In my day-to-day life, I’m a nice guy who is easy to work with. I am intelligent, polite, and friendly. I listen well, I’m adept at finding compromise when issues reach an impasse, and I can work with just about anyone.
People like me.
But they don’t know me.
Oh, my other sides come out now and then. The edge in my voice when someone pushes too far. My refusal to back down when I know someone is clearly in the wrong (no matter how high up the food chain they are; I hate bullies).
And, of course, the occasional conversation with some of my colleagues. They’re not particularly predatorial, but…
—
The phone rang; I answered it without looking away from my screen. “Off-site team, how can I help you?”
“This is Laura in the NOC, I’ve got a ticket for you.” One of the NOC’s responsibilities is to route tickets to the different teams. I usually get one or two a day, but not often from the same NOC technician. This was the second day in a row that Laura had called me with a ticket.
“How come you never call just to say hi?” I finished the e-mail and hit the SEND button. Leaning back in my chair, I added, “It’s always, ‘I have a ticket for you.’ or, ‘Do you know they have an SLA with us?’. It’s never ‘how are you today?’ or ‘I just had to call and tell you how much I appreciate you.'”
She laughed, “How are you today? I want you to know how much I appreciate you. How are you feeling? How was the drive into the work? How was your weekend-“
“Okay, okay. What’s the ticket number?” She gave it to me, along with a few details on the issue. I thanked her and added, “You’re going to make this a habit, calling me. Best be careful.”
***
The next morning, sure enough, another call. It’s Laura again.
I smiled, “You just can’t keep away, can you?”
You’re a charmer … this is why people are drawn to you. Of course this is just my gut reaction from reading posts that you do.
But I do like how you talked to Laura … very cute!
Ob
Well sugar, I wouldn’t be able to keep away… you are indeed a charmer.. much more so in real life than here.. and if that is true.. god help the women who deal with you daily in a business way!!
Yes, Dearest. You are certainly a charmer of women. Your unique ability to simply ignore the emotional armor of women allows you to touch them in ways others cannot. Although you do this easily with the written word, to do so face-to-face, when the armor is thicker, is quite a bit more impressive.