Clients are interesting folks to say the least. They have such a quirky touch to them. It's like, they hatched out of a different egg than the rest of us folks... That doesn't make much sense, but it will once you read the story.
My days have been extremely long and tiring. I think I have already worked 40 hours and it is JUST Wednesday. I am not sure how I have been able to keep up with work -- in the work work sense and socially. I just sometimes want to just sit and chat all day, catch up on life over a nice cold lemonade, and then BAM! reports and everything get slammed in your face and before you can say anything, you get a memo that says "I needed this yesterday, by the way". Great. Just Great. But the worst part is, reports may be long and comprehensive, but do no good just sitting in someone's mailbox or on a desk after it's been opened and printed out -- and then our meeting will probably consist of "can you please explain to me what this pie chart means?" AHHHHHHHHHHH. The same game. Every meeting. And I'm the one who gets paid less than half of what the Boss Man makes? Fabulous. Just freakin' fabulous.
Everyone at the office seems to be on their own time line, but it is kept a secret, so you don't know what move they are going to make next. Let's think, like chess, you can see their obvious move, and then ta-da! CHECKMATE. Sucks. a. Lot. Can't it be like Candyland or Monopoly?? Role some dice or pick a card, take a risk but cash in large! Right now, it's just a game of the not so Beautiful Mind versus the Gen Y, reality show junkie.
So clients. My clients are a little different. They have their own personality and their own spunkiness to them, which is great and all, but sometimes, they have to know when to stop selling and just be real. I totally understand you want us to spend more money with you, what companies doesn't want you to do that? But when we are focused on SAVINGS and BUDGETS, it is so hard to really shake these folks down and say, "look, CHILL OUT --" it's just the nod, smile, uh-huh :) that's all you can do. And it is so frustrating at times... to just see that they don't get what you are trying to get across... maybe it's they just don't care. Yes. That makes more sense.
But clients also have an interesting take on things. If you don't want their business, they want to pursue you even more. Like the game of dating. When you play hard to get, all of a sudden, the party that had no interest in you at all, starts to engage you in a cat and mouse game. WHY? And then when you give them the attention, they have options of 1) being more annoying and wanting more and more and more, or 2) being the biggest #)$(&)#*( they can be, and in the end, still annoying you, but leaving you with a horrible feeling in your stomach. (Maybe the clients are causing my pain in my stomach!) In sales, there is a fine line between being persistent and being annoying. Many don't find this fine line until someone points it out to them or a client rudely mentions it and then demands to speak to your manager. I avoid all calls at work marked "PRIVATE" now because I can't stand to think of speaking to this one sales guy anymore. You can only say "no thank you" to such a degree before their dumb questions and not so intelligent responses will just be the straw that breaks the camel's back. Onto the comparison...
Consumers - so we all consume everything. It just cracks me up because when you are a consumer, you feel entitled. You have this sense of "this belongs to me and I deserve this because..." and all of the reasons you can think of, can be applied to this idea. So when clients become consumers, it is annoying. Seriously. Annoying. I can't really go into detail about the business, but it is just one of those times when I want to take the phone and shove it back in their ear and tell them to figure it out -- all of course done with a smile and friendly voice. It's all about how you say things, not what you say. That is the golden rule for today's notes.
And guys in the office are interesting. I have my work husband, JC, who seems to need more attention than the yellow lab puppy I've watch grow up before my eyes. Just because I had a lunch meeting with a client and had other things on my calendar, doesn't mean I love you any less as a work husband. But now, here is the real challenge. Mixing work with my weekend. How will JC handle friends from college in a cabin far away from civilization? How will my friends reaction with JC and Mr. Film (his friend from college) as they are representations of my life and my work working world now? Ground rules should be set, but that is just me, being me. But mixing the two, could be a deadly combination. What Mr. Original Consultant once said to me 2 years ago, mixing pleasure and business is never a good idea -- only certain circumstances -- though he wasn't exactly the greatest role model, or had the brightest bulb of the bunch, he sometimes had insight. Though, I'm not sure how he is doing right now, as that just was a messy burning bridge that fell into a lake filled with acid and never to be rebuilt again. Complex, yes. Perhaps when I have an encounter that will bring me to write a story about Mr. OC, we'll go back and revisit the situation, analyze the results, conclude with some charts and close that chapter. Until then, Mr. OC will remain in the back of my mind -- like that little bird that told you that secret you really weren't supposed to know about.
Golden Rule of the Day:
The undergraduate Dean once said, your lack of planning does not constitute an emergency on my part. People should learn that. QUICK. But I guess that doesn't apply until I make the six figures... soon enough, just soon enough...
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