Surviving The Holidays When Your Project Isn't Finished!

 

Surviving The Holidays When Your Project Isn't Finished!

Everybody knows what its like when you hear those famous words from your contractor when he says to you, “we’ll be done before Christmas!” Secretly, you’re totally relieved to hear those magical words from your awesome contractor. But deep down inside, you’re still wondering if he really can get you project done in time, because lets face it, “what if it really isn’t finished in time for the holidays?

Well I’m here to tell you that first and foremost, it’s going to be okay. It may not be completely, 100% okay with you, but truth be told, all will really be okay. Read below to find out what to do when your project has fallen behind schedule and reality sets in and you won’t be able to host your family and friends this holiday season as you planned.

Over the course of the last 1-2 years, our industry has really fallen behind with manufacturing, supply chain issues, loss of skilled labor force, increased prices and a decrease in the availability of raw goods. Well it’s no wonder that our industry has really suffered for it, and our projects have too. Timelines have been thrown way off by all of these delays and bottleneck issues, and instead of prices going down, they’ve done the exact opposite and have increased 3-4 times what they were pre-Covid. So its no wonder that your project may have fallen behind the construction schedule. Here are some tips for what you can do if you find yourself in this exact situation.

  1. Stay Calm: Its true what they say, that calmness goes a lot further than total panic. Make sure, to communicate, communicate communicate with everyone on your construction team. Its better to over communicate than to wonder if your construction team got the message.

  2. Request a Project Walk-Thru on your next site visit so that you can get all the latest information about where the project is at. This will help to eliminate any doubts or fears about the status of your project timeframe and will help you to know what you can do to facilitate anything necessary to expedite the process and timeline.

  3. Ask For All Updates On Your Finishes, Furnishings and Materials: Ask your Designer or Contractor for an update on all materials that have yet to be delivered to the job site or your receiver. When you know what is delayed or currently on a carrier, you’re able to know if that item is truly necessary before your holiday gathering or celebration. Getting all the information upfront is vital to a successful project. Your contractor or designer should be communicating to you weekly if not daily about the status of your product. So make sure you get all those updates!

  4. Is it really necessary: Ask yourself if what may be undelivered or unfinished is truly necessary for you to host your family and friends. Maybe it’s an upstairs bathroom that hasn’t been painted or wallpapered yet? Or maybe that bedroom chandelier hasn’t been hung, or the living room crown molding at the top of your entertainment center hasn’t been installed or applied or the part to your bathroom steam shower hasn’t arrived yet. A lot of the time, we envision a perfect home for our holiday gatherings. But what we don’t realize is that a lot of time, our family and friends are more than understanding about your project and any delays and will most likely be more than accommodating and helpful if your project isn’t quite finished yet.

  5. Make sure you have a backup plan ready to go for your entertaining needs. This could be an event split- hosted by another family member, or friend and maybe you can bring some of the main dishes, while your family member hosts the event at his/her house. Or another idea is to host at your local community center or even at a community holiday event. Be creative and ready to pivot if necessary. This will help make your holiday plans though slightly different than originally planned, easier for you and everyone else.

    Hopefully I’ve helped relieve some stress, provide some helpful tips to get through the holidays if your project isn’t finished. Remember to not worry during this time, that just getting together with your family and friends is what counts the most during this time of year. This time next year, you’ll be ready to gang-busters with all your holiday planning.

Cheers and Happy Holidays!!

XOXO,

Gina

 
Justin Page Wood