
Thursday, January 4, 2007
On my daily route very few phrases are needed. There is,
1. Hello!
2. How are you today?
3. Good! How are you?
4. You’re welcome!
5. Have a great day (or nice day, good day, great evening, nice evening, good evening)!
The combination possibilities are endless! Using the above expressions and a rudimentary knowledge of the weather, you have it made. For collecting you need a few more.
All of the above
Is right now a good time to collect?
Yes, it is about that time of the month again!
Thank you! [or]
That’s alright! [regardless of what you actually think]
I will try to come back tomorrow. [or]
I will be back on Friday. [and the next and the next]
Do you notice all the exclamation marks? Well, that is because almost everything I say has to be happy, enthusiastic, and friendly. It is not always easy, but what else can I do? They don’t know me as me; they know me as a paper carrier who (hopefully) does the very best job she can, smiles, is polite, helpful, and efficient. They also know me as the one who will stop by every month and cheerfully request $7.50. In some ways I prefer my Office Pay Customers; I don’t need to ask them for money. My Carrier Collect Customers have a closer relationship with me, and, depending on the customer, that can be either good or really bad.