What is it with some people !?!?

Okay so here is my Saturday morning vent. I think it's better to get it out of my system now and then I can have a good weekend with my family.

This past week I have had 3 interviews. I changed my procedure by having an initial telephone interview with each of them in the hopes of weeding out the wishy washy parents and addressing any deal breaker/red flag questions on both sides before anyone wasted further time with face to face interviews.

I told them all I would be back in touch on Friday to let them know if I was able to take them as there were multiple families interviewing for the same spot. I said if in the meantime they didn't want the spot then if they could notify me earlier then that would be appreciated.

One of the interviews was last night so they don't really apply to this. Both telephone interviews went really well, no red flags and upon meeting the same thing. They both said how reassured they were prior to meeting me because of the telephone interview. This made me happy and made the flow of the interview noticibly easier.

Yesterday I called both of them and neither answered so fine, whatever people are busy, although if I was expecting a call I would make sure I was in. Anyhow, I get in late last night about 12 and am tidying up the aftermath of an evening in my house that consisted of my husband, two kids and the remenants of chips and cookies :D I just casually flicked through my caller ID and notice that I had two missed calls. One was from Thursday night and one was from last night. Both were from one of these families and both were made at just before 10pm! Do people not have any courtesy any more??? That is far to late to be calling people just because you missed my phone call which I made at 1:50 in the afternoon. I have a strict policy and it is noted on my website and in all my adverts for all telephone enquiries to be during business hours and after hours, weekends and stat holidays via email only. Silly woman:no:

2nd family I interview called, this morning, at 8:55. Give me a freakin' break!!! God forbid I have a life outside of work. She then left a voicemail cause I wasn't picking it up, saying how she loved me but couldn't bear the thought of leaving her 12 month old full time so was taking an additional 6 months off. ((Sigh)) fair enough but for goodness sakes lady, couldn't you have figured this out prior to going through all of this. To add to it, this is the woman who at the end of our interview said she wanted to sign up there and then. I know through experience that every parent needs to go home and sleep on it in case after some time to process reveals any doubts in their minds. It's for this exact reason.

OMG some people need to stop being so self absorbed and think about how their thoughtlessness effects others. What you gonna do though hey.....

:huh:

Oh boy! I was supposed to have someone come last night for a face to face meeting, and she calls me right when she's supposed to be here and says "Oh I'm so sorry, I forgot that I was supposed to be there, can we reschedule for Monday?" Really?! You forgot about an appointment that you made with me, and confirmed only that morning? Sure.

I think it is just assumed that people have answering machines these days or at least people take the risk and call hoping it goes to the machine.

In this case since you said Friday was the deadline so to speak it does make sense that the families made every effort to call back even if it was late or to call first thing this morning if they couldn't get through hoping you would still accept them.

Also people with a baby lose track of "reasonable hour" cause they are up and down all day. I would have been up at both times and probably answered the phone but then my day ends late and starts early due to my own daughter.

It is good to hear that people are again getting interviews. I actually have two this weekend to fill my last space. Not sure on the one today as they seemed ok on the phone but totally surprised the one tomorrow wants to actually interview but going to give them the benefit of the doubt and be firm in what I expect. Thinking she may have found out since our first conversation that what I was saying was the norm not the exception. I have also had two contacts for September and I haven't even placed an ad yet and will have a child leaving for JK.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by playfelt

I think it is just assumed that people have answering machines these days or at least people take the risk and call hoping it goes to the machine.

In this case since you said Friday was the deadline so to speak it does make sense that the families made every effort to call back even if it was late or to call first thing this morning if they couldn't get through hoping you would still accept them.

Also people with a baby lose track of "reasonable hour" cause they are up and down all day. I would have been up at both times and probably answered the phone but then my day ends late and starts early due to my own daughter.

It is good to hear that people are again getting interviews. I actually have two this weekend to fill my last space. Not sure on the one today as they seemed ok on the phone but totally surprised the one tomorrow wants to actually interview but going to give them the benefit of the doubt and be firm in what I expect. Thinking she may have found out since our first conversation that what I was saying was the norm not the exception. I have also had two contacts for September and I haven't even placed an ad yet and will have a child leaving for JK.

---

Here is the thing, both of these families enquired via email, it would have been much more respectful of my family time to email me to follow up if it was early or late in the day. I appreciate what you are saying but I am a respectful person of others time and I just don't see that this is an acceptable reason when there was an alternative way of contacting me without the disruption. Also with regards to the Friday, I said I would be calling at nap time the deadline was for me, not them to call me on Friday. So if they weren't available I understand but don't call me at night time. It's just plain rude, maybe not to others but hence why folks should thing about others when they act, not of themselves. I have children of my own, and didn't lose the ability to be curtious of others when they were babies. Maybe it's simply a fact that some people are just so laid back that they neglect to think that not everybody has the same values as them. Even if in a voicemail it had said"I'm sorry it's early/late to call but I am heading out, or just got in and didn't want to put it off. I hope that I am not disrupting you." That would have shown some courtesy for me by explaining that maybe they had a busy schedule and there was no other time to call but that they were sorry for any inconvenience. Especially as these families new my POLICY for method and hours of enquiry.

I agree bright sparks, people serve their needs first and according to their schedule. I had dcparents who routinely called at 9:30 at night to discuss their child or to tell me they would be 15 minutes late in the morning. After a couple of these intrusive calls I let it go to voice mail. I later told her that this is our down time and I would be happy to take her calls during My working hours. Still called at this time.
My hubby ended a proffessional relationship because this person called early mornings, late evenings, weekends and holidays to discuss something that had just occured to him. He like to voice his thoughts immediately. After asking him not to call our home at all and to text he still continued to do so. Relationship ended.
So yeah, even when we ask for time courtesy some folks just don't get it.

I had a friend who was up at 6:30 am daily BEFORE she had kids.....so after her kids came around to her 8am was already such a long time of being awake and she'd call my house. Finally I told her not to call before 9:30....10 on weekends!!! She asked about my DD and I replied she sleeps too!! lol

Some people aren't as lucky to have a kids like my DD who goes to bed at 8:30 and is up at 10 (if I dont wake her) her kids would be up at 6am no matter how late they went to bed. Sorry...not MY problem! :P

I am totally opposite mindset .... If I am trying to fill a space I welcome a call at anytime (day evening weekend) cause I figure once its filled the phone won't be ringing so for a bit of short term inconvience to fill the spot and secure my income I don't mind. Since I run my business out of my home I expect to be interrupted.

Fielding calls to fill a spot outside of business hours is one thing. That is part of the business. It is just inconsiderate to call early am's and late pm's to anyone unless they tell you it's o.k.

While 10pm is a bit late to call, I actually have the opposite guidelines...I don't answer the phone during daycare hours unless it is naptime. I ask parents to call at naptime or in evening or on weekends. I cannot concentrate on talking on the phone while caring for the kids and the only time I tried to do that, wouldn't you know...a spider ran across the floor and a toddler went toward it and was about to pick it up...I shrieked and nearly dropped the phone...then didn't know how to explain it as I didn't want to person to think my daycare is infested with spiders :laugh: I never again took a call during daycare hours unless the kids were sleeping ;) (by the way, the parent never called back...I wonder why...LOL).

First of all brightsparks, congrats on all the interviews and I hope you fill your space with a great family. I've met all kinds of people and really weed them out carefully during the prescreening now too. I'm not afraid to tell people that I work long, hard days and that interviews are a necessary part of my business but that I value my evening free time after finishing all the work I have to do after all the children leave. In other words I demand respect from the beginning.

I only answer my phone when I want to do so because I have call display but I would rather have somebody call me at 10pm on a weekday evening instead of at 8am on a Saturday. We're all different, some are night people some are morning people. But I ran into SHOPPERS one year when I interviewed way too many people for a space and learned a lesson the hard way as usual to let people know what is convenient for me and emails are the most convenient method of communication for me.