September 6th – Just Sayin’

It is time to share a ‘Piece of My Mind’ that holds memories of my decades in the construction industry. There is a lot of good stuff packed into that space but today I am sharing my thoughts on a couple of irritating sayings that came up relatively often.

The first was ‘WOW Factor‘ – a term that I sadly often heard on the residential side of the construction industry. I had specific reasons for finding this term particularly annoying.

– People looking for the ‘WOW Factor’ generally wanted to do something wierd with building materials that such building materials are not meant to do. Inevitably such projects were more trouble than they were worth and they ultimately failed.

– ‘WOW Factor’ projects quickly date a home (Think seventies 😳) so they are not practical – and I am very practical.

– People who came looking for the ‘Wow Factor’ were not people who were looking to build or renovate homes. Homes provide warmth and comfort and support and security. They are our refuge from a hectic and sometimes unkind world. 💞 Since this pandemic began, our local television station has frequently run a segment on how badly we are all struggling. One day they focussed specifically on young professional women living in the mini-mansions of Toronto. Apparently, they were struggling because, with their families spending more and more time at home, they were having trouble keeping everything neat and tidy. OMG! Their homes were starting to look lived in. WOW! 🤦

The second saying in the construction industry that annoyed me to no end, was typically a sales pitch – but occasionally used by a male client if he and his spouse were not in total agreement. That saying was “Happy wife, happy life!”

Seriously – if your wife is only willing to be happy and agreeable in your marriage when she gets what she wants, you have bigger problems than choosing the material for your new countertop.

If, on the other hand, your wife is typical of most women, she is more than willing to compromise, discuss, and quite often even settle for the choice that her husband prefers. In which case ‘”Happy wife, happy life” is just rude, patronizing and mean. If you are a husband and you use this term – just stop. If a salesperson uses this term – set him or her straight and /or walk away. There are sales people who are willing to respect you and your wife. 🤨

That is my ‘Piece of Mind’ for the day. As always, feel free to share your thoughts in the comment section below. All comments are welcome and respected.

Have a great day! Take care and see you tomorrow. 💞