Of all the life experiences I had culminating in my current job, working at RadioShack still ranks among the most useful. It granted me the power to fake caring about what someone is saying AND set up a home theater system. This skill was called upon when my area supervisor threw up his hands, yelled “I give up”, and asked me to select a flatscreen TV to replace the one in the CAD area that we used to play videos on tours.
My boss’s boss was keenly interested in the selection process and came by immediately upon learning the task had been passed to me.
Him: So, you’ll probably get a plasma?
Me: Plasmas generally consume more power and have burn-in issues if not properly maintained, that’s what did our last TV in.
Him: But the picture’s great.
Me: Modern LCD TVs are just as bright and rich. We’ve figured out how to make good LCD TVs.
Him: But the contrast on plasma screens in remarkable.
Me: Backlit LED will do just as well. I’ll see what the data says when I look for options.
Him: Ok. *leaves*
Supervisor: The guy that’s paying for us to get this and that can fire us requested a plasma. I recommend you include that in your selection criteria.
Me: Noted.
First line from email sent at 4 PM that day. “I am pleased to announce I have selected the following plasma television for use by the CAD group”.