When you dream of building a new home on your land, are you the hero of that story?
Lots of home builders want to be the hero of every home building story. They see themselves as the artists—the ones who make the dream come alive. Some express themselves, and their egos, through the homes they build.
They may talk about how they build "their" homes, the features "they include" or what comes standard in "their homes," and other such talk. They may push you toward added features you don't really need or try to talk you out of something you really want in your new home because it doesn't fit their vision.
They want to be the Luke Skywalker of the story about building YOUR forever home. But wait a minute… shouldn't YOU be Luke? It's your story, your life, your forever home, not your builder's. The builder plays an important part in your story, to be sure, but not the hero's part.
So what part should the builder play?
Well, if you are Luke, then your builder is Yoda.
Yoda provides the know-how, the wisdom, and sometimes guides with a firm hand to keep Luke on track when he wants to speed through the process. For all his importance to the story, however, Yoda is just a supporting character. Luke makes the big decisions, sets the goals, and makes the story happen. It's Luke's dream. Sure, Luke owes some of his success to Yoda, but ultimately Luke is the one making his dream happen.
Don't let your builder try to make himself the hero of your story. Find the builder who is happy (and good at) being Yoda to your Luke. You'll love the ending of that story, and you'll get to be the hero.