Unexplainable

It cost me $4,400 and was a Pentium 4 with 8 megabytes (yep megabytes) of RAM. Track ball mouse and battery lasted almost an hour!

Fancy right

 However, it spent more time getting fixed than it did working... Within one year it was serviced and parts replaced about 12 times...

Each time, in repairs for a week or two...

Therefore it was basically useless.

I was writing software at the time and therefore I needed a consistent development environment with all the tools and databases loaded...

Anyway... I learnt about the Small Claims Tribunal which protects consumers from purchases like mine which are no longer useful and you can get your money back, or a percentage of the price.

This is what happened to me, however this is not the point of the story...

In the process, sitting infront of the 'Judge' presenting the evidence I learnt something VERY VERY IMPORTANT...

This I find very useful in observing and surviving society today...

When someone is in the wrong let them talk...

When someone is lying, let them talk...

Do not interrupt someone lying...

Ask someone lying questions...

Ask a dishonest person to explain the same thing another way...

Ask a dishonest person to elaborate and give other examples to better explain what thy mean...

Do not argue with them, because dishonest people are looking for another thing to focus on...

You will end up arguing about tiny things, to distract from the big thing...

The more they talk, the deeper in the shit they get...

It is like quick sand...

The longer it goes on the more foolish their story looks...

The longer it goes on, shallow things no longer are enough and the deeper layers are where the story starts falling apart...

Someone told me they are called active defendants...

Because you do not need to say much at all... They do all of your work for you...

So, look out for that in your world... As time goes o, does the story make more sense or does it start to fall apart?

This also stood by me 10 years later when someone tried to claim unfair dismissal from the Hair Salon we owned at the time...

However in this case I had a very 'interesting' experience...

Again, this time in front of the Fair Work Commissioner defending a claim of unfair dismissal.

I had folders of evidence contrary to any claim that the person may try and make up on the spot. I simply was prepared with facts...

At first the Commissioner was looking at us... The mean business owner...

Then, as the other party spoke the tide turned. They were doing my job for me and I had any evidence to the contrary to whatever they were trying to make up on the spot.

I had no time to prepare, just simply show the opposite to be true...

The "interesting" part of this was...

We were asked to leave the room and wait about 50 meters away in the building...

Behind about 3 closed doors...

I was standing there with Ellysia and the Lawyer and we were chatting...

Then I said... "Shh, I can hear every word they are saying"

They thought I was crazy we were in a different part of the building but I could hear word for word the conversation between them and the Commissioner...

They said - "So what do you think we can get out of them?"

The Commissioner then told the lawyer and the client that they have no case at all and are wasting everyones time...

They are making false claims and have no case what so ever...

Again, when called back into the main room, I just had to sit there and do very little...

They did all the work for me... Just by trying to keep the lie alive...

So, when someone is telling the truth the story makes more sense as they continue to explain it...

When someone is lying, the story falls apart...

The same can be said for teaching and coaching... Someone who knows their topic really well, it makes more sense the more you listen...

Someone faking it, it will get more confusing...

I am reminded of this a lot these days... and maybe it is something that everyone can observe in all aspects of life...

What an interesting journey we are all on