I am the collector (Credit Manager) in my family's business. While I would rather be helping customers than having to make them pay, it's a vital and necessary function if you expect your business to survive. More people are out stealing in the name of business than they ever do personally, and for a lot more money. I can be a nice guy, but I'm the meanest SOB you ever met if you think it's ok to pay late, or not pay at all. We've been in business since 1959 (yes, 50 years); and our #1 rule is that we pay our vendors on time; so I'm not asking anyone to do what we are willing and able to do ourselves.
Now, I could tell some STORIES. My favorite one is this guy that actually told me once that "Don't you know writing bad checks is part of doing business?" My response was, "No, they didn't teach me that in business school, but I guess I didn't go to "Cracker Jack U"...or the guy that told me he was going to come down and kick my azz; I gave him detailed directions (and spent the rest of the day cautiously watching the door)
