I know it’s fun to complain/rant about users, but to most people, computers are just a tool. You and I would probably agree that a good tradesman learns his tools intimately, but that’s because our jobs are mechanically focused, so it’s a requirement. People who work jobs like accountant can maybe be bothered to learn one application well and that’s really due to a lack of training or education, you can’t expect people to learn secondary skills unless they’re led. I’ve been able to train the worst of users into people that can troubleshoot their own issues, though there are always users that say “idk, you’re the one who needs to fix it” because in their minds we’re impeding their progress. But most of the time users don’t want to call helpdesk either if they can avoid it.
It’s always a good idea to practice your soft skills with difficult customers and be compassionate because they don’t go away the more you climb the ladder, you just have to deal with them less frequently. Something that someone once told me many 10+ years ago when I was starting my career was that were it not for the users/customers, we wouldn’t have a job to complain about.
Yep. I definitely agree that if users knew everything, there’s basically no need for the admin team. Most of us would be unemployed.
I’m not trying to say they are a burden, it is simply confounding that someone who works on computers every day for work, who needs to get into network drives and open everything from word to excel to PDF, and so much more, doesn’t even have the ability to competently navigate the file system using Explorer.
The only thing that I cannot abide is the willfully ignorant crowd, who will refuse to listen at every turn.
I know it’s fun to complain/rant about users, but to most people, computers are just a tool. You and I would probably agree that a good tradesman learns his tools intimately, but that’s because our jobs are mechanically focused, so it’s a requirement. People who work jobs like accountant can maybe be bothered to learn one application well and that’s really due to a lack of training or education, you can’t expect people to learn secondary skills unless they’re led. I’ve been able to train the worst of users into people that can troubleshoot their own issues, though there are always users that say “idk, you’re the one who needs to fix it” because in their minds we’re impeding their progress. But most of the time users don’t want to call helpdesk either if they can avoid it.
It’s always a good idea to practice your soft skills with difficult customers and be compassionate because they don’t go away the more you climb the ladder, you just have to deal with them less frequently. Something that someone once told me many 10+ years ago when I was starting my career was that were it not for the users/customers, we wouldn’t have a job to complain about.
Yep. I definitely agree that if users knew everything, there’s basically no need for the admin team. Most of us would be unemployed.
I’m not trying to say they are a burden, it is simply confounding that someone who works on computers every day for work, who needs to get into network drives and open everything from word to excel to PDF, and so much more, doesn’t even have the ability to competently navigate the file system using Explorer.
The only thing that I cannot abide is the willfully ignorant crowd, who will refuse to listen at every turn.