I’m not sure what it is about me, but people seem to think that I am some sort of authority figure.
I guess I have a natural leadership tendency to my personality, or something like that.
No matter what you want to call it, something about me has the effect of imparting confidence and fear in other human beings… it’s a gift and a curse, really. For instance, when I need something to get done quickly and correctly, my authoritative tone helps a great deal. However, when other folks assume that I’m a good boss in areas that I know nothing about – like HVAC systems – I get myself into trouble. This is exactly what happened last week when my boss went out of town and left me in charge of the heating, cooling, and air quality control maintenance appointment that he had arranged at the shop. For the past several months we had been experiencing fluctuating indoor air temperatures and failing air quality. The energy bills were climbing through the roof. It was obvious that we needed a professional HVAC tune up to get through the rest of the winter without our furnace completely failing. All of that being said, I know nothing about HVAC systems or furnace repair. When my boss left me in charge of the professional heating and cooling service, I agreed… but I had no idea what the HVAC technician was telling me. After the air quality specialist had installed a brand new furnace and sent the charges to my boss, he had a lot of questions about this routine repair escalating into a full-blown furnace installation. I had to acknowledge that I wasn’t qualified to call the shots on HVAC decisions.