Attitude is everything. It is the single driving force that can determine the spirit and approach how one handles both good and bad outcomes. For Mike and Pam Tezak, a positive and forward thinking attitude is their biggest strength as renovation work on the historic building at 310 Lincolnway approaches the final stages towards completion.
“Despite a few unforeseeable setbacks,” says Pam Tezak. “It was a week filled with setbacks and as we discovered that the upstairs arch windows would be the cause of delay, along with some changes that had to be made with the new bricks.”
Despite the setback, both Pam and Mike decided that keeping a positive, forward thinking attitude was necessary to ensure that everyone involved with the project could stay focused and not lose hope or moral.
“With old buildings like these, you have to be ready for all of the sudden changes and twists that come your way,” says Pam. “Sometimes, there’s nothing you can do about it except accept the situation and move on.”
After assessing the situation, both Pam and Mike, along with their architect, designer and foreman had a group meeting and decided how to proceed with the new brick and windows options. Both of them were thankful that the entire team was able to quickly come up with a new plan.
“From day one, the team has been wonderful during this entire project,” says Pam. “We are so lucky to have such dedicated and professional people working for us who can make the appropriate calls and keep the project moving.”
After the setback and after careful thought, Pam and Mike decided to take a new approach to finishing the restorations by removing their “self-imposed” deadlines and proceeding without a strict set of deadlines and due dates.
“Once we removed that self-imposed deadline, it made our lives easier and reduced the stress,” said Pam. “We realized that all of these setbacks were not the fault of anyone. No one was doing the wrong thing on purpose and no one was not wanting to complete the project, everyone wanted to finish. It’s so easy for human nature to set in and start blaming people and we realized that, that would only hinder things.”
It was through this realization that the Tezaks were able to bring back the energy and excitement needed to finish the final leg of the project
“By doing this, we removed self-inflicted pain and changed the mentality,” says Pam. Along with the construction and design staff, Pam and Mike’s own staff along with the tenants of the other businesses and services located in the building were also very understanding of the situation.
“We could have easily had someone complain about the lack of parking due to construction,” says Pam. We could have had them express their disappointment when we boarded up the windows for a week, but they didn’t. They all understand and are patient and flexible with what we are doing.”
“We’re all in this together, with everyone,” says Mike. “Everyone here cares about the project and is invested in the progress that’s been done, everyone cares for this building. Everyone takes ownership and pride.”
Besides building renovation duties, Mike still manages to make time for performing real estate, brokerage and accounting duties during the day. For Mike, 4 jobs in one day has become the norm.
“We’ve had 9 new agents come in since this project started,” says Mike. “I have to do this, but I still have a real estate job during the day. I haven’t worked a “9 to 5” job in a long time.”
Once the building is completed now estimated at the end of August, Pam and Mike are looking forward to the simple joys of tasting the fruits of their labor.
“Simply put, I’m looking forward to relaxation,” says Mike. “We’ve been running nonstop and it’s going to be great to sit back and enjoy the results of our efforts.”
For the Tezaks, this has been an investment in both money and emotional energy. It has been a project tackled without the outside help or assistance than most projects of this size come with. It has been their attitude that has been the driving force behind their success and their positivity that has allowed this project to transform from a simple idea to a finished project.
“It’s just us,” says Pam. “There’s no partners, no investors, it’s just us. We can’t just ask for more money or more donations when things got tough, it was all up to us to find our own way. In the end we had to trust those working with us and luckily, it’s paid off very well.”