why i shouldn't have permanent markers
2004-09-15 : 12:03 p.m.

Okay, so I�m preparing to move some computers around, and I�ve been sitting at my desk thinking about it all morning. Finally, I decided I needed to make a plan, so I stood up and walked over to the whiteboard on the wall of my office. I grabbed the eraser to erase the backup deadlines that I had written there a few days earlier. Swipe...and nothing. The blue lines stay put.

So I grabbed the blue whiteboard marker and made a mark. And instantly realized that the lines already on the board were a lot darker. Yeah, I had written all over my whiteboard with a blue permanent marker. Yeah, I�m that cool.

I stepped out of my office to tell my assistant what I retard I am, so that he can order me a new whiteboard. He grins and says �this is not a problem.�

The he takes a large-tip whiteboard marker and proceeds to mark over all of the permanent marks I�d made. Once he�d covered them all, he grabbed a paper towel and started wiping. . . and the board came clean!

Now, this may not strike most of you as a big deal, and in the greater scheme of things, it�s not. But it serves to illustrate my point, which is: my assistant is the craftiest guy in the world. I�m not entirely surprised by this, since I chose him because he�s fresh out of the military, and I figured he�d be flexible and resourceful. And trust me, when you work for a small non-profit, �flexible� and �resourceful� are worth their weight in gold. But as time has passed, I�ve noticed that he can fix anything. He�s organized, motivated, and the only real example I�ve ever seen of what is commonly called �a self-starter�. Now, I bring a lot of strengths to my job, but I can�t remember a damned thing. I am a tad on the disorganized side. And while I can build you a network that will rock your world, don�t ask me to drill a hole in a 2x4, because I�ll probably drill a hole in my hand in the process.

Long story short: without my assistant, I�d be screwed. Which is why I am eternally grateful that I found such an excellent candidate for the position. Good help is great to find.

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