Do It Nice or Do It Twice

Do It Nice or Do It Twice—Achieving Higher Standards with a Simple Reminder

The-child-who-will-not-be-named handed me a paper that was legible, but barely. I didn’t bother to read it. “Do over,” I said, handing it back. Child-who-will-not-be-named stared in disbelief, mouth hanging open like a fish who had just been hooked. “You know the rule, Little Fishy,” I reminded. “Do it nice or do it twice.”

For years that hand-written slogan hung in our home as a reminder that slacking is not allowed. It was a shortened blend of three expressions common to our household:

• my husband’s phrase, “If it’s worth doing, it’s worth doing well,”
• I Corinthians 10:31, “Do it all for the glory of God,” and
• the Amish quote my daughter copied from a reader, “Hands to work, hearts to God.”

This is how “Do it nice or do it twice” plays out in many aspects of our life and school:

• If a child’s chore is incomplete—the table washer leaving behind obvious remnants of peanut butter art, for example—she is called back, even though it’s ten times easier for me to finish the task myself than follow through with her.
• If math papers are indecipherable so I have to work harder to correct them than the child worked to complete them, he has to begin again.
• If a letter to Grandma is sloppy when I know the child can write legibly, it’s a do-over.
• If a high schooler turns in a report that doesn’t meet the standards we know she can achieve, or even if one of our kids slacks on junior ranger projects or ungraded online classes, I’m sorry, but the phrase pops up. Do it nice or do it twice!

There are a few key guidelines to keep in mind when implementing “Do it nice or do it twice.”

1. “Nice” is within the individual’s abilities. Obviously, nice for one child may be far less refrigerator-worthy than for others.
2. The children must understand that it is their decision whether or not to do their best—they decide when they take on the task whether or not they’ll be doing it twice based on how much effort they put in. It’s not Mama’s fault.
3. The “nice” bar is raised as the child’s abilities increase.
4. No argument allowed…although chocolate bribery might occur from time to time.
5. To avoid turning highly conscientious students into perfectionists or enabling dawdlers, a timer is beneficial. “Nice” is what they can accomplish with concentrated effort within that time frame.

Why does it work?

First, after a do over or two, the children will know they are responsible for the quality of work they turn out and, hopefully, will eventually delight in putting forth their best effort. Regardless of whether they initially care about their work, most people do care about the amount of time required to repeat the action.

Second, it’s an annoying phrase, which, to some of my kids, is motivation enough to do something right the first time. Apparently it’s more annoying to hear than to say, because my teens now use it on younger siblings.

Third, the awareness of what is expected will gradually develop in them the habit of excellence. What employer or spouse wouldn’t love that?

Consistently holding our children to the standards we know they can achieve has made them more conscientious, less argumentative, and more productive. And it all started with one annoying little phrase. “Do it nice or do it twice.” I even use it on myself.

How do you encourage your kids to produce quality work?

Christy Bagasao is a freelance writer, wife to Christian music missionary Stephen Bautista, and roadschooling mother of eight highly adaptable children. The family travels the United States full-time, living in a 30-foot travel trailer with a 100-pound dog and 10-pound cat taking up more than their fair share of space. Christy blogs about simple living at TheSimpleHomemaker.com.