Here’s a friendly note for anyone in the home-buying market:
Simply enjoying “Fixer-Upper” on tv does not automatically turn you into a creative, home-renovation superhero. I’ll even take it a step further and issue a warning to any spouses out there in the midst of looking who are presently fighting the temptation to say “It’s just paint, honey” or “new carpet isn’t that big of a deal.”
Don’t do it!
Your wife (or husband) will remind you about it until you die… possibly at their hands… while you sleep.
If you’re not yet convinced, let me explain what else will happen if you choose not to heed my warning. Let’s just say that carpet you assumed wasn’t a big deal is beige (as is every wall surface, light switch, and baseboard… but that’s another issue). On that beige carpet live three murderous carnivores and one hyperactive dog who would play fetch until she died if given the opportunity. Cute, yes. But don’t mistake them for nice pets. They are the villains of this story who all work together in nefarious schemes to make the beige carpet as brown as possible.
My wife, as she frequently reminds me, is the household warrior of carpet cleanliness. Not particularly because I am lazy (which is certainly within question), but because I’m not good at the carpet cleaning. The last attempt I made at it resulted in a week of wet socks and then another week of crunchy walking surfaces. Apparently, the answer is not always “add more carpet cleaner.”
I woke up this morning and noticed a brown spot on my side of the bed. It’s only a matter of time before she sees it, so I’m going to try again. But this time I’m going to investigate, scrub, take my time, and then treat the spot to keep it from coming back. Sound familiar?
It Should
Because I’m not actually talking about carpet. Or any of the numerous chemical compounds you can spray on it from a squirt bottle. I’m talking about workplace safety, believe it or not.
Think about it this way. How many companies out there these days experience challenges with their safety program and just spray it with another coat of the same stuff?
- More “safety observations…”
- More policies…
- More write-ups…
- More audits…
How often does that work?
I’ve learned some hard lessons throughout my career. I know there are plenty of organizations out there that have no desire to do it better. We’d be naive to think that’s not the case, and OSHA wouldn’t have stacks and stacks of whistleblower complaints if it wasn’t. There are plenty of places that will run off the people who want to do the right thing. But if you’re reading this, I have hope that you’re not in one of those places.
If your organization is interested in figuring out how work works while making it safer and more productive, contact us today. Let’s get Relentless.
Safety Connect (industrysafetyconnect.com) is coming October 20-22. It is the worlds biggest, freest safety education and networking event.
I’ll be there all three days in the lounge with two of the coolest Safety Pros I know.
Sign up today.
I can relate 😂