“The greatest lesson in life is to know that even fools are right sometimes.” — Winston Churchill

“The greatest lesson in life is to know that even fools are right sometimes.” — Winston Churchill

It is so often debated what percentage of Party Wall Appointments and processes are based on professional knowledge and how much is people management. In fact this intrigued me sufficiently enough to tally a few jobs and similarly ask some of my professional comrades to undertake the same exercise. I am sure it will not astonish you at all to learn that the time spent on managing owners and surveyors was equal to or greater than time spent on analysis the details, drawings, reports and awards!! Interestingly however I added a twist, if you add on the time spent debating with another surveyor over a point either one of you has dug your heels into the ground over, then how much time, in reality is actually spent on dealing with the physical details vs the nitty gritty. Well, this isn’t claimed to be scientific but the pie chart below may cause pause for thought:-

So before I entice you into debating which section reflects which proposition of time I want you to consider for a moment the title of this blog. So who are the fools? In my experience even the surveyors that hold little clout when it comes to backing up their claims and often fees, sometimes drop a pin in the ocean of what is worthy of digestion and consideration. Perhaps a clause in their award is really well versed and is cut and paste into your own journal for later use. Perhaps an adjoining owner, who has no empathy for wanting to enable their neighbours to do anything, may in passing mention something that really changes the game. The fact that some years back they had their own house underpinned making excavation notices redundant, or the fact that they had planning refused. A building owner who would rather not have to speak to their neighbours and leave it to ‘the professionals’ and ending up appointing a ‘red flag’ company likely to cost them way above the norm and then finding out from their neighbour that should they simply have had a discussion, they would have happily consent to the Line of Junction notice. OR you, the other surveyor, wasting time and expense in dealing with such matters instead of simply, robotically applying the act?

I think the answer is clear, we can all meet and become fools. We can all be drawn into tiresome debates with no real gain for anyone. But equally we must remain human, allowing connection and time to debate allows our own development to grow and become worthy perhaps of Winston’s words. For however foolish we have been in the past, learning from our mistakes and more willingly, from the mistakes of others puts us in a stature worthy of our appointing owners. Being balanced and able to oversee what is necessary and what is not, what should be charged for and what should simply be put down to experience is what allows us to grow as an industry as well as professionally. Knowing not to write someone off due to a bad experience or review and to listen with the intent of fully understanding but also knowing where to draw the line is priceless. It is a skill hard to learn and easy to loose in the day to day running of things. If we spend just a few moments regaining clarity over what is necessary and allowed each chain of communication to pass through the following gates before being applied we would be worthy indeed of our fees, and praise, but moreover worthy of this status.

Ask yourself;
Does it contribute? Does it matter? Does it affect the end result?

Considering these points before entering into lengthy debates can save time, expense and frustration along with allowing ourselves to really gain from each experiences and regales of the nature of the people involved with the dispute. A few moments reflection can save hours of exhausted correspondence and further allow us to become better at managing the people that create the industry in which we work.

So we return to the chart.

It would appear, generally that a significant part of our time is spent in dealing with the appointing owners. Whilst this is hardly surprising, ensuring you have the correct people skills to manage these appointments, your time will inevitably become better spent. Therefore, whilst a little off the topic of The Party Wall Etc Act 1996, I would strongly advise that whilst keeping up to date on case studies and legalities, proportionately similar time should also be spent on ensuring our, sometimes rusty, communication skills. For I feel that it is a worthy investment.  And so, with being to stranger to having been the fool myself, I wonder if, I can become a fool with intent? Should this blog remind us all to be a little more conscience of our interactions with one another and appointing owners then perhaps we can all draw the best from one another and park anything that does not value us, our businesses, or our appointing owners and be more Winston about the whole process? Perhaps…