I was walking inside the mall the other day when one shopper standing in the middle of the hall suddenly thrust a flyer in my direction. I politely declined and continued walking.

Going down the elevator to the food court, a welcoming committee is formed by 4 or 5 servers from various food stalls. They too stuck their arms out, waving flyers for their latest promotions. Again, I declined.

Walking on, a smartly dressed woman asked me if I’m already 21 years old and have a credit card. Noticing the kiosk for some life insurance company nearby, I answer that I don’t have a credit card yet.

This morning, going down the stairs of the MRT station, several leaflets litter the steps. At the bottom, two agents stand on each side giving out more flyers. Once more, I decline.

Do you entertain sales people? I don’t because: 1) I’m not interested in their product, and; 2) I don’t want to get a flyer I know I’m just going to throw away.

There are people I know who does the opposite, though they’re not interested in the product or services either. They reason out that these people shell out their own money for the flyers and that they had a hard day and it’s a way to ease their pain or something. I must have screwed that last part out. Anyway, their point is, though you know you’re not really going to buy their product or service, you should still show some interest to be polite, by getting a leaflet or letting them say their spiel — it’d only take 5 minutes.

Still, I say no. I believe it’s better that they spend 5 minutes of their time on somebody who’s intested (even just slightly) than waste 5 minutes on someone who would just disappoint them in the end. Besides, and daming puno nang namatay (too many trees have died).