Which person would you rather talk to?

One week last fall, I had two polar opposite customer service-type experiences. 

I went to a doctor at a reputable center—a specialist I was referred to with a specific but not urgent problem—and I spoke with someone in the collections department at the IRS about requesting penalty forgiveness.

One was kind, respectful, and caring enough to make sure I understood exactly what had happened, what would happen, and what I should do. He empathized. He was relaxed, spoke with a sense of humor, and gave me a clear understanding of how this phase in the process works. 

The other was a doctor.

The doctor did the minimum possible and after that shrugged me off, answered my questions obscurely and in brief, and tried to refer me back to the person who’d sent me his way. I resisted—I’d put a lot of time into this already, and thought perhaps there was a legitimate reason I was sent his way in the first place. And when, after repeated questions on my part, I finally understood something, he gave me a condescending, “Oh, you’re smart.” 

(I think you know that this is not the rule. I’ve been to wonderful doctors. And I’ve spoken to IRS representatives who don’t know what they’re talking about. And I’ve come across people who were neither wonderful nor horrible but had the self-awareness and honesty to respond well when probed for more. 

Here’s one story I like that illustrates the last of these:

My mother, years ago, had strange long-standing symptoms that were eventually diagnosed as hypoglycemia. Years before she was finally diagnosed, she had some tests done. The doctor said: “It’s nothing.” My mother (and here you’ll understand where I come from): “If it’s nothing, what is it?” The doctor: “If it’s nothing, then we don’t know.”)

But I think this goes to show that anyone, in any position, however theoretically unpleasant (I repeat: IRS collections) can be lovely to work with. To interact with. And our expectations are so, so low, that if you simply care enough to understand where your customer is coming from and to help her get where she wants to go—you stand out. You’re memorable in the best possible way. And we are ever grateful. 

For having called the IRS.

Send me emails like this, Ophira!