A few months ago, my family and I moved to a new home. Among several decorating and renovating projects, we hired a team of four men to install carpets in the bedrooms. It was a long and hard day, and as I headed out to grab some lunch, I asked the project lead whether I could bring some food back for him and his crew.
“It’s ok,” he replied.
“Really,” I insisted. “I’m going to get myself some lunch and I’d be happy to bring you all something.”
“Ok then,” he said. “Thank you.”
“Excellent,” I said. “What would you like?”
“Whatever you bring.” He replied.
“No, seriously,” I insisted. “I can bring you anything. What do you prefer?”
“Whatever you bring,” he said again.
“You tell me what you want, and I will get it for you,” I tried again, wanting to be thoughtful, helpful, and generous.
At this point, he took a beat and a breath. And then he looked at me and said, “Ma’am, it would be disrespectful for me to ask you to bring us anything specific. We are working for you.”
