What does it really mean to be real?
In this short solo episode, Andy shares why authenticity has become one of the most important ideas shaping his life, business, and leadership. From admitting you don't have all the answers to trusting data over assumptions, this episode is a reminder that curiosity and honesty often build more trust than certainty.
Andy also reads a heartfelt message from a young irrigation professional whose journey perfectly captures the spirit of the Sprinkler Nerd community—a group of people committed to learning, improving, and raising the standard together.
Whether you're leading a team, serving customers, or simply trying to become a little better every day, this episode is an invitation to show up as yourself.
Sometimes the most powerful words we can say are:
"I don't know... but I'll find out."
[00:00:00] Hey, it's your friend Andy, The Sprinkler Nerd, and welcome to The Sprinkler Nerd Show. This episode is going to be a quickie because I'm on the road traveling in New York City. And yesterday I actually had a really awesome meeting with New York Green Roof and their entire company and their shop after hours. Special shout out to all the amazing, wonderful people at New York Green Roof being curious enough to look into some new technology
[00:00:26] and have a thought leadership experiment on what we can do to improve our current practices and vision out and see what might be possible in the future and how to experiment a little bit along the way. So this episode is going to be a quickie and it's about one word that's been on my mind this year and the word is real.
[00:00:52] If you are an irrigation professional, old or new, who designs, installs, or maintains high-end residential, commercial, or municipal properties, and you want to use technology to improve your business, to get a leg up on your competition, even if you're an old school irrigator from the days of hydraulic systems, this show is for you. And the word is real. What does that even mean?
[00:01:18] And I think being real starts with letting go of the need to have all the answers. How many times has a customer asked you something and you felt like you had to respond immediately? Maybe the better answer is simply, I don't know, but I'll find out. I don't think our job is always to know everything, to have all the answers.
[00:01:42] Maybe our job is to just listen, understand the question, understand the problem, and care enough to find the right solution. And ironically, that's exactly what I love about sensors and data and analytics is that the data doesn't care about people's opinions. It just tells the truth. And we did have a good discussion about this yesterday with a number of people,
[00:02:08] is that sometimes it's hard to explain what a problem might be or the cause of the problem and have somebody listen and believe you. And so having empirical third-party data coming from sensors can sometimes tell the story better or provide trust in the story, like the truth. So a few episodes ago, I talked about trying to be more real.
[00:02:32] And a few days later, I received a text message from a younger irrigation technician. I won't say his name. I'll just call him Mark. And Mark wrote to me in the text message, Your podcast has had a huge impact on my career. You've helped me communicate water conservation, follow the data when troubleshooting, and think differently about irrigation. I'm looking into Harmony Analytica because I want to bring monitoring and analytics to my customers.
[00:03:00] I mainly wanted to say, Thank you. You've helped me become a sprinkler nerd who's passionate about diagnostics, efficiency, and water conservation. And that message made my freaking day. I love hearing from you guys. And if anybody wants to send me a message, say hello and have a little brain share over text message, please do. My cell phone is 208-908-3229.
[00:03:27] But I also want you guys to know that it made my day not because Mark complimented me or I'm expecting any type of compliments, but because it reminded me more about why I started this podcast. Because I don't know if any of us have it all figured out. We're just trying to get a little better each day. And Mark, it was so great to hear from you. You probably know who you are because I'm using Mark and not your real name. But Mark, thank you. Look forward to catching up with you someday in person.
[00:03:57] And after Mark and I texted back and forth, he did invite me to his shop. And it's a couple hours away, but it's not too far out of the way. And yeah, Mark would love to brain share with you more. So my challenge for you all this week is to do what you can do to be real this week. And if you don't know something, say you don't know. Try that out.
[00:04:25] Someone asks you a question and you don't know the answer. Just say you don't know. If someone has helped you, thank them. If you've been waiting to reach out to someone, send the text. You never know what might come from it. And Mark, if you're listening to this, thank you. You reminded me that authenticity wins. And I appreciate you being authentic. So thanks everyone for listening. This is a quickie.
[00:04:51] And until the next time, keep being curious and keep being the Sprinkler Nerd. See you all next time.