In my new house, I’ve experienced some difficulty with the latch on my gate. It’s up quite high and it’s been a struggle to open it. I asked my OT her thoughts, and she suggested I speak with my handyman about creating a new system that ensures security whilst also making it more accessible for me.
My loyal handyman, who’s been helping me out for a while now, spoke with me on the phone as I explained what I might need. He is always so willing to come over in a hurry and help me out.
The next day, whilst I was on a meeting, I saw him on the security cameras come over and assess the gate. Without consulting me, he began cutting a huge hole in my gate. As I was on a meeting I couldn’t go and speak with him, but afterwards, I went to assess the situation.
Yes, he had solved the problem – the latch was far more accessible for me now. But it looked absolutely shocking.
What shocked me the most though is that he would go ahead with this work without consulting me first. He was making decisions about my property without my go ahead. I called him later to ask him why he did this and he was incredibly apologetic and agreed to come and reverse the work he’d done. Although, what fixing it entails will mean potentially unsafe nails and screws that might poke out from my gate.
It concerns me that people who are visually impaired are not given the same treatment for aesthetic work that others are. Just because I can’t see as best as other people might, it doesn’t mean that I’m comfortable with a huge, ugly hole in my gate.
This predicament also means that this job is bigger than it should have been. If he’d simply come and had a conversation with me first before doing any work, we could have mutually come together to an agreed solution. But needing to tell him to come back to fix it is another emotional job for me to take on. 
Often, in so many other parts of life as well, a conversation about how you can provide the best care for someone else is all it takes to make a process so much easier for everyone involved. If this handyman had knocked on my door and we’d talked for 3 minutes, it saves us both hours of effort.
So next time you’re offering care, ensure that it’s the right care with a quick check in. It can save everyone so much time and effort.
Also consider whether what you feel is the best outcome is aligned with what the recipient of your service or care is envisaging.
“How can you unlock possibilities?”