Truth & Tech

I have served in various roles over the years. I’m in my late 30’s and have worked more than half my life now. I’ve done everything from selling printer ink, securing warehouses, campuses, and production lines, to learning how to respond to suicidal or homicidal individuals. I’ve been a jack-of-all trades. And a consistent theme in my life is a lack of patience.

Being in IT, you have to have a lot of patience. I am finishing up a book called The Cuckoo’s Egg by Clifford Stoll (a great Cybersecurity book). And the main thing that Cliff notices about the hacker in his story is that patience is almost as helpful, if not more so, then having a variety of honed vulnerabilities and exploits at your fingertips. Eventually, with enough patience and persistence, you’ll get in.

When someone calls me on the phone and asks for help, I am usually pretty capable with the customer service side of my job. I can be professional, can provide answers, and can do my best to show courtesy. But I know that I have a few triggers that make it hard for me to be patient. When these things occur, I don’t get overtly angry, I don’t call names or belittle people. But for those who pay attention to attitudes, body language, and responses, you’d probably pick up on my irritation.

I’ve been convicted recently that these small indicators of irritation can make a big impact on the people I’m serving. We’re designed to be in relationship with others and these subtle signs of irritation are more impactful than we allow ourselves to believe. I recently helped someone with an issue that led to that person quickly escalating in their frustration because of the pressure of the situation and hearing the subtle signs of irritation I’m sure slipped through my professional demeanor.

As an IT professional, it would be tempting to settle for professionalism. To allow bitterness, frustration, or anger to slip through in small doses and just assume that this is normal and to brush it off. But it’s not the way it was meant to be. Customer service is a core tenant to helping others and an important part of any job. We’re all helping someone, in some way. But what’s at the heart of this irritation?

My guess is, a sense of superiority mixed with a lack of empathy. I’ve allowed myself to believe that I am somehow better than the individual I am trying to help and have failed to try to place myself in the other person’s shoes. Because I have the answer, because I understand technology, because I do my best to listen closely when people speak, I somehow think that I have a right to be offended when someone else doesn’t have the answer, doesn’t understand, and doesn’t actively listen.

And I fail to place myself in their shoes. To understand the pressure that their job is placing on them. To understand all the personal things going on in their life that are adding up to a bigger burden on their shoulders. I want to do better.

Not because I’m afraid I’ll lose my job (I am pretty certain, that I’m professional enough that I won’t lose my job), or because I want to excel and be the best customer service representative on my team. I want to do better because I realize that the condition of my attitude and customer service is a reflection of who I am at the core.

At my core, I am a Christ-follower. I believe that I am so utterly broken that without an act of God, I could not be redeemed. To believe that I am somehow better than someone else is a denial of my faith, because I know I am not. To believe that I deserve better treatment from a customer than what I am given is a denial of the belief that I hold that I am due far worse than what any man could ever do to me. And so I know that these moments are a reflection of hypocrisy and a failure of faith.

So, I want to do better. Because God has redeemed me. Because I want to reflect the same attitude my savior has for me to those who do not know him. And because, the hope that I have as to what the future looks like, is far brighter than any possible outcome of any single day between now and what that future looks like.