Negotiating Membership in the Tribe

The power of negotiations is inarguably one of my key strengths. I offer you my new cell phone and contracted service as irrefutable evidence.

First, I convinced my wireless carrier to start my nights and weekends at 6:00 p.m. at no extra charge, and to throw in roaming for free. They also gave me a $100.00 service credit for re-upping my agreement with the company. Then, I got them to give me a 10% discount on my new monthly rate. Next, I persuaded them to ship me this cherry blossom pink, sleek, $279.00 phone for $79.00 — and to also take care of shipping charges, sales tax, and rebates at their end. Of course, I also coaxed them to pay for activating the phone. Finally, to top it all off, I got them to throw in 500 text messages per month at no cost to me — despite the fact that I’ve never texted anyone, ever. It just sounded like fun — toying with the salesperson, that is.* Plus, I’d get to try something new.

Now, can I convince you, my tech-savvy friends, to send me your tips and tricks for text messaging? At long last, I am ready to earn membership in The Thumb Tribe.**

*Of course, gracious and grateful girl that I am, I left a glowing recommendation with his supervisor, praising him for his exceptional customer service.
**Thanks to my friends, Mike and jonstephens, for keying me into this new phrase. I plan to use it ten times today, to make it mine.