Pushy people

Twice. Twice now this year already I've said "No" and the salesperson heard a different version of "Yes." "Yes, but not now." "Yes, if only circumstances were different." As a result, I've come away with freebies both times, and both times I've written glowing reviews which the companies' PR people will have read with glee. Is "No" secretly the answer a canny organisation wants to hear?

(To further strengthen this I should say they didn't just get one-off praise: the law of reciprocity kicked in and I very swiftly spent more money with both brands, be it directly or by recommending to others. So perhaps it is all very clever sales strategy - move over Jordan Belfort; the new sales geniuses are in town.)

Both times I've meant what I said. I didn't need the expensive make-up. I truly didn't have enough room for the dessert. But both times I genuinely appreciated the gesture - and that's really what I 'got' out of the exchange, not the object freely placed in front of me. Even after a "No", the salespeople did me a good turn. They actively wanted to make me happy - it wasn't all an act! They like me! Hurrah!

Is it all about vindication by acceptance? We all like to impress other people, typically by appearance, talent or intellect - but by sheer personality? That's something much harder to shape, or contrive, and therefore only worth doing on significant occasions (in which I wouldn't include browsing a beauty store or midweek dining with friends). So on any normal day, when our unfiltered nature results in the physical manifestation of a hitherto stranger pushing the "Like" button - well, what a compliment.

I've taken this inspiration from sales encounters, but it can just as well apply to any interaction. And so I leave both myself and yourself, dear reader, with this challenge: as I go about my day and cross paths with several strangers, could I be attentive and selfless enough to warm to someone, hear the negative in their voice but continue to do them a good turn anyway? Could I do in real life what's so easy to do in the digital world (with the impact to the receiver being equally, and therefore dramatically, proportional): could I push someone's metaphorical "Like" button?