The Importance of Accuracy
August 31, 2012 by Lillie
You’ve heard a lot from me about editing your work and eliminating as many errors as possible.
Yesterday, we experienced a dramatic example of how serious the simple transposition of two numbers can be.
I was in the kitchen making a sandwich for Jack, and our helper Betsy was nearby preparing Jack’s medications. Suddenly we heard Jack yelling, sounding frightened. He has fallen several times, twice in the last week, so we hurried into the den, fully expecting him to be helpless on the floor, even hurt.
Instead he pointed toward the sliding glass door. There were two young men on our patio. We thought our backyard was completely secure, so we were shocked to see strangers looking into our den,
I opened the door and asked what they wanted. They were obviously as shocked as we were and both started talking at once.
“We’re here to look at the place to rent advertised on Craig’s List.” They went on to say they were told to come through the side gate into the backyard, then come through the open back door into the empty house. They realized they were in the wrong place as soon as they saw people inside.
They hurried away and through the side gate. Betsy went out the front door to make sure the men left. Their pickup truck was parked in the driveway, and they stood by the truck to use a cell phone to call the person who had placed the ad. It turned out that the address was incorrect in the ad. The house for rent was at 630; we live at 603. Betsy watched the men drive down the street and go through the side gate of the house with a “For Rent” sign on the front lawn.
Then Betsy and I put a chain and new padlock on the side gate, glad that at least this experience showed us that gate wasn’t secure.
More careful editing could have prevented a frightening and potentially dangerous situation. We thought someone meant to do us harm, and the intruders feared we would overreact to their shocking appearance at our backdoor. Fortunately, the incident ended with no significant repercussions. But it demonstrates that a seemingly insignificant mistake can have serious consequences.
Wow, that is so scary! I believe things happen for a reason, so for some reason you were meant to realize that your backyard wasn’t secure but in a safe way. It may or may not have been a bummer that the person placing the ad didn’t check their copy. I do hope they have changed it to the correct address so that you don’t have a repeat event.
Glad you are safe
Victoria,
That’s a great insight–even though it was a scary experience, it was a good warning to us and made us more secure in the future.
My goodness! What a terrifying experience! I am so glad it did not escalate into anything dangerous and that the men left. I hope the person who created the ad will fix the mistake.
Dawn,
It was quite a shock to see two strangers in our backyard, but I think they were as shocked as we were. I’m sure the ad was changed after those two guys reported what happened.
Quite a dramatic illustration, Lillie, though it looked like it was an honest mistake. But relating this to writing, if you can’t afford the services of an editor to go through your work, consider a writing exchange with another writer. You edit her work and she edits yours. It never hurts to have another pair of eyes look at work, if only to catch simple errors.
Leo,
That’s a good suggestion. Another pair of eyes, especially those of a good writer, can make a big difference.
That’s an excellent example of the value of an editor and editing in general. I’m glad everyone’s OK and that the padlock was taken care of. Talk about a real-life example! Wow!
Matt,
Just goes to show that a scary experience can turn into a good lesson.
Indeed. In my experience, it’s very difficult to deal with someone who always blurt out inaccurate information. It sometimes lead to arguments… and the more you argue, the more inaccurate your discussion will be.
Vincent,
I was thinking only about written communications, but inaccuracy in verbal communications causes problems also.
For sure, this had been a very scary situation for you. On the part of the two strangers, this could have been the most embarrassing moment for them. But then this only remind us that a little inaccuracy could lead into a big trouble.
Nina,
I think the strangers were as frightened as they were embarrassed. They weren’t sure how we would respond and seemed to fear that we would harm them.
It is always great to explain your point through examples that are easy to understand and that people can connect to. Most people don’t realize the seriousness of their careless behavior and it not just related to their work but in their life in general. I know sometimes you cant control all the things that happened in your life but the things which you can you should take necessary precaution. Sloppiness will only lead to loss.
Jack,
You make a great point that it’s not in work where mistakes can cause problems.
That must have been terrifying. This incident just re-iterates how important it is to check, re-check and double-check your copy. It is very helpful to have someone else go through your copy. When you write a copy and go through it, minor mistakes don’t attract your attention. When someone else goes over it, he or she can immediately identify an error because they bring a fresh approach to the copy.
Jack,
Ironically,the things that need to be checked the most–telephone numbers, addresses, even company names–are often overlooked because everyone takes those things for granted.
Glad it turned out to be a false alarm. And sometimes we need incidents like this to make us re-assess the security risks in our homes.
Mark,
Yes, this served to have us check the side gate, which hasn’t been used in years, and which we thought was locked.
Assuming things is always hazardous. Don’t ever assume anything to be true or false because more then often people come up with the wrong conclusion about the things, just as you assumed your gate was secure. Similarly when bloggers write an article they shouldn’t assume they have done a great work but should always crosscheck their article before posting it to avoid embarrassing situations later on.
Good advice, Jemmy.
I’m sure it must have been a total scare. Atleast, now you’ll hike up your security measures. Such incidents can be really terrifying. I hope that the printing error is rectified and you don’t have any more unannounced visits at your place.
James,
I understand the error was corrected. But if it wasn’t anyone who tried to come into the backyard wouldnm’t be able to get in.
This is terrible! The power of inaccuracy to scare. A single carelessness on typo can definitely create serious harm.
Jane,
This was a really graphic illustration of the need for accuracy.
Quite a tree flying explanation Lillie. I almost thought the two mane had come for a lion. Weird the way some silly missed steaks take the rout of. Or should I have said, quite a terrifying experience Lillie. I almost thought the two men had come for a loan. Weird the way some silly mistakes take the route of.
Jeo,
Your comment was humorous and also a great example of what a few “misteaks” can do.
Mistake always cause problem and sometime it can be of serious nature.
Nawaz,
Since none of us is perfect, we all make mistakes. But we should do our best to avoid them, especially the ones that can be serious.
Simple mistakes such this can create a huge problem in our lives and even in business. I guess this story should also serve as lesson for writers and those people who are into advertising and marketing.
Remy,
Yes, advertising and marketing materials with mistakes like a wrong address can have serious consequences.
OMG! Thank goodness you were home. Can you imagine what would have happened had you not been home?
Most people leave their backdoor unlocked and since you have a son you probably do unintentionally. This could have gone different in so many ways.
You could have gone out for a quick trip to the convenience store and came back to the men in your house! Then everyone would have truly freaked because people would have actually been in your house! I can just imagine the terror of walking into my house and finding people inside.
Luckily, everything turned out okay and you got a lock on your gate before anything happened.
Nicole,
The only real consequence of this encounter was five very startled and frightened people–the two men were as scared as my husband, our household assistant, and I were. However, the situation could have been much more serious.
Accuracy tend to be more significant when we are dealing with numbers or, for example unit 630 and 603 are two different homes. And going inside the wrong residence could be a huge embarrassment for any strangers.
Elaine,
You make a good point. Writers usually pay more attention to words than to numbers. And most people tend to pay more attention to content than to addresses, phone numbers, and names –the most important things–because we take them for granted.
I also encounter that problem when I am posting for a condo unit in an online classified ad. Good thing I find it right away and delete the ad fast before somebody can see the post. From that day I learned that I should be cautious about the information before hitting the published button.
Jane,
Good for you for catching our error and for learning from the experience.
Many times we keep on typing while writing a particular post or articles and we tend to make a spelling mistake during that because we are in a hurry to complete that work. Such a minute error can change the entire meaning of that content and also make it look offensive. A small mistake and make a lot of difference.
Patrick,
One small error that I make way too often is to leave out a word … and the word I leave out most is “not,” which makes the sentence the exact opposite meaning of what I intended.
That is so true. I really love writing and I when I get started I just keep on writing the whole blogpost, article, comment or whatever I am working on – and quickly press publish…forgetting to read it through. This almost always result in stupid mistakes. Your story makes me think that maybe I should be just a little more careful to read everything through an extra time.
Mikkel,
It’s natural to want to publish the post the minute you get to the end. But it will probably be better if you read it again and check for errors.
Accuracy is very important! Leaving out a word, spelling a word wrong, giving incorrect information…all can cause dramatic effects! Because of this, proofreading is important.
Joan,
We certainly agree on the importance of proofreading.