"Mean" Cast Members

M

Merlin

Account Suspended
robynchic said:
You'd be surprised at the non-verbal cues you pick up on. Body language, how they stand, how they move, how they hold their arms. And the verbal cues- tone of voice, the way they speak towards others (and to their family).

Once you see that kind of body language, you know that they might be trouble.

Oh, and the body language for men is different than for women. It's the men that are easier to pick up on. Because women tend to have more fluid body movements, and men tend to have stiffer body movements, it's more difficult to read a woman. And men tend to fly off the handle very quickly. Women tend to escalate.

This is why CMs are taught how (and how not to) stand. We want to show openness and willingness. Most CMs that don't stand like that will eventually get written up, or could even get the axe.

Of course, we could be wrong about a person's body language. Certain builds move differently. For instance, if I saw Paul Teutul Sr (from Orange County Choppers), how he moves, and how he interacts with his sons in front of me, I would most likely put up my guard. But he's apparently a really nice guy.

And MERF...what do you think of a sea of orange during the summertime?
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I'm sure I'll get jumped on and called a "know-it-all" for this, but who cares...

Communication is broken down as follows:

7% words (explains why so many misunderstandings occur on email and message boards)
38% tone of voice
55% body language

So in other words, Robynchic, I agree with you that you CAN read a lot from a person through their body language. And I, too, have been able to predict one's behavior more often than not, when the body language signals have been very apparent. So you have a very good point. While I still contend it's not an excuse for a rude or unprofessional response from the CM, I can at least agree that it's based on something more than just making an assumption.

Unfortunately, the rude CMs I've encountered (and again, there've only been a handful) were the ones who did not even give me a chance before reacting like I was going to be "difficult". Perhaps these were among the select few who had not yet learned the skill of "reading" a person, but instead jumped to a conclusion.
 
Woody13

Woody13

New Member
Merlin said:
Tell me, do you get these brilliant responses out of your "English to Cliche" dictionary? :lol: Clearly, you were not the debate champion at your school, were you?
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The basic difference is that you view this topic as a debatable issue and I don't. You seem to think that you can measure a CM's attitudes and then make assumptions about their resulting behavior. On the other hand, I know that attitudes are very complex and difficult if not impossible to measure, so I don't waste time in that area. I know that behavior is the only measure of performance. Attitude does not reveal behavior nor is the opposite true.

Your empirical premise is false.
 
robynchic

robynchic

New Member
Merlin said:
So in other words, Robynchic, I agree with you.
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:eek: Did he just say that? After those 33 pages of poo he's been spouting? He finally AGREES?
Haven't I been saying that you can read people? That it's kind of a sixth sense? And NOW, once I write everything out, he finally agrees with me?

OH MY [expletive] GOD! THAT IS A MIRACLE!
 
M

Merlin

Account Suspended
robynchic said:
:eek: Did he just say that? After those 33 pages of poo he's been spouting? He finally AGREES?
Haven't I been saying that you can read people? That it's kind of a sixth sense? And NOW, once I write everything out, he finally agrees with me?

OH MY [expletive] GOD! THAT IS A MIRACLE!
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:lol: Don't get too excited just yet. I agreed with that point you made about body language. That's just a communication technique...not the same as a "sixth sense". And make no mistake, we're still in disagreement over the other issues we've been discussing. It's just that I'm a believer in giving credit where credit is due, and I did feel you made a good point (and stated it well). And just so we're clear, Robynchic, I don't dislike you. It's not personal for me. We simply disagree, that's all. On another thread, it's just as likely I'd be on your bandwagon for a point you could be making. Not so, however, for this thread. :animwink:
 
dflye

dflye

New Member
Merlin said:
Communication is broken down as follows:

7% words (explains why so many misunderstandings occur on email and message boards)
38% tone of voice
55% body language
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Well, that is potentially a good metric for face-to-face communication where:

  • Both people speak the same language (that's a large assumption at WDW)
  • Neither person is deaf
  • Neither person is mute (you last heard Pooh say something at WDW when?)
  • Neither person has their face obscured (when was the last time Pooh had a facial expression that said "Punch me one more time, kid, and you're going to see the Mouse Police!")

If you are mute and/or the other person cannot read your facial expressions, you are definitely at a distinct disadvantage by your metrics.

Also, for communication that isn't directly face to face (such as when I'm contemplating homicide due to a few idiots on the road that should be in jail by now!), I'd say the breakdown is:

  • 70% gestures that you see at most major sporting events
  • 30% words that you know well enough that you can lip-read them across two lanes of rush hour traffic
 
Woody13

Woody13

New Member
robynchic said:
:eek: Did he just say that? After those 33 pages of poo he's been spouting? He finally AGREES?
Haven't I been saying that you can read people? That it's kind of a sixth sense? And NOW, once I write everything out, he finally agrees with me?

OH MY [expletive] GOD! THAT IS A MIRACLE!
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I like the way you said that! You obviously have a bad attitude! You will not go very far thinking those thoughts...yadda...yadda....yadda...

P.S. Merlin still doesn't understand. He has unique wiring. :lookaroun
 
pluto77

pluto77

Well-Known Member
I figure I should actually say something in this thread rather than just responding to other people's posts. I actually agree with Merlin about remaining professional, and definitely not taking frustrations out on an innocent guest. However, I was a CP, and I know what they deal with so I like to cut them some slack if they are a little less than magical to a really difficult guest. (However if they were really bad to a nice guest for no reason I would be mad). And in some cases, they shouldn't just take all of the verbal abuse (or physical abuse) that they get. I can only think of really one time when I thought that a CM was being really rude to me (ironically it was when I was a CP and she was being rude about my cast member discount).
 
M

Merlin

Account Suspended
dflye said:
Well, that is potentially a good metric for face-to-face communication where:

  • Both people speak the same language (that's a large assumption at WDW)
  • Neither person is deaf
  • Neither person is mute (you last heard Pooh say something at WDW when?)
  • Neither person has their face obscured (when was the last time Pooh had a facial expression that said "Punch me one more time, kid, and you're going to see the Mouse Police!")

If you are mute and/or the other person cannot read your facial expressions, you are definitely at a distinct disadvantage by your metrics.

Also, for communication that isn't directly face to face (such as when I'm contemplating homicide due to a few idiots on the road that should be in jail by now!), I'd say the breakdown is:

  • 70% gestures that you see at most major sporting events
  • 30% words that you know well enough that you can lip-read them across two lanes of rush hour traffic
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True enough. However, this was in response to Robynchic saying it's the CM who reads the guests' body language. To borrow from your style of point-making...When was the last time you saw guests walking around the parks in character costumes. If Robynchic had said it the other way around (i.e. that it was the guests who were able to read the characters' body language), than absolutely my stats would have no bearing here.

As a sidenote, those stats are based on a study by Dr Albert Mehrabian (sp) in 1968, which have been almost consistently re-validated time and again over the years.
 
M

Merlin

Account Suspended
Woody13 said:
It's a sign of experience and knowledge.
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Out of curiosity, do you ever say anything that is NOT rhetoric? :lol:

btw, still waiting for that example you've thus far been unable to provide, to back up your claim that I don't take my "own advice".
 
mkt

mkt

When a paradise is lost go straight to Disney™
Premium Member
Merlin said:
I'm starting to think Woody's obsessed with me. This is freaking me out a little. :eek:
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Woody is good at freaking people out. He's nearly given me heart attacks in the past... seriously.
 
P

pinkpixiedust

New Member
Now the last time I went to WDW was in '94, so it's been quite a while and it'd be hard for me to remember the quality of service from the CMs. But I worked for three years at the local mall during college, and we ALL know how hectic it gets during the holiday season. Usually on my break, I'd stop at the Disney Store to get some Christmas shopping done, and after being tired and crabby at my crummy job at Spencer Gifts, I would just be AMAZED by how upbeat and cheerful the CMs at the Disney Store could be, especially with so many kids just messing around the store, running wild, parents not disciplining them.

So when I was checking out, I just told them, "You guys have so much chutzpah than I do this time of year, and I'm at the wild store." :xmas:
 
M

Merlin

Account Suspended
MouseMadness said:
Woody freaks everybody out. :) It's part of his charm :wave:
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Yeah, but I think he's stalking me. Luckily I've kept him occupied with an impossible task...he's struggling to find an example of a claim he made about me. Probably searching furiously through 3 1/2 years of Merlin posts looking for just one example. That ought to keep 'em busy for a while. But I'm afraid that when he discovers that he can't find any "dirt" on me, he'll book a flight to CA, track me down, sit in his parked car across the street from my house with an ultra telephoto lens on his camera snapping photos of my every move!! Aaaaaahhhhh!!! Note to self: Better go lock the doors and lower the window shades. :lookaroun
 

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