About · Guiding principles

Four agreements. One way of working.

The guiding principles of Dan Ventures are built on The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz. They shape how we treat landowners, towns, partners and each other, whether we're walking a site or reviewing a draw.

1

Agreement 1

Be impeccable with your word

We say what we mean, and we do what we say.

• Commitments to towns, landowners and partners go in writing, and we keep them.
• We don't promise a timeline, a price or an outcome we can't stand behind.
• When something slips, you hear it from us first, with the reason and the new plan.
• We don't talk down partners, sellers or competitors. If there's a problem, we take it to the person.

2

Agreement 2

Don't take anything personally

We keep the work about the work.

• A no from a seller, a town or a lender is information, not an insult. We learn from it and move on.
• Feedback on a draw, a budget or a site plan is about the document, never the person who sent it.
• We stay steady in hard negotiations and give others room to have a bad day.

3

Agreement 3

Don't make assumptions

We ask, and then we check.

• We walk the land before we commit to it. Sourced on foot is how we work, not a slogan.
• Numbers get verified: every invoice, lien waiver and budget line is checked against the documents.
• When something isn't clear, we ask the question instead of guessing, and we say plainly what we need.

4

Agreement 4

Always do your best

We bring our best, knowing it changes day to day.

• Built by hand means care in the details, from the first site visit to the last punch-list item.
• When we get something wrong, we own it, fix it and carry the lesson forward without blame.
• Our best on a hard day still counts. We expect the same honest effort from ourselves and our partners, not perfection.

Where they come from

The Four Agreements is a book by Don Miguel Ruiz, drawn from Toltec wisdom. The agreements are his. How we apply them to our work is ours.

The bookThe Four Agreements at miguelruiz.com→ AboutDaniel Kaufman's story→ PartnersThe people we work with→