Use It or Lose It

I have a wireless modem that work gave me. I got it because I'm on the road so much and WiFi is often either unavailable or expensive. This summer, I went through a few months where I didn't travel at all, a highly unusual occurrence, and didn't use my wireless modem during this time.

Then I was back on the road and started using it again. A few days later, it didn't work. I called the IT department, and they asked me to try a couple of things. No use. They called me back and said, "Have you been using this modem?" "Yes, though not for a while this summer." "OK, I found out that the CEO needed a wireless modem and it looks like we gave your account to him."

Then, a joke: "Tell the CEO he has my modem and to give it back," and a grumble, and finally acceptance. Then a realization that because I hadn't been diligent about using this device an objective observer might think I didn't need it, and, "Sure, we have an open account we can give to the CEO."

Lesson: use it or lose it. People looking at spreadsheets may not know or care about your travel schedule. If you have an asset and don't put it to use, don't complain if it's taken away from you.

Thankfully, I did get my account restored. And I'm using it regularly.