☕ Coffee and Quiet with Derek Wolf
The other day I stopped by to see a local mechanic. We were standing around the shop, coffee in hand, talking about cars and the people who bring them in. Every now and then someone would pull into the parking lot, another hood would go up, and the conversation would pause for a minute before picking right back up.
After a while he looked at me and said, "People think all I do is plug a computer into their car."
He explained that the computer doesn't always tell him exactly what's wrong. It points him in a direction, and then the real troubleshooting begins. Sometimes it's obvious. Sometimes it takes experience, patience, and a process of eliminating one possibility after another.
As he was talking, I found myself thinking about the person on the other side of the counter.
If I paid good money and my car still wasn't fixed, I'd probably be frustrated too.
Standing there with a cup of coffee, it occurred to me they weren't really arguing with each other.
The mechanic was trying to work on cars that have become more complicated every year.
The customer was simply trying to get back on the road without spending more than they expected.
Both of them wanted exactly the same thing. A car that was fixed. They were simply looking at the problem from opposite sides of the repair order.
It made me wonder how often that happens in everyday life. Two people can want the same outcome and still find themselves standing on opposite sides of the conversation.
Sometimes we're frustrated with the person standing in front of us when the rules were written long before either of us showed up.
Hugzzs,
🌺 Derek Wolf
I'll talk to you in the emails.
☕ Before You Go...
Coffee and Quiet is where we share a cup of coffee together. When you're ready to settle in for a longer story, come visit me at DerekWolf.com. You'll find original audio stories waiting for you.