A good E-4 will always tackle their assigned tasks. They just may not do it in the exact order –or level of alacrity– that is assumed.

As a young E-4 myself, Back in The Day, I would frequently find that I needed to “get supplies” in order to accomplish some task. Maybe a broom, or some tools, or copier paper… it did not matter.

In my early days, I would simply slow-walk to the destinations, allowing myself to “take the scenic route” or stop to socialize with other E-4s I met along the way. Then I realized I could incorporate stops at vending machines, and later, side trips to the PX (Post Exchange, the general store).

Jobs would get done, but I learned to slowly expand the time needed to do those jobs (also covered in a previous comic).

And what about when I returned to my task, and was asked why it had taken so long?

“I ended up having to clean a section of the maintenance bay” or something like that. Sometimes you could even game the system and say, “I was on my way back, but I saw they were grabbing people for another detail, and I had to take the long way around to avoid them.” This shows that your primary loyalty remained to the person who assigned you the first task, and that you were smart enough to avoid being trapped in a competitor’s task.

Maximum brownie points ensue.