SPY GIRL RETURNS

This week we publish the long-awaited return of our 'super-sleuth' reporter - Spy Girl.

I was the ringmaster of this disaster: My associate (due to psychological reasons her name cannot be disclosed) and I were about to do a client visit at a client in the telecommunications industry. It's hot, and we're about 45 minutes early to their building, so we decide to get something to drink at the closest place. The closest place was this dingy little cinema that had these delicious looking slush puppy machines on the counter. So I convinced ###### to get a super large cherry frozen icy slush-thing and my colleague does the same, only a lime flavored one. We drove back to the client and sat in the visitor's spot, mentally preparing for the visit, drinking our frozen divine. We were warned that the HR manager is Old School Afrikaans and would remind most of Tannie Stienie of Agter Elke Man (Ask your Afrikaans colleagues who this is and have a laugh…) When the “Tannie Stienie” came over to meet us I managed to steal a look at ######’s mouth and her lips and tongue were BRIGHT GREEN - I mean really bright green, like a luminous green clown. Mine, of course were GLOWING RED. We couldn't wash it off, wipe it off or anything, so we went into the client visit looking like a couple of circus clowns. People actually laughed when we went in - we were never asked back, needless to mention….

POSTMORTEM: Obviously thinking more carefully about one's actions just before a client visit is vitally important.
THE MORAL OF THE STORY: You cannot gain rapport with a client if she cannot 'relate' to you as a circus creature.
ADVICE: Always watch your mouth!