Nation impatient, poll finds

[MikeNearMcChord]

By The Associated Press
WASHINGTON — We’ll make this quick. We know you’re busy.

An Associated Press poll has found an impatient nation. To get to the point without further ado, it’s a nation that gets antsy after five minutes on hold on the phone and 15 minutes max in a line. So say people in the survey.

The Department of Motor Vehicles, the U.S. version of the old Soviet bread line, is among the top spots where Americans hate to wait. But grocery stores are the worst.

http://sundaygazettemail.com/section/News/200605287?pt=0

[aquart]

1. which is why a store must always have enough cashiers.

because people who will take two hours to shop may drop it all if the checkout line feels too long or too slow.

[dysfunctional press]

6. i've done this in the past-

that mystery cartfull of groceries you saw just sitting in the aisle, unattended...?- that was from me saying "fuck it, the buzz wore off.."

[Yollam]

2. I posted on this yesterday...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x1305391


I object to the implication that it's just a matter of US being "impatient".

A big part of the problem is huge corporations who only think of the bottom line giving us shittier and shittier service.,

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x1305391

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

3. I Agree More With The Article. We Are Definitely Impatient.

Myself included. But beyond just me, most people would agree with the article. Poor service or not, if we were patient 5 minutes wouldn't matter, nor would 15. But the fact is we do all want to get in and out, and we do all hate having to wait. And that holds true whether there is poor service or not.

After 15 minutes in any line, at any place, with any level of service, people start to get impatient from what I've seen time and time again.

We are most definitely an impatient and on the go society, where every minute feels like 10 when we have other stuff we want to do: which is all the time.

I have no problem with the article and think it makes complete sense.

[MikeNearMcChord]

4. I saw your post,(sorry about the dupe) and I agree

but I think, this hurry up society is very distructive, no wonder people are more rude, I wonder how long will it be when an impatient A-hole causes an incident that may end up with gunfire? I think also most Americans should not be allowed to leave the country, if they can't deal with time-stress.

[dysfunctional press]

5. i LOVE self-checkout.

but it should be limited to people who can actually comprehend how to do it.

kinda like driving...

[Yollam]

8. I hate it. It always freaks out if you use paper bags.

And I prefer paper. It always says I put something extra in the bag when I didn't. I ALWAYS have to wait for the attendant to reset the thing.

[dysfunctional press]

12. they don't even have paper bags at the self-checkouts here.

i prefer plastic anyway- the handles make it much easier to carry lots more with two hands.

[sandnsea]

7. Some of us remember the pre-hold era

When you got real people when you called and when nobody was left on hold for more than a minute or two, even if it was to say just one more minute please. OUR time is worth money too and the idea that we should waste more than 15 minutes of our billable hours on a phone call is just absurd. It isn't patience, it isn't personal, it's just business.

[maxfisher]

9. i got impatient reading this.

[NJCher]

10. So why is it a crime to be impatient?

I value my time. Why should I have to waste my time in a grocery store shopping line? Or anywhere, for that matter.

I'm one of these: Nearly one in five owned up to speaking rudely to someone in the last few months when they weren’t served efficiently.

I might not have been rude (but I prob'ly was).

Time is money. How do you feel after you've hunted down all those specials at the big box supermarket and you get to the checkout stand and find you have to wait 3"-10" just to get out? Let's see....suppose you get paid $40 an hour. That 10" wait just shaved off all your savings.

Not me. I plan everything and I mean everything so I don't have to wait. Instead of big box supermarkets, I shop at high-end regional or independent grocery or specialty food markets, bodegas or any other food market that are not controlled by corporate-types. Order stamps through the mailman instead of waiting on a post office line. Go the bank and other service businesses on off times or better yet, just use the mail.

If I ever get in a situation where I have to wait, I see if there is something else to do. If not, I leave and perhaps come back later.

There is a stigma against being impatient. "Be patient," everyone says. Patience is such a virtue. I don't even pretend to be patient. I'm not and I feel no need to be. One doesn't have to be rude about waiting but one shouldn't feel like one must be overly forgiving of slow service.





Cher

[BulletproofLandshark]

11. I understand the grocery store thing completely

There's nothing more aggravating than the Food Lion by my house. The store has 10 registers, yet never more than 4 cashiers, no matter how busy it gets. If they have the resources to remodel the whole damned store inside and out, then surely they could have at least 1 or 2 people in there to keep the lines from spilling into the aisles.

<rant off>