Customer insists flooring installer does it their way, gets exactly what they asked for: 'I got paid to remove the work that I just got paid to install so I can get paid to install it again'

Brad Dickson • Managing Editor

Jun 24, 2024 10:00 AM EDT

With so much information accessible at the tips of our fingers, it's easy for anyone to think that they're an expert. Without realizing it, they're missing the context, experience, and knowledge of the framework that's used to properly define the information they think they're an authority in—all things that an actual expert would know and possess.

Of course, when you're delivering a service to clients, they're going to want to do things their way. But, as the customer, it's important to know where the line is, where outlining your requirements ends and deferring to the expert's knowledge and experience begins.

In this case, this "big boss" at the client company, who was probably used to getting his way, insisted that this flooring installer do things the way he wanted them done—despite not knowing how things were normally done at all. He adamantly refused to listen to the installer's attempts at reason, forcing him to call his boss and get approval for things to be done the way that he wanted. Well, the predictable happened, and the results were disastrous, sending the boss, who still refused to accept that they were wrong, into a frenzy.