These 14 Sign Pros Prefer Their Good Old Days to Now

PHOTO: ISTOCKPHOTO
BECAUSE SIGNS OF THE TIMES is celebrating its 120th anniversary this month, we asked our Brain Squad, “Do you like your job better now vs. your ‘good old days,’ whenever they may have been? As published in May’s Buzz Session, by a margin of 2 to 1, the squad members who responded generally prefer the present to the “good old days.”

Though outnumbered by their peers preferring the present, one-third of the Squad longs for their “good old days.” New technology has created new, often unrealistic customer expectations. Permitting, too, has become more complicated, some say. Their responses shed light on the trade-offs of industry development.

While the changes in development made the industry more efficient on paper, sign pros who have experienced the difference long for a period when orders were not “overcomplicated.” Perhaps John Konopka, US Sign and Mill (Fort Myers, FL), sums it up best: “Technology has become a crutch for some; gone are the days of the ‘old Sign Dogs.’”

The following 13 Brain Squad members also consider the good old days a “simpler” time when production was more hands-on and less technical, with fewer requirements.

• Expectations seem to surpass reality more than they used to, even with diligent effort to set realistic expectations. – Trevor L., Troy, OH
• Things have gotten to be so overcomplicated. – Joe G., Portland, OR
• Certifications and REGULATIONS, REGULATIONS, REGULATIONS keep getting added, and sign permitting is becoming unbearable. – Lynn R., Milton, DE
• It was simpler. – Christopher P., Fort Lauderdale, FL
• The old days were simpler, with overhead and insurance costs. [These days, things are] more technical with filing permits, insurance and tax audits. – Bernard G., Ridgewood, NY
• There is little human engagement, almost no process, and no flow. Everything is headed to a CliffsNotes, Reader’s Digest direct drive engine. An IROC race full of Camaros (as cool as they are), gaslit and formulated to the thoughts and take-away bullet points of someone else. Indeed, something else. All solutions come from outside yourself; the cognitive redevelopment is almost complete [evil laugh]. – Edward D., Wayne, NJ
• The good old days were much more hands-on. If you couldn’t hand letter, you couldn’t be in the club. – John M., Branford, CT
• I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately. I really miss the simplicity of “making signs.” These days, so much of our work revolves around complex design and installs. I miss the process of quickly designing a simple sign, cutting the vinyl, weeding it and applying it to Coroplast. Something was satisfying and straightforward about that workflow. – Dennis S., Bellefontaine, OH
• I had more time to spend on the shop floor. – Mike C., South Colton, NY
• Not suitable for print! 🙁 – Perry Y., Kelowna, BC, Canada
• Primarily, the workforce changes in priorities. The digital age has made it difficult to stabilize changes/improvements with a good ROI, before they change again. The world and the US political landscape affect the business more now. “Overcommunication” leads to less self-accountability. “Entitlement” leads to “pay before performance.” These entitlements are driven by influencers, professional athletes, etc… – Adam B., Milwaukee
• The sign business has morphed into the printing business. The newer sign companies, by and large, don’t weld, paint, rout or vacuum form. They simply hit “Print.” – Todd S., Slocomb, AL
• More BS these days. – Robert B., Oakdale, CT

Also see These 12 Sign Pros Prefer Now to Their Good Old Days.