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“As long as we don’t burn it down, it’s still fixable.”
That is our DIY home improvement/maintenance motto.
Meaning, we try to learn as much as we can to fix our own broken stuff. Whether it’s an appliance that’s not working, a faucet that needs replacing, or moving a stove vent, we always try to start with a DIY approach.
Because we learned early on that handling many fixes and improvements around the house can be learned if you’re careful, thorough, patient… and have YouTube.
And we learned that as long as we don’t burn it down, it’s still fixable.
In other words, if we try and fail, we can still call in someone else to fix the problem – we just won’t call them first.
This approach has undoubtedly saved us a ton of cash over the years, and has also empowered us as homeowners (and landlords). Owning a rental property isn’t nearly as scary when we understand how our house works, what parts do what, and how to solve new problems.
And we gain a new appreciation for just how much we’re saving when a coworker mentions hiring a plumber to change a faucet – to the tune of $350. Or a friend spends $1000 on new appliance, when perhaps replacing some inane $6 part could have kept the old one running a few more years.
And, remember, the expense category we’re talking about here is that Layer 2 of your savings –irregular bills and unexpected expenses. Those expenses that are always throwing us for a loop and leaking our savings accounts on repeat. Being prepared is part of it, and I talk about that aspect of savings often.
But there’s another side to it too.
Since stuff like this will always happen, minimizing its cost by believing in and developing your own capabilities can be a big influence on just how expensive that “stuff” will be, year in and year out.
Next time something breaks, do a little research before reaching for the phone. Learn about the problem and try to understand the issue. Even if you do hire out the fix, a greater understanding will only make you a more informed customer.
And if you discover that maybe you could do more to solve the problem than you originally thought, well, now you’ve empowered yourself to do more of anything.
When we believe in the obstacle more than in the goal, which will inevitably triumph?
Ryan Holiday in The Obstacle is the Way
There are no big problems, there are just a lot of little problems.
Henry Ford
I hope you enjoyed this edition of Under 2, an email series designed to share quick bites of wisdom to empower your financial journey (while keeping it short). Be sure to sign-up below to get these messages in your inbox.
All for now,
Lindsey