You gotta have a good attitude

I know practically nothing about computers, and that admission gets me no respect from people who do know. I visited a Lake County office-supply store a while back to ask a question: There are "hot spots" where I can stand with my laptop and pick up a through-the-air signal to get on the Internet, so why do I need a modem at home connected to a cable or telephone line for my desktop?

I added: Is that through-the-air signal anything like what I once picked up with a rooftop antenna or rabbit ears for my TV?

"That's ridiculous," this guy said.

He put me in my place, all right. He may know computers, but he doesn't know a thing about customer relations. I can almost understand it when a poorly paid employee like him mistreats a customer, but when I see an owner do something like that, I'm flummoxed.

I phoned a Lake County remodeling company whose ad I had seen in a newspaper with a phone number and a Web site, which is a good idea nowadays. I wanted to know if they considered it a good decision to spend the money for a Web site. Nobody answered the phone and a recorded voice suggested that I call Mike on his cell phone, which I did, and he answered.

I got barely 10 words out when Mike cut me off. "Not interested," he said and hung up. I called the office again and left a message, explaining that I wasn't selling anything, and left my number. No response.

Then I called Lukas Rezabek of Rebel Exteriors in Libertyville after seeing his newspaper ad. He said many people are reluctant to commit themselves on the phone, and they feel more comfortable looking at his Web site.

He said his Web guy charges $25 or $30 a month to make changes for him and to add testimonials from customers.

David Chernoff of Amitique on Glen Flora in Waukegan likes the combination of advertising his furniture refinishing and restoration business enjoys with a phone number and Web site, which the Yellow Pages people will design, and quote a combined price that includes the Web and a listing.

These different business attitudes reminded me of the book "Blink" by Malcolm Gladwell. He writes about physicians who are often sued and physicians who are almost never sued. Those who are sued are not incompetent, and those not sued are not necessarily the best doctors.

"In other words," Gladwell says, "patients don't file lawsuits because they've been harmed by shoddy medical care. Patients file lawsuits because they've been harmed by shoddy medical care and something else happens to them."

It turns out the something else is how the doctor treated them.

Patients who sued said they were rushed or ignored or treated poorly.

In another chapter Gladwell writes about a salesman in New Jersey who sells an average of 20 cars a month, double the average. This salesman, Bob Golomb, is thoughtful and attentive, and a wonderful listener. He never judges a potential customer on his or her appearance. A guy in overalls with mud on his shoes may be a wealthy farmer. A teenager may not be able to afford a new car, but may come back with parents in tow, if he or she receives serious attention and respect from the salesman.

Special strokes for all the folks.