Two Stressors Every Contractor Can Prevent
For a contractor, there’s no better feeling than walking away from an appointment with a signed contract. Well, maybe walking away from a completed job with a signed check is better, but for this blog’s purpose we’ll pretend we haven’t gotten that far yet.
With all the warm and fuzzy feelings that contracts bring, inevitably the stress of the job will start to sink in. Some of these stressors are out of our control – such as other trades timelines, weather and employees – yet some are preventable, including these two:
Lack of Organization
Have you ever run out to your truck to get a tool and couldn’t find it? Organization is one key factor for operating in a less stressful environment. Try to develop the mantra that “everything has a home.”
Whether it’s in your truck, trailer or garage, every tool and product should have a designated spot. Once these spots are created, use them. This is easier said than done when you pull into your driveway at 9 p.m. after working a 15-hour day. However, the extra 10 minutes of work will save you hours. Remember, “a stich in time saves nine.”
Time Mismanagement
How many trips to the supply store are you going to make today? This question is usually going through my head when I enter the parking lot to the supply store for the third time in a day. We joke about it, but the truth is, time is money. A few tips to help manage time better are:
- Schedule your day. At the end of the day sit down and write out the tasks for the following day.
- Prioritize these tasks in order of importance. As contractors, a lot of what we do requires step-by-step processes. Prioritizing our tasks within these steps can potentially prevent that third trip to the store.
- Combine like tasks. For example, if your task list calls for follow-up calls on potential bids, you may also have tasks for later in the day to call new leads. Combining these two types of calls in a certain time block will increase your efficiency.
