WHO DO YOU TRUST?

Thanks Maria. You are right. "Let the buyer beware".

We hope we can trust doctors and nurses - but they say there's SO MANY mistakes made in hospitals ... YIKES !!!

Caring and excellent customer service are a thing of the past. We have allowed this to happen and we are now suffering the consequences.

When I have a complaint, I go home and go all the way to the corportae office. When I have a compliment I go home and go all the way to the corportate office. Most people bitch but never complain about the bad much less give credit for the good. So good customer service just fell by the wayside.

Peter: Yes, I have found doctors, and especially nurses, to be pretty reliable and caring.

Roger: It's good to hear from you. I have read many of your articles. You are right about customer service. I agree.

It's an epidemic. Just when I think I can trust a company or advertisement, I find that I am being deceived or cheated.

Donald: You can trust some of the people some of the time, but advertisements you can NEVER trust, because advertisements are DESIGNED to deceive.

The motto of big advertiser is, "If at first you don't deceive, try, try again".

Well, if Investment Advisor was on the list, I would say MY company. We are dedicated to bringing low risk, safe, diversified portfolios with great track records over the past 10 years to our customers, with low fees and full transparency. No hidden costs, no gimmicks. We started this firm as three experienced people having about 75 combined years in the business in order to help people and provide a great product and great service.

I guess this sounds like a commercial, but it's not - I just want people to believe that there ARE good, hard-working and intelligent companies out there who are not out to make a fast buck and take them for all they're worth. Sometimes, there are people like us.

Sheryl: What is the name of your company? I could use a service like that.

We're an independent advisor, and provide passively managed, globally diversified portfolios for individuals, corporations, foundations, municipalities, etc. Mostly IRA's and trusts, some non-qualified accounts (taxable savings-type accounts). We custody our assets at Schwab Institutional, so you're with the best! Send me an email if you are interested and I can give you more info.

I work in retail so I can definitely tell you that they high up people are all about the money and don't really care to much about how they get it!

Thomas, it all depends on the country you live in. I've had the most wonderful experience with all your list in two countries, and the worst in 3 or 4. The only ones who never let me down, in spite of all that's going on, were the airlines. My personal experience, of course, which doesn't seem to resemble anyone else's. My friends, all around the world, are always complaining about the airlines.
I find Spain to be a very reliable country in every aspect. Funny, isn't it? Maybe people don't know that, but I can tell a lot about what these people have turned into after a very long history of civil wars, dictatorships and poverty.

Alexandra: Thank you very much for your insightful comments. You are a world traveler, and you have had good experiences on what is reliable and where. Two countries I admire are Spain and Denmark.

Wow Thomas, Denmark, I've been working there when I was real young. I loved it and I admire it too. They used to call it the "Latin Scandinavia". I worked as an RRPP at the SAS hotel.
I'm honored by your invitation and your viewpoints are past intelligent. One last thing I wanted to add as a comment over here: IT'S ALWAYS THE OTHER PEOPLE'S FAULT!!!!!
I'm smiling, but it's sad, this is such a universal statement! Except for the cat, which is probably responsible for things we're not, the rest are PEOPLE, as far as I know they're not aliens. They've been educated by our mothers, I myself as a mother have a major responsibility in my kids mentality and approach to the world, and I believe we're all responsible for whatever happens in every single country, am I very far from the truth?

Alexandra: Thank you for sharing your thoughtful insights. It seems there is a slowly creeping attitude of selfishness, self-interest and greed permeating global society these days, much more pronounced in some countries than in others. This phenomenon is more noticeable in big business than in the common man in the street.

Thomas,

We can trust most people most of the time. People are not more or less honest today than when I was a child. Persons who often appeared in those days as scrupulously honest frequently had hidden characteristics which belied that facade.

If we didn't trust Airlines we wouldn't get on a plane. If we didn't trust banks we'd never put money in one. Some of these entities may be despicable in their overall moral characteristics but can still be trusted to do a particular thing.

Always expect others to act in their own best interests and you'll never go wrong. Business small enough to have an owner that you know, even if incorporated, will get a lot more trust from me than business large enough that the vice presidents don't know each other.

People have basic ethics and morals but corporations, not being human, tend to reward based on what multiplies the bottom line, regardless of whether it is ethical, moral or just the opposite. That is why corporations are formed. And if the owner(s) of the corporation are capable of naming all the employees from memory, you've probably got a reasonably ethical business which is worthy of some trust.

The real crux of this question is, do you trust people, because all of these enterprises are manned by people. And generally speaking, I do!

Do not trust banks or telephone companies at all. You had doctors, which I've had good experiences with, but if you'd said hospitals, that would be negative. When I was in the hospital, I had some good nurses and some bad ones, but the set-up from the room to the billing was a frustrating experience.
While I might wish for better, most retail stores, insurance experiences, and churches have been positive.

Elizabeth: Thank you for recounting your experiences.