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Being anal and detail-oriented, doing things the right way

J

JonathanYoung

Senior member
Throughout my life I have been ridiculed for being very detail oriented, anal, whatever you want to call it. I'm in my 30s now and I now know that it's mostly because I've been around the wrong people. Despite this, there are still times when people roll their eyes at me because I want something to be done exactly right.

Why am I posting this? I just read about the fiasco with the Super Bowl seating. This is(was) a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity: knowing you're going, packing your bags, anticipating the big game... and then BAM none of it happens because of a failure in planning.

Now I'm reading that these people will get Super Bowl tickets for next year. Yeah, that's really going to make up for what happened. No matter what, it won't be the same.

My point? Society should stop rolling their eyes at people like me. Think Super Bowl, think space shuttles falling apart, think...
 
And sometimes you're just wasting time. The real skill is accurately determining how much effort is justified, for the desired outcome. That's what separates the thinkers from the automatons ;^)
 
JonathanYoung said:
My point? Society should stop rolling their eyes at people like me. Think Super Bowl, think space shuttles falling apart, think...
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HOLY SHIT, thats is a huge jump there man.. I'm incredibly detail oriented and as a result I'm an engineering student.

Keep in mind though there are dozens if not hundreds of people recalculating and rechecking work on most projects the size of the space shuttle. Super bowl != space shuttle though.. thats why things slip through
 
lxskllr said:
And sometimes you're just wasting time. The real skill is accurately determining how much effort is justified, for the desired outcome. That's what separates the thinkers from the automatons ;^)
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Point taken, the first real response to my diatribe.
 
coxmaster said:
HOLY SHIT, thats is a huge jump there man.. I'm incredibly detail oriented and as a result I'm an engineering student.

Keep in mind though there are dozens if not hundreds of people recalculating and rechecking work on most projects the size of the space shuttle. Super bowl != space shuttle though.. thats why things slip through
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I know, I know, they were just the examples I could think of, and I'm sure I could think of more common, everyday, mundane ones.

Still, the Super Bowl is pretty big isn't? I also read that the owner Mr. Jones wanted to break the attendance record, which would suggest that it was pretty important.

I realize I'm jumping on the bash-organizers bandwagon, but sometimes I just get fed up with things not working out right. I'm empathizing with those people who missed the big game.

Disclaimer: I don't watch football, either.
 
Being detail oriented isn't bad unless it causes a huge loss of productivity. If I draw a rough diagram of an object to illustrate how things interact, I'm not going to waste time to make sure everything is drawn to perfect scale.
 
TuxDave said:
Being detail oriented isn't bad unless it causes a huge loss of productivity. If I draw a rough diagram of an object to illustrate how things interact, I'm not going to waste time to make sure everything is drawn to perfect scale.
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but you should, because one day someone will die from your mistake.

WHY DO YOU HATE LIFE SO MUCH
 
JonathanYoung said:
Still, the Super Bowl is pretty big isn't? I also read that the owner Mr. Jones wanted to break the attendance record, which would suggest that it was pretty important.
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I don't know the details of this event; I only heard a blurb on the radio this morning, but it sounds more like a problem with greed, than poor planning. Someone probably warned of issues, but typical greed got in the way, and the owner wanted to fill the stadium with dollar bills. I think greed in this country is more of a problem than attention to detail.
 
lxskllr said:
I don't know the details of this event; I only heard a blurb on the radio this morning, but it sounds more like a problem with greed, than poor planning. Someone probably warned of issues, but typical greed got in the way, and the owner wanted to fill the stadium with dollar bills. I think greed in this country is more of a problem than attention to detail.
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Ive got to agree here. Too often the people who are in charge of the details do recognize potential problems. Once they point out the problem and how to possibly fix it the people in charge decide that it isnt worth the time or money. In this case your space shuttle example is completely applicable (see: Challenger)
 
I will make another point... this is supposedly a geek website, so how many people here are actually great at parties? Isn't it ironic that a geek is pointing out to another geek that that geek must be great at parties?
 
JonathanYoung said:
I will make another point... this is supposedly a geek website, so how many people here are actually great at parties? Isn't it ironic that a geek is pointing out to another geek that that geek must be great at parties?
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Did I strike a nerve with my party comment?
 
JonathanYoung said:
I will make another point... this is supposedly a geek website, so how many people here are actually great at parties? Isn't it ironic that a geek is pointing out to another geek that that geek must be great at parties?
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would you turn down a line of coke if it weren't cut up properly?
 
lxskllr said:
I don't know the details of this event; I only heard a blurb on the radio this morning, but it sounds more like a problem with greed, than poor planning. Someone probably warned of issues, but typical greed got in the way, and the owner wanted to fill the stadium with dollar bills. I think greed in this country is more of a problem than attention to detail.
Click to expand...

coxmaster said:
Ive got to agree here. Too often the people who are in charge of the details do recognize potential problems. Once they point out the problem and how to possibly fix it the people in charge decide that it isnt worth the time or money. In this case your space shuttle example is completely applicable (see: Challenger)
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Agree with the both of you. Neither of these cases (Football, space exploration) are clear-cut black and white. To be honest I feel like an idiot now comparing the Super Bowl and the shuttle. With NASA we're talking real human lives, so detail is pretty fuckin' important. The Super Bowl? Eh... it's all different degrees.
 
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