Don't Be Too Careful

Street food vendors in Mexico City

Be careful.  Two words that can really jack my jaw some days. I'll be careful not to make this too much of a ranting post, okay?  But no guarantees. Full disclosure.

 

I have a friend who is working in Cambodia for three months. He recently posted a photo of flooding in the area where he is temporarily residing while on a teaching gig for nurses. Someone commented "be careful" and it really tripped my trigger. Granted, be careful is a common thing people say without much thought. But I have to tell you, my inner rebel mentally holds up two hands sporting my middle fingers when someone says it to me. Shocking, I know. But she's in there.

 

Do you remember when you were a child being told to be careful to stay within the lines while coloring? Don't talk to strangers, they said. Be careful to bundle up, it's cold out there. Be careful to follow the recipe. Be careful, it's dark by 8.

 

I don't want to be careful. I don't want to be afraid to drive down an unknown road. I don't want to live in so much fear that I can't visit a place I've never been, except maybe Afghanistan. Okay, you have me there. I don't want to avoid that homeless person who is sitting on the corner with a sign . I don't want to not talk to strangers. I don't want to not have the difficult conversations with people. I don't want to follow the recipe to the "T".

 

Recently, my hubby said be careful when I traveled to Nashville with my good friend. Apparently, Nashville has a very high crime. What town doesn't these days? I couldn't even believe he said it to me. This is the same man who took me to Mexico City a couple years ago.

 

We arrived in Mexico City at 10 o'clock at night armed with very little Spanish under our belts and took the subway, in the freaking dark, to our hotel. There are nearly 21,000,000 (that's million!) people living in Mexico City. I admit I had fear, and I'm sure if he was honest, he did too. We pushed past it and got ourselves to the hotel. The next day, we found our way back to the subway and went all over MC for the next 5 days. It was crazy fun and I loved every minute of it. One day we met a guy (Arturo) on the corner who wanted us to rent a taxi from his cousin. He said he would drive us anywhere we wanted to go for cheap. Red flags went up for me. No way was I going to go. I pictured my hubby and me on the front page of the newspaper as American tourists gone missing. We saw that guy every single day we were there and I looked him straight in the eye and said, "no, we're not going with you". Yes, I was guilty of being careful.

 

I have hundreds of examples of not being careful that have turned out just fine for me. 

 

In the future, I hope you'll think about it before you carelessly say be careful. Is it necessary to be careful all the time? 

 

Just sayin.

 

love, susan

Be Prepared ~ An Educational Rant

I haven't ranted in a long time. I don't like to be negative so I've decided I'll call this post educational although I'll be clear that I am writing about one of my biggest pet peeves ~ unpreparedness.

 

I work at a front desk in a public service job and have been doing this work my entire working career of 30+ years. I feel qualified to speak out on this matter. So listen up!

 

I'll go out on a limb and give the general public a slight pass for being unprepared when they call or walk into an office of any kind where they are unfamiliar but I am left wondering every single work day where polite office manners were dropped from high school and college teaching for professionals. I'm guessing it has a lot to do with various business practices and the fact that I am old school. 

 

Identify who you are and what you are calling about, whether you are on the phone or at a front desk. Seriously.  If you are an attorney, doctor, accountant, detective, having spent at least 6 years of your life in college or in a profession, be proud! If you are uncomfortable knowing what to say, here is a template to start with:  "Hello, this is attorney/doctor/detective/accountant John Smith, calling for Mr. Jones, regarding the Johnson case".  Don't make me drag all that information out of you. You are wasting your time and mine.  Please. How hard can this be?  I know it is a generational thing because older professionals are not who I'm writing about here. This template is also good for when you just show up, unannounced with no appointment.  Don't make me say, "are you an attorney/doctor/detective/accountant"?  It's embarrassing for me. Perhaps I should know you but often times I've only met you once or twice. I do my best to remember people but when I am answering 100's of calls and greeting 100's of people, I hate to break this to you, but you are not the center of my universe.  Additionally, it shows poor etiquette on your part when you make me drag it out of you.

 

Have your information and pen ready so I can direct you as quickly as possible. On a daily basis, I talk to no less than 100 people whether on the phone and/or in-person. I can't tell you how many times people call for information and don't have a pen and paper ready to write it down. This is a bigger pet peeve for me than the identification peeve. When you call a business office, think about what it is you are trying to accomplish and keep a pen and paper handy. Receptionists everywhere will love you for it.

 

Don't talk and drive, we can't hear you on the phone and it's against the law in Washington.

Breaking it down:

Do:

• Identify yourself and your reason for calling (be brief)
• Have a pen and paper ready to document information
• Speak clearly and slowly into the phone
• Say please and thank you
• Tell us if you simply don't have any information. We're trained to ask you the right questions to get you where you want to be. Let us help you.

Don't:

• Don't assume the office you are calling knows who you are. It's okay to identify yourself each and every time you call. We love that!
• Don't make us drag every single bit of information out of you, be prepared.
• Don't call from the road. We can't hear you and it's dangerous for you and the public.

I hope this rant has been helpful and not snarky. If I am wrong here with any of my rant or you have something to add, please leave me a comment. I'd truly love to hear from you!

love, susan