Gary Wood, Chief Operating Officer of The SDDE Smith Group and Managing Director of WOODSmith, shares his insights with Portfolio North.
Q. My morning routine is …
Wake at 5.30, check my emails on my phone (doesn’t always go down well with the wife) a nice shower, three coffees while flicking through the days horse racing and prepare for meetings.
Q. What puts me in a good mood
Everything running smoothly at work and people doing as I ask and following instruction and process is key to my mood! Spending time with family and friends, getting out on the golf course and watching my horses run are also very important.
Q: What makes me angry
People not following process and learning from their mistakes is a massive touch point with me. People being ignorant and rude also makes me angry. I have a bad temper at times but always try to make conversation and be polite as this is how I was brought up.
Q: Values I try to live and work by
I was lucky to work with some great people in my younger days and a great man called Simon Fairbank once taught me never to put someone in a position you wouldn’t like to be in so this is a value I hold at the top of the tree to this day and always will. Showing respect, generosity and supporting people where possible are massively important in my book of life.
Q: Bad habits I try to break
Laying in bed on a night and working on my phone and learning to switch off just a little when on holiday with my family.
Q: What motivates me most
Being able to give my family the best life possible. My parents worked extremely hard to make sure me and my siblings had everything to give us the best start in life so I intend to do the same.
Q: My sources of joy are
There’s a lot so I’ll name just a few!
My family and my little cat Roary, watching Redcar Athletic Football Club or Middlesbrough FC, although it would be better if they won every week and watching my horses.
Q: I relax and destress by…
Going on holiday with family or away on a weekend with my wife. Watching the horses on the gallops is always a big stress relief!
Q: What most people don’t know about me?
I played for Middlesbrough FC as a school boy with Dale Smith CEO and founder of the group who I also went right through school with from 4-16 years old. I recently had a hip replacement because I didn’t listen to the specialist when he told me to stop playing football at 27! I also ran my first large new build hospital project at 29.
Q: If I didn’t do my current job, I’d like to be …
Without doubt a pilot. Recently I worked for two great guys who flew me to work with them down in Kettering. It’s made me want to have lessons now I’ve seen it isn’t as difficult as first thought.
• The SDDE Smith Group is a leading business with multiple brands that provide an end-to-end client service for the real estate sector.
