The Right Answer To The Wrong Question

It was time for my regular check-up with my eye doctor. As I sat in the waiting room, I couldn't help but feel anxious about the appointment. My current glasses prescription has been giving me trouble recently. The words blurred and became difficult to see whenever I tried to read.

I finally got called into the examination room and explained my problem to the doctor. He listened patiently before suggesting that my eyesight had likely worsened and that I needed a stronger prescription for my glasses.

But I needed to be convinced. There was more to the problem than my eyesight getting worse. I explained to the doctor that I only had trouble reading with my glasses on, and everything else seemed normal.

The doctor continued to push for a stronger prescription, but I persisted.?

Finally, he began to ask questions about how I used my glasses to read and how long I read before the blurriness became a problem. He had me show him how I sat when I read a book. How far away was my laptop? How did I hold my books? Did I read real books and digital?

After thorough questioning, testing, and several experiments, the doctor came to an unexpected conclusion. The curve and prescription in my glasses were incorrect for my reading distance. It had nothing to do with my eyesight getting worse at all. It had everything to do with the focal point of the lens being off by 12 inches.

Feeling relieved I wasn't getting worse eyesight, I left the doctor's office with a new prescription for glasses specifically for my reading style. I realized that doctors often make assumptions about problems without fully understanding them. Collaborating with your healthcare professionals and ensuring they fully understand your issues before jumping to conclusions is essential.

All of us in the business of construction need to remember this the next time we face a familiar situation or challenge. Even though we've done this for years and have seen almost everything under the sun, the easy answer might be the answer to the wrong question.