SA chitchat

[Guest]

jezz Vik don't you know that everything in adelaide takes at least 2 months to plan :lol:

Lucky we weren't a council it would take forever :rokon:

UNf***nBELIEVEABLE...

vik

did you get that poxy clutch done or what???

see you wednesday

[Zeke]

Quote Mr X "agree with you voy"

Good luck to you guys then.

Hey Mr X - ever had a landscaping customer who wants everything to be perfect and gets a bit unreasonable, cos they've got unrealistic expectations?

I still reckon that sometimes you gotta say near enough is good enough. In one job, I put in 110% for years (with lots of extra hours in my own time) until I realised that only the discerning few appreciated the outcome. The other buggers just saw it as their right and didn't even say thanks.

Maybe I'm just a disillusioned old fart, but I think I'll live longer and happier 'cos I'm now willing to compromise to some extent on my ideals, at least with material things like cars. Life's too short to stress about the details.

But it's only my opinion....nice to see there are still some idealists out there and that we're not all world-worn cynics.

[Zeke]

When's the BBQ Vik?

At your place?

What do we bring?

Also keen on a dyno day and happy to help orgainise it if the interest is there.

Might also have a go at the drags if my insurance co is OK with that. Sure, it's safe, but sh*t happens. A mate of mine wrote off his car at a Fiat/Lancia thingy I organised about 30 years ago and the insurance co knocked him back...I still feel bad about that as it set him back a bit and I'd told him how safe it was.

[XR6_ED]

Zeke I can understand what you are saying

There is a rot creeping into the work force which is becoming more common..

If my mechanics do bodgie work then they are out on the ear...If a customers vehicle takes long than expect then so be it...It goes out right not half arsed..

The apprentises I see now are lazy sh*t that dont give a rats arse...Out of the 10+ I have seen come through only one has remained with me for the full 4 yrs,the rest have been given there marching orders

If a business cant give you 100% satisfaction then some else out there will...Its just a matter of finding them

[Guest]

Dont know Zeke,havent heard from dean yet.

My joint for a bbq,a case of cab and were laughing

vik

[Zeke]

Dunno about a case. I wouldn't drink any more than 2-3 bottles and then only if Mrs z agrees to drive home when we head for the hills. Then again, what's your guest suite like? Besides, I prefer shiraz. Grange is good.

Minor details, though, and I don't stress about them....at least that's what I keep telling myself....and everyone else.

[Lumpen]

Besides, I prefer shiraz. Grange is good.

sh*t! I'd drive to South Aus non-stop if you were bringing three Full bottles of that out!!!!! :o

[Mr X]

Quote Mr X "agree with you voy"

Good luck to you guys then.

Hey Mr X - ever had a landscaping customer who wants everything to be perfect and gets a bit unreasonable, cos they've got unrealistic expectations?

Yes Zeke many times,but when we've finished our work almost all of our customers say that the final product is better than they expected: but certainly there are people out there who are impossible to please.

I still reckon that sometimes you gotta say near enough is good enough. In one job, I put in 110% for years (with lots of extra hours in my own time) until I realised that only the discerning few appreciated the outcome. The other buggers just saw it as their right and didn't even say thanks.

You have to leave the job 100% sure in your own mind that you have done everything to the highest standard even if it costs you time and money.As soon as you leave any number of self appointed experts(neighbours/relatives)crawl all over your work itching to find faults.Also your best advertisement in this game is your last completed job.Virtually no one appreciates you going the extra mile. You do it for your own satisfaction ie pride in your work and self preservation ie no call backs.

Maybe I'm just a disillusioned old fart, but I think I'll live longer and happier 'cos I'm now willing to compromise to some extent on my ideals, at least with material things like cars. Life's too short to stress about the details.

Your right about life being to short to stress about details but I'm afraid a lot of the time its unavoidable.My time in the landscape industry is almost at an end for that very reason.(I'm looking at a crash shop today which sounds like jumping out of the frying pan and into the fire but the things that can go wrong in landscaping you just wouldn't believe.)

However I expect to receive the same attention to detail from someone providing me with a service as I give in my business.

But it's only my opinion....nice to see there are still some idealists out there and that we're not all world-worn cynics.

Don't worry Zeke I'm as world weary as the most cynical of us but idealism in providing a product or service is a must if you want the work to keep coming in.I wouldn't piss on a lot of my clients if they were on fire but they can NEVER say we didn't do an excellent job and didn't give good value for money.

Take it back Max,insist on a better result.

[Zeke]

Well said, Mr X. You're obviously the type of contractor we all want to find when we need something done. But contractors who have that attitude are already few and far between and one more will soon be lost in the landscaping industry.

I've had some of my worst experiences in crash repair and become conditioned to accept marginally less than 100%. Maybe that's a cop out, but it works for me.

Another example:

When we built a house in 1980, we had an excellent builder. Inevitably, with a very complex custom-buillt house on several levels, some things went wrong. We took a reasonable approach and compromised on the bits we got fixed and some glitches we accepted or worked around, 'cos it would've been horrendously expensive to the builder to rectify them. My father-in-law thought we weren't demanding enough about some of the imperfections we accepted.

But the house won its category in the HIA awards and we've had 24 great years here so far. We'd build again tomorrow if that same builder was still in house construction (he changed to commercial construction). We still call him occasionally if we need clear, expert advice about any building-related matter and we're like old friends.

If we did it again, I wouldn't do anything differently. Looking back, I'm glad we were willing to be reasonable and compromise a bit instead of expecting everything to be perfect.

In the end, everyone has to decide for themselves how good is "good enough" and just how far they want to push the quest for "perfection".

Good luck, Maxx, with whatever you decide to do with your car. I agree though, if the job is going to cause you ongoing grief, then it's unacceptable. On the other hand, if it's a tiny imperfection that you can forget about straight away and no-one else would ever notice, then I'd be more inclined to accept it. In the end, it's up to you.

[xrdreaming]

OK Vik and the gang, I am driving up this coming Saturday the 18th of September and will be leaving the following Friday or Saturday depending when I finish all of my work.

Anytime you want to get together is fine with me, I will have a employee along for the trip ( No he doesn't get to drive the ute) just let me know what you decide.

Cheers,

Dean.