When Do You Trust?

Two very differing scenarios.

Yesterday night, a guy rang at our door. My wife briefly conversed with him, then let him in. He told us about a technical upgrade for our building. New internet cables. Telekom taking over our contract.

The guy was friendly. He made a bit of small talk. My wife eyed him suspiciously. I also grew more skeptical as time went on. Despite this, he ultimately sold us a new internet contract we neither needed nor wanted. By the time it truly dawned on me what had happened, I had already signed—and missed a meeting at work.

When I checked my existing contract, I got confirmation: The new subscription would be cheaper for the first six months, then cost the same as my old one—but it’d only get me half the speed that I have now. No thanks.

The worst part, of course, was that the guy lied either directly or by omission. No one was taking over anything. This wasn’t a technical upgrade to our apartment building. Just a straight up, door-to-door sales conversation. Nothing more, nothing less.

I immediately emailed five different addresses to cancel. I managed.

Today, I went to my hairdresser. I had only five euros cash, but they usually accept cards, so I figured it’d be fine. Of course, today, they insisted on cash. “Look, I’ve only got five bucks,” I said, showing him the empty confines of my wallet. “Oh, no problem,” he said. “Just bring it later.”

As it turned out, I also didn’t have any cash at home. So, tomorrow, I’ll go get some, then go pay. And I know it’s gonna be fine. My bakery did the same for me before. They’re all cool here, in the neighborhood.

When do you trust who and why? There’s no singular answer. A hairdresser you’ve been to dozens of times is likely more deserving of your faith than a smooth-talking stranger at your door. But, sometimes, the opposite is true. Keep reflecting, and update your trust settings as you go.