Thursday, September 08, 2005Tonight I do not know my face from one who looks the same - And I Know You
I surprised myself today. There are times we truly believe we know who we are. For months I've been seeing pharmaceutical reps waiting outside the Doctor's door, waiting to push their drugs. They've often angered me. I've always held back and never known why.Today as I sat in the office, one entered. I almost approached her. Asked her why she does what she does. She seemed pleasant, smiled, took a seat. I couldn't take my eyes off of her, trying to get in to her mind somehow. It occurred to me - she thinks she's helping people. Maybe she is. I hope she is.
posted by Helen at 9:48 PM
7 Comments:
They can be annoying, but they're just doing their jobs. The smart ones bring freebies for the office staff & thus appear marginally less annoying.
I say, good for you. You actually looked past your initial instincts and tried to think from someone else's point of view. That's something all too few people do these days. Cheers to you!
bob is right, you took someone else's shoes and had a little walk,like in "to kill a mocking bird"
Good for you,you're ten ft tall.
It's always difficult to try to understand other people's perspectives. But it's important, because people have a built-in sense of fairness, and only by talking to one another can we understand how other people think.
Usually for someone to explain how they really feel about something you have to provoke a reaction, in the workplace this might not be such a great thing (unless you work for yourself or for family).
There are some really amazing people working at these drug companies, incredible minds. Sales-people in every industry can be a little slimy though.
Working in sales is tough because it's so easy to measure someone's performance, and "job performance" in sales is really all about numbers and opportunity. It can be a lot of pressure for people to deal with.
The real problem seems to be the twisted way that medications are proven safe & effective, prescribed to people, and paid for. It's crazy that a doctor's office time would be wasted for sales shmoozing. They are supposed to be playing golf!
Maybe she just wants to hook up with a rich doctor.
well, i'll be the devil's advocate here, but this is what i believe with all my heart:
they are no different than drug pushers on the corner. except our society condones what they do. they drive company cars with air conditioning. they take lunches to the doctors office staff. they get to see the doctor before you do even though YOU have been waiting longer.
but they push pills like vioxx & fenfen...then that can help, but can also kill, but hell, they sell! and they might even get a cruise if they push enough!
Some Hindus say that we all have to live one another's lives at some point, to see how we were treated when we were someone else. I don't believe that, but I think that it's a great metaphor of our common humanity.
Peace,
Tor
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