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Dave Garton: Changing Your
Approach in Difficult Times

By Lenny Giteck

Dave Garton has a split personality.

Sometimes (as owner of Lawnchair Watershapes in Lakewood, Colo., near Denver) he is an accomplished pond and stream builder, with more than 15 years of highly creative projects under his belt.

Other times he's a much sought-after consultant, business coach and public speaker who travels all over the country educating people about how to build outstanding watershapes and how to provide equally outstanding customer service, among other things.

Throw a third aspect of his persona into the mix — the fact that he's a longtime practitioner of meditation and holds a fourth-degree black belt in the Japanese martial art of aikido — and it becomes clear that Garton is a multifaceted individual.

Recently, WaterShapes spoke with all of Garton's facets about his perceptions of the current economic situation and how watershapers can adapt to it.

It's no secret that today's business environment is pretty challenging for watershapers.

True. These days a great many Americans have what I call a poverty mentality, and it's very intense. People are feeling enormously insecure. They're convinced there is not going to be enough for them out there. They're worried about losing what they already have. In relation to my business, they're nervous that building a pond or stream will be too big an expenditure right now.

How do you respond to that?

I believe it's always important to adjust your approach to fit the prevailing circumstances. In my view, the key right now is to do everything possible to give people the feeling that they're in control, which is what they're lacking these days. You want them to understand that you're not going to do something to them, but that you and they are going to collaborate, as a team, to make the project work for them.

One way I try to do that is by breaking my bid down into various elements that offer some pricing leeway on different aspects of the project. For example, rather than dictating to people what rocks we're going to use, I'll take them to the rock yard and let them pick out and purchase what they want — at my cost. So I don't make money on the rocks, but I make money on other things.

By the way, before we go to the rock yard, I tell them, "You know, the right rocks are going to speak to you." They get this funny look that says, "This guy is some kind of New Age freak!" But once we get there, the rocks do speak to them. Invariably, the homeowners know exactly what they want and are willing to spend the money to get it.

How else do you try to bring down the cost of a project?

Frequently, I'll ask the homeowners, "Do you have any friends or family members with big, strong backs?" I tell them my guys will need to do certain aspects of the rockwork — things that really have to be done correctly — but that a lot of the project involves pure physical labor. So the homeowners invite people over for a pond-building party, give them some beer and pizza, and save money.

Sounds like your focus is on being more flexible.

Exactly right. And by taking that approach, I really get the sense that the clients develop a greater emotional ownership of the project, which is extremely important. What happens is they realize that decisions about spending money will be up to them. It's a realization that helps them to feel more empowered and more comfortable with the whole process.

What about your own mindset? Your own fears and insecurities?

There's no denying that these are scary times. As watershapers, we may not be able to control the overall business environment in which we work, but we definitely can strive to control how we react to it.

Nothing is worse than transmitting your own fears and insecurities to potential clients who are themselves struggling with the very same negative emotions. If you come across to homeowners as someone who's thinking, "Please give me this job or I'm going to starve to death," that desperation and fear will be palpable to them. They'll sense it right away.

Of course, getting beyond fear can be easier said than done.

I agree. I'm 58, and I know that I'll be working on this issue the rest of my life. I still occasionally go into situations when fear arises, but at this point I have enough self-awareness to at least realize when that's happening. And I have some techniques to help me overcome my fear.

Such as?

The main thing is to acknowledge the fear to myself, which is a hard step for a lot of people — especially men — to take. But simply by acknowledging the fear, you often can break what has become a very negative habitual cycle, where your emotions plunge you into a steeper and steeper downward spiral.

When I work with people as a coach, I often hear them relating their tales of woe — and I notice that just by telling the same story over and over, they reinforce their own negativity. So I try to help them step back and observe the mental process they're going through.

Can't that also reinforce the downer? Make you feel even more inadequate?

You need to be kind of yourself when you do the evaluation. Don't berate yourself for having fear. Don't become even more negative because you're negative. Sure, you might feel a little irritated at yourself, but don't use it as another opportunity to beat yourself up. Instead, decide that even though you're fearful, you're not going to let it run your life.

Are there practical steps you can take to break the negativity?

Go out and do something you've never done before. Take a class. Do volunteer work. If your men and equipment are temporarily idle, bring them to your local community garden and help out. Doing anything that is out of the ordinary for you can help disrupt the downward spiral. Also, having some humor about the situation you're in is a great way to turn around negative thoughts. Face it, fear and negativity never help the objective situation get better. On the contrary.

How does this translate to when you're actually meeting with potential clients?

That's when it's especially important to know where you're coming from mentally and emotionally. When homeowners and I meet for the first time, I do a little exercise: I figure out what I like about these people. It may be that I like their choice of cars, or the way they've decorated their house, or their sense of adventure — whatever. This helps me come from a positive point of view, rather than looking at them as threatening individuals who hold my entire fate in their hands.

Just as you need to appreciate the positive points of your clients, you also have to come from a positive place with respect to your own strengths as a professional watershaper. You need to keep in mind that whether or not times are tough, you have a lot of experience and expertise to offer. When you value your own talent and skills, that comes across to homeowners, and it's very powerful.

Of course, if you only know how to build one pond, and you've done that over and over, you're going to be in a weak position from the get-go. But if you think about everything that you've been successful at in your career — and you approach potential clients out of that consciousness and with a light touch — it's going to make putting together the project much easier. It's a lot like in aikido, where you move with the other person, not against him.

The bottom line of what you're saying is that gaining more control over your own thoughts and attitudes is critical, especially in these difficult times. Is that right?

Yes. The amazing thing is that learning to control your thoughts and attitudes isn't some big, onerous burden. On the contrary, it's actually kind of fun. And it's definitely one of the most rewarding, most beneficial things you can do in life.