The list of suck

Last week was pretty rough at work, as the economy continues to drag us down. Gotta institute furloughs again, despite a brief respite.

"Managing expectations", a well overused term, was in force last week. It's amazing how one's attitude can be affected by the spin that is placed on the information you share with a client, coworker, contractor, or partner.

So while I was being harangued by a client before the weekend about details that were important to him (those that I had honestly not even perceived to be important), I had a mini epiphany, of sorts. I decided that when I meet with him later this week I will bring a list of things that give owners heartburn and angst (read: change orders that result in cost overruns). This is a list that I have compiled over the years that highlights my lowlights. By itself, in black and white, it is a list of suck, a compendium of abject failures that trumpet the wanton spending of other people's money because the architect didn't foresee every unforeseen circumstance. By itself, it is a vehicle for despair, as it represents glaring deficiencies in seemingly simple operations, i.e. leaving out one line in a drawing set that literally cost a client $30,000.

But that's what professional liability insurance is for.

That said, I can hold this 3 page (or thereabouts), black and white list of suck against the massive volume of work that we did get right, several thousand units of affordable housing, some of which were nasty slums, all over the metro area and into PA, WV, and NC. This 3 pager up against stacks and stacks of photos showing revitalized buildings and new construction looks pretty meager and unimportant. So I'll happily add that missing 3-way hallway light switch to the list, knowing that this inconvenience is a small price to pay for living in a clean, modern, and safe unit.

It's all about perspective. After all, that list of suck is now a checklist to make sure I don't go down that road again.