When to Hire a Professional

The conversation highlighted an important consideration for Feng Shui practitioners and clients alike: where does the balance lie between do-it-yourself and needing to hire a professional? Find out more from Feng Shui professional and teacher, Beth Grace

In chatting about building design trends with a realtor friend of mine, I was encouraged to hear him say that Feng Shui is increasingly influencing the buying preferences in his area – great news! However, he also told me that people are spending big money for North facing homes and citing Feng Shui as the reason for their preference. This had me both perplexed and a bit concerned because a North facing home is not necessarily a better direction and there are many other factors that can and should be considered.

As any do-it-yourself enthusiast knows, such eagerness without experience and perspective can come with a cost. The combination of a little information and a penchant for DIY can create situations where people know ‘just enough to be dangerous.’ As my colleague would say there is a lot of “Barnes and Noble Feng Shui” out there.

For the DIY Feng Shui enthusiast, this may mean that it is simply better to hire a professional when the situation calls for it. It’s really no different than hiring an electrician to fix your lights or an auto mechanic to align your tires. There are some things that just make sense to let others do for you.

I am glad that Feng Shui is better understood and appreciated and that valuable information is reaching more people. However, most are seeing only a few pieces of the puzzle and the do-it-yourselfer is not adequately prepared to handle the project with the efficacy that it requires. There is a great deal of misinformation and misunderstanding floating around, and Feng Shui practitioners are qualified to recognize the difference.

While some rules of Feng Shui are hard and fast, like avoiding T-Junctions or beams over beds, many are not and there are often exceptions. Feng Shui, like acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine, is deeply complex. Like any other complex discipline, reading a book or watching a television special is just not enough to jump in and get it right.

So how do you know when to Do-It-Yourself or to hire a consultant?

A good rule of thumb is that if you intend to invest a significant amount of time and money into a project, it is best to consult with a Feng Shui professional. As the old saying goes, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. It is always better to get it right the first time rather than spending even more money and time to correct a problem later on…or worse yet investing too much and being stuck with a problematic property.

The following are instances where I would advise NOT trying to do it yourself:

• Property selection
• Buying a new home
• Building a house
• Putting on an addition
• Adding a swimming pool
• Master bedroom remodeling
• Kitchen remodeling
• Changing your front door/entryway

If you want to use Feng Shui for yourself, then by all means do read up and study the basic principles. Feng Shui is knowledge that is meant to put into action, just make sure to keep it small and manageable.

But if you are planning to spend a great deal of your time and hard earned money to create something of great importance and value, be sure to call a professional first. Good advice from a Feng Shui consultant can help you make the most of your investment!

Beth Grace is a certified Feng Shui consultant and interior designer working in the northeast (US) and with long-distance clients as well. She received her initial training at The New England School of Feng Shui and continued studies in Classical Feng Shui with Joey Yap in Malaysia.  She is the founder and master of the American Academy of Metaphysics.

We feel really (and we mean really) strongly about the value of professional consultants and professional Feng Shui training programs.  We love that books (and check out our recommended reading) can introduce the topics to you – give you a flavor of the wonder and magic of Feng Shui.  But there comes a time, when you want to do more, and it’s time to hire a professional.  If that’s you – YAY!  We are excited to help.  Have a look at our Feng Shui consultant directory to get started.  And if you are ready to take it even farther and dig deeper – try out our Feng Shui school directory to find the just right program for you!