How a simple “good morning” got me 6 pairs of footwear in a day
Overcoming my anxiety of saying a simple greeting
I’m not the best at greetings. I rarely say “good morning,” “good afternoon,” or “good evening,” and sometimes I don’t even manage a simple “hi.”
But if someone greets me first, I’ll always respond.
It’s not that I’m trying to be rude or think I’m too good for a greeting — I just worry that if I say it first and it’s not returned, I’ll feel awkward.
Does anyone else get anxious about that?
Anyway, here’s how I found the confidence to overcome that little bit of anxiety and start saying “good morning” more often.
It all started on a Saturday morning
I had a long list of errands to tackle, including getting some of my shoes repaired. The soles were coming apart on several pairs — some needed a quick fix with elephant glue just to be wearable again, while others required more thorough resoling.
I desperately needed them fixed because I was running out of covers for my feet.
After putting this off for months, I finally had the time and decided it was time to get it done.
In my country, cobblers often set up shop near bank ATMs, likely hoping to catch the eye of customers as they leave the bank.
It’s a smart tactic — it certainly worked on me. I remembered a cobbler who was always stationed next to a nearby HSBC branch, not far from where I live.
So, I packed up all six pairs of shoes into an IKEA bag and drove over to get them fixed.
The encounter
To say this cobbler looked rough would be an understatement — he had the appearance of a straight-up gangster.
Tattooed arms, a scruffy beard, and a perpetually scowling face made him seem anything but approachable. My first impression wasn’t great either.
As I approached, I overheard him arguing with an Asian lady who wanted her heels resoled. He was adamant that there was no way he could finish it by today, and she only had one pair.
I had six pairs of shoes with me, so I had already resigned myself to the fact that I wouldn’t be getting them back anytime soon.
But there was something about this man that intimidated me. I started mentally rehearsing how to approach him without getting on his bad side.
After the lady stormed off, he turned to me and, in a gruff tone, asked in Malay, “Yes?”
To my surprise, I found myself replying with a polite “good morning” in Malay — something that doesn’t come naturally to me. His face softened immediately. He returned the greeting and asked, much more kindly, what I needed fixing.
So, I pulled out my assortment of shoes: three pairs of Birkenstocks needing resoling and glueing, a pair of heels that needed new stubs, two slippers requiring glue, and a pair of shoes in desperate need of stitching.
He took one look at my problematic collection and laughed, assuring me he could fix them all. I asked when they’d be ready, expecting a long wait, but to my surprise, he simply said, “Come back in three hours.”
Whaaaaaaaaat? Really.
They were done in 3.5 hours
I came back to pick up my shoes right on time, but he was still finishing up the stitching on one pair. He asked me to wait a little longer and come back in 30 minutes, which I didn’t mind at all.
I took the opportunity to wander around the nearby shop lots for a bit, and when I returned, he was in the middle of another argument, this time with a different lady.
This time the lady was pretty rude, demanding that he stitch up her ballet flats. But he refused, insisting that they would look ugly and he wouldn’t do it. She ended up walking off in a huff.
Once he was done with my shoes, I asked him how much everything would cost. Instead of quoting a price right away, he wanted to make sure I was happy with the work first. He pulled out each pair and walked me through what he’d done, making sure everything was up to par.
When he finally gave me the price, I was pleasantly surprised — it was RM98, which was less than I expected, especially given the amount of work and the short turnaround time. I handed him a RM100 bill and told him to keep the change.
It wasn’t much, but it seemed to brighten his mood even more. He wished me a good day and told me to come back anytime I had more shoes that needed fixing.
My thoughts
I’m not sure why he treated me better than his other customers, but I have a feeling it had something to do with that simple "good morning" I offered when I first approached him.
It seemed to set the tone, and I noticed he was much kinder to me afterwards. It’s amazing how two simple words can make such a difference in the service you receive. I think I’m going to make a point of using them more often from now on.
What about you? Do you greet people often and how does that affect the service you receive in return?
-Shini-