We're supposed to learn from our own mistakes that other people's errors can be instructive

too, from efforts to control the weather that went disastrously awry to the untimely death

of the Segway boss. History is a treasure trove, mishaps and meltdowns that can teach us

all. I'm Tim Harford, host of cautionary tales, the podcast that mines the greatest fiascoes

of the past for their most valuable lessons. Listen to cautionary tales on the iHeart Radio

app, our podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of iHeart Radio.

Good morning. This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.

Today's tip is to give trap your work. Do a good job on the substance of your work, of course,

but also pay attention to how you are presenting it. Often, the latter is the difference between

the recipient being satisfied or delighted. I am sure you can recall times when someone presented

their work in a way that was particularly thoughtful. Maybe it's a mechanic who,

after working on your car, make sure that the radio station and mirrors are just as you left them.

The driver's seat is adjusted so that you can reach the pedals.

Perhaps he even backs the car into the parking place, so you can just hop in and drive away.

Of course, you primarily care whether the mechanic fixed the issue in question,

and it certainly wouldn't be a big deal to adjust the seat, or to back out the car.

But not having to do those things makes you feel cared for. Your car mechanic

has gift wrapped his work. The same sort of care is appreciated from knowledge workers too.

Maybe it's a colleague who emails you several questions that are numbered for ease of responding.

Or the person who sends you a document that could be sent as is. But he also uses comment

bubbles to highlight and make notes about sections that you might want to handle differently.

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