Why we're a bunch of jerks

It's not uncommon for me to fix the same problem several times in a given time frame. For example, I might have several engineers install a software patch that requires a video driver update before it will work properly. Or I might be asked to fix the computers of several family members that all received the same virus through their email.

It's easy to see that my job can be repetitive by nature and I don't enjoy repeating myself if I don't have to. So when one of my users asks me a question that I've answered before, or submits an issue to me that I've already fixed I can get frustrated. I know what you're thinking… 'well maybe THEY have never had that problem before; you shouldn't be upset with them.'  I'll give you that one but it's not uncommon for a user to come to me with the same problem several times. Sometimes they cause the problem and they seem to forget how to prevent it. Sometimes I tell them how to fix the problem when it arises but they will often can't remember what I told them.  One of the most frustrating situations is when I take the time to explain an issue and how to fix it in an email and send it out but the users don't read the email. One such example happened to me after a system upgrade…

I upgraded a system one Friday evening so I wouldn't disrupt everyone during normal working hours. I documented in an email the details of how the users need to access the system (the email was a bulleted list of what needed to be done). Monday morning, an engineer calls me with an issue… you know, the one I emailed everyone about and told them how to fix. When I asked him if he read my email he told me "Two things… One, email isn't an effective form of communication. Two, I rarely read your emails anyway. Why would I take the time to read them when I can just call you?"

That is why we are a bunch of jerks.

We often forget that we are providing a service and we should do so with patience and a smile. But you also need to realize that we deal with a lot of things on a daily basis. When we take the time to 'teach you how to fish' it's frustrating when you keep asking us for food. But IT guys should always remember to' teach people how to fish' with a smile.