Never Act on Unconfirmed Information

I almost committed a grievous mistake a couple of days ago. It began when I came back from school last Friday. On the way to my room, I met my flatmate who asked me if I intend to stay in the current accommodation for the next one year. When I gave a firm positive answer, she told me to think twice, sharing with me about the supposedly unsafe neighborhood that this accommodation is in.

Without checking with other people, I stormed to the accommodation office on Monday, requesting for a change of accommodation (giving inconvenience as an excuse). The staff at the counter told me that the school accommodations are currently over-booked and if I want to change to another school-run accommodation, I have to join the waiting list but in order to do that, I have to cancel the 1-year contract which I have with the current accommodation. He advised me to think through it because only 10% of the applicants in the waiting list will usually be successful in getting a room. At that point in time, I almost told him to cancel my existing contract and put me in the waiting list. But for some reasons, I didn’t do it.

As I walked back to class, I suddenly realized that I had been running around like a mad dog because of a single comment made by a flatmate which I didn’t even bother to confirm its credibility. I wasn’t impressed with myself. Having committed so many mistakes throughout my life, I should have learnt from them and yet I almost committed a naive mistake.

As soon as I talked to several people, I found out that the neighborhood of my current accommodation is not that bad afterall. The worst comment I obtained is that there had been several cases of small robbery on the street for the past one year which I personally think is perfectly normal considering that London is a city of 23 million people, each with different background. As long as I take the necessary precautions such as not wandering outside late at night and not carrying excessive valuables, I believe I would be fine.

If I had cancelled my existing contract, I would probably be homeless very soon. Even if I manage to find another external accommodation, it will definitely be more expensive considering that the school does not run it.

To remind myself not to commit the same mistake again, I have put a very big note on my noticeboard: Never act on any information until its credibility is confirmed.