COLUMN: Getting sold by those we trust
The older woman who had just let me in her door after less than five minutes of knowing me left me alone in her kitchen to sip on the Pepsi she had offered. She searched her house, without much concern for me, looking for the contract she signed two months ago for a security system she was still afraid to use.
“Well, I can’t remember the name of the company who sold it to me…,”
I always found it ironic: being afraid to use something designed to make you feel more secure. I also began fearing for this woman’s children. I seem to remember my mother counseling me not to sign anything without reading the fine print. What are her adult children doing with an example like hers?
Yes, my friends, I am a door to door salesman. Rather, I was over the summer. I was threatened, sworn at, offered drugs (for the first time in my life), treated subhumanly and, more than a few times, I actually feared for my safety.
Unable to find the agreement with the nameless company, she came back and sat down at the table with me. I asked a few questions to see if she might qualify for us to do business for both of our benefits. I then realized something: She got sold. She got sold in the true sense of the word. Without knowing what she was getting herself into, she signed on the dotted line.
How often does the public buy into something or someone they haven’t really looked into? Maybe that’s the American dream: getting people to buy into something – good or bad. The dream or nightmare must depend on who is whispering into our ears day or night.
The night I met a woman who was “sold” something by someone she couldn’t even remember, our continuing scene of political elections came to mind. There are plenty of “salespeople” involved in our elections. Campaign managers, pollsters, political advisers and, of course, the politicians themselves. Part of me is OK with that. After all, I think I understand the process of effective communication and relaying things to a mass audience. Most of the time, however, we take what we’re given like a baby’s first bite of smashed carrots: regrettably, but we take it.
Door-to-door salesmen and, I venture to say, even public leaders have an interesting string to play on. Both groups must promote an often flawed agenda with integrity – but not too honest too fast because it might scare the listener out of participating. It’s a unique challenge. I tried to treat people the right way, but I can never forget the time a kid just a few years older than me looked at me sideways through a screen door with an almost frightened look on his face. I think he was prepared for me to jump through the door; tie him up; take his iPod, DVD collections of “Heroes” and “The Office”; and leave enough time to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for the road. I think I’d leave dirty dishes on the counter just to spite him.
Before letting myself out, I briefly showed the woman how to use her home alarm. It took considerable effort and skill to politely get out of her home. She was content to chat with anyone who came through the door, even the bald guy (me) who knocked on her door right before dark. Thinking about it now, that may be the reason someone before me gave her a security system. She just wanted to feel important and valued by talking to someone. Feeling like you’re being listened to brings on strong emotions. This wasn’t the first time she had purchased something from a door-to-door person without fully understanding it.
Funny how for the past four months I worked in one of the most despised professions, and for the next four months I’ll be working with another group of people – politicians – who, due to the demands of a large democracy, have become a subculture of professional salespeople. They don’t have to sell a product. They try to sell themselves in order to make a difference in the world. The merits of a political candidate are not always seen if the salesmanship, if you will, of the competitor knocks him out of the running.
Please don’t get me wrong – I actually like most elected officials because I believe they do a lot of unappreciated work behind the scenes (not just behind closed doors as some people believe). But I wonder how many of us, the “non-politicians”, really understand what we’re getting ourselves into when we vote for, contribute money to or otherwise support a local or national leader. Are we getting “sold” something we don’t really understand or appreciate? If that lonely old woman could let me into her home when she was all alone and offer me a drink without really knowing me, do you think our voters are really making educated decisions?
The dire situation of our society is that political candidates seem to need to sell themselves more than their stance on the issues. Being unable to remember the name of a door-to-door company selling anything seems a trivial thing. But, can you remember who you voted for in the last election besides the president, governor or state official who happens to be your distant relative? To be honest, I can’t. Attorney general? School board members? I can’t remember the incumbents’ names half of the time let alone the people running against them. It’s a good thing those “other” positions just aren’t that important. Oh, wait…maybe they are.
Jacob is a junior in political science and journalism trying to keep his head above water as an intern in Washington, D.C., over the next four months while he nurtures bruised knuckles earned from knocking too many doors the last four months.