife makes me really clean up here. So you come visit us in Canada, we'll take you for some salad.
steve_doyle:
Thank you. Thank you.
brad_herda:
Great. Could
alex_pauls:
Yeah,
brad_herda:
do some California
alex_pauls:
yeah.
brad_herda:
lettuce. Awesome. Thanks for watching. I'll
steve_doyle:
Yeah.
brad_herda:
see you in the next video. Bye. So as the...
alex_pauls:
Now Brad is muting himself. Steve,
steve_doyle:
Yes, he is.
alex_pauls:
take me with
steve_doyle:
Oh,
alex_pauls:
the next
steve_doyle:
yeah,
alex_pauls:
thing. We can
steve_doyle:
he's
alex_pauls:
talk
steve_doyle:
pointing
alex_pauls:
about
steve_doyle:
to me.
alex_pauls:
all sorts of controversial
steve_doyle:
Yeah.
alex_pauls:
stuff while he's muted.
steve_doyle:
Right. This is good. I'm glad he's muted now. I'm glad he's muted.
alex_pauls:
and have more fun