So You’re in Charge and Slightly Panicked

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Construction Confidential

T. Donovan Creative

6 episodes

6 days ago

Construction Confidential aims to gather the community of commercial construction professionals in conversation about how we can evolve the system. T. Donovan Creative believes an effective owner can profoundly improve project outcomes. A prepared and informed owner can elevate the experience of every supporting discipline from architects and engineers to plumbers and painters. Construction Confidential shares stories from the field to help owners avoid costly mistakes and learn from the pros.

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All content for Construction Confidential is the property of T. Donovan Creative and is served directly from their servers with no modification, redirects, or rehosting. The podcast is not affiliated with or endorsed by Podjoint in any way.

Management

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So You’re in Charge and Slightly Panicked—Let’s Fix That

Construction Confidential

26 minutes 1 second

6 months ago

So You’re in Charge and Slightly Panicked—Let’s Fix That

Welcome back to Construction Confidential! We’re Heather and Robin—and if you’ve ever found yourself leading a construction project and thinking, “Wait… how did I become the one in charge?” — this episode is for you.

Today, we’re diving into the pressure that comes with being the “owner” in a construction project, especially when you're mission-driven and don’t have a dedicated team to manage the build. We talk about the weight that lands on your shoulders, the common pitfalls that even experienced leaders fall into, and why trying to carry it all alone just doesn’t work.

You’ll meet two client profiles—Dan and Rachel—and hear how their opposite approaches both led to stress, delays, and second-guessing. We also walk through the structure of Owner’s Edge Academy and how it’s designed to guide owners like them (and you) from the very first meeting to project closeout with more clarity, less panic, and better results.

🧠 In This Episode:The mental load mission-driven owners face during construction
What happens when leaders try to do it all (or delegate too much)
Dan: the confident builder who skipped the details
Rachel: the cautious planner who overthought everything
How Owner’s Edge Academy closes the gap between vision and execution
Why owner education = owner empowerment
A preview of next week’s episode: What is a charette?

⏱️ Timestamps:00:00 – Introduction: When you’re in charge and unsure
01:38 – The emotional weight of being the “owner”
04:45 – The two types of clients we see most often
06:55 – Dan: confident, but missing context
09:12 – Rachel: cautious, but overwhelmed
12:50 – Why so many owners feel stuck in the middle
14:40 – What Owner’s Edge Academy was built to solve
17:25 – The support owners actually need
20:10 – What empowerment looks like in action
23:45 – Why the system doesn’t serve owners by default
25:05 – Next episode preview: What is a charette?

🔗 Links & Resources:🌐 Website: www.tdonovancreative.com
🎓 Owner’s Edge Academy: www.tdonovancreative.com/ownersedge
📩 Contact Us: heather@tdonovancreative.com
📱 Instagram: @tdonovancreative

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Let’s build smarter, together.