When Best is Not Best
You're on a construction site, talking about how to handle some condition. How often have you heard something like...
"Best" comes up a lot in the AEC world and I think it usually leads to anything but the best outcome.
The problem with "best" is it lacks nuance. Nothing can really be best on its own anyway. At?best, "best" can only be best for a certain set of circumstances or conditions.
For example:
With "best", an infinite number of potential approaches, options, or materials are distilled down to two buckets. We're left with "best" and everything else—and by definition everything that's not "best" becomes a second choice, less-than, a compromise. All of the nuance and embedded assumptions get minimized.?
It becomes too easy to miss something important, focusing more on process (materials, systems, details) than solutions (results that actually address the client's problems).
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"Best" draws a line in the sand and invites confrontation and disagreement. Two people simply cannot agree that two different approaches are both best.
What's the best way to flash a window opening? What's the best low-slope roofing system? What's the best way to write a report?
There's no right answer to any of those questions without more information and qualifying statements. These kind of questions deserve more than soundbite answers.
Instead of "best" I think we should aim for "reasonable".
"Reasonable" implies nuance. It implies rationality and logic. It implies a multiplicity of options. A reasonable solution is one that someone has thought through, not reflexively jumped to.
"Reasonable" invites dialogue and explanation.
"Reasonable" allows reasonable people to disagree and still move forward. Two people?can?agree that two different approaches are both?reasonable.
To me,?"reasonable" is better than "best".
Regional Sales Manager, NJ | NYC | Long Island
1 年Regarding flashing details, as a sales professional when I hear “Best Practice” in the field it’s usually because they don’t have an answer for the particular application or are trying to reduce cost. I often don’t have the answer, however, properly applied, “Best “Practice” can lead to better outcomes.
Principal at SUPERSTRUCTURES
1 年At “best” any solution is an informed compromise.
Promoting SIP vs ROAR - Stabilize-In-Place vs Rip-Out-And-Replace for Sustainable Maintenance of the Built Environment
1 年Best is even worse when the engineers knowledge is limited and does not include the most current accepted solutions to building restoration. This is especially true when it come to LL 126.