QUEENS SERVICE MEDAL FOR ENERGIZER BUNNY IT’S NOT UNUSUAL FOR FOXTON BUILDER RODNEY CALDOW TO START WORK AT 4AM, AND HIS DAILY “TO DO” LIST USUALLY STRETCHES WAY INTO THE NIGHT, EMERGENCIES NOTWITHSTANDING KARMA IN BUSINESS Another friend recalls an incident when Rodney’s decisive actions were especially reassuring. “I had an accident, got caught up in a forage harvesting machine. My leg was bent around back to front, broken in nine places, and I had tines through my leg, and it wasn’t flash. “All of a sudden, I heard Rodney yelling at people telling him what he wanted done, and I just knew then that everything was going to be fine. And it was.”
Rodney runs one of the largest building companies in the Foxton Horowhenua region, is president of Manawatu Certified Builders, a volunteer fire fighter for 36 years, a volunteer with Coastguard for 28 years. And if that’s not enough, he’s always one of the first people to step up when someone needs a hand, say his mates (he was instrumental in helping organise re-building in Samoa after the Tsunami). “He’s just like the Energizer Bunny,” says one friend. “He just goes and goes and goes…” 100% FULL ON “Yeah, I suppose I am hyperactive,” says Rodney “but I’m just doing my bit, you know, for my fellow people. You do it because you can.” Rodney was awarded the Queens Service Medal in the New Year honours for his services to the NZ Fire Service, but people in the community say there are many other reasons why he deserves the award. Fred McBrydie from ITM Foxton says his many achievements are due to his dedication. “He’s just so full on 100% dedicated. He’s dedicated to his business. He’s dedicated to the Coast Guard, to the fire brigade; he’s dedicated to everything he gets involved in. “Plus he’s straight up front, no beating round the bush, so you know exactly where you stand.”
RODNEY IS A GREAT BELIEVER IN KARMA “Good people do good things for good people, and what goes around comes around. Karma is a great thing. It’s definitely part of our business success.” And the business is very successful. A recent article in a local Manawatu newspaper included the caption: If people think there’s a slowdown in business, they obviously haven’t been to Caldow’s Builders Yard. “Yes, we’re really busy,” says Rodney. “We have 13 staff and everyone’s just flying out in the mornings, we’re going flat tack.” LOOK IN THE MIRROR Rodney believes success is due to attitude. “I did a business course because I had to change from being a bloody good carpenter to being a bloody good business manager. And I always remember what the business coach said to us: If you want to identify the biggest problem in your business, look in the mirror. And how does it feel being awarded the QSM? “Everyone in the family was stoked. They all came down to Government House for the award, along with some of my good mates. And yeah, we had a few beers afterwards. “I’ve got really good family support and fantastic staff. It’s bloody easy to look good when you have a whole bunch of really good people behind you.”
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