Work/Life Center

A Day in the Life Of…

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Welcome to the Turner Work/Life Center!

Work Life Balance Graphic At Turner, we understand the importance of maintaining a healthy balance between your work and your personal time. We are each pulled in many directions - striving to succeed at work, spending time with family and friends, contributing to our community, and having time for ourselves. These kinds of personal issues and priorities can make life in general more stressful, and can affect job performance.

To address these challenges, we have created the Turner Work/Life Center. Here you will find useful articles and tips to help you manage your workload and personal priorities.

Work/Life Balance Newsletters

Co-produced with Jim Bird, a leading HR expert and creator of worklifebalance.com, each newsletter offers valuable tips, such as making time for exercise, friends, and family. The newsletters also include a column spotlighting a different Turner employee each month and their personal Work/Life Balance lesson.

Issue	Topic	Spotlight On...
August 2010	Courage When You Need It	Kim Neuscheler is a project manager in the New York business unit.
July 2010	Making BIG Projects Part of Your Daily Routine...	Doug May is a purchasing manager for the Chicago business unit.
June 2010	Neanderthal Team Building Lessons	Katie Leonard is a purchasing agent in the Atlanta business unit.
May 2010	Life As An Adventure	Karen Hogan is an SPD senior project manager in the Kansas City business unit.
April 2010	There is more to Time Management than Time Management	Dan Pearse is in preconstruction development and estimating in the Dallas business unit.
March 2010	Your Thankfulness Quotient	Jack Dawson is a senior superintendent in the Boston business unit.
February 2010	The Grit in the Oyster	Deb Stout is the marketing manager for Lathrop in Toledo.
January 2010	Do You Have a 2010 Game Plan?	Brandon Gaeke is special projects division manager in the Houston business unit.
December 2009	The Power of the Human Spirit	Belen Verduzco is assistant superintendent in the Northern California Business Unit.
November 2009	The Comfort of Positive Predictability	John Scheuer is a Senior Superintendent in the San Diego Business Unit.
October 2009	The 4 Work Life Balance Questions	Mary Marks is a Project Administrator the Fort Knox project for Turner Universal.
September 2009	Do We Expect Too Much of Ourselves?	Carrie Schambach is a project engineer in the Columbus office of the Ohio Business Unit.
August 2009	The Power of the Mini Me-Meeting	Brian Peterson is currently a project manager in the Denver Business Unit.
July 2009	Volunteering is Good for You	Lana Horton is a Senior Marketing Coordinator for Turner Universal.
June 2009	Cancel Your Guilt Trip	Tom Clavin is a safety manager in the Albany business unit.
May 2009	Defining Success...A Worthy Journey	Bridget Smith is an engineer in the Cleveland business unit.
April 2009	Everyone's a Customer	Kurt Gavalier is a General Superintendent in the Washington, D.C. business unit.
March 2009	Tethered by Your Technology?	Kathy Sherry is a Project Manager for the Sacramento business unit.
February 2009	Recipes for Life	George Kane is a Project Manager in the Pittsburgh Business Unit.
January 2009	Your New Month's Resolution	Christina Houle is a Special Projects Division Manager in the Arizona Business Unit.
December 2008	Making the Most of Uncertain Times	Mike Farrell is a Project Manager in the Connecticut business unit.
November 2008	Be More Interesting to Others	Tina Smith is a Senior Project Manager in the Oakland business unit.
October 2008	Reach Out and Touch Someone	Derek Brown is a construction executive with Tompkins Builders, Inc.
September 2008	Leaving Home At Home	Bill DePasquale is project manager, field operations, in the New York City business unit.
August 2008	The Work-Life Balance Question	Robynn Selle is a training coordinator for the Indianapolis business unit.
July 2008	The Investment That Will Change Your Life	Steve Luchetta is the project executive in the Southern California business unit.
June 2008	Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff	Sarah Lippai is a cost engineer in the Orlando business unit.
May 2008	Don’t Forget to Stay Green	Travis Harris is a project superintendent for the Portland business unit.
April 2008	Self-Imposed Work-Life Imbalance	Mary LeFevre is a manager of business development for the Michigan business unit.
March 2008	Some Perspective	William Harris is a project engineer in the New Jersey Somerset office.
Februrary 2008	The River Never Stops Flowing	Beverley Shull is a project manager in the Carolinas business unit.
January 2008	You Stay in Balance by Getting Out of Balance	Chris Auer is a project manager in the Philadelphia business unit.
December 2007	Say Goodbye to the Perfect Holiday...and Say Hello to the Happiest!	Shannan Plogsted is a senior project engineer for the Cincinnati Public Schools project.
November 2007	Avoiding the Overplanned Lifestyle	Boris Carvallo is project manager, interiors, for the Miami business unit..
October 2007	Multi-Tasking vs. Multi-Peopling	Mary Mahany is chief cost engineer for the New York office.
September 2007	Persistence & Determination	Anthony Douglas is senior project manager for the special projects division in Turner's Chicago office.
August 2007	Becoming an enjoyment Expert	Jacalyn Costigan is the Vice President and General Manager of the Special Projects Division of the Seattle Business unit.
July 2007	Avoiding the Cow Piles	Ark Latt is the Operations Manager for Turner International.
June 2007	Life's Everyday Magic - Don't Miss It!	Kathleen Beausoleil works in the Atlanta Business Unit as a Sr. Estimating Engineer.
May 2007	Shorter, More Effective Meetings	Matt Papenfus is Vice President and General Manager of the Dallas business unit.
April 2007	Thinking - The Will to Prepare to Win	Dewey Newton is Vice President and General Manager of the Kansas City business unit.
February 2007	Stop Worrying and Start Thinking	Peter Hamill, Lisa Ballantyne and Kent Kunkel work in the Boston business unit. Hamill is deputy operations manager, Ballantyne is SPD Operations Manager, and Kunkel is Manager of Business Development.
December 2006	Stop Juggling	Peter Davoren is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Turner Construction Company.
October 2006	Defining Play: The Difference Between a "Date" and a "Meeting" eTip: Good Habits Are Hard to Break Quotes from Aristotle	Karen Sweeney is Vice President and General Manager of Turner's Maryland office.
September 2006	Work-Life Balance Defined	Ken Leach is executive Vice President of the Turner Construction Company responsible for the Western region. He's based in the Los Angeles office.

Turner Tips

Sometimes, the best advice comes from someone who has "been there, done that." Read the tips below to learn how some Turner colleagues have improved their Work/Life Balance.

Quadrant	Idea
Self	I like Steven Covey's Book, Seven Habits of Highly Effective People . In his book, the seventh habit is "sharpening our saws." He says, "if I am busy producing (at work) or sawing, and rarely take time to sharpen my saw, eventually my saw won't cut." In order to be effective at work, we need self renewal. Self renewal for me comes by exercise, family involvement, hobbies, and spiritual input. When these priorities are maintained, producing at work is much easier.
Self	I have found that taking up a hobby helps me to balance my life and my career by giving me the ability to turn off work and focus on something different. The break is invaluable, especially during the tough weeks!
Family	While I love the convenience of my BlackBerry, my husband began complaining of playing "second" to it. I began turning it off at 8:00 pm every night at first to make him happy. Then I found that I was more able to relax and enjoy my family when I wasn't subconciously waiting for it to buzz. With the help of my TSE, I was able to set it so it automatically stops receiving messages at 8:00 pm and starts receiving them at 7:00 am, while allowing the phone to continue working in case of emergency.
Work	When I first started at Turner, I was so excited and ready to tackle any project that came my way. Then I found myself biting off more than I can chew, but everything was so interesting! That's how I discovered the benefit of asking for help when I need it. That way, I can still tackle the interesting projects, and find time to sleep at night! And, I find that the projects benefit from the input of other people --a win, win situation!
Friends/Community	I have a circle of friends that are in similar professions (marketing). We all love to read, so we started a book club where we meet once a month and talk about work...I mean a BOOK...over dinner and wine. Each of us takes turns hosting or selecting the venue to keep it interesting. It really helps to see their perspectives and get their advice. When I get stressed at work, I find myself making mental notes to bring up the event at the next meeting!
Friends/Community	I really enjoy helping other people. It helps me put my own situation into perspective, and I get a "rush" from knowing I have made a difference. Turner has provided me with a lot of the skills that I use in my charity work, and even helps to fund some of the projects! It makes me feel good about myself, and about my job!
Work	I work with a great crew! When a job requires overtime, we set up a schedule and "take turns" pulling the weekend/evening shifts so it isn't always the same person. It is usually pretty easy to set this schedule around events like family trips and baseball games. Even when it doesn't work out smoothly, we find a way to compromise. So far, it has been very smooth, and makes us all appreciate each other and enjoy our jobs.
Family	Recently I attended a Turner instructor led training class, and one of the guys next to me talked about how he has a "date night with his wife every week". I have been trying to do the same thing and you know what -- it works! I leave the job at 4:00 promptly every Wednesday, my wife and I plan what restaurant we want to go to in advance and we spend one-on-one time with each other, not talking about the job or work stuff, just about our lives, the children, our elderly parents. Our marriage has a new spark, and my job seems to be a little less stressful, because I have a special time to discuss those husband wife things. Oh, I also wanted to mention that the other 3 Turner staff people on the job also have their night when they leave promptly at 4:00 to have their "date" or whatever might be important to them. We're a little better as a team now as well.
Self	As a new experienced hire at Turner the idea of work / life balance is a new concept to me. There may be some initial steps to evaluate your own situation and assess where more balance is needed. Could your health be better with some added exercise / meditation? Could your marriage be better with a "date night" as suggested by others? Could your relationship with your children improve with more quality time? Could your work performance improve and be less stressful? All these and more questions should be probed when deciding how to create balance.
Family	My dedication to work nearly destroyed many of my family relationships a few years back, including my marriage. Our commitment to date night every week has held our marriage together. Everyone should be involved in some type of extracurricular work activities, but too much is worse than none at all. Our culture of working late just to be noticed or to make a good impression has to end. Our business is about results, not effort. Whether you're single or both your spouse and you work during daytime hours, unfortunately many things require attention or appointments during those same business hours. A flexible schedule with the understanding of responsibilities and results is critical. Each of us has responsibilities inside and outside of Turner to manage, and each is important to ensure balance and results.

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