Bad Parking Job Or Obnoxious Driver?

Barry Davret
Jul 25, 2017 · 2 min read

Is this a bad parking job or a jerk in a big car who lives by a different set of rules?

It seems worse than that. It looks like a jerk in a big car who wants the rest of us to believe he “rushed” a parking job. He doesn’t want the rest of us to think he did it on purpose. If he did, he would have taken up more of the second space.

A few other people in the parking lot looked at this and rolled their eyes. It’s the kind of thing that irks anyone with a reasonable sense of fair play.

I don’t know if obnoxious people buy big cars or if big cars transform people into obnoxious drivers. I’ll let the psychologists study that one.

The Universal Law

Actions like this violate our sense of fairness. Most of us despise unfair treatment, even if it doesn’t affect us. There were plenty of other spaces for me to park. Still, I concluded the driver must be a snob.

If there’s a universal law on fairness, it states that those who feel victimized will seek some sort of justice.

A few weeks ago I canceled $22 of monthly add on services with my cable company. The customer service manager denied my billing dispute. His reasoning made zero sense. He used the pretext of a corporate policy to explain his refusal of a $7 billing dispute.

He claimed there was nothing he could do. That may be true but I felt slighted. Their rigid policy prevented good judgment.

The next day, I called back and canceled the extra services. They’ll lose about $300 over the life of the contract. I restored my sense of fairness.

It’s All About Perception

It’s an important lesson to anyone in business (and life). Fairness is all about perception. It doesn’t matter what the fine print states. When someone feels slighted, they look to even the score. They may not get back at you right away — and sometimes never will. Their opportunity may not come. But they don’t forget and if the moment comes, they take corrective action.

Must you adhere to demands of everyone who thinks they’re being treated unfairly? No. It’s a balancing act. People are sometimes unreasonable and demanding.

The driver of this Range Rover knows his parking job is obnoxious. He doesn’t care. The manager of the cable company knew his policy was unfair in the context of my dispute. I think he cared but he lacked the power to fix it. Maybe we all need a reminder of the golden rule.

Fairness is a given. I’m also sharing my little known secrets on persuasion and creativity here. One more thing - If you liked this story, click the ❤ so others may find it.

surTHRIVAL Skillz — By Barry Davret

Barry Davret

Written by

Writer. Experimenter in life, productivity and creativity. Contact: barry@barry-davret dot com.

surTHRIVAL Skillz — By Barry Davret

Next Level Skills For The Modern World

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