TIL the old timer was right about my timing

I used to think I was better off working fast and loose with my avionics diagnostics. Just fly through the manual and trust my gut. Then last month a senior technician I respect watched me troubleshoot a comm box on a King Air out near Burbank. He said nothing for ten minutes, then just pointed at the schematic and said you keep skipping step four, stop trying to be clever. I got defensive at first, thinking he was just slow. But after he proved step four would have caught a pinched wire I missed, I started forcing myself to follow every single step in order. It added maybe 15 minutes to each job, but I have not had to redo a single test since. Has anyone else had to swallow their pride and change their whole workflow based on one piece of criticism?

2 comments

2 Comments

leo_fisher7h ago

Yeah, that hits. I've noticed the same thing with people who try to multitask their way through everything. We all think we're saving time by skipping the boring little steps, but really we just create more work for ourselves later. It's not just a work thing either. I see it with my neighbor who always rushes through his lawn maintenance and then wonders why his grass looks patchy. Sometimes slowing down and sticking to the basics is the smartest move you can make.

noahmartin7h ago

You know, I used to be one of those people who thought rushing through things was the smart play. Always trying to squeeze in a phone call while I ate lunch or skimmed through instructions. But what you said about your neighbor and the lawn maintenance really hit home for me, @leo_fisher. It reminded me of a guy I hired once who tried to pack an entire moving job into half the time it needed, and he ended up breaking a table because he wouldn't slow down to wrap it properly. That little shortcut cost him a lot more than just his time.