Doing your job the way you are supposed to.

 

Do your job right, and there won't be problems.

Shortcuts.  They make things faster, less painful, and often mean you either get paid more or you work less.  But there is a tradeoff.

I recently ordered a computer from Lenovo.  My laptop is still good but its days are numbered and I needed something with a few specific features.  Black Friday presented an opportunity for me to pick up a decent one at a discount.  I ordered it online, filled out the necessary forms, and paid the fee.  Delivery was free.

The laptop was delivered a few days ago, or so the email told me.  It wasn't at my door, wasn't in the mail, and certainly wasn't picked up by a family member.  Something was wrong.

UPS's policy is to get a signature if the contents being delivered are over $200.  I clicked on the tracking information and found the "proof" that it had arrived.  There was my laptop, lying outside a front door, a door that was not mine.  It had been delivered to the wrong address, an no one bothered to get a signature.  That would have cleared up the matter immediately.

Now, I am partly to blame in this.  I let the computer fill out the forms automatically and did not look closely at the address, which was 455 instead of 481.  I assumed that it was correct as I have done this in the past with no problem.  I guess I took a shortcut myself and paid the price.

The courier also took a shortcut in that the package wasn't signed for.  That's why no one knew it was delivered to the wrong place.  In response, I filled out a missing product form and was rewarded a few days later with the missing product.  Interestingly enough, the fellow who dropped it off told me it was addressed to the wrong house.  I noticed that he didn't mention that he didn't bother to get a signature.

At the end of the day, there was no loss, no real problem, and just a mild inconvenience.  If we both did our job without taking a shortcut, there wouldn't have been a problem in the first place.  Maybe our society has become a bit lax in doing things properly the first time.  Shortcuts are not the solution.  They end up being the enemy of efficiency and successful transactions.

Thanks for reading.

Eric Svendsen     www.ericspix.com