What Would Norm Do?

Star-Eagle Independent Newspaper MAR 2010

WWND. No not a typo. It means What Would Norm Do? You know Norm, The New Yankee
Workshop guy on PBS? The Master Craftsman with the infinite skill and killer
workshop we all dream of.

I have jested that if Norm needed a piece of wood trim, he would go out behind
the shop and fall a tree that he planted when he was 3 years old. He would then
climb up a mountain and dig out some ore so that he could smelt the iron to
make his own custom planer blades. The trim would be then stained with a finish
that he brewed up in his own lab made from the skin of tropical fruit only found
100 feet up in the air in the canopy of an equatorial rainforest. That is what
Norm would do. And it would all work. The first time.

I have often been in situations where there was an easy way and a hard way to
get a home repair or improvement done. The easy way would work, but be of questionable
long term quality and less than perfect fit or finish. The hard way may appear
to be a lot to-do about nothing, but when complete will be the best end result
possible with no doubt of durability or performance. WWND?

I have seen the work of a skilled craftsman that truly loved the job they were
doing. It wasn’t always the paycheck; it was the end result of what they
were building. Pride. And it showed. On the other side were the workers I have
seen that just drug themselves through the days work not really giving a darn
about what they were doing or the person who would be impacted by their lack
of interest. WWND?

You may find yourself in this situation from time to time and it may benefit
you to ask yourself What Would Norm Do.

I find that the most rewarding shop, garage, or home repair time I have is when
I can make a little more out of something than what it needed, but is what it
really deserved. When I take my time, being extra careful, using the right tools
and materials, the end result is the better for it. And I don’t have to
go back and fix it again later.

People today are fixing rather than replacing. They are becoming more self-sufficient
as they learn to do things that they used to hire out. I think this is a good
thing.

You should be spending more time in the hardware store and less time in the
gym. Want a work out? Go replace a rotten fence post. Want to feel like you
accomplished something today? Install new cabinet knobs. Looking for pride in
a job well done? Paint a room. Taking on what some call work and viewing it
as an opportunity to excel and leave things better than you found them is a
better motivator and esteem builder than just about anything out there. Want
to take it to the next level? Involve your kids in the project. Teach them.
And ask them… “What would Norm Do?”

Joe and Vicki Prin own Joe Prin Remodeling LLC, Idaho Registered Contractor
#RCE-23530, and can be contacted at 573-1082 or by email- joe@joeprin.com. Listen
to the HomeFix Radio show hosted by Joe, Saturdays, 8-10 AM on 580 KIDO