My first job after graduating was canvassing. The information was free and it was for a charity whose cause was morally important to me. Here's what I have to say about the experience:
As a household canvasser I had to learn to be really thick skinned - imagine every third person using you as a mental punching bag for the bad day they've had, or screaming at you because they dropped the iron when the door bell rang, or treating you like you're there to con them even though you're only offering free information. Some people are great at this job, I learnt to be much better by the end. However working late afternoons and evenings, whilst fine in the summer, plunged me in darkness in unfamiliar, often dilapidated areas during the autumn months. Not to mention cycling. This kept me fitter, but often the routes weren't great for cyclists, and at night this presented even more problems.
The worst part for me was being told we had to "hit targets". This isn't a question of going round enough houses, but of being convincing enough at every house. The more relaxed I felt the better I was at this. I got a couple of people feeling sorry for me and openly saying that they were only taking any information for my benefit. I got a stroppy, disdainful woman who was intervened by her husband who decided he did want to talk to me. I had people answering the door in their underwear, people being extremely kind and warm, and other people sneering at me. One man belched loudly in front of me, several people offered me drink and food.
I tried to conduct social research to make the job more interesting;
What kind of people are most interested in sustainable transport?
-wealthier neighbourhoods were more likely to have a high response rate than poorer neighbourhoods. I chalked this down to the following reasons:
-poorer neighbourhoods seemed to receive a lot more people at their doors from charities than the richer neighbourhoods.
-The people of poorer neighbourhoods had more unsociable working hours so public transport was less convenient, and cycling in the dark isn't fun.
-The people in poorer neighbourhoods also often relied on their cars/vans as part of their work.
-People in poorer neighbourhoods had bad working hours (length wise) and just wanted to get home quickly in the evenings.
-Overall, people in wealthier neighbourhoods just seemed happier money and job wise, less stressed and sustainable transport was a luxury they seemed to be able to afford (time and money wise). They just had a more leisurely lifestyle than people in poorer areas.
-Poorer areas also had higher rates of crime (some people told me it wasn't safe for me to be walking around their neighbourhoods after 6pm), so I imagine you wouldn't want to leave yourself open walking to and from buses, taking buses at all, and cycling through a rough neighbourhood, even if it's your own. People over 65 in wealthier places were more likely to go out cycling and get about on their own whereas almost all the over 65s in poorer areas rarely left the house without someone accompanying them with a car.
What kind of people are kindest to a young woman at their door?
-Here there was no distinction to be made. Wealth, gender, age, nationality, culture, etc made no difference to how I was treated in every place. There was no trend, it was completely up to every individual. Though non-human animals were unilaterally awesome.
The people I worked with were all great, luckily. And I think what kept some of them going was the very clear notion that this was a stepping stone to something greater. Others seemed completely committed to the cause of environmental protection and this seemed to be their pillar of strength. Maybe they were just more thick skinned than I. For me, it was partly that I enjoyed talking to people about something that could potentially improve their lives, partly that it was interesting from a social experiment point of view, and partly that the job kept me fit.
For an entertaining depiction of being a bicycle courier with the same charity, check out my friend Tom's post here: http://thomastyrrell.wordpress.com/2012/12/07/thoughts-on-being-a-bicycle-courier/
