Less than a month ago, I was in Mexico City training a huge group of contractors, installers and floor company owners. Back here at home I just experienced (again) one aspect of our trade that I stressed to the group in Mexico: How to say “no.”
I went to an estimate this morning for a refinish of an existing floor. What the caller didn't tell me was:
The floor is severely cupped. That he is the GC who hired some "floor guy" to do the work. The “floor guy” tapconned ¾-inch plywood on slab with no vapor barrier and no prep. He installed 2¼-inch red oak. No moisture tests were done, no RH test, nothing. Next was a painted-on ebony wood stain that he finished it with several coats of gloss water-based finish (and by the look of it, threw down some anti-slip sand into the last coat).
So the GC asks me, “Can I ‘fix’ it?” (I put the quotes on fix here, because he was dead serious and I’m being sarcastic now.)
My answer simply was “No.” He cocked his head and looked at me with a puzzled expression. “What do you mean, no?”
I explained that beyond the fact that the finish looked like it was applied with “anti-slip” in mind, and beyond that the sanding work was absolutely horrible, to say the least, it was a poor installation with internal flaws exhibited by the unevenness from lack of prep AND the cupping … and I wasn't going to touch this floor at all.
I told him nicely the only way I could “fix” this is to tear it all out and start over again, because I’m not putting my name on a floor that could easily fail later on. He didn’t like my answer, even though he (now) understood about all the flaws that are both visible and hidden in this floor and that no one could guarantee the floor to behave as it should.
So this leads me back to Mexico City and to all those installers … and to the conversation I have with other installers and company owners constantly … learn to say NO!
Learn to say no when you are being put under pressure to meet an unreasonable or unattainable deadline.
Learn to say no when you are being put under pressure to meet an unreasonable or unattainable deadline. Learn to say no when you are asked to do substandard or otherwise compromising work. Learn to say no when the end result is going to be less than representative of a good quality job or company. Learn to say no so that you will never have an embarrassment on your hands that can lead to rework, lots of money lost, bad will and, most of all, a tarnished or damaged reputation.
Saying no will boost morale because your people will appreciate not being put in those bad situations. Saying no will actually make you more money than not for many other aspects of our trade: having positive client confidence, good will in the community, promoting your good reputation, and that you live by principles that are not compromised.
Learn to say “NO.”
