Four years ago we contracted a house interior finishes crew. They had some experience and covered a lot of skills in interior finishes. But they also had a diverse pool of people, some just starting, some needing a lot of hand holding, some having to redo the work and pulling tiles of the wall is costly, wasteful and time consuming.
If I had hired individual workers and managed their deliverables myself, I would have had more control, though finding efficient labor is not easy nor cheap. But I could have fired them also. I chose to have a middle man so he can do the dirty work of interceding. But this way I had to forgo my control.
The contractor that was supposed to oversee the work was rarely here and work happens in waves, often too slow for my untrained eye. I assumed that is how things are. You just have to wait for the paint to dry I guess.
As I assisted my daughter in cooking pasta, I realize the similarities between learning to cook and learning to do work on a house.
My daughter brought on the counter the onion. That was it. Then the cutting board. Then she stopped to analyze what was coming next. Choosing the knife. Slowly peeling the onion and cutting it even slower. Understandable. But that was not what dragged out the cooking of a simple meal. Her not anticipating the next steps. And waiting to finish one before deciding what to do next. Putting a drop of oil in a pan. Waiting for the pan to heat. Then adding the chopped onion. Sauté. Then having to stop the stove and rummage through the fridge for the bacon and the mushrooms. Slowly cutting one. And then the other. By then the skilled was cold. Adding them to the pan. Sauté very slowly. Stopping again. What next? Seasoning. Starting another pot to boil water. Add salt and a bit of oil. Wait to boil. Add pasta. Forgetting completely about the sauce. Not adding the cream except last minute and the flavors not having enough time to mix in.
And she would say she knows how to cook pasta with white sauce. Because she does. But it takes her 3-4 times longer to prepare the meal. And it’s a mess to clean after. But she is determined to keep practicing and I love that about her.
How many houses are slow to build because materials are not ordered in a timely manner. Not just early to be in the way, but knowingly, to have them arrive just in time, to use, to prepare, to mix and match. Calling workers on the right days when the work is needed. There are houses being built across the street. Some people manage their own teams, others are professional builders. It is obvious the ones who are professional are a lot more efficient. Not just fast. Cement takes as long as it takes to dry. It’s not about the proper wait time between steps. It’s how you use the in between days.
It’s just you. Construction work is slow and inefficient because good leaders are not easy to come by.