I’ll Be Home for Christmas.

There is something about the lead up to Christmas in the building industry. No matter how well planned the year has been, it often feels rushed and just a little manic.

At this point of the year, it would be easy to focus only on the frantic finish rather than the year as a whole. Instead, I want to invite you to pause and take a more holistic view of what you have contributed over the past twelve months.

Because it is not just about the houses built or renovated this year, although that is an achievement in itself. It is about the way of living you have helped facilitate for the families who now call those places home.

I often think of it like this. A surgeon replacing a knee is not really giving someone a knee. They are giving them movement, freedom, and the chance to live differently. The gift is not the knee. It is what becomes possible because of it.

Building and designing homes is much the same. You might deliver a house, but what you are really delivering is a way of living. A home that supports how your clients want to live and connect with their families.

And at Christmas time, that usually looks like lunches that run long. Kids asleep on the couch. Grandparents lingering a little longer. Conversations that matter. Memories being made in the ordinary, everyday spaces you helped bring to life.

That matters.

Especially in an industry that can sometimes feel relentlessly transactional, it is worth remembering the deeply human impact of your work.

So as the tools go down or the pencil is put away for a few days, try not to carry only the weight of what felt hard this year. Carry the pride too.

Pride in the lives made easier. Pride in the gatherings made possible. Pride in the care you showed, not just in what you built or designed, but in how you showed up along the way.

From the bottom of my heart, I wish you a Christmas filled with rest, connection, and the people who matter most.

PS: Have a ripper Christmas. That’s all. You totally deserve it.