Home Performance Contractor Dreams

The Three Laws of Home Performance Contractor

First Law 

A performance contractor must do no harm through action or in action.

Second Law 

A performance contractor must follow the principles of building science unless they are in conflict with the first law

Third Law 

A performance contractor must protect their own interest unless that protection conflicts with the first and second law.

Oth law

A performance contractor may not harm by inaction or allow harm by action.

For those of you whom have not read the Robot series by Isaac Asimov will not appreciate my total and complete rip off of the three laws of robotics. The Oth Law came later and you cannot promote 3 laws through three books and then simply change to four laws in your next literary endeavor hence the zeroth law which proceeds all but really came later.  By the way the title is also a rip off. I would suggest reading those books rather than my blog  as they are actually interesting

As I have noticed over the years we seem to put many rules on ourselves in performance contracting. As we embark out on our journey to make a difference I wonder if we are hindered by our own rules?

When does do no harm paralyze us to the point where we do nothing at all? Are we so afraid of the results of our actions that we are relegated to inaction?  Have we become robotic that we are unable to break from the confines of our own rules to do the right thing? Have we set the bar so high that we simply gaze up at it and never get over it?

So some of you might wonder how dare I ask these questions and who the hell is Isaac Asimov and those that do know who Isaac is you are probably musing that this guy is no  Asimov but he is somewhat of an….

So I read that we need to rid the world of all atmospheric drafting combustion appliances and cannot recommend anything other than sealed combustion furnaces. That all energy models lie and therefore we are liars. That we cannot seal duct systems because we might reduce the airflow across the coil and cause the system freeze and fail.

This causes me to  ponder at what the hell can we do?

While it appears often the goal is to separate ourselves from the Construction Industry but somehow fail to recognize that that is the industry we are in. I have seen and heard from many how we need strict quality control to promote the integrity of the industry with qualified findings and third party verification. While it might just be that we talk too much and don’t do enough.

Has this fear of never doing anything wrong left us paralyzed and stuck in a quagmire of good intentions?

Tell me if this model would work in the plumbing industry. Customer has a clogged drain. Drain unclogging analyst is called and agrees your drain is clogged. He has 3 immediate solutions

1)      Use a plunger

2)      Use a toilet auger

3)      Use a snake

He then devises three long term solutions

1)      Camera the line for anomalies

2)      Provide a plan for a deep sewer retrofit

3)      Install a zone multi zone flushing kit on your current sewer system

He then further explains there is a rebate for the multi zone flushes kit and after its installation a third party verifier will show up and confirm the multi zone flush kit is installed and working properly

Customer explains he really only wants the line cleared and questions whether you do it or not. You explain that you are a third party drain analyst with certifications as a HIMS Rater which is an acronym for Hydro Industrial Mensa of Sewers  and  if you want to participate in the MZFK or multi zone flush kit program you have to call an MFPC or certified multi flush performance contractor that is participating in WGA or water go away program.  And furthermore in order to qualify for the rebate he needs to have his lines cameraed and receive a bid for a deep sewer retrofit performed by a  SUA or Systems Unclogging Analyst use the flusherator 2000 WGA approved program and that you happen to be both a HIMS and a SUA professional and have the Flusherator 2000 program

Customer again ask if you can unclog the drain You shake your head and smile of course not as a HIMS and SUA you only advise but that you will be extremely happy after the report which tell more about s@#t that you ever imagined! You will upload the information to the WGA database and they will get back to you as to whether or not you have the certification and then you can hire a MFPC. You further explain that this system really does make sense after all as you would certainly not want a MZFK by anybody other than a WGA approved MFPC

I think our system might be a tad bit  over complicated and has way too many acronyms. Our quest for perfection has left us with complicated checks and balances that have left us at the end of the day ineffective. If we are to drive forward in the industry we need to find a balance of what we want to perform and simply the process and get things done.

It might be that this over complication confuses customers and ultimately drives work away from our industry. I think we need to recognize that in any industry there will be good guys and bad guys and we should just focus on getting customers and doing good work.

I think Paul Raymer sums it up best when he asks “How hard can it be? I will now quote the most dynamic quote in modern American history that can save us all.

“Git er done”

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