Time or Quality Experience

I ignore it all the time lol :wink: Just thought it would be an interesting topic.

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No view to be had. I just do what I do, I dont try explaining why my way is better than others with how many years ive been cleaning windows. Not that you do either .

Luke you are very good at what you do. There will always be somebody that will try to bring you down. That is just jealousy. Keep your head up!
Looking forward to meeting you at the convention.

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I’ve been brushed off, looked down, and bad mouthed to customers by many former competitors over my 9+ years… Did I mention most of them are former competitors now…?

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I got to ask if this is in regards in any way to the post I responded to you today in Topic “residential construction clean” when I responded to your post that I was doing work for that builder for 16 years?

If so what that meant was I am very familiar with my long history with that Builder and protections he requires of subcontractors, painters, medina, etc… to protect glass from excessive foreign debris on surfaces. This helps us know what tools can safely use on his jobs.

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I agree, Luke, and I’ve seen that sort of attitude in many aspects of life. Heck, even being an adult! Just because someone is old doesn’t necessarily mean they are wise. There are many childish people with adult ages.

To mention as a conversation point that you’ve done something for x amount of years, fine. But to use your “years” to prove you’re right or better is childish. Great, you could have just been doing it foolishly for 20 years.

Nevertheless, there is something to be said for experience. On this forum it’s everyone’s years of experience that are saving me many headaches!

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No , actually saw another “super duper experienced” guy mocking another newer guy for the way he cleaned windows.

Man y’all get butt hurt way too easy.

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Lol this guy

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Lol

Our customers is a good measure of how good we are. I am not good enough yet to rip thru a store front in ten minutes but it still looks very good for our clients and there is always something new to learn. An old coworker used to say if your not messing up (that was censored) on something than you’re not learning anything. I seem to learn something new everyday :slight_smile:

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Doesn’t matter how much experience you have or how good a person believes to be, there’s always somebody better.

If a person has an open mind they will continue to learn.

If you’re not learning something new each day your surrounding yourself around the wrong people or just doing something wrong.

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I agree with you 100%. I know I am just an average window cleaner. I am always looking to get better.

Didn’t know they said “y’all” in RI. You must be from Cawwww-ventry.:wink:

I would reverse the question on you and ask you to consider it from the guy who has been cleaning windows for 20 + years. I don’t know how long you have been cleaning windows but if you have been doing something for 20 years chances are you’ve been doing something right or you would have stopped doing what your doing years ago. Lets assume you have an average desire to learn and do your job right and grow your business. You have most likely (unless your just a bum who is bitter towards life and just don’t care to learn anything) learned a lot through trial and error and have developed a pretty good skill level at what you do, you’ve probably ran across, worked along side, or had other experienced window cleaners work for you along the way and have picked up a variety of skills and approaches. That doesn’t even include the likely hood that when you started out you may have worked for someone else who had cleaned windows for 20 years.

Now put that into today’s context with the addition of the internet just think of the knowledge that has been available for the last 15 years to add to your experience. Let’s not forget the business knowledge you probably learned from friends, aquaintances, books etc.

Now let’s take all that and let’s put you in a discussion on an internet forum or Facebook group and you have other guys on there who have been doing it say 5 years and are trying to tell you what they think they know. Chances are, if you have paid any amount of antention over the last 20 years, that you have heard it or seen it several times over. Would it be easy to respond to with, “I’ve been doing this for over 20 years”? Probably. Not saying it’s an effective response. I’m just saying there are times when it gets annoying to here guys who think they are presenting some profound bit of knowledge when you have heard it several times over and experienced it.

That said I’m not saying your point is not valid. There is a time when that comment is not necessary and doesn’t serve a purpose. There is also a lot of time where it is valid. If a Guy has been doing something for 20 years we should give him the benefit of the doubt, out of respect, that he has paid at least average attention over those years and expect that he has acumulated quite a bit of exerience and knowledge unless he shows otherwise. To not do so risks looking foolish as a guy who has only been doing it 5 years is telling another guy how to do it who has been doing it 20 years. When you’ve been doing it for 5 and someone who has been doing it for 20 years tells you your wrong it’s wise to pay attention. I’m not saying he is automatically right. I’m saying who’s opinion holds more weight?

I’m not trying to give the veteran a pass. Guys who have been doing it for 20+ years can still learn something from newbies. Everyone has a perspective to offer and should be given an ear to some degree. That said if someone who has a lot of experience tells you your wrong and your idea of a on work etc. you would be wise to at least reconsider your idea.

I started attending a new church about a year ago. Since I have young kids I started helping in the children’s church a few Sundays a month. I have no desire to be a children’s pastor but I do have a desire to be involved in adult ministry on a full time basis and have gone to Bible College and have served on a part time basis and some full time staff basis for over 20 years now. I’m not one to present my qualifications at all. I rarely even tell others of my experince in ministry (not saying it’s even something to boast about).

They hired a new Children’s pastor who is a young 29 years old. I could care less about his age. He started meeting with those helping in children’s church on a regular basis. When I would meet with him one on one he would go over what he wanted to do in the service, which is fine. He would share principles about leadership. Ok. It wasn’t what he was doing but more his approach and lack of discernment of the people he was talking to that was a bit off putting. He would talk to you as though he knew it all and you knew nothing. It was a bit humorous to me. The leadership principles he would share with me he would tell me he read them in a book and he would present them to me as though he was telling me something so amazing that I had never heard before, like he was teaching me something. It was quite humourous to me because what he was sharing from a book principles that I had experienced in real life. I could have told him the same principle only I had experienced it and practiced it in real life. It’s like a guy who reads a book about China trying to tell a guy about China who lived there for 20 years.

There were quite a few other very exerienced and mature members who were helping in kids church who stopped helping because of the guys approach. For me I just keep my mouth shut and say OK. Spending time with my kids is more important than proving anything to this guy. I just let him “teach me” and call me “buddy” and enjoy watching my kids grow up.

The point is guys who have been in your industry for over 20 yeas deserve some respect. I don’t say that because I fall into that category. I say that because it would be foolish not to give them that respect until you see some reason why they don’t deserve that respect. I’ve been cleaning all indows for 20 years and the guy who taught me had been doing it for 30 years. I have worked along side all kinds of indiw cleaners with all different experiences. I have always tried to share my knowledge and gkeam the same from them. Even with my experience I give any guy respect who has been doing it for 20+ years. If he has something to say I’m going to weigh it heavily and value the input. I wouldn’t give the 5 year guys the same weight. Doesn’t mean I won’t listen. It just means I probably won’t weigh it as heavily. Unless of course it’s something about which he has a lot of experience. Like say if a guy ran a successful carpet cleaning business for 20 years and sold it and now he just started in windows. I’m going to listen to him about marketing ec. and give it some weight. To not do so would be foolish on my part.

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Sorry for the lengthy post.

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Spent some time down south. That stuck. At least I still say car instead of caaa

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I’ve seen guys that I say to myself. How the hell did anyone hire this guy for the past thirty years or three days? They did but he looks like a total bum. Lol. Torn and dirty jacket, the whole nine. Both new and old guys.

But who the hell am I to judge? Yeah it pisses me off but in reality all I need to worry myself with is yours truely…

Let’s try not to judge people so much if we can help it guys. Judge not, lest thy be judged.

We all do dumb stuff anyway. All of us…

Most of us here seem to be pretty solid window cleaners so what does it matter. Let’s have some fun and talk business and funny stuff… lol

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No it was a good read. I’ve found particularly in window cleaning most guys use that phrase to try and shut down or belittle new guys or even somebody say that’s been at it half the amount of time. I’m not saying that I don’t respect them , I’m saying that it is a invalid arguing point in my mind. I’m not saying that they would have nothing to offer. But based off the fact alone that you have been doing this for x amount of years is worthless. Just because you have worked on something for a long time does not mean you’re efficient at it.

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Beauty is in the eye of the beholder

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