The order to try things in
Five steps to work through, in order, whenever anything stops working.
Something has stopped working, and the first thought most people have is: what did I press?
Almost always, nothing. Machines go wrong on their own, constantly. Software is rewritten overnight by people you will never meet, broadband boxes overheat in July, batteries wear out to a chemical timetable, and companies move the button you used every morning without asking anybody.
The repair trade has a fixed order for the first five minutes. It is dull, it works, and it is the same whether the thing in front of you is a telephone, a printer or a laptop.
Key points
- Work through five steps in a fixed order instead of guessing, whatever the device is
- Capture the evidence before it disappears, in fifteen seconds
- Know that a machine going wrong is the machine going wrong, not a verdict on you
What to remember
- Smallest action first, biggest action last, evidence collected before either. That is the whole method.
- Nearly every fault in the house comes down to five suspects, and working through them in order beats guessing.
- Write it down first. Everything else is still available in a minute; the words on the screen are not.
Try this
Write the five steps on a card — read it, close it, restart it, check something else, ask for help — and put it wherever the telephone lives. A card works when you are flustered, which is exactly when nothing else does.
Practice: The order to try things in. Your first lesson is free, with no account or card; the rest are part of a Lantern plan. Interactive lessons require JavaScript.