Lessons learned

Kurt Bland is a landscape contractor and has been one for 42 years.

“I often feel I should identify myself this way, not unlike how people introduce themselves at AA meetings,” he said. “I have spent 42 years in this business one way or another.”

Bland served as the career development series speaker at NALP’s 2018 National Collegiate Landscape Competition at Alamance Community College in Graham, North Carolina. He said he didn’t hesitate at the opportunity to be a speaker for the event.

“Just the fact that I found an employment opportunity at (an NCLC) event was reason to speak,” he said. “I always want to be able to give back to the industry and see students encouraged to be a part of it.”

Bland is president of Bland Landscaping in Apex, North Carolina. He said he grew up in the business, which was started by his father in 1976.

Bland’s business experienced a few setbacks after the Great Recession, but he and his brother grew the business to about $15 million in annual revenue by 2014, which Lawn & Landscape wrote about in September 2014. This year, the company is on track to achieve $25 million in revenue.

About 300 college students attended Bland’s presentation at NCLC. The following are a few of the lessons Bland shared with them from his 42 years in landscaping:

• Leading vs. managing: Bland often hears people in the landscaping industry say, “I want to be a manager.” However, he notes there is a difference between being a manager and a leader. Managers are executors, while leaders inspire people to achieve “seemingly impossible” things. “Leaders are not afraid to stand in front of people when times are good or when people are upset,” he said. “If you want to lead in any industry, you have to be willing to share the bad news and the good news.”
• Always build industry connections: Bland shared a few stories of industry professionals he met early in his career whom he reconnected with later in life. Bland explained that networking at events like NCLC could be helpful to find or change jobs. “You have to network,” he said. “You won’t always find that job on social media – it’s not always on Indeed or Career Builder. If you want good job opportunities, find a network of people in the industry.”
• Be open to change: Bland noted that it’s important to remember where you came from but to also be open to change. “At 18, I was a wrestler with no body fat and a crew cut,” he said. “Do I look like that now? No. We’re all going to change.”
• Be realistic, but dream big: Bland said young professionals and small businesses need to set high goals while also keeping them realistic. “Don’t get carried away. I see small landscapers add a lot of equipment to the business sonly to go bankrupt,” he said. “But also don’t let people hold you back from realistic goals. When my dad was diagnosed with polio, people thought he would just be a victim. But he retired comfortably from a career in landscaping. This is still an industry where you can go from zero to millionaire or find a good job.”