“Home must be in order”
When the Turku archipelago started to be planned in the early 80s, Juhani Tamminen was alert. “I reserved a plot of land here in Hirvensalo,” Tamminen recalls. “This place was almost entirely meadow and parkland at the time.” A detached house in the Turku archipelago gave a professional hockey player a chance to relax. “A professional hockey player spends about 9-10 months abroad and then comes to Finland for the summer.”
Hirvensalo Island is perfect for a passionate boater like Juhani Tamminen. The area is also very beautiful. Already on the way to the island, the Hirvensalon Bridge offers an impressive, idyllic landscape. “When I drive over the bridge to the island, it has a psychological effect. I know I’m at home and that my work is out of my mind.”
For Tamminen, a home is much more than just a property. “My wife and I work hectic hours,” says Tamminen. “That’s why the importance of the home is exceptionally important. It’s not just a place where you come to eat and sleep. It’s really a home for us. It’s where we entertain and recharge our batteries.”
Juhani Tamminen and his wife have agreed to renovate the house whenever necessary. This prevents the risk of water damage and other concerns from coming into contact. “This has been a very clear principle for us. It should be nice to live here,” says Tamminen. “The home must be in order”.
Redefining the image of plumbing renovation
The issue of sewer renovation came up when a sewer survey was carried out in a house in Tammine by the building security company Taloturva. In a sewer survey, a camera at the end of the cable is inserted into the sewer pipe, allowing the condition of the pipe to be inspected from the inside. “We were able to see with our own eyes how bad the sewage pipes were,” Tamminen recalls. “The renovation was an easy decision. Of course, there are not many things that can happen to a house that are worse than water damage.”
Nor did they have to think long and hard about who would carry out the renovation. “We were blown away by the professionalism of the guys from House Security,” Tamminen says. “You can see in these guys’ eyes that you can trust them. They are good professionals and good people. The most important thing when choosing a contractor is reliability, and these guys have earned it.”
Juhani Tamminen’s image of the pipe repairs was not very positive. “Of course I had heard all sorts of things,” Tamminen says. “My main impression was that a plumbing repair is really messy, takes months and months and completely disrupts family life.”
However, the sewer renovation was smooth from the very first storm. “I have to give credit to the guys doing the renovation,” says Tamminen. “When we sat down with them at the table before the renovation started, they explained exactly what was involved and that immediately gave us confidence in what they were doing. We had a very clear outline of what we wanted. I’ve always assumed that when talking to a professional, the brief should be clear: what is being done, how long it will take, how much it will cost and so on. Then let’s get down to business and cut the chatter – give the professionals some peace of mind.”
“The service has been very elegant and the installers have been very professional. We are particularly attracted by the atmosphere of courtesy. They understand that the house is ours and that they work here. The installers go about their business without disturbing us in any way. If we are not here, they send a text message telling us where they went, when they are coming back, which plumbing fixtures are available and which are not. The information flows elegantly.”
In the end, Taloturva did a hat trick: the sewer renovation went smoothly, quickly and without disrupting everyday life. Tamminen is very happy with the overall result. “Everything that has been agreed has been delivered,” says Tamminen. “Nothing to complain about. I can sincerely recommend House Security.”
The absence of unnecessary worries helps you focus on your core competences
Juhani Tamminen is now a full-time education entrepreneur. His coaching is used by the management teams of large global corporations as well as smaller SMEs. Eurotam Oy, founded by Tamminen, has been operating since 1979. Under normal circumstances, there are well over a hundred coaching sessions a year. “Of course, this epidemic hit pretty hard,” says Tamminen. “The gigs were not so much cancelled, but postponed.” Tamminen is now focusing on distance coaching and writing a new book.
Writing has long been an important part of Juhani Tamminen’s everyday life. He has written more than ten books during his career. Some of the books are about Tamminen’s own life, and others about managing people. Leadership manuals look at how to get people to commit to a common goal and give their best. Tamminen’s works have been popular: over 100 000 copies have been sold. It all started with the bestseller The Sun King.
“Successes feed successes and the Sun King was born as a kind of chain reaction,” Tamminen recalls. “When the first book was about to be published, the managing director of the publisher said this to me: ‘you will find, Tami, that in Finland, when you write a book, your prestige will rise to new heights’. I have to say that that is absolutely true. Finns appreciate literature, and I think that’s a very good thing.”
Juhani Tamminen’s new book is due to be published in autumn 2021. This is a more important work than usual. “The new book is a kind of summary of my entire 55-year career since I started as a professional hockey player in the autumn of 1966,” says Tamminen. “The book is also a timeline of the history of Finnish ice hockey. It is the story of how a relatively popular sport grew to become a topic of discussion for the whole nation. After all, I am one of its authors: I have played, coached, been a club manager and commentator. In the book, I tell from my own perspective how this phenomenon – Finnish ice hockey – came into being.”
Now that the sewer is in place, Tamminen can concentrate fully on writing and, above all, on enjoying her own home.
