Blocked Sink Drain ,a Plunger & a Consultant

After a busy workday I walked into the kitchen to grab a snack. Instead of a sink groaning with dishes to be done what greeted me was a pensive wife standing next to a clogged sink, half full of dirty water that was refusing to drain out. She glanced at me and said we have seen this in the past, looks like we just need a plunger. Time to perfection, the drain cleaning chemical had decided to run out just then. Smarting from being told the solution and still adorned in the rented but costly overcoat, I turned the tap on a little more to confirm if the additional weight of water would somehow magically drain out. The initial attempt did not yield result. I opened the sink cupboard, found leaks oozing out.?Quickly got a cloth to soak dry any overflowing leaks. Alas I was no Midas! Made other observations loud enough for the wife to hear, outsourcing the burden of the mishap to a flawed design. It might not be ideal to force a plunger as the pipes might burst, we agreed. Successfully placed the fear of the deluge to mop up in us and suggested we seek professional help anyway. I also helpfully pointed out how better design could help ensure easier unblocking in future. ?Professed all these, with sink full of dirt dishes and water. After wasting time arguing, I had to manually drain the sink by hauling the water out in buckets and then took the dishes away to do them at the laundry sink. Next up, I went to the nearest home improvement depot, secured the plunger and supplies of the drain clean liquid. Back home, I applied the potion onto the clogged sink and waited. After the chemical started making headway, I applied a couple of rigorous invocations of the plunger. The sink started to drain. I carefully looked for leaks, which happily did not happen. Applied a few more plunges, and finally the sink was finally fully drained.

This situation was akin to consulting assignments that we come across where we throw a lot of resources at a problem, when often the solution could have been lot simpler and faster.

Often simple problems need simple solutions. There is always a place for simple and smart solutions, we will do well to choose wisely.