Will Sampson talks about the challenge shops face constantly chasing their tails with production and not stepping outside to learn what they need to succeed. His guest Matt Buell of M. Buell Studio, a talented craftsman of fine furniture and the host of the Young Wood Pro contest and education program sponsored by Grizzly Industrial.
This episode of the Woodworking Network podcast was sponsored by FDMC magazine. FDMC magazine is your vital source of information to improve your woodworking business. Whether it is keeping you apprised of the latest advances in manufacturing, helping you solve your wood technology problems with Gene Wengert, or inspiring you with case histories about successful businesses and best practices, FDMC magazine is there to be the sharpest business tool in your shop. Learn more and subscribe for free at woodworkingnetwork.com/fdmc.
Woodworking Network is a home for professional woodworkers, presenting technology, supplies, education, inspiration, and community, from small business entrepreneurs to corporate managers at large automated plants.
You can find all of our podcasts at WoodworkingNetwork.com/podcasts and in popular podcast channels. Be sure to subscribe so you don’t miss an episode. Thanks again to today’s sponsor, FDMC. If you have a comment or topic you’d like us to explore, contact me at will.sampson@woodworkingnetwork.com. And we would really appreciate it if you fill out the survey at woodworking network.com/podcast-survey. Thanks for listening.
Intro music courtesy of Anthony Monson.
Intro:
Welcome to this episode of the Woodworking Network Podcast. Join us as we explore the business of woodworking big and small and what it takes to succeed. I’m Will Sampson.
Today’s episode is sponsored by FDMC magazine Today, my guest is custom furniture designer and craftsman Matt Buell of M. Buell Studio and the host of the Young Wood Pro contest and education program sponsored by Grizzly Industrial. But first I want to talk about:
Expanding horizons
Woodworking tends to be somewhat isolated. No matter the size of your operation, fabrication is typically separated from the final destination for the product. Yes, some cabinets and built-ins are largely assembled on site, but the vast majority of wood products are made in the shop or in some kind of manufacturing facility.
That’s an efficient way to work, but it lends itself to a somewhat insular way of professional life. The focus is on where the work is done and not the larger world. That’s particularly true in small shops where just a handful of workers — or maybe even a single pair of hands — is focused on creating the product. In such cases, the intense focus on the work can make the outside world disappear.
Such intense focus can be great to do excellent work, but it also can leave you isolated from everything except the process, including outside opportunities and input that could improve your work and your success.
When I talk to shop owners, particularly those with small to mid-size operations, and ask them about attending some conference or trade show, often the answer is, “Oh, we’re just too busy to leave the shop.”
In other words, you are too busy chasing your tail in the shop to see that circumstances outside your shop have changed. You are too busy to learn something new that could alter your processes, gain new customers, or cut production costs. You are too busy to stop to figure out why you are too busy to make more money with less work.
In the end, what you are really saying is you are too busy to be successful.
Isolated in your plant, you can’t possibly discover all the answers to all of your problems. Much of the woodworking industry is focused on custom work, complaining about everything for every job being different each time. But technology has made it possible to streamline customization, to focus on similar processes rather than different details.
But you can’t really learn about all of those new advances without stepping outside your comfort zone, leaving your shop and learning. Some will say they get all the outside input they need with the internet and some chat group or even an AI bot. But then someone talks about how a chance meeting changed their life. With all of our technology, there is still no substitute for face-to-face contact.
Not to mention, if you are spending all of your time in your shop putting out fires, you need to take a breather before you burn out.
I live in a rural area that doesn’t have nearly the number businesses, retailers, and institutions of a larger metropolis. But what it does have is a lot of creative people who find solutions through networking with other creative people — their neighbors, mostly. You need something done or have a problem to solve? You ask around.
If you stay stuck in your shop, there just aren’t enough people to ask around, are there?
Before we get to our interview with Matt Buell, let’s pause for a word from our sponsor.
FDMC magazine is your vital source of information to improve your woodworking business. Whether it is keeping you apprised of the latest advances in manufacturing, helping you improve efficiency with lean manufacturing guru Brad Cairns, or inspiring you with case histories about successful businesses and best practices, FDMC magazine is there to be the sharpest business tool in your shop. Learn more and subscribe for free at woodworkingnetwork.com/fdmc.
Now, let’s talk with Matt Buell.