Crafting Excellence: 4 Essential Skills Every Craftsman Should Hone
Outside the skills I need to complete a project, there are many other useful skills a craftsman should know.
You’ll end up learning new skills from every project.
Here are 4 useful skills a craftsman should know.
Drawing
I consider drawing essential to planning any project.
Get your ideas out of your head and onto paper. Sure, you could use CAD, and I’ll usually pivot to CAD later, but a quick and dirty sketch can teach you a lot. I’ve been able to save hundreds of hours and dollars thanks to iterating on my rough sketches.
Project Management
Once you have a project in mind, you need to be able to manage it properly.
A plan is pointless if it’s never acted out. This is about discipline, dedication, and taking meaningful, actionable steps regularly. It takes practice, but it mostly comes down to making a schedule and sticking with it.
Patience
Stop trying to rush to the end of a project.
Whenever I rush, I make a big mistake somewhere, and usually have to start over. With craftsmanship, going slow will speed you up in the long run. Besides, it’s the journey that’s the most enjoyable.
Improvisation
When things go wrong, will you be able to pivot?
Even when I take my time, I’ll still make a mistake here and there. Being able to roll with the punches can turn a “ruined” project into a masterpiece that exceeds your original design. This comes with time and developing your creative intuition.
