Putting it into practice…….

Over the last several days I’ve shared about how I believe God wants us to relate to others.  Sitting behind a table full of camera gear and answering a bewildering number of questions is a good test bed for putting that into practice.  For the most part my customers are really nice people, only a very small percentage are difficult to deal with.  The group I’ve been working with this weekend are among the best I see anywhere in America.  These folks are truly down to earth, easy people to deal with.  The excitement about the D4 and D800/D800e was at a fever pitch with many of these folks.  Even in a great group like this you have a very small handful that are not happy campers, that’s when you get a chance to see just how much the Lord has taught you!

When someone comes up with a problem and they feel it may be my company’s at fault it really gives you the chance to see how you can overcome their frustrations.  I spoke to a man today that had a lot of problems with his camera, far more than is usual.  He was convinced that he had a lemon and was fairly insistent that we needed to replace it!  I asked him if he could walk me through the issues with all the details.  I could tell that just having someone let him vent and express his frustration helped him.  After we went through what the camera was doing, that it shouldn’t have been doing, we started to try to find out what the reason was behind the camera’s issues.

I suspected that his issues could be some menu items that were set incorrectly, rather than tell him that, I involved him in walking through the menus with me.  Every time I found something that should have been set differently, I took the time to explain to him why it needed to be changed.   After we found several incorrect settings, together, I asked him to try to replicate the problem, which was now resolved!  He was a very happy camper and he understood why his camera was better.  He walked away thinking we were now the good guys!

So what just happened.   I listened, I worked with the customers to find the problem, and them let him become a part of the solution.  Every- body won and that’s how you would love for all these issues to turn out.  Sadly, sometimes a camera needs to go in for repair, or you have to give the bad news that the dropped and badly damage camera, may not be able to be repaired without a great deal of expense.  Once again staying calm and being sympathetic does wonders.

As a tech rep, I know the same thing I know as a Christian, when people are frustrated or upset, sometimes what they need more than anything is a person that will listen and try to help them.  I know that I can’t fix every problem, I do know that I can understand their frustrations, and do everything I can to help.  Sometimes we all need just someone to care.

Christ cared for us so much that He gave His life for us. I’ve never been asked make that kind of sacrifice, but I surely can listen, and respond with respect and concern. I want to treat people that way He would.

Blessings,

the pilgrim