At dinner today, my wife asked me to stop complaining about my experiences with my new vehicle purchase.  Apparently it is not good for digestion – that is the act of complaining, not the new car discussion.

Given I have had three new cars in the last three years my wife thinks I am spoiled and the new car discussion is not a popular topic but today it definitely was about my whining.

To complain or not to complain

Complaining is simply the expression of dissatisfaction or annoyance about a state of affairs or an event.  Why bother?

I believe the best use of complaining is when it forms part of the rationale for a change.

For example, consider a situation requiring a warranty repair.  It happens and sometimes cannot be avoided.  Asking the customer to wait 2 weeks for the repair sends a bad message about your image and brand.

Complaining about the length of time to correct the issue, complaint when directed at a vehicle manufacturer, is primarily to elicit better service.  That is please do it faster.

I should note a warranty repair indicates a fault by the manufacturer and all involved should bend over backwards to rectify it.

My wife’s feedback is about complaining without a purpose.  Whining about a thing just for the sake of whining.  That is, why does she care about my woes.  I get the point, the complaints are usually not positive, so unpleasant to listen to.

Use Complaining Wisely

There can be a value to complaining when it is used as a lever to obtain some action.  Complaining to bend the ear of others, mainly to make yourself feel good is probably not a best practice.

On the other hand the use of complaints to warn and inform others can be of value.

Innocent Fallout

Another peeve of my wife’s is the potential impact on the innocent.    In some cases the service provider could provide worse rather than better service.  In general, sugar works better than spanking.

Her fear is the car dealership will mark her as the wife of a notorious complainer and maybe spit in her coffee.