To me, lying is part of the job, I never tell them my real name or what area I really live in but where do you stop with the white lies? Do you tell the truth or what customers want to hear?
I think you have to lie to some degree to protect yourself. Don’t lie when you don’t really need to, though. You can exaggerate or play things up, but too many lies will get hard to keep up with.
I agree with sexxytexxy, too much is too much. Your clients will surely remember what you told them, you might not. I lie about very personal details but not about everything that they ask.
The person I am when I am online for work is NOT the person I am in real life. I have a back story that was thoughtfully created by me, and since I created it I know it backwards and forwards so it doesn’t sound like a lie.
I take the same approach as watch: I don’t mix up my lies, I have one solid story that is essentially an alter ego and does not relate to or reveal anything personal about me. You HAVE to be careful, so many predators out there.
There is a big difference between lying and performing! We are more or less on-demand actresses 🙂 The truth is your customers aren’t paying to get to know you, they’re paying for the SHOW.
Way2.2Way, you are right but you never know when a customer stops being a customer and starts being a stalker. Just for safety, I have one story I tell all clients so I won’t mix up these white lies.
It’s a great idea to make up an alternative personality and lifestyle for your work persona. I imagine most clients don’t want to hear the truth anyhow! Most of mine have stepped into another world in their heads when I get to talk to them, so it would be mean to spoil that for them.
A lot of customers ask what my real name is, or where am I from, or if I’m married. They ask all sort of personal questions and, much like you gals, I invented a backup character so that I won’t tell anyone anything real about me. Every time I tell a new white lie, I add it to my story.
