Child's' Play

Full disclosure: I swoon for competence and get batty when incompetence and imperviousness go hand-in-hand.

This morning I showed up at the car dealership for a valve change. An email predicting dire consequences if I ignored the value replacement arrived in my mailbox two weeks ago. Dutifully, I scheduled an appointment. The customer service representative went to get the paperwork and oh no, sorry Mrs. S., your car is not the car that has the recall.

He smiled gamely. I sat there. He showed me the paperwork to confirm the recall didn't pertain to my car. I waited. With no peace offering in sight (An apology? A complimentary car wash?), I left.

Whenever a mistake has been made, treat it as an opportunity to showcase your inimitable sense of professionalism and style. I've seen some colossal mistakes in my time but only the ones handled with deft and graciousness ended well. I still regret missing the meeting when the incorrigible Mary W. suggested a deceased celebutante as a spokesperson for a line of hair care products. Rather than own the mistake, she compounded it by blaming the most junior staffer on her team.

It takes guts to scale a mountain, face down a pit bull or eat blowfish sushi. Admit to a boo-boo? Child's play.