A four-bar linkage based lift is operable by a single person. The lift is used to raise a drywall panel to a ceiling, allowing the drywall panel to be mounted to the ceiling rafters. The lift includes a base link structure, an upright link structure, a working link structure, and a supporting link structure. The upright link structure is adjacently connected to the base link structure, while a first axle creates a hinged connection between the working link structure and the upright link structure. The working link structure can thus be rotated upwards in order to lift a drywall panel, the drywall panel being supported by a drywall retaining shelf of the working link structure. The supporting link structure, formed of an independent first stay and second stay, can be rotated to an upright position to support the raised working link structure.