mjensen.org

Crisis Averted

“You never get credit for the crisis you avert.” As I have spent the last 20+ years in the tech arena, I fully agree with that quote from a podcast I recently listened to.

The podcast was about y2k and all of the money and work that went into preparing for the clock roll-over at the end of 1999. I didn’t realize that after the fact, there were people questioning if all of the preparation was worth it.

Please take a minute and think about those people around you (both at work and the rest of your life) that quietly keep things running smoothly; the people you tend to notice more when something breaks or goes wrong. I think it’s pretty easy to identify these roles in a business, but what about outside of work? (Think: stay at home mom/dad, mailman, neighbor, etc…)

They may perform their job 1000 times in a row without mistake (and unnoticed), but when a single mistake creeps in, it stands out and everyone notices. These are people that we often take for granted.

Acknowledge them and their work, thank them, hug them (if appropriate :-)