In customer service and sales, it’s important to listen carefully, but some people prefer to make assumptions instead.

When a duct-cleaning worker dismissed the real landlord based on nothing but a glance and a harmful assumption, he ended up getting himself dismissed from a payday.

Read on for the full story!

I don’t work here, I own the place.

I’m a small Chinese woman living in a predominantly white neighborhood.

Our house has a large front yard, and we like to do the gardening ourselves.

I don’t speak with an accent, and I usually use a very English name for easy communication.

I called for a free estimate from a local duct-cleaning service and scheduled it on a Saturday.

But when the contractor finally arrived, there appeared to be some confusion.

My mom and I were in the front yard planting flowers and weeding, chatting about family stuff in our own language while enjoying the nice weather. We were in full gardening gear — complete with straw hats, rain boots, and face masks.

A white truck with a trailer drove up, and a middle-aged man jumped out.

Guy – (waving me down) “Hey! Where is the owner of the house?”

Me – (pulling down my mask) “Oh, you must be the duct-cleaning service. Please come in with me.”

The contractor wasn’t buying it, so he pressed harder.

Guy – (annoyed) “No, I need to speak with the landlord.”

Me – (chuckles) “I am the landlord. Do you need to come inside for the esti—”

Guy – (cuts me off) “No, I need to speak to the person who made the call!”

She decides to give him a visual, since he clearly isn’t getting it.

Me – (pulling out my phone) “Okay, hold on.” (dialing the company number)

Guy – (pulling out his phone) “See? The landlord is calling me.”

Ultimately, she decided that this guy was a lot more trouble than he was worth.

Me – “Hi, I’m [English name]. I’m standing right in front of you. I don’t think I will be needing your services today. Goodbye.”

The guy stood there dumbstruck for a moment, then sulkily walked back to his truck and left.

My mom looked at me, confused, and asked in Chinese, “What was that?”

I shrugged and answered, “Looks like we need to call another duct-cleaning company.”

The cleaner thought he knew best, but that’s exactly where he went wrong.

What did Reddit think?

There’s no sense in giving your business to someone who makes harmful assumptions.

The service may not even be worth paying for in the first place.

This commenter wishes she would have been as quick witted as the homeowner in the story.

When assumptions guide your actions, you’re bound for trouble.

If you liked that post, check out this post about a woman who tracked down a contractor who tried to vanish without a trace.