I’m sure it’s happened to you. Your phone rings. You answer it. A cheery voice says, “Hi, this is Peter.”
Peter? Peter who? I don’t know any Peters.
Most people would ask precisely that, “Uh, Peter who?”
But because you have Emotional Prediction, you know Peter—whoever he is—would be devastated.
A rude Peter might respond, “You don’t remember me? You know, from the golf course.”
Mr. or Ms. Average would try to save the caller’s face by saying, unconvincingly, “Peter, of course. I’m so sorry.” But it’s too late. Poor Peter feels forgotten, and you feel flustered. Not an auspicious start to a pleasant dialogue.
Let’s do the numbers. Business researchers tell us we meet about a hundred people a year by name—social acquaintances, business contacts, and a few distant cousins who come out of the woodwork. About half of them will have the gall to think you should actually remember their names! Another half of that half could possibly contact you. And, for one reason or another, half of that half will.
You are now down to twelve and one-half people whose names you don’t remember phoning you. Prepare yourself with the following face-saving (yours and theirs) rejoinder.
Little Trick #84 not only saves the intrusive caller’s ego, it conceals your memory lapse.
He says: “Hi, this is Peter.”
With a big smile, say, “Hi . . . I know two Peters. Which one is this?” When he says you met at the golf club, sound like you are so pleased that it is this Peter, not that other one. If he just says his last name and pompously expects that to jog your memory, simply say, “From . . .?” If he’s the decent sort, he’ll fill in the rest of your sentence. If he doesn’t, you probably don’t want to speak to the rude dude anyway.
Little Trick #84
Tell “Whoozat” That You Know Two “Whoozats”
When someone gives only her first name on the phone and you don’t know who the heck she is, say, with as much congeniality as you can cough up, “Oh, I know two (fill in her name); which one is this?” There is a good chance she will give you her last name or the context in which you met.