An awful lot of people have a hard time saying “no, thank you.”
Unless you have a burning desire to be scammed, I recommend you practice, practice, practice.
If you want another really good reason for saying, “no, thank you,” here’s a story for you, from the 11/6/12, Law for Real People Blog:Every Season is “Attempt to Scam the Elderly Season”
If you need more practice saying “no, thank you,” try this simple exercise on a busy downtown street:
Put your hands in your pockets and KEEP THEM THERE when someone tries to hand you a flyer:
With your hands in your pockets, look at the flyer (or not, if you really don’t want to be delayed). If you don’t want the flyer say “No, thank you,” and keep walking. No pain, no time wasted, no trash to throw away. And your hands stay warm and out of harm’s way. Smiling doesn’t hurt, either.
You can use this direct, courteous, but firm method anytime someone tries to engage you, bother you, interrupt your private time and thoughts, delay you, etc.
NO, THANK YOU.
But you do have my permission when solicited on a dark, windy, rainy, busy street, when both your hands are full of bags to say with great exasperation, “are you kidding me?!” Some people just have no common sense, judgment, or an ounce of grace to them and it’s best to get away as quickly as possible. They aren’t even worth “teachable moment” time.