Help When You Can

I had a problem. I had to call DIRECTV, my satellite TV provider. I was ready for a stressful call, not because I have an issue with DIRECTV, but oftentimes when dealing with huge companies like this, you can get on the phone with someone less than qualified to help.

Thankfully, I was quickly switched to a live person. My customer service representative was a young man in the Philippines. My only problem with that is he had an accent that actually made it hard for me to understand him, and I understand most peoples’ accents. I heard that he was really trying to sound American, it was clear that he’d had lessons. I heard him say, “Rush a sha hell watch…” I asked him to repeat himself but he didn’t know what to correct, so I heard the same thing.

I interrupted him and said, “Please forgive me. I’m an accent coach. I teach the American accent. Let me help you. You need to be stronger on your consonants, otherwise, you will not be understood.” I went to on give him a 1 minute lesson, after that, I understood everything! He had been trying to say, “Rest assured I’ll switch…

He eventually resolved my problem and said, “Thank you, my teacher. I have enjoyed this and I really appreciate the lesson.”

Hopefully, with that very short lesson many more will comprehend him, which in turn can help him keep his job and perhaps move upward.

This is why I love my job!