My landscape gardening career
I’m having some work done on my garden.
“Work” doesn’t really do it justice – they’re ripping the whole thing out and starting again – the ramshackle fence overgrown with ivy included.
It might surprise you to learn that I’m no landscape gardener, so I defaulted to the three experts I was paying handsomely for the job.
They asked me about fencing, and I chose close boards, with the smooth side inwards, towards the garden.
All three of the experts queried this – they thought people could use the horizontal struts to climb over the fence – a legitimate concern maybe, but since the garden gate is never locked, not one I was worried about.
Anyway, I came home from work after they’d been working on the fencing and went out to measure the space I’d earmarked for my outdoor fireplace.
It no longer fitted.
As it turned out, the smooth side being inward had lost me 40cm, so the fireplace was now too big.
How many of the three experts, who knew full well about the fireplace, told me that?
Zilch.
Time for the uncomfortable but necessary talk with the builder to get it changed.
His three-pronged defence?
- “It’s not that bad, it doesn’t take much space.”
- “Well, it was obvious it was going to take space from your garden, I thought you knew that.”
- “You should have researched it before making a decision”
Three explanations, none of them sticking.
You see, when you pay an “expert”, you’re paying them for more than hammering fenceposts into the ground.
And the businesses that really thrive are the ones that can add the additional value, spot those pitfalls, and eliminate them.
Doers who can get jobs done are ten a penny. Experts are the ones that can charge what they are worth and are sought after, as long as they can prove their expertise.
Which one are you? Expert, or doer?
