Hey everyone,

Welcome back. I'm going to keep messing with the look and structure of these every week until it feels right, so if you're a real one, hit me with some feedback. I'm going to keep writing these for the foreseeable future, so the least I can do is make it a pleasant experience for you too.

The beauty of being a developer is you can physically see your dreams and vision come true. Whether we’re working with a client who has a vision for their beautiful home, or we’re wrestling with our own thoughts and creativity to make something out of nothing, seeing something physically manifest from what was once just an idea is such a visceral and unique feeling. I can’t help but sit in completed projects and thank God for how it all came together through all the trials and tribulations that pop up throughout any project.

That’s where the delayed gratification comes in. As we’re putting projects together, we toil every day, all day, to make them great. We don’t skip steps, we don’t cut corners, and because so many of the design choices come directly from us, we obsess over every detail until it’s done exactly right. The unfortunate side effect is we don’t get much happiness or gratification until the project is pretty much done. For example, even though the framing may be complete and looks great, I can’t celebrate because I know we still have more work to do.

I’ve been wrestling with finding more happiness along the way, and not just celebrating when it’s finally done. But then I imagine Kobe Bryant, up 2-0 in the NBA Finals, saying “Job’s not finished.” when a reporter asked him if he was happy. We’re doing amazing work, we’ve got beautiful homes going up, and we should celebrate that. But until they’re all done, the owners are happy, and everything is tied up, I can’t say the job’s finished. I’m trying to get better at being happy with the progress, but for now, I’ll keep grinding until it’s done and celebrate when it’s finished.

A rendering of the kitchen at our Hacienda project. Going with earthy tones on this one to accentuate the shapes and style of the home.

This week’s is a bit short. I took a small hiatus because Julie and I moved into our apartment last week. I was working all day and setting up the new place all night. I’m back in the groove now, pushing progress on all of our houses!

I’ll sign off with two asks. First, we’re always looking for great properties in East Nashville, West Meade, or Belle Meade, so send me whatever you’ve got. Second, please forward this to anyone in the Nashville development game I should know. Would love to talk and figure out what we can learn from each other.

Talk to y’all next week,

Toni