Day 1 of What's Next

Day 1 of what's next. There have been a lot of names over the last 24 hours, and I know there will be more today. I'm most surprised that I feel just about the same as when I have been on the other side of these reductions. I'm irrationally sure that I'll figure this out, and I want everyone else who now sits on the outside of the berm with me to feel the same way. Yes there's ignorance, arrogance and privilege all wrapped up in that feeling, but It's something that has propelled me continuously forward.

The Furnace Lesson

About a week ago, right before I was to leave on what would be my last business trip as a Swoosher, I walked into the garage and heard a very loud vibration coming from our furnace. Mornings in the PacNW are still cool enough to call for some heat, and I didn't want to leave my family with a failing furnace. I knew that the vibration had to come from something that moved. There were 3 candidates on our 14 year old Lennox. I didn't know the technical names, but there was a servo that lets in outside/fresh air regularly, a fan that circulates the air through the house and fan that handles the natural gas flame exhaust. The sound came from the main unit so that ruled out the fresh air servo leaving the fans as the likely candidates. I looked through the sight glass on the furnace and saw that the flames were on. I turned down the temperature on the thermostat and waited; a few seconds after the flames went out and the vibration stopped but air was still flowing through the furnace. It was the exhaust fan, AKA draft inducer blower causing the vibration. Removing the front panel, and turning the heat back on confirmed this when it sounded like a leaf blower was inside our garage. A short trip to the local Lennox store where they sent me to a local parts distributor and I had a new draft inducer in hand.

The Problem-Solving Approach

Not all problems are that easy, most involve dozens, hundreds or even thousands of decision points but the key is to start with what you know and work from there. One of the most effective skills I've brought to my work is that ability to stop, notice what's working and spot the things that are askew. My job for the next few weeks and months is to put that into play both for myself, as well as for any of my former colleagues on either side of the berm. I'll take the irrational exuberance of treating everything like a puzzle, and maybe if I can, share it.