- Let's talk about Country Living
So much of it is timing and perhaps a bit of dumb luck.
I really didn't start out with the intention of going out on my own. One of the local businessmen called and asked if i would take on a couple of weeks of repair work at his place of business. It was an old building and two weeks turned into 8 months. From there it just took on a life of it's own. It was 2001 -2002 and construction was booming. I had anywhere between 12 - 18 months of steady work ahead at any given time.
By 2006 i could see the handwriting on the wall. Over the winter of 2007-2008 business dropped by 50% and it never did recover.
I've made my share of learning mistakes along the way. I've had some very difficult customers that gave me many sleepless nights.
Construction isn't like a lot of other services. If you're an electrician or a plumber you probably won't be on the job for more than a few hours. Maybe a week tops ...............
On some carpentry jobs you will be there for weeks or months because it's so labor intensive. If you've got a difficult customer you've got problems.
There is no perfect customer. We all have our own little quirks. It's just a question of figuring out who you can work for and who you can't stand to be around for any length of time. Before committing to a job i casually sit down with a perspective new customer and try to get to know them as a person. I do an assessment .... Can i meet this person's needs and expectations ? Sometimes the answer is yes and sometimes the answer is no.
If the answer is no, then i try to line them up with someone else that i think they would be a better fit with.
Red flags:
The customer wants to work with you !
Narcissistic personality traits
Emotionally driven ( the trades are heavily logic based )
Customer has no idea of what they want.
Alcoholics ( You'll see booze all over the house )
Nitpickers, compulsives, and anal retentives
Just plain crazy
A lot of it depends on your social skills. If you're really good with people you'll do better.
I'm kind of a cranky old fart. Fairly good at my trade but just a wee bit too forthright for some people's tastes. I don't have the patience with people that i had when i was younger.
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