The time a homeowner called me out for not removing enough branches and I changed my whole approach

This guy in Denver came out and pointed at a big cottonwood I was thinning and said I wasn't taking enough off the top, just letting weak limbs stay. At first I argued my usual 25% rule, but he showed me how leaving more clearance actually let the tree handle wind better and I switched to 30% removal on tall trees. Has anyone else had a client call them out on something that actually made you rethink your method?

2 comments

2 Comments

river_rivera451d ago

Man that's a humbling moment right there when a client teaches you something. It's good you were open to it though, some guys would have just dug in.

paul_mason121d ago

Haha yeah well I guess when you've been doing this long enough you learn that being stubborn just makes you look dumb in the end. I've got a pretty thick skull too, believe me, I've had plenty of those moments where my first instinct is to argue back and defend my position. But honestly, that client was just right and I was wrong, and I realized halfway through my argument that I was just making myself look worse by doubling down. It's funny how sometimes the people we're supposed to be helping end up teaching us the most. So yeah, I'll take the humble pie over the pride any day now, even if it does taste a little bitter going down.