Yesterday was a reminder of why it’s so hard to pay for help around the house. For the most part, work ethics seem to be a thing of the past. That means you end up having to do the work yourself. I will explain what happened.
I ended up hiring a handyman to help me with small and medium projects around the house that didn’t seem to fit into my schedule. I’ve made a long list that includes things like finishing the faux stone baseboards for the front porch…
Other listings include moving all desktop-level outlets and switches in the studio up about 3 inches…
We changed our plans and decided to use IKEA cabinets instead of pre-assembled cabinets, so the desktop will be about 3 inches taller than originally planned. This means that all outlets must be elevated. Space for higher countertops.
Other items on my list include reupholstering shutters that fell off in a gale storm (one I built a while ago), installing two outdoor outlets, and keeping the beadboard ceiling out of the way. This includes small things such as installing lights in the carport. Finally installed and done.
About 4 weeks ago, my mother came to my house to help me, and I called a handyman to come to my house to carry my stuff. He came to pick up half of it and he sent me an email asking if I could pay first because he had to pay to take the stuff to the landfill. Then he said he would rest again the next day. He had done work for me before (just installing a toilet) and seemed nice, so I paid him first. However, it still hasn’t come back the next day and it’s been 4 weeks and still hasn’t come back.
As I said earlier, this person was actually the one who installed the toilet for me a while ago. When he first came here, I showed him some other projects I wanted him to do. He offered me a price and said he would contact me soon to schedule the work. That was probably a year ago and I haven’t heard from him.
So obviously I wasn’t going to call him to get more work done. In the end, I made it clear that I am a perfectionist, honest and proud of my work. actually had time to work. Almost immediately, I got a couple of replies from the men who provided the service, and almost immediately after that, I got a personal message from people (mostly widowed women, as far as I know) warning about a certain handyman. started.
A common theme in their stories is that he’s a very nice guy, but he doesn’t keep his promises. He may say that the job will only take a few days, in which case he either doesn’t show up at the scheduled time or delegates the job to someone else who doesn’t really have the right skills for the job. To do. It’s been a few days and the work is still not done.
I jumped over the handyman and looked at the rest. One person was of particular interest to me, so I called him. On the phone he seemed very kind, professional and well organized. I set my appointment for yesterday at 3:30, and I heard him typing all my contact information and address into something like a laptop computer. I expected so much!
So yesterday I made sure I was ready and waiting in the living room around 3:20 so I wouldn’t miss him. have been waiting. and waited. and waited more. By four o’clock he still hadn’t come, so he gave up waiting, changed into his work clothes and started working in the studio. I was furious. And honestly, I wouldn’t have minded if he was late if only he had contacted me. But he left me sitting there wondering if and when he would show up.
Around 4:15, I got a call from him via Nextdoor saying, “Looks like you had an appointment at 3:30 today. Please call me and I can reschedule.”what? No explanation was given as to why he did not appear. There was only an assumption that we were going to reschedule. I just replied: My time is precious too. ”
I don’t understand why this is so common and acceptable for contractors and handymen. And I don’t get too annoyed for myself, but I change my schedule to accommodate people, so I get mad when people don’t come. But when it comes to work, I’m still young and a very capable DIYer who can do all these projects by myself. I just wanted to hire them for convenience and to get things done faster.
But I am particularly frustrated on behalf of the elderly women and widows who have written to me and shared their experiences. I know there are many more with similar stories for each person who contacts me. They probably aren’t DIY enthusiasts who can do this job themselves. In fact, they entrust the work to other people, but the work is not completed until those people come. I really feel sorry for those women. I wish I could go and help them myself. It’s a terrible feeling to make a commitment and then fall for someone who doesn’t seem to care about other people’s time, commitments, or schedules.
I can’t get my head around it. And probably all of you have had similar stories about handymen and contractors not showing up, not doing the job right, not caring about appointments, not caring about work. I think there is Poor quality work, poor schedules, hours late without telling you when you will arrive, the list goes on and on. I really don’t understand what happened to make this so acceptable now. What happened to the work ethic? How can we get it back?
In Addicted 2 Decorating, I share my DIY and decorating journey of modifying and decorating a 1948 Fixer upper that my husband Matt and I purchased in 2013. Matt does most of her work because she has MS and she cannot do physical labor. I do my own housework. You can learn more about me here.
