I’ve readily admitted to
being a geek. Whether it has to do with debating Heinlein vs. Scalzi, Original
vs. Next Generation, or David Tennant vs. Matt Smith, I’ve enjoyed some
interesting conversations with many people of the “nerdish” persuasion. So, it
pains me to admit this to my tech-savvy brethren, as well as to you, the “normal”
reader, but I must get this off my chest.
I don’t have an i5.
No, it’s true. I will
understand if you delete my address from your multiple contact lists and email
address books. You may “un-Friend” me without shame. You may even kick me out
of your WoW guild. I will understand. It will hurt but I’m certain I will get
over it… someday.
Please, before you “textcommunicate
me,” allow me to explain. I WANTED an i5. I even BOUGHT an i5. I went into the
local AT&T store, selected the black, 32-gigabyte beast, signed that
contract, paid those “upgrade fees,” and was told that the phone, my personal light-saber,
tricorder and sonic-screwdriver, all in one shiny plastic case… this golden
ticket to the new age would be in the store in two weeks.
Two weeks passed by in
agonizingly slow motion. I checked the order status, on-line of course, and could
find no “recent order” on my account. I was horrified, aghast, shocked, I tell
you, Shocked!
I called the store to learn
when I might come and collect “my Precious!” and I was told that there was “some
misunderstanding.” The person on the other end of the conversation could find
no information about my order, other than it was “pending.” I was transferred to the saleswoman who had
been “so helpful” when my wife and I were at the store in person. She now told
me that the phone would not be in the store until “14 to 21 business days.”
When I pointed out that this was NOT what she had told me on that beautiful
Saturday afternoon, only two weeks ago, her response was simply, “well, YOU
signed the paperwork.” Her closing comment was, “The only thing I could do at
this point is to cancel the order… but that won’t get you your phone any
faster.” Stunned and crestfallen I discommed and sat in sullen silence.
This conversation flipped a
switch in my brain and my entire attitude changed. The “salesperson’s” tone had
reminded me of a voice from the past. It was Lilly Tomlin’s character, Ernestine
the telephone operator, who spent her days ridiculing, sabotaging and insulting
customers and ended each interaction with the slogan: “We don’t care. We don’t
have to. We’re the phone company.”
I also realized something
very basic, very simple and absolutely true: I didn’t need an “i5.” There was
nothing wrong with the phone I had, in fact, a short two years ago, it was the “cutting
edge” of technology. It continues to make calls, send/receive texts and works quite
well as my “e-reader.” And if I didn’t NEED a new phone, why the heck was I
allowing AT&T, Apple, or whatever combination of the two corporations, to treat
me like they were doing me a favor to string me along and abuse me this way?
Another two weeks came and
went… and nothing had changed. No phone, no “record of my order” and no contact
from the office. So, on Tuesday I went back to the AT&T office. It’s
amazing how “face-to-face” contact improves the quality of service. But… they
still had no information about “my” i5. So, I told them to sho…. to cancel the
order. Lo and behold, the almighty computer NOW said that I “couldn’t” cancel
the order because it had “been dropped for shipping.” (I still don’t know what
that really means… and I still don’t really care.) The salesperson spoke with a
manager and he agreed with me when I said that the way my order had been
processed was unacceptable. He also assured me that, “whether the order is
cancelled, or if it arrives at the store, I would be ‘taken care of’.” This was
the type of service and respect I expect.
Guess what? Early the next morning
I received an email from AT&T, informing me that “my” phone was on the way
and would be in the store on Friday. Friday evening I received a call from a
person in the store, telling me “my” phone had arrived and that I could come
pick it up.
Today, I went to the store
and confirmed that I did NOT want the phone and that I DID want the cost,
upgrade and fees to be refunded to my credit card. The salesperson (who was the
person with whom I first spoke, over a month ago) was absolutely STUNNED that I
would not want the phone. However, with her manager's assistance and authorization, she was able to cancel, return and refund
all the necessary things to their appropriate spots, slots and places.
So what? What did I learn
from this and why am I bothering you with the story? It’s not like either
AT&T or Apple will care that I didn’t buy the latest toy. In fact, someone
else has probably already purchased the damn thing. So, obviously, this wasn’t
about changing the “corporate giants.”
Nope. This was only about my
choosing to respect myself and choosing not to accept disrespect from others.
If the salesperson on the phone had been more respectful and demonstrated some
interest in satisfying the customer, I probably would have waited. Oh, sure, I
would have sulked, paced, and grumbled but I could have accepted the delay. What
I chose not to accept was being treated shabbily, as if I was unimportant. The
delay offered me the time and space to remember that I am a valuable person.
But, I am only going to be treated as such by others if I treat myself with
respect and refuse to accept anything less.
I still like my toys, but, today,
I like myself just a little bit more.
