The Dell Contract

In the early 2000s my family shared one Dell computer in the household.

My brothers would frequently argue over who got to use the computer, so my dad put together a schedule that dictated when everyone could use it.

He even wrote “effective 2/19/00” on the paper so that it felt like a proper contract.

The rules were very straightforward. Some of them were written with such logical and nuanced conditions that you could tell they were written by a software engineer — I love that.

The most interesting part of the contract isn’t the rules though, it’s the effort he made at the end of the document to explain why he wrote it:

“I hope this stops the bickering between you two. I love you both, and I don’t like to see you both fighting. I think this is fair.”

There is a plain and pure honesty in his words that I find refreshing every time I read the contract.

It was his way of saying, “I am doing this because I care.”

We often remark that actions speak louder than words, and indeed they often do.

But making an effort to offer words of reassurance — of our purest intentions, and the positive outcomes we wish for the people on the receiving end of our actions — certainly don’t hurt.