How to Avoid Solicitors

1. How to Avoid Solicitors By: Olga Kuznetsova May 5th 2010 English 393 Technical Writing

2. Who, Why, and When? • Solicitors are people on the street who try to get you to do something • Audience: Anyone who wants to avoid being solicited. Educated laypeople • Why? Its annoying to be solicited • When? Anytime you are outside

3. Disclaimer • This tutorial means no harm to solicitors • Knowledge learned from solicitors can be beneficial

4. Materials • Good shoes (tennis shoes or flip flops, no heels) • Sunglasses • Cell phone, ipod, or any other electronic device • Book

5. Step 1: Weather Preparation • Check the weather outside • If it is raining, snowing, windy, or cold, you are safe • If it is sunny and warm, you may be in danger

6. Step 2: Route Preparation • Decide on a route around solicitors • Avoid crowded streets • Avoid areas where you have seen solicitors previously

7. Step 3: Identification • Identify potential solicitors • People that are: • Standing still • Holding papers • Looking at people/ making eye contact • Walking up to/ talking to various people

8. Step 4: Avoidance (part 1) • Avoid being solicited • Walk as far away from the solicitor as possible • Keep other people between the solicitor and yourself • Walk fast

9. Step 5: Avoidance (part 2) • Avoid looking like a target • Wear sunglasses to avoid eye contact • Look at phone, ipod, book, etc to seem busy • Don’t look at solicitor

10. Step 6: Escape • Get away from a solicitor who is talking to you • Say that you don’t speak English • Say “No” or “Not interested” • Yell “Stranger Danger” and run

11. Problem: When you say that you don’t speak English, solicitor asks what language you speak Solution: Say “No understand” and walk away Troubleshooting

12. Questions?