Ever hear of “talking to the teddy”? That’s the time honoured technique of explaining a particularly troubling and hasslesome technical issue to a colleague only to realize half-way through the explanation that the answer is obvious and the problem far tamer than you thought.

You can save face and others’ time by replacing a colleague with a small teddy bear. Explain your woes to that first. Otherwise, there’s a greater than even chance I might make strange noises and sit there, staring blankly at you the first time we talk about a problem.