When I first started doing work around the house, I wanted everything to be perfect.

I was so worried about leaving a gap along the edge of a piece of trim, or tile, that I almost inevitably cut the parts too long the first time and was forced to spend extraordinary amounts of time trying to get the part to fit.

Since that time, my approach has significantly changed.

Now, I almost always cut things to length, or just short.

It’s a lot easier to fill a gap in drywall with wood filler than it is to repair the edge of a sheet of drywall after it’s forced to bend to fit in place. Just like a shorter wall frame can easily be shimmed up to fit in place, but it’s almost impossible to jam a wall frame in place if it’s too tall.

More generally, I’ve found that the best designs account for inaccuracy.

Unless something is being made using precision tooling or an automated process, it isn’t realistic to assume that measurements will be perfect.

So rather than hoping that things fall into place perfectly, it’s better to account for the inevitable imperfections.

-Brandon