Spiral-Aware, Post-Capitalist Carpenter

[Julka]

Hi all, new to the forum so thought I'd introduce myself by sharing a project I'm working on: a re-invention of my carpentry contracting business. For public accountability and hopefully inspire others to step outside their comfort zone and design soul-aligned work.

I've been a carpenter for almost 10 years and a contractor for 6. My career timeline can be beautifully illustrated using Spiral Dynamics...
Blue - order and structure working for the man, following the rules and doing it to code
Orange - tired of corporate bureaucratic and political bullshit not wanting to invest 15 years just to make $35 an hour, starting a business, "franchise model" scalable, sellable business mindset, hustle to make $$$, repeating burnout cycles
Green - materialist illusion shattered, existential crisis (who am I if not part of the mainstream personal development culture?), emphasis on work-life balance, meaningful relationships with clients, smoking lots of weed and transmitting beauty and art through the medium of wood (www.tylerjulka.com)

Learning about SD from Leo's videos - like many, I'm sure - changed the way I see not just business, but the entire world. I have a particular interest in developmental psychology, regenerative/ecological design, mythopoetic storytelling, sacred economics, and meta-awareness.

Yellow/Turquoise emerging - entrepreneurship as a vehicle for self-actualization and helping to advance consciousness of others, approaching business using systems thinking to serve as a model that influences the industry in a healthy way, balancing Purpose, People, Planet, and Profit - being profitable because it's so damn ethical, meeting potential clients where they're at (do-it-yourself products, done-with-you services, and 

The paradox: What if the best way to run a successful business isn’t to maximize profits, but to maximize purpose, relationships, and craftsmanship?

So how can it be applied in the real world? I specialize in fences, decks, and outdoor structures/furniture. I've been open to using all materials in the past, narrowing in on just wood and composite. I live in Los Angeles, California. Redwood is abundant in this state so there's no good reason (other than aesthetic preference) to truck in lumber from the rest of the U.S. or Canada, let alone shipments of shitty fake cedar lumber from Asia or exotic hardwoods (as beautiful and durable as they are) from South America. Sustainably-sourced materials - check.

My vision for soul-aligned sales and marketing: leveraging storytelling, authenticity, and community. Style catalog with upgrades - freedom within a framework. Clear and transparent tiered pricing publicly available in marketing materials. Slowly over time I will experiment with integrating post-capitalist pricing models such as Pay-What-You-Can (PWYC) and sliding scale pricing, time-based barter/labor exchange, community crowdfunding/sponsorship, gifting builds to community. The aim is to exercise trust in the innate desire within people to have a human experience.

Redwood Standard (the company name) will practice and advocate for good stewardship of these natural resources by developing certifications for builders, ensuring they are building exceptional projects using redwood - maximizing it's lifespan. Also getting involved politically to encourage change in forestry practices. Letting the tree itself fully self-actualize for 100+ years doing its oxygen producing, carbon sequestration thing and contributing to the mycelium network of the forest, before transcending into a beautiful, living structure.

Anyway, long read I know. Thanks for staying with me if you've made it this far. I'm really looking forward to participating here and growing with you all. I hope this thread can start some intelligent discourse on conscious business practices - so let me leave you with a question.

Have you thought about how your career or business model aligns (or misaligns) with your deeper purpose?

Cheers

[Sincerity]

This is awesome! Welcome to the forum and thanks for sharing.