I’ve never been particularly handy around the house, and it mostly boils down to a lack of experience. Reflecting on why this is, I think there are two main reasons. First, my father was incredibly handy. He could do almost anything around the house, and he still can. Because he never really needed my help, he did everything while I watched. I never learned how to do things myself.
During my education, while I still lived at home, I didn’t engage in much technical work either. I spent more time on the computer and doing administrative tasks, which I’m quite good at. But when it comes to DIY projects, that’s not my forte. I saw my father do it, but since I never really helped—beyond holding things and fetching tools—I never learned the skills. Now that we have our own home, there are occasional projects to tackle. However, I often run into problems because my skills and knowledge don’t match the level I want to achieve. When I want to fix or improve something, I have a vision of the outcome, but I’m not technically skilled enough to reach that outcome. It’s a matter of practice, but since our house is generally in good shape, there aren’t many opportunities to practice. This creates a vicious cycle: I don’t do many projects, so I don’t learn, and because I don’t learn, I’m hesitant to start new projects.
For example, when painting needs to be done, we prefer to hire someone because the result is much better than if we did it ourselves. The same goes for replacing the shower, which we had done recently. I wouldn’t know where to start, and researching it would take a lot of time. Instead, we pay someone to do it. After all, how often in your life do you replace a shower or work on plumbing? Maybe once or twice, three times at most. It’s not a good investment of my time.
There are, however, some things I can do. Recently, I replaced a light switch. It was a simple task, or so I thought. The new switch was a different model, so what I expected to be a straightforward job turned into a few hours of research. But in the end, it worked out perfectly. I completed a small project and felt good about it. When I can do a project and achieve the level of quality I want, I’m very satisfied.
This got me thinking about the types of projects I can do well. I’ll focus on those and continue to hire professionals for the rest. It’s not worth investing time and energy into something I don’t enjoy and that frustrates me when I can’t achieve a high standard. The quality of the work matters, and if I can’t meet that standard, it’s better to let someone else handle it.
In conclusion, while I may not be the handiest person around, I’ve learned to recognize my limits and focus on what I can do well. For the rest, I’m happy to hire professionals. It’s a balance between knowing when to DIY and when to call in the experts. If you’re like me, don’t be afraid to admit your limitations and seek help when needed. It’s all about finding what works best for you and your home.
