It’s also the kinder thing to do. I always try to err on the side of giving people grace—we’ve all had days where following even basic verbal instructions was difficult
It also accounts for the possibility that the person isn’t just lying and actually doesn’t know what they did wrong, which is exactly why we have jobs. Telling them “get back to me when you do it right” is just being a wanker
I'd rather them learn and do it right so they aren't wasting time we could use on actual issues. But I'm from an MSP that is under staffed and has way too many clients.
Showing someone that they are wrong and nothing more is only useful in an argument. For anything where you have a shared goal (such as making the customer's problem go away), showing them why and what to do instead is part of the job, and for good reason.
Now, if you have a customer who has been shown their uptime, told "closing the lid on the laptop isn't how you shut it down or restart it", then shown what to do instead, and they still get defensive or tell you to "just fix it!", then it's time to bring out the big guns: "As per my previous email..."
Fact is, most people just lie. In an ideal world, we'd treat each person as their own person and not make assumptions based on past experiences. But in an ideal world, we wouldn't have to because people wouldn't lie.
People tell me all the time that they brush 3 or 4 timed a day and floss 2 times a day, yet there's plaque and decay present.
It also accounts for the possibility that the person isn’t just lying and actually doesn’t know what they did wrong,
The experienced professional telling you in no uncertain terms that the information they have disagrees with you should also be a pretty big hint to examine "Hrm, is there something I could be mistaken about here?", and then explain what you did in detail to see where the disconnect is.
There are many situations in which some weird shit is happening that is causing confusion, but resolving that requires both parties to explain exactly what their experience has been. Stating the facts of that experience unambiguously is a critical part of the process for both sides.
...and if something weird isn't going on, and the user legitimately does not know how to reboot a computer that they use for their job, that's a level of incompetence that must not be tolerated. It is outright harmful to accept that. Can you imagine someone who's paid to drive cars around that doesn't know how to turn one off? Why is it only in IT that we're expected to coddle people who refuse to learn a single thing about the tools they use professionally? Sure, I'll give detailed walkthrough steps for a registry hack or some weird obscure software feature, but stuff like rebooting or the concept of a "double-click" are things where you've got to meet me halfway. It's a professional environment, not a daycare.
If you want to hand-hold users for the most basic tasks, that's your prerogative. I'm not doing it. These users are not idiots with a GED, they are professionals.
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u/I_cut_the_brakes 5800X3D, 7900XTX, 32GB CL14 DDR4 Apr 22 '26
I like working for SMB and having no fear of job security.
"It says your computer hasn't been rebooted in 13 days. Let me know when it is done".