Mine is more expensive.

I recently met up with a young couple who wanted to renovate a relatively big house they had bought, and like all the young couples I have met since I started working in the company, they don't have a very generous budget.



The amount they shared with me isn't unachievablely low and when they shared their renovation requirements with me, I can tell that they were only opting for the necessary items.  I have spoken to clueless customers who have no idea exactly just how far their dollar can stretch before, so I know this couple doesn't share that type of delusions.


That being said, the one thing that really stuck with me during the first consultation with them was the requirement the husband had...

"The budget cannot exceed $60k."

... $60k sounds like a huge amount for renovation works, and it is, but the unit they wanted to renovate is an Executive Apartment, it is by no means small, and even though the requirements they shared with me were basic, the basics don't come cheap for them for an apartment that size. He was very adamant about it, so I took note of that budget but also informed him that based on the size of his house, my quote will more than likely exceed his initial budget. He kept joking that he no longer had anymore money, and kept reiterating that the renovation mustn't exceed $60k, and honestly at that point, the whole thing just felt like a waste of time.




It's the same as a customer walking into a Chanel store to get a Chanel item, but then only have the budget to get afford a Louis Vuitton.
(I did my research and Chanel apparently cost more, so there is that analogy)



Seeing how they were really friendly during our consultation and despite knowing that they will most likely not be coming back to me again for a second consultation, I decided to calculate a quotation for them out of goodwill*.



*I know that Interior Design firms all offer a free "Non-Obligatory Quotations" , but just because it's a free service doesn't necessarily mean we are obligated to prepare one for the clients, there isn't any contract anywhere that states that. If the meeting has been a clear waste of our time, then why should we bother spending more time preparing a quotation the clients will probably spend less than a minute looking through before deleting it from their emails. That being said, most of the time, if I don't actually prepare a quote for the client, it's most likely because they were exhibiting cunt like behavior during the consultation session.



Needless to say, the final amount exceeded their initial budget by $15k. and when I saw that amount, the husband's "cannot exceed $60k" just kept replying in my head, so I didn't bother to double check my quote for errors and just send it straight to the wife via email, thinking I was never ever going to hear from them again.




About 2 days later, surprise of the century, the wife actually emails back to me, requesting for a second appointment, I was very surprised and agreed to it, but unfortunately, the meeting ended up being another waste of time.



It was a pleasant consultation session, but the whole meeting was essentially just them calling me out for my expensive quotations, the main phrases I remember were...

"Your quote is by far the highest one we have gotten."

"The other ID offered us more carpentry, but their prices are still lower than yours."

"Your quote is almost 10k more expensive than the other firms we have visited."

... they were not being confrontational about it at all, but it was just a little mind boggling to me. If the other Interior Design Firms are offering you a better price than me, then why did you even bother scheduling a second meeting with me in the first place ? I honestly do not get the logic behind it, you could have spend the weekend elsewhere, meeting with the cheaper Interior Designer to fine tune the quotation, but instead, you decided to drop by my showroom and call me out for charging you higher than the other Interior Designers. 

If the first meeting I had with them felt like a waste of time, well, this second meeting just felt completely redundant and if there is a third meeting, time will probably collapse upon itself from the sheer redundancy of it. They were a nice couple though.


----



Recently, the company is planning a company trip for all the employees and I am not really keen to attend the trip because I have to pay $300 for it.


You'd think that a company trip would be paid for by the company, but because I did not manage to hit my sales quota, the company isn't going to be paying for my ticket. The trip sounds like it is compulsory and that just doesn't sit right with me because that's the company essentially forcing me to shell $300 out of my already meager income to go for a trip I have no interest in going.



I also do not know how much longer I have with the company, am seriously contemplating to leave the company very soon to look for a different career, just have to quickly finish up my remaining projects and that option will finally open up for me.

Getting my panties in a bunch.

Didn't really have a proper lunch this afternoon, so I decided I would drive over to Burger King at the nearest Community Center to get a quick bite.



There is this new item on the menu that I wanted to try as well called a Malty Float, so I ordered it and realized it was just Iced Milo with Soft Serve, I was expecting some sort of rich chocolate drink with soft serve, so it was a little disappointing.



As I was on my way back, I reach a little zebra crossing area, and I could see 2 cyclist cycling closer towards the crossing and then stopped right in front, there was a bus right in front of me at that point, and it was blocking the crossing, so right after the bus drove off, I inched forward a little and stopped right before the crossing, in an attempt to allow the 2 cyclist to cross the road.



That second that I waited for them to cross felt like forever and then one of the cyclist looks at me, brows furrowed , flicks his wrist and mouths at me to go, as if me offering to let him cross the zebra crossing has somehow offended him.



Here's a tip, if you do not want to cross the zebra crossing, then don't stop right infront of the zebra crossing and confuse drivers who are actually using the fucking road.



This really isn't a huge deal actually, it just really pissed off because of the way he was signaling for me to go, I mean at least have some fucking common sense, you are the one who is waiting in front of a zebra crossing, drivers are automatically going to assume you want to cross, for fuck sake, even a kid is going to assume you are gonna want to cross it, so if you do not want to cross the zebra crossing, then, oh, I don't know, wait a few meters behind the fucking zebra crossing so you don't give drivers mixed signals and make them stop their cars for you!




Moron.

UnEVENTful

My Company had a renovation event over the weekend and I was present for the first half of the day, my second half was dedicated to my other client who wasted a lot of people's time last night.



But since I have already blogged about the latter, I will blog about the former.




So for my company event, my boss had this idea to giveaway door gifts to customers who came to the event, and it's not small useless items like a calendar or a notepad, my boss decided the free gift would be appliances like hairdryers, ovens and even an induction cooker, this promotion naturally drew in a lot of customers and that's where the problem lies because half of these customers weren't really there for renovation purposes, they were just there for the free door gift, and I had the unfortunate privilege to serve two such disgusting individual yesterday.





From the get go, I could already tell they were there purely for the free door gift, it was so obvious.



The first guy had a floor-plan, so I started with him first. When I asked him what he wanted to do with his home, he went...

"Maybe you can share with me what you think I can do to it, propose some ideas to me."

... so I ran through the space with him and found out that the space is already furnished, the necessary carpentry are already in, there was nothing I could do unless it was additional carpentry that he requires, so I asked him if he wanted to redo his existing carpentry instead, and he goes...

"Well, the cabinets are all actually still in good condition, so maybe not."

... you don't want to touch your existing carpentry and you also have no idea what additional carpentry you want added into the space, fucking obvious this guy is a scam, so I decided to fuck with him a little and ask him to share with me how his house layout is like because I got a little suspicious that the floor-plan probably wasn't even his.




I told him to share with me how his current master bedroom layout was like and needless to say, the layout he shared with me just didn't work. He told me he had a walk-in wardrobe in the room, and in that room, he also had a King Size Bed, when I ask him to roughly draw out the layout for me, the bloody bed couldn't even fit into the space after the walk-in wardrobe space was marked out. I then told him straight that the bed doesn't fit if the layout is like this, and he just replies with...

"Yeah, I have a little space constraint"

....space constraint my fucking ass, your bed can't even fit in the room, what the fuck? Is the bed clipping into the wardrobe space like a badly drawn 3D drawing?  I then decided to just go over his requirements quickly, because I know he is not going to actually do a proper renovation, might as well get it over and done with. We discuss possible carpentry he can install, I did a quick quote for him on the spot and his fake consultation was over.



And then his friend was also with him and it is clear that the 2 of them are in this event together for the free gift, so after I was done with one free loader/ liar, I decided to move on to the next.




Dude doesn't even have a fucking floorplan, when I told him I couldn't do much without any floorplan, he just ask me to give him a rough estimate on how much it would cost to renovate a 2 bedroom condo. His consultation doesn't even last 5 minutes and after that, I ushered them out, I was contemplating on just sending them on their way without giving them the door gift, but I stupidly told my marketing manager to let the guy with the floorplan draw a gift and he did, but I also made sure to let his friend know that he wasn't eligible because he didn't have a floorplan.



Your friend put in the effort by bringing a floorplan, you didn't, so he gets to reap the benefits of being a cheapskate scammer and you just wasted your time.




Right after they leave, another pair of customer walks in and this time, they were honestly at the event for to ask about the renovation for their home, unfortunately,  I really didn't like the wife because she was being a bitch the entire time.



When they first came in, the husband was carrying the baby, so the wife was the one I spoke to, she passes me her floorplan and she just had this disgruntled look on her face the entire time, she did not smile at all during the consultation and when I suggested some ideas to her, she will question them, I knew from that moment that I am never going to agree to a second appointment with them even if they requested for it because I don't want to be dealing with a fucking cunt for the next 2 to 4 months.




After a while, the wife was over it, so she decided to let the husband talk to me instead, she takes the baby from her husband and starts rocking her baby in her arms as her husband took her seat and started talking to me. The husband was so much more easier to speak to, he was very friendly and sometimes when I see husbands being such friendly individuals, it just boggles my mind how such a nice guy can end up with such a miserable and unpleasant creature for a wife.



But acts of miracle aside, the husband came prepared and he started sharing with me reference photos of interior shots he had found online, the whole time the wife was behind him just looking down and when we were done discussing the living room area, we moved on to the bedroom.



The husband requested to build a TV Console in the room, but because the space was too tight to fit a TV console, I advised him against him and when I asked them if they had actually seen the unit themselves and understand how small the space really is, the wife impatiently exclaimed...

No! We haven't gotten the key yet!"

....I wanted to swat her baby off her arms, throw my fucking chair at her face and shout back at her to watch her fucking tone.




She soon disappears into the company showroom and starts exploring the place with her baby while I discussed further with the husband and I honestly felt bad for the husband because he was sharing his ideas so intently with me, but I already know that I won't be scheduling any meet ups with him anymore, I honestly do not even want to bother doing up a quotation for him, just because his wife is such an unbearable creature.




When we were done, he signals to his wife that he was done and they soon made their way out, I got my marketing manager to give them a door gift as well because the husband was a nice guy, and as they were leaving the showroom, the husband thanks me for my time but the wife doesn't even bother, she thanks my marketing manager for the gift but doesn't even give me a second glance.




Fucking Bitch.



So I actually got no potential customers from the event yesterday because they were all garbage and because I couldn't stay long enough to get more due to the shit I had to settle with my other client during the latter part of the day.

Request Redundance

I have been under quite a bit of stress lately from a project that was suppose to be completed by now, but due to some minor issues that occurred, my clients have decided that it is not ready and requested for the items to be replaced.


What started out as a minor issue got blown completely out of proportion because my supplier send inept individuals to do the touch up works, not once, but twice.


The first time was meant to be the last time they did any rectification works for me, it was meant to fix issues but all the guy did was make things worst by using strong chemicals to clean a powder coated frame, which cause minor discoloration that was made painfully obvious by the lights from the track lights my clients have installed on their ceiling



Initially my client wasn't too concern about the issue, they were upset about it but I quickly assured them that I would get someone down again to fix the problem for them, so I did and the guy comes down the very next day.





This bloody idiot took a look at the problem, didn't know what to do and actually verbalize it in front of my clients, telling us....

"I have no idea what is wrong, so there is nothing I can do, I will check with my boss on the next course of action."

... so when I asked him what caused the issue, thinking he would at least have some sort of rough idea the possible problem, he goes...

"I'm not so sure."

.... packs his bag and leaves, it was so fucking stupid. Upon hearing that, my clients got very worried and that is when the problem actually started because they became extremely paranoid and kept thinking that the discoloration was a naturally occurring issue, that the material itself is the problem when the truth is some moron before that had used a strong cleaning agent to clean and accidentally rubbed off the powder coating.






On my end, I tried to explain to them what I think happened but they were not convinced, so I told them to give my supplier a chance to explain themselves, to give the supplier a time to meet up with them and explain to them professionally what is happening and what can be done to fix the issue.



There were a lot of problems trying to set up a meeting due to several meeting with other clients on my end, but I eventually found the time and my client finally got the chance to actually speak to knowledgeable workers, they did a great job explaining the problem, assuring my client that the issue is minor, because it really is a minor one, and then did a really good job doing the touch up for the affected areas.




I spend a total of 3 hours there, inhaling the fumes from the spray paint and when it was almost completed, the frames actually looked almost as good as new, the discolorations were gone and my client looked satisfied with the result, so I left the house, thinking I can finally sleep peacefully and wake up feeling rested now that the problem has been resolved, because this shit has been stressing me a lot lately.




Well, my joy was short lived because a few hours later, I get a text from my client telling me that he was now unsatisfied with how the frames feel after the spray painting.





REALLY? And for the entire time I thought the only issue was the way it looks, now you are telling me you are not satisfied because it does not feel smooth.




Now, my problem with this issue they have is that the "feel issue" is even more minor that the initial discoloration issue, the earlier issue was obvious under the track light and I understand why they aren't happy with it because it looks a little dirty from certain angles, but telling me the touch and feel of it is unsatisfactory, now what the actual fuck?





If the newly sprayed coat feels super rough like sandpaper and it is visibly patchy, than of course I will get the suppliers to change it because that means something is really wrong, but that's not the case here, right now, the issue they have is that the frame is not as smooth as last time, it is still smooth, just not as smooth. It's such a stupid reason to have the entire set replaced because it is not as smooth.





What a fucking headache, now, even the supplier is annoyed by me because I am constantly ruining their day by sharing with them my clients' ridiculous and unnecessary request to replace the entire set.




The whole thing just feels so pointless. My supplier was willing to change a portion of the affected area, but when I told him the owner requested for the entire piece to be replaced, he actually flipped out at me and told me that was impossible. I honestly feel really bad for my supplier because this owner's request is just ridiculous, it's so fucking stupid, you complaint that the frame doesn't look good, so we fixed it for you, and now suddenly you are telling me you can't accept it because it doesn't feel as smooth after the fix? Wasted everyone's fucking time, telling the supplier and me on site...

"Yeah it looks good, I can accept this fix."

... and then tell me via text an hour later that it is not satisfactory, fuck off! My supplier who doesn't work on a weekend actually made the effort to drop by the site personally on a Saturday evening just to explain the problem to the client, stayed there for a whole 3 hours before leaving at 8pm, that really is going the extra mile, and then my client just tells me the repair is unacceptable. I was so irritated I almost didn't want to reply to his message after that.




Bloody fucking stupid.

Lil' Bitch

I haven't been blogging for a while because lately, there hasn't really been much to blog about, work was fine the past few months, didn't really have much to complaint about, the Chinese New Year break was a long time coming, it really gave me some time to not have to think about work on a daily basis and I also got my paycheck after a year of working in the company.



It is a hefty amount to receive at one go, a small 5 figure, but if I were to divide it equally into 12 months, then I am receiving the same amount the army was giving me 5 to 6 years ago, which is not good.




But I am blogging again today because it's my birthday and also more importantly, I got shit I need to get off my chest.




So recently, this customer I blogged about in the last post has slowly started to show his mean streak. Even before he sign the contract to engage me as his Interior Designer, I could already sense a meanness in him, that pettiness he exhibits when the security guard for the condo doesn't let him through, the names he would give to a certain contractor because her service is slightly more expensive than he thought and the complaints he would share in the group chat about how his neighbor is a dick. I was hoping to not be the subject of his petty behavior, but my hopes were dashed because he has finally transformed into that little bitch and is slowly but surely starting to become a real piece of shit.




Like I have written in my previous post. I was never interested in his renovation, everything that happened happen because they misconstrued my intentions during my email exchanges with them. Well, now I am bearing the grunt of that mistake.



Not too long ago, I spotted a small issue with their toilet and decided to bring it up to their (him and his wife) attention, everything was fine and it really isn't a problem caused by my side, it was just an issue that limited my client's toilet bowl selection.



To give a bit of context, when one actually purchases a toilet bowl for their toilet, there are certain measurements that they need to take note of before actually making a purchase, measurements that the toilet bowl supplier will ask you before they sell you the toilet bowl.



Now, when I found out about this issue, my client did not call me up prior to ask me about those measurements, so I was under the assumption that they haven't bought the toilet bowl yet. I then brought this issue up in the group chat, thinking they will respond with...

"Noted! Thanks for the information!"

....or maybe ask me why their options have been limited and then end the conversation with some sort of gratitude for learning something new from me like...

"Oh, didn't know that! Thanks for letting us know!"

 ... so imagine my surprise when the husband actually responded with...

"Remind me why the Interior Designer isn't doing this?"

... Doing WHAT exactly ? 



WHAT THE FUCK AM NOT DOING?



Buying the toilet bowl for you?
Do you want me to buy your furniture for you as well?
While I am at it, why not let me decide what TV you should get.
I'm sure your wife doesn't want to do the washing of the clothes by hand, so why don't I also go to the departmental store and get you guys a washing machine on your behalf.
Assuming you guys are up to date with the latest technology, let me help you sign up for a Netflix account as well.
Your kids are starting Primary School soon? Hey, let me go apply a position for them as well!
You need to take a shit, hey, let me stick my finger up your butt to encourage your bowels to release the supper you had last night.
As an Interior Designer, I guess it is also my job to help you wipe you butt, since you are taking a shit in your house, and anything that is even remotely related to your house is part of my job scope, RIGHT?



Gosh, what a horrible Interior Designer I am for not treating you like a brain dead individual who can't do shit himself!

It was a little ridiculous because all my other clients have never expected me to buy a toilet bowl for them on their behalf. Why, because I got no fucking clue if you would prefer a rectangular bowl or a circular one, do you want me to sit on the toilet bowl and than write a 1000 word review about each one in the Whatsapp group chat so you can slowly read through, imagine yourself on the bowl and then decide decades years later after you have moved in to the house and made it a habit to shit in a bag because there isn't a toilet bowl for you to use because you are too fucking lazy to actually go to a sanitary shop to test out the bowls for yourself!




NO! 



So I explained to him why I don't do that as calmly as I could, and I ended the message with a smiley face to make it appear like I am not actually pissed off at his stupid comment.



He then responds with...

"Already bought the toilet bowl, will be delivered by the end of the month."

.... so I assumed wrong, they did went to buy a toilet bowl without the proper measurement, curious as to why they would do something so stupid, I ask them why the shopkeeper didn't ask them for the measurements, to which the husband simply responded with....

"They did ask us for the measurement."

....and? They did ask you for the measurement, you didn't have the measurement, and? Continue your story about how you came to that stupid fucking decision of buying a toilet bowl without having the necessary measurements.




I was getting really annoyed by the stupidity at this point, so I just ask them for the toilet bowl model and started doing my own research to check if the toilet bowl can fit. No prize for guessing that it wasn't a right fit because no one is going to give you a million dollar for guessing that ice is cold.



I then ask them to ask for an exchange because it is not going to fit, so they did and luckily for them, the shopkeeper was willing to do the exchange, so far I haven't got an update from them about the exchange, really wish I didn't have to care to be honest, but if shit goes wrong, blame will be on me, so I have to give a shit.



Problem solved, right?



Nope, well technically that problem was solved, but then today, another one arise. I wouldn't really call it a problem, but an additional renovation work that I had to bring to their attention and it has to do with the repair of the parquet floor.




I have already brought this issue up to the husband before and I even went as far to tell him that I will bear 60% of the cost for the repair because it was a oversight on my part and he was agreeable to it, he knew the price and so when my worker started work on the parquet this morning, I decided to update him and his wife of the repair work in progress, to which the husband actually replied with...

"Upseller. What is the cost?"

... really? "Upseller". I have a name, use it, if you don't want to use it, then just start your message with the question, no fucking need for you to be so unnecessarily rude to me. Don't want me to be calling you Asshat in the group chat would you, Asshat?





So after a bit of exchange back on forth about the progress of the work and what not, with me being extremely professional about it may I add, he suddenly goes...

"Just let me know how much the extra works will cost, I don't want you to absorb too much and lower your profit margin."

... which confused the fuck out of me. So are you not happy with my work or are you worried that I am not going to make any profit from your project? Because you have managed to piss me off like no customer ever did and you are suddenly concern that I might not earn much? What the fuck is with this inconsistency, suffering from DID or something?




Has Asshat gone to sleep and someone else from the many personalities in your mind re-emerge to back track and repair all the damages Asshat did?




It's like a sudden 180 degree change from fucking asshole to concern client, so I have no idea if calling me "Upseller" was meant as a dig at me or as a joke, but that name calling really sullied my impression of him.

Just Ramblings

My Company's Annual Dinner happened last night and I have to say, it wasn't as enjoyable as I had anticipated.




The first time I went for my Company's Annual Dinner, I had only joined the company for 3 days, so I didn't know anyone there and the whole experience was just extremely uncomfortable, but since then, a year has passed and I have grown closer to some of my colleagues as well as some of the contractors that were also invited to the event, so I knew for sure the experience now won't be as bad as it was then.




I reach the venue relatively early and was having small talk with those who were there as well, not really having any insightful or deep conversation, but at least I was chatting with people and not awkwardly standing at one corner trying to avoid everyone.




As the minutes went by, more and more people started coming in and that was when things got worse for me. I am not someone who flourishes in crowded gatherings, in fact, when thrown in such surroundings, I will automatically become reclusive and avoid the area where the crowd is gathering, which resulted in me sitting at a corner of the gathering/mingling space and looking through my Social Media, hoping that the Dining Banquet Hall will quickly open and finally allow us to enter.





So for the seating arrangements, there are a total of 16 tables, 3 of which are VIP tables reserved for the staff of my company and the other 13 are just regular tables for the contractors and suppliers. When I was told to sign in, I have to admit, it was honestly kinda shit to notice that due to the lack of seating available in the 3 VIP table, I was relegated to the regular table with all the other suppliers,  but not just me, 4 other colleagues were also bumped down to the Non-VIP area, one being a new guy I did not speak to the entire night because I am awkward like that.





Now, if everyone in the VIP table had a high sales track record or some sort of seniority in the company, then fine, I will admit my sales figure are horrendous and if the seating arrangements are based on how much one has contributed to the company, I really have nothing to say, but the fact that one girl who had only joined the company less than 2 weeks ago, who hasn't racked in any sales, was actually seated in the VIP section over the 5 of us in the non-VIP section, 4 of whom are more senior and have higher sales record than her, it just doesn't feel like a justified arrangement.




I mean I get why she is seated there, she is friends with one of my senior colleague, so the person-in-charge of the seating probably wanted to get friends to sit with one another and I am sure they have no ill will when they decided to bump me down to non-VIP, but the sodium crystal is real, I am a little salty about it.



But otherwise, the dinner itself was alright, I was really bored at one point to be honest because even though I was seated with a colleague I have no problem starting a conversation with, the giant speakers that were situated right behind where I was seating just killed any mood I had for conversation, to be competing with the emcee,who, on top of having a mic, is still projecting her voice, I just can't deal with the potential...

"Huh?"

"What?"  

....from my colleague, to the eventual...


"Mmm hmmm" followed by a patronizing smile, which is when the person just gives up trying to catch what you are saying and just assume everything you are saying is a rhetorical question or some kind of funny comment.




I went thinking things will be different, was actually looking forward to it a little, got disappointed when I realize I'm just not someone who will be able to enjoy such event, stayed for the lucky draw, won the small prize, then had no choice but to stay until everything was over and was probably the very first person in my company to leave the event.





Honestly am not sure if I will still be working in the company till the next Annual Dinner, I mean I really enjoy my work schedule now, or at least I don't hate it, still can't stand it when customers start messaging me at night or really at anytime of the day to complaint about their renovation progress, but I have grown fond of some of my colleagues' company and most importantly, I enjoy not having to report to work at a specific time every weekday, that is the best part about this job, but with that flexibility comes a severe lack of income.



I have completed a few projects and only recently decided to have the finance accountant tabulate the bills and calculate the total commission, so I will be expecting to get a total commission of hopefully $8,700 very soon, if I have not miscalculated that is, would be great to get it before Chinese New Year, add that to the red packets I will be receiving, hopefully my savings account will revert back to the amount I had a year ago.




A little over a year and I only made a total of $10,000. This is almost like I am back in the army and drawing an allowance, it's not even really considered a pay. That being said, I am looking forward to the month of June, hopefully I will be able to draw another $10,000 in commission then, should all my projects run smoothly without any hiccup, running smoothly would be a huge overstatement though, so far most of my projects have brought me nothing but anxiety and it seems to get worse.


Every time I think...

"The next project can't be as difficult as this one."

... BAM! I get a never heard before, not really a problem, bullshit issue I have to deal with.



It is very disconcerting to have worked for a year and see the numbers in my savings account slowly dwindle away, had I stayed and worked for my Dad, I'm sure my savings would have probably doubled by now, but then I wouldn't have gotten any legit work experience, so there is a give and take in this situation I suppose.




Would love to look for a new job, but I really do not enjoy discussing it with anyone at this point because I am still legit confuse as to what I would actually do should I decide to no longer dabble in the line of sales. I mean I for sure am not going to be in this line forever, this career is just not right for me, evident from my lack of a paycheck, it's just a matter of when I will leave.



Every time my Mum ask me...

"Has the company paid you yet"

... it's sort of like a wake up call for me, that this is a job, that I am suppose to be earning an income, but for some reason, 1 year into the job and I am still not making a single cent, aside from that $1000 I did earn from a small project.



I really am waiting for all my projects to end before I really start looking for a new job, complete all my projects, receive my pay, relax in the company for another month whilst looking for a new career and once I have found the right one, finally say my goodbyes and leave the company and this line for good.



It's hard to really quit thought, I was honestly not expecting anymore new projects for myself after the last one I got in December, but then I was suddenly inform by another customer that they wanted to engage me for their renovation. It honestly baffles me when a client decides they want me to run their project for them, I mean I appreciate the fact that trust me enough to run the project for them, but I just really don't get why they would pick me as a designer, it's odd, especially for this particular client because I really didn't put in any extra effort in their initial proposal or actively contacted them regularly to beg them to hire me, the reason why they finally decided to engage me was actually due to a misinterpretation they had of me in an email I had replied to them, answering a few questions they had for me regarding the renovation.




According to the husband, he had actually shortlisted me and another designer from another company, and he send both emails to that designer and myself. Since I didn't really want to run the project for them, I actually did not bother responding, thinking that that should be enough of a hint for them, but then the wife started texting me for, asking me if the email was ready, so I responded and answered their questions in the email without really bothering to let them know if what they had requested was feasible or not.



Well, apparently, instead of giving direct answers back to my client, the other designer replied with even more questions of his own, I didn't ask my clients exactly what the other designer asked, but it was enough to turn them off , so I am not sure if  that designer was asking legit questions about the feasibility of their requirements, or if he or she was just plain annoyed and wanted nothing to do with my clients.



At the end of the day, I would say no one really won.


1. I got a project I didn't want.

2. My client got a designer who wasn't interested in their project.

3. If the other designer had asked those questions out of legitimate concern and my client completely overlooked it, I would honestly feel really sorry for my clients.



But if I were to be optimistic, then....


1. I got a new project!


2. They got an inexperienced designer, that means there's a chance for the quotation to be miscalculated, leading them to actually save more money. And as someone who doesn't really like to charge my customer for any additional renovation works, they will potentially be saving even more money, which once again proves why I am not cut out for this line of work.


3. The other designer legitimately didn't want to run the project and he got what he wished for.



Well, the new project is slated to start next week, already applied for the permits and everything, but my clients are really bad at replying to my messages so I am not sure exactly how smooth this renovation is going to go.

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Getting a customer who has a very tight budget can sometimes be a little challenging to deal with and a lot of times, I get that a new homeowner won't really know how much the renovation will cost, so they just throw in an amount they are most comfortable with as their budget and then just try their luck and hope that the budget will be feasible, but as someone who has seen a dozen different homeowners and know how much it actually cost, I can't help but get a little annoyed.





Well, I met one such customer yesterday and so the first thing I asked him was how he actually got to that minuscule figure for his budget, $20,000 to renovate a 5 Room Flat, $20,000 that's also meant to include doing tiles for the entire living room and 3 bedroom, that's very very low, he laughs at my question and then tells me...

"I understand the budget is a little low, so I am willing to go up to $35,000, but really nothing higher than that."

... when a customer tells me he doesn't want to go higher than a certain amount, I just find it really fascinating that they would tell me that, because how high the renovation figure will go really depends on how extensive your renovation requirements are, I am not someone who will charge an exuberant amount for the renovation works, all my projects have dangerously low profit margins, so telling me you want to keep within a budget won't equate to me charging you lower because I already charge lower than most of my colleagues.



But anyways, the consultation starts and having told him that his budget is very tight, I was under the assumption that he will hold back on his requirements and just do the bare minimum, so when we were discussing about the layout of the kitchen,which is the first area I always ask my clients about, I was pleasantly surprised when he told me...

"I want to do kitchen cabinets on just one side, we will leave the other side untouched."

....I thought, well, this guy is being realistic and really going for just the bare minimum, maybe his budget will work, definitely not the $20,000, but $35,000 feels really possible.





And then everything went to shit when he goes...

"I plan to hack the wall on the other side of the kitchen, just a half height hack and do a folding glass door, and then introduce a counter top for dining."

... that was when I realize he is anything but realistic, and his unrealistic ideas doesn't stop there because after the kitchen is done, he proceeds to the living area and starts requesting for a butt load of carpentry that only customers with a generous budget will opt for, and it was honestly just completely mindblowing hearing him go on and on about how he wants to do this and do that, it is insane just how far he thinks his $35,000 can stretch.




When the living room was done, and I know for a fact that his requirements have already gone WAYYYY over budget, he brings me to his master bedroom and tells me...

"I want to do a walk in wardrobe area, but I want it to be completely enclosed in glass, so it will be like a separate room."

...I don't know why, but I was just getting really annoyed after a while because it feels like he is wasting my time requesting for items he won't be able to afford, like AT ALL. So I just told him ...

"Honestly speaking, the items you have requested has already exceeded your original budget."

... like are you serious about the glass walk-in wardrobe right now?  Have some sense, please, and he goes...

"Yeah, but I would like to know how much all this items will cost, so later I can see which items I want to remove and move on from there."

... Well, I have calculated his final figure and not surprisingly, it has exceeded his budget by at least 2 folds.




Needless to say, seeing how he has such unrealistic standards, scheduling a second appointment with him just feels really pointless, in the end, he is just going to takeaway EVERYTHING and then stick to the bare necessities, I really don't see myself running his project for him and if budget is really his main concern, than it is safe to say that I won't be one of the designers that he will shortlist.


I charge a low price, but my contractors are not cheap, so in the end, even though I don't earn much, my quote is still not the lowest in the market, which is a pity, but it also eliminates really cheap homeowners, which I guess is a good thing.



When he told me he would be willing to pay more if the design is good, I can just tell it's complete bullshit, when he tells me he is willing to pay more, I don't think he knows how much "more" actually refers to.



Design and a Tight Budget are not requirements that go together, if you want design, you better be prepared to pay more, otherwise, settle for the basic if budget is really an issue for you.



When I see the requirements as...

"Design Centric, Cost Effective."

.... it automatically gets labeled as a waste of time in my books. I will still meet them if they request for it, but I won't take them seriously, like this client, I couldn't even be bothered to scale the floorplan, just created a quote base on estimated measurements because there's just no point putting in so much effort for a client with so little potential.