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Positive Talk
We live in a world of constant change. It might be successfully argued that there has always been change, but there has never been change at the speed we are faced with today. I remember when I was considered an electronics expert. Each time I arrived at my mother’s condo, I was faced with a sea of VCRs blinking 12:00 at me. My mother’s machine and those of her neighbors all needed to be set. How proud my mother was that I could master those monsters and stop the flashing in the whole complex. Yes, I was the expert.
But today we have gone beyond flashing VCR’s to truly complex devices, and the confusion seems to be spreading. I have to admit I am no longer the expert and have relinquished that title to the younger generation. Sometimes, however, when I feel really stupid, I look around and I don’t feel so bad when I see what others are doing. Here are some stories that make me feel smart. If you don’t get them, have a teenager explain them to you.
• Technology is great—but we have to be careful that we master it, not let it master us. A man noticed a distraught young lady weeping beside her car. “Do you need some help?” he asked. She replied, “I knew I should have replaced the battery in this remote door opener. Now I can’t get into my car. Do you think they (pointing to a distant convenience store) would have a battery for this?” “Hmmm, I don’t know. Do you have an alarm, too?” he asked. “No, just this remote thingy,” she answered, handing him the remote. He took the remote and with the key on the other end of it manually unlocked the door. He then suggested, “Why don’t you drive over there and check about the batteries. It’s a long walk.”
• What may seem clear to us may not be clear to one of less experience. One day a newcomer to an office was typing and turned to a secretary and said, “I’m almost out of typing paper. What do I do?” “Just use copier paper,” she told him. With that, the intern took his last remaining blank piece of paper, put it on the copier and proceeded to make five blank copies.
• Don’t overlook the obvious. A new system administrator was trying to restore a server. He inserted a disc and needed to type a path name to a directory named “i386.” He started to type it and paused to ask a coworker, “Where’s the key for that line thing?” when asked to explain himself, he said, “You know, that one that looks like an upside-down exclamation mark.” To which the coworker replied, “You mean the letter “i” ? and he said, “Yeah, that’s it!”
• Technology is not the answer for everything. A large motor home was towed into the garage. The front of the vehicle was in dire need of repair and the whole thing generally looked like a prop in the movie Twister. When asked, the manager described what happened. He said that the driver had set the cruise control, and then went in back to make a sandwich.
• Even knowing where you are may not keep you from getting lost. A woman called the computer help desk with a problem with her printer. The tech asked her if she was “running it under Windows.” The woman then responded, “No, my desk is next to the door. But that is a good point. The man sitting in the cubicle next to me is under a window, and his is working fine.”
Did these stories make you feel smart? Are you shaking your head and chuckling, thereby relieving some of your stress? Actually, that was the goal of this exercise. I wish you a great day!
Hodges is a nationally recognized speaker, trainer, and syndicated columnist. Hodges may be reached at Hodges Seminars International, P. O. Box 89033, Tampa, FL 33689-0400. Phone 813-641-0816. Web site: www.BillHodges.com
Hodges Hosts Television Program
Bill Hodges also hosts an interview-format television program, which has been renamed “Spotlight On Tampa Bay.” It airs Mondays at 8 p.m., Bright House cable channel 950 and Verizon cable channel 30.
Appearing on Monday, June 30, is State Representative Darryl Ervin Rouson. Representative Rouson, a Democrat, will give us an insight into the happenings during the last session of the Florida State Legislature from a minority party viewpoint. The program will be repeated Wednesday, July 2, at 7:30 p.m. on Bright House channel 949.
It should be noted that Bright House subscribers who cannot get the higher channels can get—at no installation fee and a monthly one dollar fee—a box to allow access to the upper level government and educational channels. Call Bright House for details on the rental. If you are unhappy about having to pay extra to see your government in action, complain to your state representatives and the Hillsborough BOCC which have either caused this situation or been complicit in allowing it to continue.
Bill Hodges is a nationally recognized speaker, trainer, and
syndicated columnist. Hodges may be reached at Hodges Seminars
International, P.O. Box 89033, Tampa, FL 33689-0400. Phone 813/641-0816.
Web site: http://www.BillHodges.com
Copyright 2008 Hodges Seminars International
© Copyright 2008 by The
Observer
News Publications and M&M Printing Company, Inc.
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