“Look what I did!”

In my experience, the least skilled contractors are most likely to point out what they’ve done right. They will take you through a project, identifying all the things that meet spec, and taking special note of details that are “above and beyond” expectations.

By contrast, the most skilled contractors — the professionals — they don’t do this. They masterfully craft details that may never be seen. They consistently apply their expertise to things that will be visible to the customer, as well as areas that are hidden. Their quality is through and through, and they don’t seek out special recognition. They do the job properly — all of it. Most of the time, there aren’t “special details” to point out because all the details are special.