Being a Type 2 in the Eneagram, I was bound to be in the profession of serving others.  This is a blessing and a curse. I love to help people. There’s no better feeling than to know you’ve enriched someone else’s life, even if in a small way.

When I was a closing agent, I got to tell people face to face that their interest rate was not what their mortgage broker promised. I needed $1,000 more than what they were told. Or their house wasn’t ready yet and they’d have to come back next week.  These were hard conversations to have, but for the most part, people were cordial. Usually people understood it wasn’t my fault and I was doing everything in my power to remedy their situation.

As an insurance agent, I still deal with people, but not typically face to face. The majority of my job is handled over the phone. The difference that I’ve noticed dealing with people over the phone as opposed to face to face is, people have more courage when on the phone. It’s way easier to speak your mind when you aren’t looking someone in the eyes. For example, today I was told that we are awesome. In the same hour, we were also called worthless pieces of $h!t. When I very first started my new job, I would freak out anytime anyone was unhappy. It’s my personality to try my best to make everyone happy. I would panic when someone called to cancel their policy. I now know that you just have to smile and wish them a good day as your hang up with them. I’ve learned to let it roll off my back. (which is huge for me) Because I know in an hour, I will have made someone’s day, and that makes it worth it.

Just remember as you call your local service providers, just because you don’t like what a company has done, it is more than likely not the person you are speaking too’s fault. You can usually draw more flies with honey than vinegar.