Ring! Ring!
Me: IT Department, this is Daniel.
Caller: Hey, Dan? This is Tom of XXX.
Me: Good morning, Tom. How are you doing?
Tom: I’m doing really bad, man. I think I’m positive for the virus.
Me: I’m sorry to hear that. How can I help you, today?
Tom: you could come over here and fix my internet. I can’t connect to anything. Not even Google will come up.
Me: Tom, I’m not coming to your house, man. No way, no how. I can’t risk getting sick, right now.
Tom: Man! That’s not fair! You are in business. You should be going where you are called.
Me: No, it does not work that way, Tom. I am not going to risk my health by coming to your house, after you tell me you are ill. No. Not happening. I get sick, I can’t go to another person’s house. I don’t even have to get ill. I come to your place, I may become a carrier. Then I can’t work. It’s not happening, man.
Tom: Look, I need this. I need you to come over here and fix this. If you won’t I’ll tell my boss and we will get my brother in law back in the office.
Me: First threats do not bother me. Your Boss is not likely to terminate our contract, just because I won’t go to a sick man’s house and risk my business. Now there IS a compromise, if you are willing to work with me.
Tom: No. I don’t want to do that. I want it fixed. I don’t want to fix it, myself. Why else would I be calling you.
Me: OK, Tom. Let’s take a different approach, shall me? You have YYY cable, right?
Tom: Yeah, I do.
Me: OK. Turn on the TV. Let’s make sure you are getting signal.
Tom: OK, Dan. I found the problem.
Me: Forgot to pay the bill?
Tom: yeah. Something like that.