Dear Members,

It's August 1st and the middle of summer and it's hot out there! Stay cool SEAOSC.

We had a great kickoff to our 2023-24 year with our first Board of Directors meeting in mid-July followed a day later by our Committee Chair kickoff event. It was great to see everyone in person and begin to collaborate on this year's programs for our membership. We had a number of familiar faces who have served on the Board or committees for some time as well as several new faces. I am excited and energized by all who attended and shared their vision for the year.

Something I want to touch on in these President's messages over the course of the year is sharing my thoughts on several words I have jotted down on a card that I keep on my desk and I look at work each day. Not every day goes smoothly, and we all have our ups and downs as we complete our work as Structural Engineers. What we do can be stressful with calculations and details that are so important to the construction of our buildings and infrastructure. So, I keep these words written on a card on my desk and refer to them often when working to keep myself grounded and focused on what I am doing to support our team and our clients and our profession: Attitude, Gratitude, Kindness, Patience, Accountability, Efficiency, Trusted Advisor and Delegate. Each month I plan to touch on one of these words and the deeper meaning it has to me as I strive to be the best that I can be in whatever it is I am doing.

Attitude - This is item #1 for me. We have things which are in our control and out of our control each day, but our attitude is our choice. We can choose to be happy or sad, positive or negative, thoughtful and caring or selfish and inconsiderate. The pace of our work can be challenging. The disappointment of not getting awarded a new project or promotion can be hard. The frustration from realizing you missed a detail in developing a set of plans that is now going to result in a change order is tough. Our days can seem overwhelming at times and yet keeping a positive attitude can help in so many ways. It helps you remain focused on the task at hand. It presents a positive message to others that you can handle the challenge in front of you. And it can help provide you with the energy you need to tackle and concur what lies in front of you.

I recall over the past year what an amazing attitude our past president, Patti Harburg-Petrich, brought to each and every meeting we had. I am sure there were days that may not have gone quite right, but she was always positive and genuinely happy to see and interact with the people she worked with. Kudos to you Patti for such an amazing and positive attitude you always bring!

I look forward to seeing many of you at our upcoming golf event on August 7th followed by our movie night showcasing our DEI movie series on August 17th. Then it’s the convention in Maui (stop by our special SEAOSC event just for our So Cal members!) and then the committee showcase later in September.

Hope to see you at an event soon!

Craig Chamberlain, S.E.
SEAOSC President 2023-24