Customer Service…Where Do You Draw the Line?

A few nights ago, I was working at my second job selling fine jewelry and the department phone rang. I answered the phone and on the other end was a manager letting me know she was transferring a customer who was very irate ‘cause he had been trying to get through to our fine jewelry department for a half an hour. My thoughts? “Uh..oh…what am I in for?”

Here’s how the phone conversation went:
Me:  Hello, Fine Jewelry, may I help you?
Customer:  YEAH, I”VE BEEN TRYING TO GET THROUGH FOR THE LAST 30 MINUTES! I NEED YOUR HELP!
Me:  Okay, what can I help you with?
Customer:   NOW LISTEN! IT’S MY DAUGHTER’S 15TH BIRTHDAY, AND I WANT TO GET HER A REALLY NICE PRESENT! ARE YOUR SALES AT THE LOWEST RIGHT NOW? ARE THEY 50% OFF OR MORE?
Me:  Well, our jewelry is at its lowest prices right now, but now everything is 50% off. Our diamonds are 30% off with an extra 15% and our...
Customer:  HEY! DON’T B.S. ME! I WANT TO KNOW IF YOUR SALE PRICES ARE HALF OFF? I WANT TO GET SOMETHING THAT’S VALUED AT $100 ON SALE FOR $50. I HAVEN’T WORKED FOR 14 MONTHS AND I’VE BEEN SICK FOR THE LAST TWO WEEKS. THIS IS THE FIRST TIME I’VE COME OUT OF THE HOUSE IN TWO WEEKS AND I WANT TO GET MY DAUGHTER A VERY NICE PRESENT FOR $50!
Me:  I think we can find you something.
Customer:  I JUST PARKED MY CAR AND I’M COMING IN WHAT DO YOU LOOK LIKE?
Me:  I’m the only redhead in the department.
Customer:  ARE YOU THE ONE WITH THE BIG BEHIND?
Me:  Wow! Are you here already? Where are you?
Customer:  (chuckles) I’ll be in soon.

Would you have hung up on this guy? And if so, when? I was trying to be understanding. He was probably very frustrated for many reasons, but still, the “big behind” comment was completely out-of-line, don’t you think?

When he entered the department he walked up to me and the first thing he did was comment on my looks and how beautiful he thought I was and how he expected me to look differently because of the sound of my voice over the phone. He said, “I want to apologize for being so rude on the phone…” My thoughts, “Dude, you already made your first impression, too late to try to charm me now.”

As I’m trying to show him possible gifts for his daughter, he kept trying to hit on me. He said, “Oh, I notice you don’t have a wedding ring on, if you don’t mind me asking, are you single? Please say you’re not married.”

Dang, why did I tell him the truth? Forty-five minutes later, I’m still trying to sell him a piece of jewelry for his daughter and he’s still hitting on me. He ended up choosing a heart pendant that was on sale for $300, completely out of his budget. He asked me to put it on hold for him…I know he’s not coming back for this – why did he waste so much of my time? ugh….

Sure enough, the next time I came back to work, the piece was back in the case. So, what did I learn from this experience?

Once again, nonverbal communication had a role here. The high-pitch tone of my voice over the phone, gave him the impression that he could act rudely to me without any consequences. But, what if I never talked to him on the phone and he just came in person? Would he have tried to act charming? And if he would have, would I have fallen for it not knowing the other side to him? Hopefully not, yet it reminds me of the important lesson of how people are not always what they seem. 

Key of Gratitude

A very popular pendant these days is an old-fashioned style key. Like these:

If a man gave this type of pendant to you, it would mean that he had given you the key to his heart – a symbol of his love for you. Isn’t that romantic?

But, what if you don’t have a man? I don’t, but I like the idea of the key. Simply buying one for myself, for no particular reason, doesn’t seem enough, though. It lacks sentimentality. What’s the meaning behind it? What makes it special?
 
I had been thinking for several months, how pretty I thought they were and how I’d like to have one. I also like the ornate heirloom look they have to them. A few months went by of thinking, “Oh, I’ll just wait for a boyfriend to come along and he can give me one.” Well, no boyfriend…no key. How long do I wait? I decided to pull a flip-flop. ;-)

I really like the book called The Secret by Rhonda Byrne. Basically, the book describes the law of attraction and how like attracts like. It’s a great motivational tool and I love how she collaborated with many authors, ministers, philosophers and teachers to create it.

I recently read another book by Ms. Byrne, called The Power. This, too, is very inspirational, as she speaks of the force of love in all of the different aspects of your life. I enjoy how she incorporates quotes from scientists, inventors, Nobel Prize winners and religious leaders and gives examples from lives of prominent people, like Albert Einstein and Lance Armstrong and even her own to make her points.

One chapter particularly stuck out to me, and that was called “Keys to Power.” Next to each subheading, is a drawing of an old-fashioned key like the pendants pictured above. One subheading was called “The Key of Gratitude.” In it, Ms. Byrne’s states, “Every time you feel grateful you are giving love, and whatever you give, you receive.”

I remembered the story of the “gratitude rock” mentioned by Lee Brower (author and teacher) in The Secret and how he had picked up a small rock and associated it with gratitude and thankfulness and put that rock in his pocket and every time he felt it or saw it he would be reminded of how much he had to be thankful for - associating the intangible with something tangible.

Suddenly, it all came together! Guess what I did….yep, I bought myself a key pendant. It is my “Key of Gratitude.” I really do have a lot to be grateful and thankful for! 

No Tengo Mas Que Dar Te

I have heard so many unusual, beautiful and interesting stories from customers (both from Purple Eyes Designs and from the department store where I have a part-time job selling fine jewelry).

For example, one afternoon an older gentleman, Robert, visited the fine jewelry department perusing around. I asked him questions trying to determine what type of gift he wanted to purchase. As we were talking, he felt compelled to share with me a story he had heard on the History Channel.

Around 20 years ago divers found a Spanish shipwreck from the 1500’s off the coast of Ireland. Amongst the wreckage they found a skeleton of a man. They noticed the skeleton was wearing a ring and the divers were amazed that it had stayed on his finger for almost 500 years. Upon a closer look at the ring, they noticed that it was quite unusual. It was pure gold and was shaped like a man’s hand holding a heart. As Robert was telling the story to me he paused. I was so moved when I realized he was getting choked-up.

Tears had welled-up in his eyes and his voice cracked as he continued telling the story. You see, before the sailor had boarded the ship hundreds of years ago, he met with his lover, one last time. She had given him the ring to wear during his journey to remind him of her undying love for him. Nothing could have been more sentimental, as the ring was the ultimate symbol of her love with the inscription inside which read, “No tengo mas que dar te”, which means “I have nothing more to give thee.”

As Robert finished telling the story, I noticed my sight was getting a little blurry from the tears forming in my eyes.  Not only because the story was so touching, but because it was so beautiful to hear a man tell such a romantic story and be so moved by it when telling it.

Of course, as soon as I got home I did some research on the internet to see if the story was true. And it is!

The ring is currently on exhibit at the Ulster Museum located in the Botanical Gardens in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

A brief description of the ring is mentioned on this site:  Elizabeth’s Pirates – The Armada – The Story of the Girona