I thought I communicated effectively....

CinnamonSugar

CinnamonSugar

A Quiet American
I had to call the lawn service that takes care of my yard at the house I own and cancel my contract today. The young man doing the mowing on the zero-turn mower plowed right up next to my tall blueberry bushes, which are loaded with ripe and almost-ripe fruit, knocking bunches of berries on the ground. When I talked to the owner, he stated, "It was understood not to spray weedkiller or *use the weed eater* by the bushes so I'm not sure how else we could cut the grass there." I remember telling him no chemicals near the bushes but I don't remember ever saying don't use the weed eater. (in fact, that would have seemed the logical way to trim the grass directly under the bushes to me.)

There were other things that contributed to my stopping service with his company but it just brought up the question: what is the best way to effectively communicate my wishes or instructions? Are people just so busy or distracted now-a-days they don't hear 1/2 of what you say or fill in the blanks from what they thought they heard? Must everything be put in writing? Looking forward to hearing what has worked for you....
 

After having a cleaning lady years ago, I said I’d write down instructions if I ever had another one. I think you’d need to do the same with a lawn service. You tell the owner, he tells the employee(s). Lots to be lost along the line of communications.
 

I'm mostly concerned with getting a service person to even show up!

Friday, we got a quote from a reputable tree service to take some branches down before the hurricanes start. He said they'd schedule over the weekend and let us know Monday which day this week they'd be coming. We said any day would do except Tuesday, but if Tuesday was the only day available, we'd rearrange our plans.

Of course, they called Monday and said Tuesday was the only day they could come. OK, we rearranged our schedule to move the Tuesday thingy we had to do to Wednesday. So they call this morning and said they couldn't come today and they'd be here tomorrow (Wednesday). Sigh. So, shifted the Wednesday thingy to Thursday.

Anybody want to give odds that they actually show up tomorrow?
 
I am now to the point where I either ask to see the service instructions or hear what said service person understands them to be. Good service companies should write down the things we tell them and I or you should ask to see those instructions or have them repeated back.

I had a recent episode where I handled the service on the SIL's motorcycle and specifically told him to put on Michelin Adventure tires. I watched him write this all down but failed to ask to see it. Sure enough, he put on the wrong tires. Then it got worse when the service manager tried to blame me for the error. In the end, I contacted the right people and the bike got the right tires. Some days later I learned the service manager had a habit of getting customer instructions wrong. I am not sure there's a solution for that at our end other than to find a different service provider.
 
jujube said:
I'm mostly concerned with getting a service person to even show up!

Friday, we got a quote from a reputable tree service to take some branches down before the hurricanes start. He said they'd schedule over the weekend and let us know Monday which day this week they'd be coming. We said any day would do except Tuesday, but if Tuesday was the only day available, we'd rearrange our plans.

Of course, they called Monday and said Tuesday was the only day they could come. OK, we rearranged our schedule to move the Tuesday thingy we had to do to Wednesday. So they call this morning and said they couldn't come today and they'd be here tomorrow (Wednesday). Sigh. So, shifted the Wednesday thingy to Thursday.

Anybody want to give odds that they actually show up tomorrow?
Click to expand...
I am learning that it is increasingly difficult to get contractors to show up, in no small part because they're have trouble getting people to work or their existing workers to show up. The way the pandemic was handled is being cited as a major cause of this problem, along with associated problems in the supply chain for the products and expendables businesses use..
 
Last edited:
CinnamonSugar said:
I had to call the lawn service that takes care of my yard at the house I own and cancel my contract today. The young man doing the mowing on the zero-turn mower plowed right up next to my tall blueberry bushes, which are loaded with ripe and almost-ripe fruit, knocking bunches of berries on the ground. When I talked to the owner, he stated, "It was understood not to spray weedkiller or *use the weed eater* by the bushes so I'm not sure how else we could cut the grass there." I remember telling him no chemicals near the bushes but I don't remember ever saying don't use the weed eater. (in fact, that would have seemed the logical way to trim the grass directly under the bushes to me.)

There were other things that contributed to my stopping service with his company but it just brought up the question: what is the best way to effectively communicate my wishes or instructions? Are people just so busy or distracted now-a-days they don't hear 1/2 of what you say or fill in the blanks from what they thought they heard? Must everything be put in writing? Looking forward to hearing what has worked for you....
Click to expand...
In order for any communication to be understood, Cinnamon, one needs to look at three things: the source of the message, the audience for the message, and the medium for the message. You, as the source, need to make yourself clear and speak in language that's understood by the receiver. The receiver has to concentrate on what's being said and ask questions if necessary. The medium has to fit the situation, be it voice or paper or something else. But that's not the only thing; you're not finished. You need a feedback loop. The receiver has to become the sender and let you know that he understands. In order to do this, he needs to paraphrase, not repeat, your words. You, then, become the receiver and need to be sure that his paraphrasing of what you said is correct.
 
CinnamonSugar said:
I had to call the lawn service that takes care of my yard at the house I own and cancel my contract today. The young man doing the mowing on the zero-turn mower plowed right up next to my tall blueberry bushes, which are loaded with ripe and almost-ripe fruit, knocking bunches of berries on the ground. When I talked to the owner, he stated, "It was understood not to spray weedkiller or *use the weed eater* by the bushes so I'm not sure how else we could cut the grass there." I remember telling him no chemicals near the bushes but I don't remember ever saying don't use the weed eater. (in fact, that would have seemed the logical way to trim the grass directly under the bushes to me.)

There were other things that contributed to my stopping service with his company but it just brought up the question: what is the best way to effectively communicate my wishes or instructions? Are people just so busy or distracted now-a-days they don't hear 1/2 of what you say or fill in the blanks from what they thought they heard? Must everything be put in writing? Looking forward to hearing what has worked for you....
Click to expand...
After talking to a number of people, I suspect the problem is one of service providers having big problems hiring help at all, let alone competent help. Seeing how widespread this problem seems to be right now, I'd have to bet the problem isn't your communications ability.
 
JonDouglas said:
After talking to a number of people, I suspect the problem is one of service providers having big problems hiring help at all, let alone competent help. Seeing how widespread this problem seems to be right now, I'd have to bet the problem isn't your communications ability.
Click to expand...
Yes my son did say there seemed to be a new person every time the lawn was mowed
 
I
Dancing_Queen said:
In order for any communication to be understood, Cinnamon, one needs to look at three things: the source of the message, the audience for the message, and the medium for the message. You, as the source, need to make yourself clear and speak in language that's understood by the receiver. The receiver has to concentrate on what's being said and ask questions if necessary. The medium has to fit the situation, be it voice or paper or something else. But that's not the only thing; you're not finished. You need a feedback loop. The receiver has to become the sender and let you know that he understands. In order to do this, he needs to paraphrase, not repeat, your words. You, then, become the receiver and need to be sure that his paraphrasing of what you said is correct.
Click to expand...
I will bear that in mind, @Dancing_Queen thanks
 
CinnamonSugar said:
I had to call the lawn service that takes care of my yard at the house I own and cancel my contract today. The young man doing the mowing on the zero-turn mower plowed right up next to my tall blueberry bushes, which are loaded with ripe and almost-ripe fruit, knocking bunches of berries on the ground. When I talked to the owner, he stated, "It was understood not to spray weedkiller or *use the weed eater* by the bushes so I'm not sure how else we could cut the grass there." I remember telling him no chemicals near the bushes but I don't remember ever saying don't use the weed eater. (in fact, that would have seemed the logical way to trim the grass directly under the bushes to me.)

There were other things that contributed to my stopping service with his company but it just brought up the question: what is the best way to effectively communicate my wishes or instructions? Are people just so busy or distracted now-a-days they don't hear 1/2 of what you say or fill in the blanks from what they thought they heard? Must everything be put in writing? Looking forward to hearing what has worked for you....
Click to expand...
people don't listen anymore. they hear you jabbering but they don't listen to what you say. they're too busy worrying about themselves and their own crap. if you're that specific i'd put it in writing.
 
i don't want to get a PO box but if the mailman doesn't stop leaving my medications on the porch i'm gonna hafta to do something. they don't see my note telling them not to leave it. they're too busy jabbering on their cell phones. it's starting to make me angry.
 
Landscape businesses here are complaining that they can’t get decent employees. Our subdivision has a contract with good, hard working people. They pay their staff well.

Not that the poor pay is the fault of the person hiring them, we just get the fall out.
 
Well, wonder of the world......the tree people showed up this evening just as I was making supper.

They had a crew of 10 and enough equipment to raze a forest. Because of the delays, they did some extra stuff without charging extra, worked quickly, didn't damage anything (I was nervous at times, though, but they were in total control at all times) and had everything done in 1 1/2 hours! They cleaned up all the debris.....my yard has never looked better...LOL.

OK, hurricanes - BRING IT ON!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top