7th Period reaction to "The Expert"

I think the short film we just watched was unnecessarily dumb, I understand the small point behind it but I believe I lost a brain cell. The “expert”, who we’re going to call Tom, was thought to have known every answer to the demands the “customers” were requesting. Although, Tom is an expert, he doesn’t know every solution to their questions. The blonde and red headed girls, who we’re going to call Amber and Sally believed Tom could draw RED lines with BLUE ink, is that even rational? That’s impossible, but as he tried to explain it, Amber and Sally disagreed. The man in the grey tie who was seated next to Tom, who we’re going to name. Frank, would cut off Tom every time he tried to explain that their requests were irrational and he tried convincing Tom the customers were always right. Moral of the story, customers aren’t ALWAYS correct, experts don’t know EVERYTHING, and bosses can be REAL mean sometimes. I think that the women should have taken their time out and tried to understand what Tom was trying to explain and the boss should have seen the point where what they were asking was completely ridiculous and could not have worked out in any way. Who thinks you can actually draw RED lines with BLUE and GREEN ink?! Every demand that Sally and Amber was making was impossible, they asked to draw a line shaped like a kitten, but Tom told them it wouldn’t be a line then, it would be a kitten. They didn’t quite understand that. At the end Tom was asked to blow up a balloon .. but make it shaped like a kitten which is also impossible, but Tom went along with it and said he could because he was tired of dealing with the dumbness the females possessed.

If I were in his position I wouldn’t have been able to keep myself together the way Tom did, he was patient and even though the women were asking VERY dumb questions that he wasn’t able to do he stayed calm. I probably would have went off on them or just started laughing, or crying. Either way, I would have not been able to be as respectful as Tom was. Especially if my boss was making me shut up and listen to more requests that were not able to be done.

After watching the video, I realized that its purpose was to show us that experts don’t know everything, customers aren’t always right, and that bosses only do things that are easier for them, and them only.

The video started out with a meeting that included a total of five people: an expert, the expert’s assistant, two business women, and a main boss. The two business women ask the expert to create seven red lines, some that are green, and some that are transparent. At first they want the lines to be perpendicular. This frustrates the expert because he knows this is impossible. So the expert tries to show and help his peers visualize that this idea is impossible. After this sparks an idea in one of the business woman to have the lines in a shape of a cat. NO! A kitten! In the end however hard the expert tries, he still fails to make his peers realize that this is an impossible task. But the boss does not care if it is impossible or impossible, he only cares about the money deal.

 The persistence of the two women represents them as customers that are “always right”, while the boss represents an ideal boss that only do things that are easier for them, not their workers. But towards the very end the expert says, “I know how to do it. I know everything. Because I am an expert.” But it is obvious that he doesn’t know everything, because he doesn’t know how to convince “stupid”.

I think the creator of the video had very creative yet obvious ideas. The creator knows that a red line is used with red ink and cannot make a red line out of green or transparent ink. The creator did not use an example as difficult as using hard math.C.E.

            The people the “expert” was talking to were all very ignorant. They had no basic knowledge of geometry and, quite frankly, anything at all. They didn’t even know why the guy couldn’t make a red line with green ink. It’s because its humanly impossible. You clearly need red ink to make a red line. They thought that since this guy was an “expert” he was able to do anything. The “expert” was trying to teach them how the things they were suggesting were impossible but they just kept on ignoring him. They were even mocking him and making fun of him by saying, “This is kindergarten stuff,” and so on. They didn’t care about what the “expert” had to do or how he had to do it. They just wanted the job done so they could look good and get out of there. At the end of the skit, the read-headed lady came back in the room and asked if the balloon could look like a kitten. This is also clearly and physically impossible but the “expert” had already given up and said, “Sure I can. I can do anything.” This obviously isn’t true but he had given up and just said something that would make the lady happy. They thought that since he was an “expert” that that meant that he could do anything. That is again not right. I thought it was kind of funny just because the fact that they tried to act all professional the whole time but probably couldn’t even count to 100 by themselves.

I think that conversation must have been very hard on the “expert”. He couldn’t find any solutions because everything that was suggested was impossible. They wouldn’t even compromise on things that actually weren’t impossible. The video was very funny, but the poor “expert” was in such a pickle. I actually felt really bad for him because I would hate to be in that situation myself. I also loved the sarcasm at the end, and how people can be not the brightest at times. Watching the video made me so confused, a small headache has now started to grow, and my head still kind of hurts. Don’t just call people an expert. Ask if they are able to do the task. If not, due to impossibility, that should not be a problem. Instead focus on something you both and agree on and are capable to do. Better solutions will be made and more problems will be solved. I’m honestly surprised people with that low of intelligence and with the mindset of a two-year old were able to even work in a company like that. They should have known how impossible their suggestions were. They also should have listened and actually compromise instead of continuously blame the “expert” and try to make him draw the lines anyways. People really are not that smart if they think a line and a cat are the same thing. Maybe down the road in this project, they will realize they are wrong and some things are impossible even for those people call experts.

The video was very unique in the since that it got rid of common logic to get across a point to the audience. It was very relatable in several aspects and was very entertaining. The common misconception that experts know everything in their field was one of the main points displayed in the video. Just because someone is considered an “expert,” that does not mean they can break the laws of physics or suddenly do the impossible. This can be very hard to explain to people who may are less knowledgeable, as the video showed. Something else often experienced in a workplace is the expression “the customer is always right.” The simple fact is that that is sometimes just not true. Customers demanding the impossible is simply not okay and can often cast a bad lighting on the company, rather than the customer. The only problem with this is the company is being hurt more than the customer, but is the company willing to sacrifice potential profits for a potentially better reputation? That is the issue many businesses face and was very well addresses in the video. The video was overall enjoyable and well executed.

The sketch was very entertaining and showed a different perspective on experts. As most people think, the expert knows everything. However, this short video showed what it’s really like to be an expert. The expert was faced with a physically impossible challenge, making a red line with blue ink, and told the board of people he could not do it. The board thought this didn’t make sense, since he was an expert and should be able to do anything they request. The expert tries to explain his situation and how trying this challenge was not going to work, but then realized that it was not worth it because they wouldn’t believe him. He is then challenged with drawing seven line, all perpendicular to each other, which again is impossible. The expert solves this conflict by saying that he would draw two red perpendicular lines with red ink, and the other lines with green and transparent ink. The board is happy with this solution and proceed to ask him to blow up a red balloon. He is a math expert, so why they would ask him to do this is confusing to him. They insist he blow up the balloon because it is red. He said he would, and the board is happy and leave.

As this video shows, the expert can’t always do everything. They are the expert, and they would know if it is able to be done or not. Even the experts need help from time to time.

Overall, I enjoyed the sketch. As said before, it was entertaining. The sarcastic aspect of the video was probably my favorite. They took what should be a serious board meeting and turned it into what are supposed to be smart people asking for an obviously impossible task. Even though the video was short, I felt like each character had their own personality.

I thought that the sketch was an accurate representation of businesses and it is an exaggeration. I disagree with the stance that the customer is always correct because some tasks cannot be done. In the sketch the customer asks for red lines but wants them to be drawn in green ink. This is similar to a customer requesting a cheeseburger at a pizza restaurant or a shirt at a shoe store. It cannot be done. They assumed because the man was an expert he could fix every problem and make it work, even though it is impossible. They continued to persist and believe that they were right even when the expert tried to politely correct them. I think the bosses not seeing things from the experts view is also correct. Most times the bosses of businesses or companies don’t look at the facts or check and see what an expert is capable of, instead forcing him to attempt the impossible.

            In business the general rule of thumb is the customer is always correct. This is not a good way to work because as I have mentioned sometimes the customer is wrong. Sometimes the customer is positive that they are correct, even when someone with more experience in the field tries to show them. I think that the representation of management is also correct, because most times you are thrown into a situation where you have no clue what you are doing or where you are going and they expect you to do it correctly. Everyone including the customer, the expert, and the bosses have different views on the topics.

            I enjoyed watching the video and thought it was entertaining. I found it funny how they kept pushing him to use green and transparent ink to draw a red line. I like how the bosses kept telling him that he could do it and saying, “Well you’re the expert.” I liked how even when he showed the customers what they were asking for could not be done instead of stopping they asked for more ridiculous request, like a kitten or a bird.