Thank you to everyone who commented on my last post–it was very interesting and enlightening to read about the challenges that diabetics face in every type of job. On another work-related note, I thought I\u2019d write about an interaction with a customer that I had recently.<\/p>\n
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A woman bought a book and asked me to gift-wrap it. I moved the book to a side counter and had begun to cover it with wrapping paper when she suddenly asked: \u201cWhat are you allergic to?\u201d<\/p>\n
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I was too startled to respond with a polite Sorry?<\/em> or Excuse me?<\/em><\/p>\n \n \n \u201cWhat?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n \n \n \u201cWhat are you allergic to?\u201d<\/p>\n \n \n I was still trying to figure out what she meant when she sighed and rolled her eyes. \u201cYou know, what\u2019s that bracelet<\/em> for?\u201d<\/p>\n \n \n I glanced down at my wrist. \u201cOh…my MedicAlert bracelet! It\u2019s just because I have diabetes. I\u2019m not allergic to anything.\u201d<\/p>\n \n \n \u201cSo why do you have to wear a bracelet?\u201d<\/p>\n \n \n \u201cWell, in case anything happened to me, and I needed to be taken to the hospital, the doctors would know what to do.\u201d<\/p>\n \n \n I assumed that now, with her mistake corrected, the customer would fall silent. Instead, she asked: \u201cSo what could happen to you?\u201d<\/p>\n \n \n \u201cIf my blood sugar was low enough, I could faint.\u201d<\/p>\n \n \n \u201cWhat would the doctors do?\u201d<\/p>\n \n \n I was reluctant to explain the intricacies of injecting glucagon to a stranger in a crowded store. \u201cUh, they would give me something with sugar in it.\u201d<\/p>\n \n \n \u201cAnd what would they do for a normal person?\u201d<\/p>\n \n \n \u201cI don\u2019t really know, ma\u2019am. It would depend. Someone could become unconscious for a lot of different reasons.\u201d<\/p>\n \n \n Meanwhile, I had been cutting wrapping paper and slapping on tape as quickly as possible. But my last answer apparently satisfied the customer. She didn\u2019t say anything more as she grabbed her beribboned package and headed out the door.<\/p>\n \n \n During this conversation, all I could think was: when will it be over? The customer\u2019s inquisitiveness struck me as all the more annoying because I felt that, as a sales person, I couldn\u2019t refuse to answer her questions without seeming impolite (not that I would have refused anyway–it was just the principle that bothered me).<\/p>\n \n \n Afterwards, though, I realized that I shouldn\u2019t have been in such a hurry to end the conversation. Even if the customer seemed to be motivated by curiosity rather than genuine concern, she still wanted to know something about diabetes. Instead of feeling imposed upon, I could have viewed this conversation as a chance to educate someone about diabetes who probably would not have ordinarily been interested. Rather than trying to fob the customer off with vague replies, I could have seized the chance to engage her in a helpful dialogue. Although her life seemed untouched by diabetes as of yet, it\u2019s possible that one of her friends, relatives, or she herself might be diagnosed in the future. If I had been articulate and engaging enough, she might have even developed a philanthropic interest in diabetes. And at the very least, if she ever was in the position to help an unconscious diabetic, I would definitely want her to know what to do after seeing a MedicAlert bracelet.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":53098,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1501],"tags":[677,678,123],"yoast_head":"\n