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Today we will talk about whether it is necessary to make discounts and concessions to other people. This is a difficult question, because we constantly have to follow the lead of our good heart. We very often want to give in to a person with whom we are on good terms. Let’s take an illustrative example:
There were two brothers in the family. The older one never got sick, and the younger one was constantly and very sick, so from childhood a special attitude was formed towards him. He was never scolded, any misconduct was forgiven, he was constantly caressed, and given more expensive gifts. Any of you will say that this is wrong, but it just so happened. The brothers grew up and the younger one had long ceased to be ill, but the attitude of the parents did not change: most of the inheritance was written down on him, his parents helped him in every way they could, while the older one took the rap solely on his own. And no one wondered if this situation offended the older brother? Of course offended.
How does it work?
We quickly get used to external changes. So, if we made a discount or an indulgence once, a second time, then we are already used to it, which is not always good. We had the following incident at work: one young girl asked for leave an hour earlier from her boss, because her child had to be picked up from kindergarten an hour earlier during the week. All week she left earlier than the rest, the schedule of the garden soon settled down, and she still finished work not at 6 pm, but at 5 pm. The boss, being a rather mild woman, could not say anything against it. The girl visited fitness rooms, SPA-salons, had a good time. But the rest of the workers did not like this trend very much, and soon there was a major scandal. The boss scolded the girl, and the office attacked the boss herself, saying why she can, but we can’t. This example very clearly describes the reason why you need to be careful with indulgences.
So, if you give a person a discount or an indulgence, you need to immediately indicate
- How long is this discount valid for? For example, “You can leave work an hour earlier during this week, but next week you return to your usual schedule,” or “I give you a 25% one-time discount. Next time, I will only sell you the item at full price.”
- If you make an indulgence in front of other people who should enter into relations (trade, business) on a common basis, resolve the issue with them fairly. Explain: today Zinaida Markovna leaves work earlier, because such and such extraordinary circumstances occurred in her. I beg your permission to give her some relief.
Otherwise, you will violate the principle of justice and soon a scandal will inevitably occur. My hairdresser is a very kind and emotional woman. So at our next meeting, she said something like “I am so glad to see you today that I will only take half the price for the work.” I’ll explain a tactful reason for refusing such a discount. When I come next time, it will be inconvenient for her to charge me the full price, and it will be inconvenient for me to pay her only half, it looks like the exploitation of someone else’s labor. Therefore, in such a situation, it is very important to politely refuse and explain the reason. Then the relationship will remain as good as before.
Take this information into service so as not to get into awkward situations!