Your Construction Companion
In the process of building a custom home, you will make thousands of decisions. Some of those will be high-stakes and expensive, like what kind of flooring to use. Others may require quick decision-making in order to keep the project on track. You will face dilemmas and incomplete information. You may feel anxious and second guess everything. It goes with the territory.
That stress often comes from the element of surprise. One day, you're asked to make a decision about what kind of water heater to use and you might be flummoxed. You know approximately zero about them and have no idea what would be best. The plumber needs to order the equipment ASAP. If there is a delay in ordering, the overall plumbing phase will be delayed. They're waiting on you.
Take the example above and multiply it by 1000 and you'll understand why home construction can be so stressful. So many decisions for homeowners, so little context. It doesn't have to be this way.
The goal of the Navigator Course is to build context for the construction process: what's going to happen, why, and how. With this context, you can anticipate questions, research the options, and make informed decisions when the time comes. Your best weapon in getting through is anticipating decisions and having a plan.
In this way, the Navigator Course is not about constructing a home. It's about planning the construction of a home.
Embedded in almost every section is this message: The success of your project depends on you, the homeowner, knowing what to expect and how to make informed decisions with the help of professionals. That's the goal.
Skills, Hard and Soft
Home construction projects involve more than one kind of skill.
- Hard Skills - Understanding the construction process and being able to gather and analyze information before making decisions. This skill is aided by professionals on your team and this guide.
- Soft Skills - Working with people. Your house will be a team effort and that requires trusting relationships and productive ways to work together. The best teams often have mutual respect, clear and honest communication, and a level head. A bit of empathy goes a long way.
While both skills will be required on your project, I encourage you to pay particular attention to soft skills, as they are easy to overlook and can make or break the entire project. We'll look closely at these skills in a bit.
Course Flow
The sections and chapters are organized according to the flow of most construction projects, from beginning to end. You can think about the guide in two parts:
Part 1: Planning, preparation, and soft skills.
- Getting Started - Develop the mindset and foundations for your project.
- Assembling the Team - Understand who will be on your team and how to work together productively
- Setting the Stage - Learn the reality of money, permits, legal, etc.
- Building Plans - Design your home with an architect
Part 2: The phases of construction.
- Site and Structure - Site preparation, foundation, and framing
- Enclosing the Home - Siding, roof, windows, doors, etc.
- Systems - Electrical, Plumbing, Networking, HVAC, etc.
- Interior - Insulation, drywall, paint, cabinets, millwork
- Finish - Floors, doors, trim, details, moving in
Cheat Sheets
Sometimes it's not convenient to use a website to find lists of questions to ask or things to remember. We created downloadable PDF "Cheat Sheets" that contain bullet points and summaries of the chapter. You'll see them at the top of chapters where available. Try it:
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