This I Believe

I believe in completing a task correctly the first time and every time. Getting things done right the first time, to me, means that I will have more time to enjoy what I have done. If you don’t do something right the first time you do it, it will be more time consuming later because you will keeping on having to go back to it. I would rather be able to see and use what I have built rather than watch it sit and collect dust because I don’t know how to fix what I screwed up. Although it may be a lengthy process to complete it right the first time, I personally will feel better in the end knowing that it is done.

My father was the one who taught me to always do things right the first time. He would always tell me while I was growing up, and now too, “Jim, if you go through life doing things half-assed, you’ll make yourself look like an idiot.” He would also tell me not to start something if you haven’t thought it through enough. If you think things through, they’ll get done right and the rest of the time is yours to enjoy. And in my house and around my yard, there is always a project to do. If I don’t get what needs to be done correctly the first time, it will set back both my father and myself.

My dad is an auto mechanic. If something doesn’t work as expected the first time, he might just lose a customer. Since it has been my dad’s business for the past twelve years, it means something to him and the rest of our family. He has established trust with most of his customers over the years, so if a small mistake happens, it’s not as big of a deal if he was their new mechanic. But if something happens, it will cause a headache to all that are around him. He wants to get things done right the first time, so he can work on the next car that pulls in.

As probably everybody knows, I am a die hard Ford Nut and I am obsessed with the appearance of my truck. But what most people don’t know is that I actually have an old 1987 GMC pickup too. This truck is just one big piece of rusty metal that surprisingly still runs. The way this relates to my belief in doing things right the first time is that I have had this truck for over a year now, and it still is not finished. My dad and I are slow at finishing one of our own projects, because so have so many other things to do. The reason the truck isn’t completed yet, is because it needs to be perfect. We don’t want to put the truck on the road just to have it blow up by the time it makes it home. We have probably bought just about every part under the sun for this truck, it still isn’t just right. It is finishing this truck right the first time that is keeping me from getting a little mud on it.

Completing a project right the first time gives me a sense of pride and accomplishment. I don’t want to spend every waking moment fixing what I did wrong. There just is not that much time in one day. Maybe one day, probably when I’m about thirty, my truck will be done just the way I want it. But until then, I will still try to make it as close to perfect as I can get it. I believe in doings things right the first time every time, no matter how long it takes.