Just Say Yes

The dentist's office called me this morning to make an appointment to have my teeth cleaned. I told them I might need two appointments back-to-back, as I hadn't been there in quite a while. Without giving it any thought at all the woman said, "Oh, we don't work that way. We will determine if you need a second appointment." Do you know why she said that? Insurance companies. They are so used to insurance companies telling them what to do, they have stopped thinking for themselves. Mind you, she didn't think twice about doubling my time and transportation costs.

What do you think would happen if I said, "I want to book every appointment for the whole day, back-to-back. I want to pay cash in advance, right now." I have a hunch they would take the money.

A couple of months ago, my favorite breakfast muffins disappeared from the supermarket. When I asked about them they said, “Oh, we don't get them anymore, because nobody buys them.” Now, I'm not nobody, and I wasn't happy with this answer. I spoke with the department manager. I explained that I knew they ordered their products in quantity, and I knew I might have to buy a dozen packages at once, and I knew I might have to wait a week for them. But I figured that since I had the money, and they had the product, we ought to be able to work something out.

She understood, and agreed. It would have been a whole lot easier if when I first asked they had said, “Yes, we can get them for you. You'll have to buy a dozen packages, and it will take a week to get them. Do you still want them?”

During the time I worked as a design engineer to the commercial electronics industry, I was the can-do guy. The most challenging assignments were given to me. After ten other engineers said “That's impossible,” I said, “Yes, we can do that, although you may not like the price.” Most of the time, they accepted the price. After all, they wanted what they wanted.

There are a hundred reasons why we can't do the job, including “We don't work that way, We don't do that, We never did that before, That's too complex, That's impossible,” and many others. The next time someone wants to give you money, be affirmative. Your customer or client will like the results, and you may like them as well.

Try it. Just say yes.