The Random Question of the Day Thread...

[Fizzie]

yeah, and they're worried about the kids "losing a year"

We always said the same thing multiple times every year.

"It's absolutely vital for their education that your child attends school on every day of the entire 12 years"!

Less sport days, swimming carnivals, excursions, poetry reading days, free dress days with half the day doing fundraisiing things, day trips, week / fortnight long trips ... 

[Kangaron]

Less sport days, swimming carnivals, excursions, poetry reading days, free dress days with half the day doing fundraisiing things, day trips, week / fortnight long trips ... 

Also Religious Instruction, picking up litter in the schoolyard, many days where teacher was sick so activities with as fill in or teachers aid.
Our eldest went to primary school until grade 2. We then home schooled her and the other 2 as they came along.
They all went to private girls school for the higher education.
All have now completed uni and are doing very well.

[Fizzie]

Been having a look but can't find it ...

Who was it that made a firepit up out of aluminium mesh t'other week, & how did it go

[westvic]

Been having a look but can't find it ...

Who was it that made a firepit up out of aluminium mesh t'other week, & how did it go

this the one?? scroll down post 5284

http://www.myswag.org/index.php?topic=28369.5275

[Fizzie]

this the one??

That's it!

Thanks, Vic

Needed to go another page further back

[Hairs]

This isn't a rant or a wtf.
I just don't get some people.
Tuesday before Easter I was asked to quote to replace 45 meters of timber fascia board.They had contacted me through my work Facebook page.
Wanting to keep it local they said. So I quote, don't hear anything, this morning I messaged them asking were they happy with the quote.
Reply, "The job is done, we don't need you"
They have just moved into our small village,
Why wouldn't you follow up, just to say we went with someone else?

[GeoffA]

......
Why wouldn't you follow up, just to say we went with someone else?

A common courtesy, I would have thought.....but not so common, perhaps??

[Hairs]

A common courtesy, I would have thought.....but not so common, perhaps??

Hey Geoff, you would think?
Many other tradies I know, cause most of us talk to each other, know each other, we do get along.
Most have mentioned the increase in requests for quotes. Most of us supply from the same suppliers, so our buying costs are the same, and delivery time is the same.
We all do the same quality of work, it isn't a cartel or collusion.
 Is it just people are bored, and want to go fishing on price?
Tyre kickers, is that the right term?

You & Kay take care mate.

[xcvator]

This isn't a rant or a wtf.
I just don't get some people.
Tuesday before Easter I was asked to quote to replace 45 meters of timber fascia board.They had contacted me through my work Facebook page.
Wanting to keep it local they said. So I quote, don't hear anything, this morning I messaged them asking were they happy with the quote.
Reply, "The job is done, we don't need you"
They have just moved into our small village,
Why wouldn't you follow up, just to say we went with someone else?

Used to happen to me all the time, even though 90% of my work was from referals or repeat work

[Hairs]

Used to happen to me all the time, even though 90% of my work was from referals or repeat work

Hi mate,
For it to stop, what did you do differently ?
Talkin a couple of mates in the trade, seems one way to reduce the chance of it, is to start charging for quoting.
If the quote is successful, the cost of the quote is deducted  from the price given.
Some say I'm mad for not chargung for quotes atm.
 

[Jeepers Creepers]

Never charged to quote a job.
Never followed up after a quote.
Sometimes, I refused to quote, just ell 'em its $60 an hour for me on the tools, $30 for the wife to do the clean up behind me with Shit like hedges etc.
Would work on a 2 out of 3 success rate for quotes.
Once the quote was done, i would ask on the spot, do you want to book that in.
Most times, 2 out 3, it was a goer.

If I never heard from them again, I never gave a Shit.

Better things to do than chase folks to wipe their bum.

They're all adults, they need/want me, they'll call me.

No sense making the working week harder than you have to.

[Rodt]

This isn't a rant or a wtf.
I just don't get some people.
Tuesday before Easter I was asked to quote to replace 45 meters of timber fascia board.They had contacted me through my work Facebook page.
Wanting to keep it local they said. So I quote, don't hear anything, this morning I messaged them asking were they happy with the quote.
Reply, "The job is done, we don't need you"
They have just moved into our small village,
Why wouldn't you follow up, just to say we went with someone else?

While not exactly the same a lot of this seems to happen through Facebook (or maybe it is just a keyboard thing). The wife has often put things for sale on the local pages and people contact her etc and they agree on a price and time to collect and then you never hear from or see them again. I know I see ads sometimes and ask a question about the item and then the same silence.

I reckon it is a deeper issue (without trying to sound like an amateur psychologist) where that due to the lack of human interaction (face-to-face or even phone conversation) it is like that usual closure doesn't need to occur. Could also say it is a generational thing but that is not the case from my experience 

[xcvator]

Hi mate,
For it to stop, what did you do differently ?
Talkin a couple of mates in the trade, seems one way to reduce the chance of it, is to start charging for quoting.
If the quote is successful, the cost of the quote is deducted  from the price given.
Some say I'm mad for not chargung for quotes atm.
 

I just treated it as a numbers game, the more quotes I did the more jobs I got. Talk to the people as a successfull business man, not a "tradie", people like to deal with successfull people, look and sound that way.
Quoting without getting the job is just another cost of doing business
 

[Pottsy]

I have had very few occasions over the years to ask for quotes on jobs, but I have never rung the losing bidder but if they have asked or followed up I always explained my decision in a polite factual way.
As part of my working life we quoted, tendered for many large purchases, (20k - 500k) always followed up, just part of doing business.

[Beachman]

Hey Geoff, you would think?
Many other tradies I know, cause most of us talk to each other, know each other, we do get along.
Most have mentioned the increase in requests for quotes. Most of us supply from the same suppliers, so our buying costs are the same, and delivery time is the same.
We all do the same quality of work, it isn't a cartel or collusion.
 Is it just people are bored, and want to go fishing on price?
Tyre kickers, is that the right term?

I have done 2 major renovations to our current house and our last house. Yes price has to come into it, but for me personally it’s more about my interaction/connection with the tradesman and on multiple occasions went for a higher quote. I also understand the more you screw a tradesperson on price, the more corners they will cut with the job.

Three things I hated when getting quotes

1.   Young tradesman turning up in a HSV or tricked out 79 series ute. Minute they left I told the Wife it’s unlikely they will get the job as they need to include car repayments in the quote (95% of the time I was right as their quotes were out of the ballpark)
2.   Companies sending out a salesperson instead of the tradesmen. This adds another wage/commission which needs to be taken into account on the quote, plus the salespeople tell you anything can be done. It’s not until after you have signed the contract and the tradie comes out you find out that can’t be done. 
3.    Tradesmen not listening to what I what. I don’t mind them explaining why it can’t be done or giving options, but the guarantee way to lose a job is not listening to what I am saying just because it’s too hard. Just say it can be done, but it will cost X amount more and let me decide.

[Bird]

I have done 2 major renovations to our current house and our last house. Yes price has to come into it, but for me personally it’s more about my interaction/connection with the tradesman and on multiple occasions went for a higher quote. I also understand the more you screw a tradesperson on price, the more corners they will cut with the job.

Three things I hated when getting quotes

1.   Young tradesman turning up in a HSV or tricked out 79 series ute. Minute they left I told the Wife it’s unlikely they will get the job as they need to include car repayments in the quote (95% of the time I was right as their quotes were out of the ballpark)
2.   Companies sending out a salesperson instead of the tradesmen. This adds another wage/commission which needs to be taken into account on the quote, plus the salespeople tell you anything can be done. It’s not until after you have signed the contract and the tradie comes out you find out that can’t be done. 
3.    Tradesmen not listening to what I what. I don’t mind them explaining why it can’t be done or giving options, but the guarantee way to lose a job is not listening to what I am saying just because it’s too hard. Just say it can be done, but it will cost X amount more and let me decide.

You have tradies actually turn up do you offer beer or hookers?

[Hairs]

Hey guys,
I will get around to repling to you who have replied to my post, when I get a chance,
It's a weird world at the moment.
I do appreciate you advice, suggestions and comments.

Thank you

[dogbox]

We always said the same thing multiple times every year.

"It's absolutely vital for their education that your child attends school on every day of the entire 12 years"!

Less sport days, swimming carnivals, excursions, poetry reading days, free dress days with half the day doing fundraisiing things, day trips, week / fortnight long trips ... 

student free days as well

[xcvator]

3.    Tradesmen not listening to what I what. I don’t mind them explaining why it can’t be done or giving options, but the guarantee way to lose a job is not listening to what I am saying just because it’s too hard. Just say it can be done, but it will cost X amount more and let me decide.

It can be quite staggering , the number of jobs I quoted/did that the client said I've had 3 blokes here and they all said it couldn't be done  I'd say well where's the part that can't be done, they'd reply "you're looking at it" my reply WTF ? where ?"Next question without any price given "when can you start and how long will it take ?
My motto was always plan for the worst and hope for the best, take the jobs nobody else wants, give the client the choice of a fixed price or hourly rate and explain everything that might/could go wrong. Nearly every time they would take the hourly rate and the final account would be within $150-00 of the fixed price. win/win

[MB TD42]

It can be quite staggering , the number of jobs I quoted/did that the client said I've had 3 blokes here and they all said it couldn't be done  I'd say well where's the part that can't be done, they'd reply "you're looking at it" my reply WTF ? where ?"Next question without any price given "when can you start and how long will it take ?
My motto was always plan for the worst and hope for the best, take the jobs nobody else wants, give the client the choice of a fixed price or hourly rate and explain everything that might/could go wrong. Nearly every time they would take the hourly rate and the final account would be within $150-00 of the fixed price. win/win

Yeah mate...I can fix almost anything for the right price...I will even sub out licenced work that need certification...no money in doing nothing...

Sent from my SM-G960F using Tapatalk

[Hairs]

What has become of Australian Television?
The mind numbing crap that confronts me every bloody day. Cooking shows, House reno's, reruns of crap, 24 hour news cycle and sport is all about the NRL being dicks.

What happened to comedies, taking the piss out of ourselves, having a laugh at ourselves?
Have people become that butt hurt, that they are offended even if it isn't about them?
Why has eveything become so PC?

[alnjan]

What has become of Australian Television?
The mind numbing crap that confronts me every bloody day. Cooking shows, House reno's, reruns of crap, 24 hour news cycle and sport is all about the NRL being dicks.

What happened to comedies, taking the piss out of ourselves, having a laugh at ourselves?
Have people become that butt hurt, that they are offended even if it isn't about them?
Why has eveything become so PC?

Agree.  Couple of days ago looking for something half way worth watching on the free to air tv and there it was. 

That movie for COVID 19


https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1598778/

[Hairs]

Agree.  Couple of days ago looking for something half way worth watching on the free to air tv and there it was. 

That movie for COVID 19


https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1598778/

Apperantly pay is not that much different

And some wonder why social media & forums have become the new pub.

[Fizzie]

What has become of Australian Television?

What happened to comedies, taking the piss out of ourselves, having a laugh at ourselves?
Have people become that butt hurt, that they are offended even if it isn't about them?
Why has eveything become so PC?

You have to wonder, don't you

& yes, I think it is, partially at least, that the anti-everything's will whinge & scream at anything, even if they have never watched it, because they perceive it to be "offensive".

Could you even begin to imagine Paul Hogan, Dave Allen, Benny Hill & a host of other similar light-hearted shows being made today

So they just copy those shows that have been "proven" to be popular o'seas, so we just get never-ending repeats of teh same dribble

That movie for COVID 19

The other one was on a few weeks ago

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0114069/

[Bird]

What has become of Australian Television?
Why has eveything become so PC?

You've just noticed this, I am disappointed.. your 30 years too late.