"Can she cook like I can?" asked the distraught fiancee.
"Not on her best day!" replied the salesman.
"Can she buy you expensive gifts like I do?"
"No, she's broke," the salesman said in agreement.
"Well then, is this all about 'relations?' " cried out the devastated woman.
"No, nobody does it like you babe," assured the salesman.
"Then what is it?" she screamed. "What can she do that I can't?"
The salesman sighed, took a deep breath, looked his ex-fiancee straight in the eyes and said: "She can sue me for child support."
And then it hit him.
The four slice toaster he had bought for her the previous Christmas.
Moral of the story. True sales professionals always utilize the most efficient means of communication when dealing with clients and prospects. Why deliver bad news in person when a phone call or better still, an email or text, will do the job just as efficiently? If you absolutely have to deliver bad news in person, make sure you have an unobstructed path to the nearest exit while keeping an eye out for UFOs. While in retreat, always protect your head. Bruising to the body will heal in private, but scars to the head last a lifetime and can have a negative impact on future business. Anyone remember the old "Flying Toasters Screensaver" that came with Windows? Well, now you know what inspired the design.
"One way to break up any kind of tension is deep breathing." - Byron Nelson
