By Lynsey Peterson
As an Integrator, I know how common values, a shared purpose, and a compelling vision can unite teams and drive results. Earlier this month I saw how those things can bring relative strangers together to do something amazing in only two short days.
My son and I had the opportunity to join the Titus Talent Strategies team on their “Titus Catalyst Experience Trip” to Mexico to build a house for a family in need. I had been looking forward to this trip since joining the Catalyst Integrators® team in 2023. Getting to take my son on an extended trip to San Diego and share the experience with him in Mexico is a great example of how I am able to live my ideal life at Catalyst, harmoniously integrating my work and personal life.
My ability to live my ideal life and our Catalyst focus on making an impact is one of the things that drew me to the team. Our strategic partnership with Titus Talent with their focus on giving back is one of the ways I knew that Catalyst was the right place for me.
My parents raised me with a servant mindset and a heart for Central America. They both traveled on mission trips there multiple times and sent my brother and I to Honduras as teenagers. Later, my husband and children embraced opportunities for service and friendship in Guatemala.
Still, this trip to Mexico was a unique experience. Despite all of the attendees working in the EOS community, I met many members of the build group for the first time less than a day before we started the home building project. While I knew we were going to build a house, I had no idea “how” that would happen.
Common Core Values
We gathered at the San Diego airport and loaded onto a bus, eating lunch and chatting with one another on the two hour ride down to Ensenada, Mexico. On our first evening, we shared dinner and learned about the logistics of the home build. We learned about the family we would be helping and the work of Homes of Hope. We each shared what had brought us to the trip and what we hoped to experience. It was immediately clear that we all had joined together because of shared core values. We were there to help a family in need, serve a cause greater than ourselves, and learn something about ourselves in the process.
A Shared Purpose
We arrived at the worksite the next morning to see a new concrete slab, a truck full of supplies, and the current house our sponsored family was living in. We met the family and our leaders of the build team. Each of our leaders had a specific set of accountabilities and the experience they needed to guide our group. In our group, only a few of us had ever built a house like this before. A few more had some experience in construction or home repair. And the rest of us were simply willing to learn and be led.
We could see the current reality for the family, understand their desire to improve their lives, and trust our leaders to help us to build a structure that would provide safety and security. We knew we only had two days to complete the job, so we were focused and determined to work together to make it happen.
That’s when I began to feel something magical. I started work that first morning as an individual, wanting to help out, and as a mother, wanting to experience this with my son. As the day continued, I quickly became part of a community, working together as a team to do something that would be impossible for any one of us on our own.
Somehow, shortly after lunch that day, we were able to raise the walls on the home. We kept working and by the end of the afternoon, we had installed interior walls and added a roof. We all left that afternoon amazed at what we had accomplished.
A Compelling Vision
The next morning we had breakfast at the Homes of Hope main campus. During the meal, we learned more about the larger mission of the organization. One of our build team leaders shared how his family received a home when he was a 10-year old child. The home gave him the courage to dream of a future he never had imagined. He now works to share that same gift with others by volunteering with Homes of Hope.
That’s when I really understood that building this home wasn’t about simply helping this family right now. We were making a generational difference that could have positive reverberations for that family and others into the future.
The Creation of Community
With the vision of our impact in our minds, we traveled to the build site where the family greeted us with their children and grandchildren. A few members of our team took them shopping at Walmart while the rest of us worked to finish the house before they returned. We worked with care and enthusiasm to complete the interior of the home and add shingles to the roof. We even added a few special touches, including a window box for flowers and a sign for the home.
During that second day, I continually saw the pride and consideration we all took in our work. We were all so motivated to build not just a house, but create a home that the family could make their own. My favorite memories from the build are from that second day.
There must have been at least twenty of us working side-by-side in the small house at one point. We sang along to classic rock music and squeezed around each other to get the work done. I hadn’t even met most of the group until 48 hours before, but suddenly we were a tight-knit team and I was already feeling emotional that we weren’t going to be together for much longer.
A Lasting Impact
During those two days, we created remarkable kinship with our leaders, our sponsored family, and one another. It gave me hope, energy, and a deep sense of connection. Even many days later, back in my regular life, I still feel that connection to everyone.
I truly believe that anyone can experience the level of connection that comes through a community working together to create impact. While most of us haven’t mastered the ability to hotwire it in two days, we can all seek to combine shared values with a common purpose to achieve this magic.
I am incredibly grateful for the gift of this experience and for the connections we forged. I know I will carry the memories and lessons through the rest of my life.
Who is Titus
Titus is a "for profit, for good" company. We've had the privilege to work with Titus as a recruiting partner for our clients for years for a variety of roles across many industries. They are extremely values-driven and do things the right way. If you're interested in what Titus Talent Strategies is doing in the talent and hiring space, please use my link here to contact them.
This trip was a chance to see the "for good" part of their company in action. A company culture centered around generosity can have numerous benefits, both for your employees and the wider community.
Titus' CEO & Visionary, Jonathan D. Reynolds, put together a FREE guide to help you establish and foster such a culture within your organization. Download it today to learn more: Download Generosity Guide HERE
