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MalletI’m writing this post to keep from whacking myself in the forehead with a mallet. I just spent about an hour troubleshooting a problem with a client over the phone. After one solution after the other failed to work, at the 60 minute mark, I finally called a timeout until this afternoon. My client naturally wanted to keep going until the problem was solved, but I just said, “Tim (not his real name), we’re not getting anywhere. It’s time to step away from the computer.”

Building and maintaining a website can be somewhat tedious and frustrating at times. Computers crash, files get corrupted and deleted, and tech support may not always be useful. Clients are always asking me if it’s normal to get overwhelmed and frustrated with their websites. It is normal to run into a problem or two that makes you wish that you’ve never heard of the Internet…the trick is to not to let it drive you nuts or discourage you.

Recently, a client of mine called me up after she’s had one problem after the other in getting her website going and asked me what to do about her latest difficulty. First thing I told her is to take a break from her computer for awhile so she could calm down and clear her head.

“I can’t take a break!”, she practically shrieked, “I have a deadline! I have to get this done and I’ve wasted too much time on this problem already!”

I pointed out to her that she was now so frustrated that she couldn’t see straight and that anything else that she does probably wouldn’t solve the problem any faster and may actually make it worse. But if she took a break for an hour or so, she could come back to the problem with a clear head. Chances are she’d solve the problem much more quickly than if she just continued to plug away on it. You know how your old clunky computer runs better after you shut everything down and reboot? Well, your mind works the same way. Sometimes the best solution to a problem that’s driving you crazy is to just walk away for awhile.

So the next time you run into a problem that makes you want to toss your computer over a railing, turn it off and go for a walk…eat lunch…eat dinner…get a massage…do some yoga…create some artwork…or leave it until tomorrow. Take some time to shut down and reboot…

…and stay away from that mallet.