I am so tired of being a techno idiot. Besides having dyslexia, I have a terrible time with computers and any techno device. You need to realize that we didn’t even have TV’s until I was in eighth grade. My experience with computers didn’t start until I was fifty plus, when a word processor was required for my job.
So, you may understand how handicapped I feel. Recently, after being hacked, my brother helped me create all sorts of complicated passwords to ensure the hacking wouldn’t be repeated. Well, guess what? It’s so successful, even I can’t get into my accounts, such as my bank, and Facebook. Yes, Facebook, which I haven’t entered for several months now.
Speaking of banks, I have just this morning spent thirty minutes waiting to speak to someone in Arizona regarding my account. Why can’t I just call one of the local banks, instead? In order to even reach a phone number, I had to search several listings, and then, there’s the plethora of helpful robots giving you thirty or so options of possible problems to discuss with them. After my first unsuccessful try, I called again. Stubbornly in my own robotic and repetitive voice saying, “I-want-to-speak-to-a-representative.”
After a series of other requests attempting to sidestep me, I was finally placed on a thirty-minute wait, punctuated every few seconds with a variety of reminders of services available to me, mostly online.
My stubborn streak had been tweaked and I gritted my teeth while turning down the volume on the speaker to wait it out. Why? Because no matter how direct and specific I can voice my request, it never fits within the parameters of their list of suggested services.
People are not meant to be robotic and no matter how much money is saved by replacing them with machines, it is a dismal failure for good services, in my less than humble opinion.
Businesses should realize this as well as how many seniors are being hurt by these practices. I recommend that they provide an employee whose specific task is to be a senior advisor for technical difficulties. In the meantime, join me as we sigh deeply and wait for long stretches to speak to a representative.