Sometimes the best action to take is nothing.

by Brad Isaac on October 14, 2009

Last night I was trying to start my dishwasher. It was late. I didn’t want to wash dishes by hand. But for some reason, I couldn’t get the machine to start.

I went to check the breaker, flipped it back and forth a few times to make sure it was on. Tried the machine again. No luck.

Then I considered a half-hearted search for the manual. But knew I probably wouldn’t find it.

I thought, it’s probably not gonna be much fun to pay that bill, but on the other hand it’s pretty late at night. I knew I shouldn’t be worrying too much about it, there was nothing I can do. So I went into the other room and started reading a book, thus do nothing.

As I read, my thoughts kept drifting back to the dishwasher. I knew the problem was electrical.

I continued reading.

Suddenly it occurred to me that sometimes there is a light switch on a neighboring wall – possibly in another room that controls the electricity to dishwashers. I started flipping light switches and eventually found the culprit. The dishwasher fired right up – thereby saving me $100 or so in calling a repair service.

Doing nothing takes patience. It takes getting away from the problem as much as possible. But sometimes nothing is the best action we can take.

Thank YOU for spreading the word. You are the best!

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October 16, 2009 at 12:53 pm
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{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }

1 Reboot October 16, 2009 at 1:55 pm

A very apt tale regarding the old practicve of counting to ten or whatever before taking action for the sake of action.

on the other hand … You may want to spend that $100 anyway, since most electrical codes call for a dishwasher to be on it’s own circuit and the light switch may not be spec’ed to work with the motor/heater current involved.

In other words you have identified a fire hazard and should NOT do nothing.

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2 November 2, 2009 at 11:42 pm

Patience and choice two concepts that can lead to intense procrastination. Good to see you got the mix just right.
.-= Mick Morris´s last blog ..How would you talk to a disabled child – with Passion? =-.

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3 November 4, 2009 at 3:06 am

It’s sometimes funny how the unconscious mind is with some things a lot better than our conscious mind. And often we are trying so hard to figure something out and can’t solve the problem. If we are going back to that problem a day later or so, it’s done within 10 minutes and you wonder why you didn’t see the solution before!
.-= Claudia´s last blog ..Why you got fat =-.

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4 November 10, 2009 at 5:15 pm

We are sometimes too rushed to ask for help, rather than having patience to think up a solution. Leaving things alone and returning to them is a great idea and it is definitely hard to do. And lets not forget its the best feeling when we finally find the solution!
.-= Mark Arnold´s last blog ..Who is your Yoda? =-.

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