Social distancing. I don’t even know if the term existed before this year, but — for good reason — it’s foremost in our minds as a method of staying healthy and slowing the spread of a life-threatening virus that clearly is not going to just fade away.
Today the phrase social in grocery stores; on the subway platform in New York; at ATMs; outside the urgent care facility in your neighborhood; at the pick-up line at Starbucks; and in the elevator of my apartment building in Bellevue.
I even saw the term screened on a beautiful infant’s T-shirt — perhaps as a warning — while she was being wheeled down a city street.
Social distancing is accompanied with the use of face masks to be worn everywhere but in the privacy of your own home or while enjoying a glass of pinot at a pop-up sidewalk café.
I don’t know anyone who enjoys these new life safety habits of humankind. I can’t see if anyone anywhere is smiling at my jokes. The social distancing reminders are often on the ground, causing us to look down rather than interacting with others. When combined, the six-foot distance and the masks frankly make it hard to hear what anyone is saying to me. In short, social distancing is doing just that, making it difficult to communicate at a time when clear life-affirming communication is so vital.
Overcoming social distancing
I need to ask you to help me overcome these new and necessary lifestyle changes.
Several times a day, I receive an introductory email from one of you. In a sentence or two you describe the what where and when of your intended custom homebuilding project…. Followed by a bomb of a question like “Will you please email me and explain how the process works and how much your houses cost?” Your message contains no phone number.
Creating a home for you and your family is a very personal exercise. The home needs to support your lifestyle today and all the changes that we are all dealing with now, but it also should anticipate certain inevitable but other elective changes in your lifestyle a dozen years from now. The path to successfully creating a great home is unique to each client , (family composition and ages; lifestyles’ personal preferences), and so is the cost.
I believe in doing site visits and exploring ways in which we can marry your home to its natural environment …not simply by using Google Earth. I always present, discuss, and refine designs by presenting the many iterations of sketches and preliminary plans to clients in person or in an online meeting rather than simply emailing them without that vital discussion. I am committed to the idea of developing a design that inspires and a price supported by a budget for every house I plan with my clients.
Rather than forcing me to send you a one-size-fits-all answer to your very personal questions, let’s overcome the social distancing with a phone call, an online meeting, or a face to face meeting (with masks). Invite the opportunity to open a dialogue that could well contribute to a joyful result.
Social distancing is a necessary response to a plague that is sweeping the planet. It is not, however, the best method of creating a highly personalized home for you and your loved ones. Please, let’s talk!
Michael Harris
Warmmodern Living
844-Warm-Mod
