I had a little chuckle when I read this post. Let me explain...
Last time I got reading glasses, the woman at the optometrist convinced me to get bifocals. I paid a pretty price for these as I wanted a nice light frame that enhanced my face and not just some practical pair of ugly free hospital glasses which are available to poor people like myself. As lessons would have it, i was taught that vanity has no place in selecting eyewear that is necessary for reading instead of making a fashion statement. These glasses turned out to be worse than useless. The line where the two lenses meet was right in front of my line of vision so I had trouble reading. Then they kept slipping down my nose and falling off. And finally, one of the flimsy little wire arms broke so they no longer were usable.
So I made an appointment with the optometrist to have a new pair made. I was told that the company who owned the service had changed and now they have a budget eyewear range beginning at just $50 which are basic and practical (the same thing a free pair were to begin with). I was assured the even thought he shop name had changed that the staff and friendly service hadn't, so I booked an appointment. They were pretty busy so I had to wait 6 weeks to get in - which I didn't mind, since I had been there several times before and understood how in demand their services were.
Yesterday my appointment finally arrived. I got my son to end his Science lesson early so I could attend (he is home-schooled) which was a slight inconvenience for him but still we didn't mind that much. We set out against gale force winds and squalls of rain (there had been a severe weather warning out for the past few days about a trough of the coast causing chaotic conditions). The half hour journey through the elements was challenging but still I was in a positive mood. I arrived right on time for the appointment only to realise there were no available parking spaces anywhere near the shop. So I drove around the block once, and then twice and as luck would have it, a space appeared right round the corner from the optometrist. So my son and I get out of the car into the wind and rain and battle our way to the shop's entrance. We are hardly inside when a smooth looking gentleman whom I had never seen before approached me. I explained I had an appointment and he consulted the computer at the reception desk. He told me that I was late and that I could not see the optometrist that day and would have to rebook. I looked at him flabbergasted. I was five minutes late, if that and he had cancelled my appointment. It was then I looked around the shop and noticed not a single familiar face from the old staff. The new employees were all slickly dressed and wearing bluetooth ear pieces! It was like a scene out of a high corporate company, not a tiny country town optometry business.
So I explained to the man behind the counter that I had been on time but could not get a park so had to drive round the block till I found one. His tone became quite hostile as he retorted "Well that's not our fault." Normally I would accept this sort of treatment but not today. I looked him in the eye and calmly replied, "It's not my fault either." Then I explained that I had driven thirty kilometres through hazardous weather to attend this appointment and he responded with "You can't be seen today because it will throw all our other appointments out and we're booked solid." I said that I knew that because I had already waited 6 weeks for this appointment. He seemed unaffected and perused his computer suggesting several unsuitable appointment times. Twice I had to remind him I had school age children and needed at least a half hour travel time to get to the appointment and yet he still offered times that weren't convenient. Finally, when he realised I wasn't going to back down to his corporate bully tactics, his demeanor changed back to pleasant and he offered me an appointment that was suitable.
The three powers are interwoven throughout this little anecdote. I stayed present in the moment - really present so as to manifest what I needed. I spoke my truth despite feeling not heard. I was not going to let somebody entrenched in the institution of commerce rob me of my self esteem by making me feel insignificant. And I took an assertive stand. I refused to own the blame for lateness when it was caused by an external factor and not a personal fault of my own. I also expected to be treated like a valued customer rather than a block space in an appointment log on a screen. I wasn't rude. I simply exercised my personal power. And if the treatment at that shop does not improve, then I will exercise my right as a consumer and take my business elsewhere. But for now I think that by staying focused I was able to remind another human being about the power we all have to be treated with respect and as an equal.
Mon Oct 11, 2010 2:15 pm
