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Telemarketing: A View From The Other Side
Last
evening at 8:39 a telemarketer called. From the Caller ID, I could tell
that we were about to receive a once-in-a-lifetime vacation opportunity.
When I picked up the phone, I could hear an already ongoing conversation.
Our caller was a telemarketer-in-training and she was receiving
instructions from her supervisor. So I listened for a while to the
protocol - how to convince an unsuspecting home dweller that they should
take advantage of this offer.
First, the young
woman was to assure us that she was not a telemarketer. We were selected,
of course, because we were special. We were chosen from a long list of
qualified recipients. We were among the best to receive a trip. The
conversation faded until the supervisors voice became adamant
Never -
ever - mention PARKING! And if the customer asks, change the subject! On
and on she went about the forbidden topic of parking. Exactly what that
was about I never did find out. But I did learn one thing: this young
woman was being taught how to mislead and deceive. She was being given
specific instructions on how to avoid the truth.
After we were
suddenly disconnected, I planned my strategy for
her return call. The first thing I was going to ask was
What about the
parking? But after a while I began to see the more human side of the
call. Here was a young lady, obviously needing an income, being escorted
into a career of compromise. No, she was not on the street. But, in a way,
she was selling herself she was selling her
integrity.
What this young woman needed was not an agreeable customer, but prayer.
She needed God to lead her into a profession in which she could speak the
truth and prosper. A profession that met her financial needs while
strengthening her spirit. A profession in which she
would never again have to compromise her integrity. Because, in the end,
that is all we have. Zechariah, Chapter 8: Verses 16-17
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