Playing the "Little Old Lady" card

[Lutherf]

I don't know how many of you run into this but I keep having little old ladies without appointments just show up at my office and then assume that I'll see them.

I get the, "Oh, is today Tuesday? I forgot that my appointment is on Wednesday. It will just take a minute but if you can't get me in..." deal.
I get the, "I was just on this side of town and figured I'd stop by" line.
I get the, "I know I had an appointment! Your calendar must be wrong" line.

So, not that any little old ladies read this stuff but if you happen to run across one that you know is prone to this kind of thing, let her know that the "I just came by to drop off some cookies" line is the one that ALWAYS opens the door!

 

[Callen]

No idea what you do or what your even talking about. How old do you think qualifies as "little old ladies" . I seriously doubt the veracity of your post.

 

[Lutherf]

No idea what you do or what your even talking about. How old do you think qualifies as "little old ladies" . I seriously doubt the veracity of your post.

That number gets a little bigger every year for me and it definitely depends on the woman but "little old ladies" start popping up in their 80s and by their 90s the infection is usually full blown.

 

[HIP56948]

I understand what you're saying. I have a friend that fixes computers and networking (He's a Microsoft Engineer and Tech and some other stuff)
Been doing it since Windows one?..or something like that.
Anyway, it's not just little ol' ladies that try to get things done very cheaply or go-to-the-head-of-the-line.
You should hear the tales that he talks about. Most of them are little con-jobs to outright fraud.
One of the best was: A middle-aged man came to pick up his Alienware laptop (very expensive 2000 dollars plus) ..My friend changed a burnt out processor and added memory..I think it was a intel 9 ??? Anyway, the guy picks up the laptop..looks out the window and says "OMG! my puppy got out of the car and is headed around the corner...Dude gets in the car. (with the laptop)..hollars "I'll be right back to pay you..goes around the corner and disappears into the night.
My friend calls the dude up and (naturally) some lady answers "Hi this is Lowes..how may I help you" Geez.....

 

[Gateman_Wen]

I don't know how many of you run into this but I keep having little old ladies without appointments just show up at my office and then assume that I'll see them.

I get the, "Oh, is today Tuesday? I forgot that my appointment is on Wednesday. It will just take a minute but if you can't get me in..." deal.
I get the, "I was just on this side of town and figured I'd stop by" line.
I get the, "I know I had an appointment! Your calendar must be wrong" line.

So, not that any little old ladies read this stuff but if you happen to run across one that you know is prone to this kind of thing, let her know that the "I just came by to drop off some cookies" line is the one that ALWAYS opens the door!

What kinda office?

 

[Lutherf]

I understand what you're saying. I have a friend that fixes computers and networking (He's a Microsoft Engineer and Tech and some other stuff)
Been doing it since Windows one?..or something like that.
Anyway, it's not just little ol' ladies that try to get things done very cheaply or go-to-the-head-of-the-line.
You should hear the tales that he talks about. Most of them are little con-jobs to outright fraud.
One of the best was: A middle-aged man came to pick up his Alienware laptop (very expensive 2000 dollars plus) ..My friend changed a burnt out processor and added memory..I think it was a intel 9 ??? Anyway, the guy picks up the laptop..looks out the window and says "OMG! my puppy got out of the car and is headed around the corner...Dude gets in the car. (with the laptop)..hollars "I'll be right back to pay you..goes around the corner and disappears into the night.
My friend calls the dude up and (naturally) some lady answers "Hi this is Lowes..how may I help you" Geez.....

That's just outright theft.

 

[Lutherf]

What kinda office?

Accounting and tax.

 

[HIP56948]

That's just outright theft.

Oh yeah..my friend laughs about it now but I'm sure at the time, he wanted to do something that he shouldn't do, regarding his fists.

 

[Lutherf]

Oh yeah..my friend laughs about it now but I'm sure at the time, he wanted to do something that he shouldn't do, regarding his fists.

I HATE getting ripped off and it has happened more than once but, for the most part, little old ladies steal my time FAR more than they steal my money.

 

[HIP56948]

I HATE getting ripped off and it has happened more than once but, for the most part, little old ladies steal my time FAR more than they steal my money.

Yep, I was gonna' point that out. Stealing somebody's time perhaps is not as bad as stealing their money but it's not far from it.

 

[Callen]

I HATE getting ripped off and it has happened more than once but, for the most part, little old ladies steal my time FAR more than they steal my money.

Probably because they are the ones who have the money. My brother is a tax guy and the" little old ladies" are the ones with all the money and they are on it!

 

[Lutherf]

Probably because they are the ones who have the money. My brother is a tax guy and the" little old ladies" are the ones with all the money and they are on it!

Some are. One of my most memorable clients was a little old lady that took TONS of time not because her stuff was complicated but because she asked about EVERYTHING! I swear, I'd get questions about every number on her return.

Her - "What's this number? I didn't give you this. There's no way I made that much money!"
Me - "That's you Social Security number"
Her - "Hmm...OK. What's this one?!"

 

[Callen]

Some are. One of my most memorable clients was a little old lady that took TONS of time not because her stuff was complicated but because she asked about EVERYTHING! I swear, I'd get questions about every number on her return.

Her - "What's this number? I didn't give you this. There's no way I made that much money!"
Me - "That's you Social Security number"
Her - "Hmm...OK. What's this one?!"

And no little old annoying men? Guess those little old ladies out smareted them all. Those little old ladies need to find someone who respects them a tad more while gladly taking their money.......

 

[Lutherf]

And no little old annoying men? Guess those little old ladies out smareted them all. Those little old ladies need to find someone who respects them a tad more while gladly taking their money.......

The men are worse when they're younger!

Me - "Do you have any kids?"
Him - "Yes. Two"
Me - "Great, what are their names?"
Him - "Steve and Dave"
Me - "Excellent! How old are they"
Him - "Uhhh...one is 3. Wait, maybe 4. Hang on, let me call my wife."

 

[DiAnna]

I HATE getting ripped off and it has happened more than once but, for the most part, little old ladies steal my time FAR more than they steal my money.

Cheer up! They'll be dead soon.

 

[Gateman_Wen]

Accounting and tax.

Isn't that a strange kinda business for "little old ladies" to be stumbling into on a regular basis?

 

[Josie]

I don't know how many of you run into this but I keep having little old ladies without appointments just show up at my office and then assume that I'll see them.

I get the, "Oh, is today Tuesday? I forgot that my appointment is on Wednesday. It will just take a minute but if you can't get me in..." deal.
I get the, "I was just on this side of town and figured I'd stop by" line.
I get the, "I know I had an appointment! Your calendar must be wrong" line.

So, not that any little old ladies read this stuff but if you happen to run across one that you know is prone to this kind of thing, let her know that the "I just came by to drop off some cookies" line is the one that ALWAYS opens the door!

That's like being a teacher in a district where many parents don't realize (or don't care) that you should respond to your child's teacher's notes about an appointment time for a parent-teacher conference and not just show up and expect that teacher to drop everything she's doing to talk to you.

 

[Lutherf]

Cheer up! They'll be dead soon.

Why would I want paying clients to die? Why would I want that especially if I can get them to bring me cookies instead?

 

[RAMOSS]

Isn't that a strange kinda business for "little old ladies" to be stumbling into on a regular basis?

Not in tax season