The skills a live-in renovation project have actually taught me

Photo by Roselyn Tirado on Unsplash

The superpowers I learned from living in a full gut renovation during the pandemic…it’s not what you think.

For anyone who’s talked to me for more than 5 minutes in the last couple years, or happened to catch me on a Zoom meeting in those early days talking through the gentle sounds of hammers and drills in the background, you are well aware of the self-inflicted “chaos” of the last 2 ½ years.

Around July of 2020, my husband and I thought to ourselves: “Do you know what would make this locked down, massively uncertain, mask life more fun? Let’s buy a total dump, gut it, and make it our dream home. All while we live there, of course.” With nothing but rose colored glasses and a healthy dose of optimism, we dove in.

To be honest, it’s been a little bit like one of those inverted roller coaster rides: You’re excited and nervous to get started, wonder what in the hell you were thinking while the ride’s underway, but when it’s over, you forget all of that and decide you want to do it all over again.

But, I’m not actually going to regale you with any DIY victories, before and after pictures or try to awe you with my newly found miter saw skills. The most surprising thing I’ve gotten out of this renovation is my ability to manage my time, crush my goals, and thoroughly impress my damn self.

Here are the top 3 learnings that got me through the hardest times of the renovation and have snuck into the rest of my life in a big way:

1. Align your plans with your partner(s) in crime

With so many projects to tackle, my husband and I both dove in head first! He’d show up with knee pads on, hammer in hand, ready to install guest bedroom flooring. And I’d show up with the perfect neutral gray paint, brush and roller at the ready, prepared to…paint over the top of his head? Well…that’s not going to work.

To straighten ourselves back out, we initiated a Sunday evening check-in. We’d outline our house project goals for the week, compare calendars and availability, and schedule our time accordingly. This sometimes came with some healthy arguments about which projects would get our main focus for the week (“More electrical work? Bleck. Let’s pick out bathroom tile!”). The ripple effect of this set planning time is I got really clear on my goals and capacity each week while ensuring measurable progress as a team.

We often think we’re moving in the same direction, whether it’s with family, friends or coworkers, but don’t take a beat to actually communicate what you’re working on and why. Wires get crossed and before you know it, you’re doing double work or being completely inefficient with where you’re spending your effort. Schedule a regular cadence with those you work closely with and talk. Stand-up for what’s most important to you and what you can make time for, but also be willing to listen and hear other ideas. The joint plan will most often lead to the biggest and best results.

2. Break it down

“Great! I just need to install baseboards in the office. Quick little Saturday project.” Thoughts like these crossed my mind often. But these “quick little projects” quickly felt overwhelming and started to look like: measure for and buy baseboards, cut baseboards, install baseboards, fill nail holes, let it dry, sand, refill nail holes, let it dry, caulk, more drying, paint, time to dry again, touch-up paint…etc. You get the picture.

At first I felt overwhelmed like I couldn’t get anything over the finish line and disappointed that I didn’t get my daily dopamine hit of checking something off the to do list. This made every project feel a little daunting. After a few runs this way, I eventually got into the cadence of just breaking it down. I would decide on a “project”, write down all of the steps involved to complete it, then plan for and fit each task on my calendar based on what my week allowed for. My 3 hour Saturday project: measure, buy, cut and install baseboards. Check! Quick 30 minute Sunday project: fill nail holes. Check! 1 hour after work Monday project: sand and paint. Check! Before I knew it, I was checking things off the to-do list left and right, getting my daily dopamine hit, and hey, actually getting this house finished.

So, the next time you have a big proposal at work or finally get around to refinishing your grandma’s old rocking chair:

1. Give your brain about 90 seconds to throw an overwhelmed pity party.
2. Take a deep breath and write out all the steps and pieces you’ll need to do to get from start to finish.
3. One by one, add the task to your calendar based on the time you have each day.
4. Look forward to enjoying all those little wins.

3. Plan “me time” first

It’s been a lot of ups and downs and I definitely don’t quite remember what that feeling of “bored” is like. But I do, genuinely, enjoy all the hard work and feel so accomplished with each piece we complete. I think people are still confused when I’m excited for a weekend full of house projects. But it’s a wildly productive stress reliever for me!

My secret to having no qualms planning for 5 hours on a Saturday demoing that crusty old bathroom…that’s not my main priority for the day. Before I ever added demo day on my calendar, I scheduled a morning workout followed by an hour to journal and sip my coffee. And come 5 PM, I’m signing off for a little self-pampering and Netflix binge. I planned those pieces first.

We all get caught up in the hustle and overwhelm of the ever growing to-do’s. But instead of actually tackling anything, we find ourselves scrolling social media, pacing the house and basically doing anything to avoid what we actually planned for. But we don’t get to actually enjoy any of that procrastinating, because there’s that feeling of guilt gnawing at the back of your brain thinking about everything you didn’t get done. What’s so great about planning “me time” first, is you don’t have to dread the grind because you know there’s a reward on the other side. And you get to truly enjoy whatever your “guilty” pleasure is because your to-dos are done. Take a break. Put your feet up. And enjoy.

(Curious on the renovation journey? Did you actually come here for before and after pictures? Check us out on Instagram where we caught some of the fun.)