This weekend promises cold and snowy times. That's just fine with me. I have some work to do with computers in the office, and working on computers in jeans and a sweatshirt with music playing and a dog running around in the office while it's snowy and cold outside is a nice way for me to spend half a Saturday. At least I don't have to mess with clients.
Over the past weeks I have been trying to get a project finished, and in my opinion the clients are being unreasonable. I tried to explain this to Becky, but I feel my ability to communicate the aggravating minutiae is lacking. Suffice it to say that I am increasingly frustrated. It's always this way at the end of a large project, and sometimes I feel like the subject of the Kipling poem If where I'm trying to keep my head when all those around me are losing theirs and blaming it on me. I know I'm not perfect, but I manage to get things done despite my clients' best efforts to the contrary. I waste so much time fielding client concerns and trying to make people understand that we are addressing problems that it's difficult to find time to actually address the problems. ...Nobody trusts a builder. I know that. But it hurts to work hard and work honestly and still be treated with suspicion and scorn. People have a lot of money invested, I understand, but I can't seem to convince them that I'm working hard for the same goal that they want, and I know how to get it done better than they do. I don't know if people resent the fact that our business makes money by coordinating the labor to build their house, but somehow people lose perspective, especially at the end. A cracked electrical outlet cover could start the waves of tears all over again. Yeah, I've made people cry. Over window locations. I'm not proud of that. Usually, though, it's me drawing blood from biting my lip instead of telling people that they're being dumb. Thing is, I have to be sympathetic with people who I think are being silly, while making sure not to imply that we're going to do things that we haven't contracted to do. I have to endure the suspicion with a grin.
Over the past weeks I have been trying to get a project finished, and in my opinion the clients are being unreasonable. I tried to explain this to Becky, but I feel my ability to communicate the aggravating minutiae is lacking. Suffice it to say that I am increasingly frustrated. It's always this way at the end of a large project, and sometimes I feel like the subject of the Kipling poem If where I'm trying to keep my head when all those around me are losing theirs and blaming it on me. I know I'm not perfect, but I manage to get things done despite my clients' best efforts to the contrary. I waste so much time fielding client concerns and trying to make people understand that we are addressing problems that it's difficult to find time to actually address the problems. ...Nobody trusts a builder. I know that. But it hurts to work hard and work honestly and still be treated with suspicion and scorn. People have a lot of money invested, I understand, but I can't seem to convince them that I'm working hard for the same goal that they want, and I know how to get it done better than they do. I don't know if people resent the fact that our business makes money by coordinating the labor to build their house, but somehow people lose perspective, especially at the end. A cracked electrical outlet cover could start the waves of tears all over again. Yeah, I've made people cry. Over window locations. I'm not proud of that. Usually, though, it's me drawing blood from biting my lip instead of telling people that they're being dumb. Thing is, I have to be sympathetic with people who I think are being silly, while making sure not to imply that we're going to do things that we haven't contracted to do. I have to endure the suspicion with a grin.
Business would be so much easier without all these pesky clients.
I'm just a little upset now-- I like my job.
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I am a good person.
It doesn't matter.
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It does matter.
But only to me.
1 comment:
Jay, I sympathize. And I empathize. It's always a bummer to be treated like you don't know what you're doing or like you're trying to scam someone.
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