We Pay for These Things We Could Fix Ourselves
It’s safe to say that despite becoming more and more socially isolated, we as a society have simultaneously also become dangerously codependent. The simple things that used to get done in the confines of one’s own home are now relegated to complete strangers and so-called professionals in the interest of saving time in an increasingly busy world. Here are the things we used to fix and do ourselves that we now pay for.
Haircuts
These days, people would much rather visit a barber or hairdresser if their hair begins to get a little out of hand - that is, if they bother to cut it at all. Of course, back in the old days, your hair was something you could trim and maintain all by yourself, or with the help of a family member. Due to changes in styles and trends, though, professional hairdos are much more desirable.
Home Repairs
There’s nothing more aggravating than a leaky faucet, but rather than call up the handyman they have on speed dial, people of the past were more than happy to roll their sleeves up and see to their home repairs themselves.
Lawn Care
Mowing the lawn used to be a suburban staple, maybe not a task people necessarily looked forward to, but one that was at least familiar and comfortable. These days, though, it’s much more convenient to just call a gardening service to keep your grass trimmed.
Meals
Don’t get us wrong, plenty of people still come home after work and cook their own meals even today, but with the rise of fast food chains, restaurants, and meal kit services, we’re seeing less and less homemade goodness.
Cleaning
Cleaning the house isn’t exactly most people’s idea of a good time, but it used to be a shared responsibility across all members of the household. Nowadays, it’s much more convenient and consistent to just order a cleaning service or employ a full-time maid.
Clothes
Sewing is something of a lost art, only practiced by those with the express desire to learn. In the past, though, it wasn’t uncommon for multiple members of a household to have some basic sewing or mending skills to fix holes in clothes or even make their own.
Cars
Cars aren’t exactly user-friendly when it comes to their internal mechanics, but they were definitely a lot simpler before, allowing people to pretty much resolve most minor issues on their own. Today, the complexity of modern vehicles pretty much necessitates a visit to the mechanic every time something goes wrong.
Childcare
In the past, it really did take a village to raise a child, and young children and babies were often looked after by other family members and even neighbors. These days, though, due to changing family structures and the prevalence of dual-income households, children have to be left in the care of professional nannies or daycares.
Tutoring
Most kids will agree that homework sucks. That said, it used to be much easier to get through with the help of siblings and family members. However, due to increased academic pressure and time constraints, tutoring needs to be left to professionals.
Taxes
Death and taxes are the only certainties in life, and these days, they’re both completely out of your control. In the past, most people filled out their own tax forms and were essentially forced to reconcile with their own finances. Nowadays, most people make use of professional accounting services or software like TurboTax.
Personal Fitness
Don’t get us wrong: your physical health and fitness are still something entirely within your control. However, training methods have shifted over the years. Whereas in the past people would train independently or in the company of friends, most people nowadays rely on the guidance of trainers and fitness classes.
Pet Grooming
Like household chores, keeping the family pet well-groomed used to be a shared responsibility. Today, it’s much easier and more convenient to take old Fido to a grooming salon, where you can at least guarantee that he’ll receive the best services possible.
Decorating
If you’re lucky enough to even own a house these days, we hope you take the time to decorate it yourself, unlike many people who rely on professional decorating services to give their homes that “aesthetic” appearance that looks so good on social media.
Moving
Speaking of owning a house, if you’ve ever had to move somewhere - either into your new house or out of your parents’ - you’ve probably had to rely on the services of a moving company. No doubt, these companies often have enough cargo space to haul all of your possessions in one trip, but the magic of moving is gone.
Event Planning
We can’t think of a single bride-to-be these days who doesn’t plan their wedding with the help of a professional planner in the pursuit of the perfect day. But in the past, people planned all sorts of events - from weddings to funerals - all by themselves.
Painting
Slapping a fresh coat of paint on your house used to be one of those fun activities that everyone could get involved in. Of course, it was a pretty messy process, and difficult to get just right, so it only makes sense that professional painters are used more and more today.
Furniture
Furniture is crucial to livening up a home, but if you’ve ever tried to comprehend the instruction manuals they normally ship with, it makes sense as to why professional furniture-building companies are used today.
Paperwork
Despite the ever-growing dependence on digital technology, all those smartphones and devices have still not come up with a way to avoid doing paperwork. From insurance forms to legal documents, it’s much easier to just hire some help when it comes to filing forms due to the unnecessarily complex bureaucracy behind them.
Dog Training
A dog is man’s best friend, even if he does need some firm guidance every now and then. Due to time constraints and certain behavioral challenges, however, training your little pup is best left to professional dog trainers these days.
Mental Health
Believe it or not, illnesses like depression and anxiety have been around for ages, but a lack of awareness and understanding of these issues has made people rely on things like faith and family for support. These can still be crucial pillars of one’s support system today, of course, but the rise of mental health experts has definitely aided society for the better.
Diet Planning
Like physical health and fitness, your diet is something that ultimately comes down to you and you alone. Back in the day, people ran with this notion, setting strict eating regimens for themselves. Of course, nowadays, getting hold of a professional dietitian is as easy as dialing a number on your phone.
Nail Care
Trimming and dolling up your nails is still a sacred ritual for some, only now the temple has changed. Professional nail salons offer a much wider range of options than people used to have in their homes.
Hair Removal
Unhappy with the shape of your brow? Just call a waxing or threading service to take care of it. Of course, you could also do it at home by yourself, with just a razor and some tweezers, the way they used to do it back in the day.
Tech Troubleshooting
Despite how reliant we’ve become on the technology around us, very few people have taken the initiative to understand how it all works. Back in the day, troubleshooting was as simple as reading the manual or rebooting your device, but these days, you’re better off just calling a professional.
Gardening
Gardening is an art, and one that is sadly not practiced by most people today. Landscapers and garden consultants have never seen more business than in this day and age, a far cry from the way things used to be done.
Shoe Repair
You can tell a lot about a person by the way their shoes look, which is why it’s so important to mend and polish them regularly. This used to be something people did in the comfort of their own homes, but those skills have been lost over time.
Shopping
Shopping can be a fun activity - if you have the time and the funds for it. Personal shoppers and delivery services are a much more convenient alternative, sure, but nothing beats getting lost in a mall yourself.
Organizing Homes
Managing a household has always been a difficult task, but these days, you can leave the organizational aspect of home management to professionals.
Resumes
When you were in search of work, the first thing you did was update your resume. These days, professional resume writing services are common and are arguably a necessity in the competitive job market of today.
Home Security
Believe it or not, but people used to feel perfectly safe just by locking their front doors and having a dog in the house to alert them of any threats. But the world is a much more dangerous place today, and professional home security systems are much more common.
Travel Planning
If you wanted to backpack through Europe back in the day, it was more or less as easy as securing your VISA and purchasing a ticket. Today, travel agencies and online planning services are pretty much crucial to ensuring a safe trip abroad.
Learning Skills
Taking up a new hobby like music or art used to come with the joy of discovery, of learning through trial and error. These days, though, everybody wants a fast track to glory, making coaches and online courses much more popular.
Personal Styling
You shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, but your outward appearance does say a lot about you. That said, these days you’re able to get perfect outfit recommendations on the fly thanks to personal stylists, subscription boxes, and AI fashion apps.
Home Improvement
Your definition of home improvement could be as basic as installing a new shelf, or as vast as adding a whole new wing to your house. While professional services were used for these tasks back in the day, they’ve definitely become more popular as the years have gone on, with many people leaving it to complete strangers to do something as simple as fixing a cupboard door.
Elder Care
While retirement homes have existed for a long time now, our elders used to stay much closer to home back in the day, if not completely in the home. Nowadays, due to a lack of time available to give our elders the care they deserve, more and more of them are left in the care of retirement staff.
