Random Thoughts on an Eclectic Selection of Miscellaneous Subjects
Enough is Enough, but More is More
Perfection isn't good enough, but one has got to stop sooner or later. A point of diminishing returns is reached where drastically reduced improvement comes with greatly increased effort and experience. The real trick is to know what is "good'nuff." Naturally, one must first ask "good enough for what?" Good'nuff for guv'ment work is better than good'nuf for using once & tossing. But it's not as good as good'nuff for to sell.
Will the extra two hours you spend on that gate make it worth another hundred bucks to whoever commissioned it? Then go ahead. If not, then don't.
Time is your most precious commodity.
On that thought, consider also how much production time can be saved per unit of planning time. If fifteen minutes of careful thought saves four hours of hard work, then it's a great investment. If that same effort saves only fifteen minutes of hard work, you've still come out ahead.
Just don't spend too much time thinking. Sooner or later some doing needs dooing.
Work -vs- Play
When making things for my own amusement, I am largely free of constraint. I'm not on a schedule (unless making a gift for birthday, wedding, or such). Design aesthetics are 100% up to me. Hobby provides enjoyment.
A commissioned work is work. The customer deserves to be satisfied. They deserve to have their schedule met. If they don't get these things, they'll soon be somebody else's customer!
It is important to determine if the activity in question is undertaken because one enjoys the activity itself, or because one enjoys being paid for the activity! Don't forget to ask what in addition to the activity is needed for payment. Need one travel to shows? Hawk one's wares? Keep paperwork?
I already have a good job that I enjoy. Blacksmithing is a hobby for me.
After retiring, we might just buy a big rig & camper trailer and do the traveling craftsman show. That won't be for-profit, though. That will be in order to write off the rig, camper, and blacksmithing stuff as business expenses! It wont be for income, but for reducing the cost of the hobbies.
You Can't Have Everything; Where Would You Put It?
Rockefeller was once asked "how much money is enough?" His answer was "a little bit more." I believe that the same principle applies to work space and storage space.
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