Have you ever tried to tackle a task that you had never before done? Were you afraid to start? If you had instructions, were you glassy-eyed?
This past weekend I decided to pick up a new faucet for the kitchen sink in our office. After all, the old one sprayed water all over every time we used it. We were tired of the mess. How hard could it be to install a new one? For $80 and some change I found a suitable candidate at Menards and on Sunday night went to the office. The space below the sink was dark, much too dark to try to work in the small space. I had a couple of wrenches and screw drivers but not a work light. Problem solved. I’ll pull the sink completely out. There were some odd screw-like things, 12 of them, holding the sink onto the counter. In fact, they are very clever little devices. I turned the water off and unscrewed everything I could find. Then I pushed up on the bottom of the sink and it moved! With the sink completely removed, I could see clearly and simply uninstall the old fixture and put the new one on.
Oops! Better read the instructions. Good. They are short and have pictures. The parts are not numbered and don’t look anything like those in the instruction manual. I’ll take it a step at a time and put a post-it note on each part until they are all identified. So far so good although that thing called a “tool”, what is that for?
The “tool” is a nifty item that helps tighten the bolts on the fixture. No worries about water coming through that joint! Everything fit together except for items D, the pull out hose, and F, the quick connect adapter. The instructions said to push until a “click” is heard. Tug downward to test engagement. If I tugged downward, there was no engagement. If I turned the water on, it spurted out the side of the pull out hose. Yikes! Now what? I was almost done.
Should I call a plumber? That would cost well over $100 and would take time. Should I call a friend who might be in the know? I have no plumber friends! Should I call maintenance in our building? What would they know that I don’t know??
What I did next is exactly what I suggest our clients do. When you have a gap in expertise, call an expert. You don’t need to spend a ton of money, but get just the amount of help you need. I called the 1-800 number for Moen and talked with a wonderful woman. I specifically described the two pieces that were not connecting and gave her the faucet model number. Within seconds she asked if I removed the cap on the pull out hose. I could not see a cap but it was there, wedged into the hose. With a tweezers and a screw driver, I dug it out. We now have engagement! The faucet works perfectly and frankly, I’m proud of what I accomplished.
Sometimes we think we can dig ourselves out of a situation by working harder, reading more, using better tools, hiring another person. These can work but sometimes they don’t. Talencio is skilled at listening for exactly what our client needs, like the Moen woman on the phone. Then we use the nifty tools we’ve developed to quickly identify the unique talent to fill an expertise gap. Often times, this is a consultant or contractor who can work with our client for a week to up to several months. This saves our clients from prematurely hiring a full-time resource and preserves cash. And, it enables our clients to immediately tackle projects and get them done with someone who has the ideal expertise. Like properly connecting the pull out hose with the quick connect adaptor, Talencio can connect you with the right talent to get your project running smoothly and completed. Your sense of accomplishment will be great and you will have met a significant strategic or tactical milestone.
Remember the odd screw-like things I found that fastened the sink to the counter? Talencio has helped our clients with odd/difficult to find talent for interim and direct-hire engagements. Give us a call to learn how. I can be reached at pnorbom@talencio.com or 612.703.4236.
Written by: Paula J. Norbom