About

I read recently that a business cannot fail if it involves work that:

I'll add to the above: work that provides a useful service to the community.

When I plan a trip to my hometown, I ask friends and family if they need a hand with any small projects. I get little from sitting around drinking in a pub or a cafe, or grabbing a bite at a restaurant (not that there's anything wrong with that), but I love taking on a task and accomplishing it quickly and affordably - hopefully while catching up with or making new friends.

I am somewhat new to living in the Bow Valley (I lived in Calgary with my wife the last ~20 years). I spent summers here since 2020 and am hoping to make it my permanent home. I am a semi-retired Electrical Engineer with a passion for fixing things that are broken, improving things that work poorly, and making things pretty (or at least non-offensive) - if we can manage these things with parts and elbow grease vs. new materials, that's all the better for the wallet and the environment, but you only live once, and sometimes "pretty" wins out over "efficient!"

I started Canmore Small Jobs in the spring of 2023 so (unless I forget to update this page), this business is brand-new and super small. I hope to change the "brand-new" part over the coming years, but I intend to stay super small. I have worked with huge teams on major projects in my career as an engineer. Big teams are required for big projects, but they necessitate inefficiency. My idea for this business is that too many companies are applying their big teams to small projects. 

I am not above taking on a "real" job again, but my requirements have changed somewhat since semi-retirement. My wife and I hope to make Canmore our home ~6 months of the year and disappear to somewhere warmer for the winter. So unless I find predictable, interesting, seasonal work or remote work, I will keep at my guaranteed-to-be-successful Canmore Small Jobs business.