02/14/2018
I’m frequently asked what the hardest part of building a house is. People expect that I’ll respond that it’s the electrical or the plumbing (the two tasks that seem to scare people the most), or perhaps attaching the house to the trailer. But really the hardest part is just getting started, and taking that first real step. By real step I’m not referring to the planning phase, while technically that is where you start when building a house, it isn’t a commitment (it’s easy to walk away from an unstarted plan).
It’s human nature after all to resist change and to avoid the unknown. And for most who are building a house, since many have no construction experience, that means a tremendous amount of firsts. Then, beyond the construction, you’ve got the actual living in a house. Something that isn’t exactly common quite yet and thus not ‘normal’ as viewed by society.
Those can be really scary. Some people consider living in a house and then immediately abandon the idea thinking that they just can’t do it (and for some, they are right since it isn’t a fit for everyone). I’ve seen others that have been in the planning phase for 5 years and that have attended 5 workshops who can’t seem to move past the planning stage. That doesn’t count as getting started :).
While building and living in a house can seem insurmountable when looking at everything that goes into it at once, you can do it. Just look around on the internet and see the countless individuals and couples who you wouldn’t think could do it, doing it. The difference is they picked up a hammer and got started.
