Comments on: Save Money By Doing It Yourself http://www.choosingvoluntarysimplicity.com/save-money-by-doing-it-yourself/ About finding balance in your life, connecting with who you are, and creating a lifestyle where you wake up each morning eagerly anticipating the day ahead. Thu, 19 Nov 2009 22:15:03 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.6 hourly 1 By: DJ http://www.choosingvoluntarysimplicity.com/save-money-by-doing-it-yourself/comment-page-1/#comment-19322 DJ Thu, 19 Nov 2009 16:16:23 +0000 http://www.choosingvoluntarysimplicity.com/our-simple-life-doing-it-ourselves/#comment-19322 Shirley, I love this post...and I feel the same way. I've got a long list of accomplishments that I've done myself, yet I still have a huge fear when things don't go right. I'm wondering if you have that. For instance. I was working on my car, and my husband said he would never do such a thing because he's too afraid of messing things up. But armed with Google ready to go on the laptop, a service manual, and a lot of confidence, I headed out to the garage. After changing out the fuel filter, the car started fine. I felt like a million bucks. It would have cost three times as much to have the stealership do this simple task. The next morning, my car wouldn't start. My heart sank. I was honestly so depressed. I slunk into the house and cried. I felt like a total failure. It took a couple of days to get over my feelings of failure before I could even look at the issue. Turns out, there is a pump in the tank that was going bad...and by changing out the filter, I introduced air into the lines. Even though I filled the filter with fuel and primed the filter to reduce the air, it was still enough to cause the weak pump to not be able to push the air out. I know it's not my fault, that this is a common issue with this type of car. But my knee-jerk reaction was just utter despair. We, too are looking at hardwoods. I'll price them out, then stop and panic. What if I can't do this? I'm not sure when the confidence comes and stays. I'm afraid I'll get half-way through, screw up something major and have to call in the professionals to help. Today I'm at home waiting for the repair man to come fix the oven because I'm way too scared to even TRY to fix it. I research things to death before hand...but the strangest stuff comes up. Like I was changing the transmission fluid filter on my minivan and broke two bolts off (because the directions supplied by autozone had incorrect torque settings for the torque wrench :(). I felt so incompetent. I can't even tell you. The desire to be self-sufficient is still there, I just really have trouble with the confidence part...particularly when I hit a speedbump. DJ Shirley,
I love this post…and I feel the same way. I’ve got a long list of accomplishments that I’ve done myself, yet I still have a huge fear when things don’t go right. I’m wondering if you have that. For instance. I was working on my car, and my husband said he would never do such a thing because he’s too afraid of messing things up. But armed with Google ready to go on the laptop, a service manual, and a lot of confidence, I headed out to the garage. After changing out the fuel filter, the car started fine. I felt like a million bucks. It would have cost three times as much to have the stealership do this simple task. The next morning, my car wouldn’t start. My heart sank. I was honestly so depressed. I slunk into the house and cried. I felt like a total failure. It took a couple of days to get over my feelings of failure before I could even look at the issue. Turns out, there is a pump in the tank that was going bad…and by changing out the filter, I introduced air into the lines. Even though I filled the filter with fuel and primed the filter to reduce the air, it was still enough to cause the weak pump to not be able to push the air out. I know it’s not my fault, that this is a common issue with this type of car. But my knee-jerk reaction was just utter despair.
We, too are looking at hardwoods. I’ll price them out, then stop and panic. What if I can’t do this?
I’m not sure when the confidence comes and stays. I’m afraid I’ll get half-way through, screw up something major and have to call in the professionals to help.
Today I’m at home waiting for the repair man to come fix the oven because I’m way too scared to even TRY to fix it.
I research things to death before hand…but the strangest stuff comes up. Like I was changing the transmission fluid filter on my minivan and broke two bolts off (because the directions supplied by autozone had incorrect torque settings for the torque wrench :(). I felt so incompetent. I can’t even tell you.
The desire to be self-sufficient is still there, I just really have trouble with the confidence part…particularly when I hit a speedbump.
DJ

]]> By: TI http://www.choosingvoluntarysimplicity.com/save-money-by-doing-it-yourself/comment-page-1/#comment-13835 TI Mon, 10 Aug 2009 18:44:01 +0000 http://www.choosingvoluntarysimplicity.com/our-simple-life-doing-it-ourselves/#comment-13835 Through experience, we've learned that you can actually finish your own projects much more quickly than hiring a contractor. They typically need to move onto either getting new business ('selling a job') or starting a new project to keep new clients happy, even though yours has not been completed. How irritating! Also, you know the quality of the work you do... Through experience, we’ve learned that you can actually finish your own projects much more quickly than hiring a contractor. They typically need to move onto either getting new business (’selling a job’) or starting a new project to keep new clients happy, even though yours has not been completed. How irritating! Also, you know the quality of the work you do…

]]> By: Shirley http://www.choosingvoluntarysimplicity.com/save-money-by-doing-it-yourself/comment-page-1/#comment-5127 Shirley Tue, 27 Jan 2009 00:36:28 +0000 http://www.choosingvoluntarysimplicity.com/our-simple-life-doing-it-ourselves/#comment-5127 Exactly... and said very well! I have been asked the same questions, and I agree completely with your viewpoint. Learning new skills and being self-sufficient is about more than saving money, but unfortunately not everyone understands the pleasure and satisfaction that some of us get from doing these jobs ourselves. It's always nice to "meet" people who do. Exactly… and said very well! I have been asked the same questions, and I agree completely with your viewpoint. Learning new skills and being self-sufficient is about more than saving money, but unfortunately not everyone understands the pleasure and satisfaction that some of us get from doing these jobs ourselves. It’s always nice to “meet” people who do.

]]> By: JT http://www.choosingvoluntarysimplicity.com/save-money-by-doing-it-yourself/comment-page-1/#comment-5122 JT Mon, 26 Jan 2009 23:55:35 +0000 http://www.choosingvoluntarysimplicity.com/our-simple-life-doing-it-ourselves/#comment-5122 I have been a long time do-it-yourselfer on everything from car maintenance to home repair. Yet I have at times struggled with a common refrain from some of my somewhat materialistic professional friends, what is your time worth? I.E. Could your time be better spent making a higher wage at your professional job, then paying a lower wage person to do these repairs for you. Wouldn't it be easier to focus on your professional job that is second nature to you and accrue enough money to take care of all your needs? My response is, I like learning a new skill and becoming self-sufficient more than I do my professional work most of the time. I think this highlights a bigger problem, that those in our materialistic society have been moving steadily in a direction of over-specialization that requires an interdependence just to complete the most basic of tasks. I have been a long time do-it-yourselfer on everything from car maintenance to home repair. Yet I have at times struggled with a common refrain from some of my somewhat materialistic professional friends, what is your time worth?

I.E. Could your time be better spent making a higher wage at your professional job, then paying a lower wage person to do these repairs for you. Wouldn’t it be easier to focus on your professional job that is second nature to you and accrue enough money to take care of all your needs?

My response is, I like learning a new skill and becoming self-sufficient more than I do my professional work most of the time.

I think this highlights a bigger problem, that those in our materialistic society have been moving steadily in a direction of over-specialization that requires an interdependence just to complete the most basic of tasks.

]]> By: Frugal Babe http://www.choosingvoluntarysimplicity.com/save-money-by-doing-it-yourself/comment-page-1/#comment-1222 Frugal Babe Fri, 20 Jun 2008 05:59:56 +0000 http://www.choosingvoluntarysimplicity.com/our-simple-life-doing-it-ourselves/#comment-1222 We're in the middle of painting our house, which is costing us about $250 for supplies. A friend who recently paid people to paint her house - which is only a little bigger than ours - spent $5000. I'm very glad we're do-it-yourselfers! We’re in the middle of painting our house, which is costing us about $250 for supplies. A friend who recently paid people to paint her house – which is only a little bigger than ours – spent $5000. I’m very glad we’re do-it-yourselfers!

]]> By: Hadias http://www.choosingvoluntarysimplicity.com/save-money-by-doing-it-yourself/comment-page-1/#comment-956 Hadias Wed, 30 Apr 2008 16:23:43 +0000 http://www.choosingvoluntarysimplicity.com/our-simple-life-doing-it-ourselves/#comment-956 I can't tell you how gratifying it is for me to learn to do something new that ends up saving us money. Some of the projects that I have tackled have not turned out as I wanted but the process was still a learning experience. This is a great post. I can’t tell you how gratifying it is for me to learn to do something new that ends up saving us money.

Some of the projects that I have tackled have not turned out as I wanted but the process was still a learning experience.

This is a great post.

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