3,071,489
Our best practice is to call in "Sam"...ask Candice A. Donofrio if you don't believe me!!
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Steve Siegwalt
Dripping Springs, TX
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Anna Hatridge
Farmington, MO
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Nina Hollander, Broker
Charlotte, NC
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
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Candice A. Donofrio
Fort Mohave, AZ
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Tony and Suzanne Marri...
Scottsdale, AZ
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Susan Haughton
Alexandria, VA
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Kristen Correa, Broker
Keller, TX
613,494
We were trying to get our foot in the door with a relo company and finally got our fist client. He was old, retired military and short. First it was flatterey, brushing imaginary dirt from my hair ....and then he came in the office and attempted to kiss me on the lips.
I very cooly said I had an appointement and left. From then on Mike was his agent and I made sure I never saw him again. Mike closed him and said he always asked about me...ugh.
Another time Mike and I had some upscale clients that invited us over to their house. As soon as we sat down, they brought out the wine and he started talking about my long legs and the wife liked Mike's muscles. Then the neighbors dropped by with more bottles of booze...and the subject turned to sex. OMGosh, they were all swingers!!
We excused ourselves and ran to the car...laughing all the way home...we never did sell them a house.
Eve
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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Nancy Robinson Ranked ...
Royal Oak, MI
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Nina Hollander, Broker
Charlotte, NC
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
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Tony and Suzanne Marri...
Scottsdale, AZ
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Lyn Sims
Schaumburg, IL
4,800,132
I would let them know that you don't feel you're in a position to be able to help them out and it would be better if they sought a different agent for representation.
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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Nina Hollander, Broker
Charlotte, NC
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Michael Jacobs
Pasadena, CA
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Lyn Sims
Schaumburg, IL
4,581,818
I recall reading a post by Gabe Sanders on this subject -- maybe he can share his thoughts. It isn't anything I have yet encountered.
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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Nina Hollander, Broker
Charlotte, NC
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Tony and Suzanne Marri...
Scottsdale, AZ
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Gabe Sanders
Stuart, FL
921,504
Never go ALONE!
"I'd would like you to meet my Hubby/Wife and we can chat a bit over a frozen beverage."
It IS as simple as that. Never go ALONE.
OF course Hubby/Wife needs to understand their role and be able to Not take up an offense but enjoy the reward.
You must be able to keep the conversation centered on social or biz and be seated more than an arms length away.
It is amazing, even funny what happens when things are dragged into the sunshine.
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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Nina Hollander, Broker
Charlotte, NC
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Allie Angeloni
Oro Valley, AZ
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
392,768
Yes, and I finally just asked if they would like to work with a different agent. That seemed to work, because they apologized and became much easier to work with.
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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Steve Siegwalt
Dripping Springs, TX
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
716,529
Harassment? What kind? How come I never got any? It's not fair....
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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Steve Siegwalt
Dripping Springs, TX
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
3,988,013
I am direct and have said let's stick to business or you have a wonderful wife and she wouldn't appreciate you acting this way.
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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Nina Hollander, Broker
Charlotte, NC
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
42,670
Some flirting but nothing really aggressive. Forget "politely" if a Client who knows im married still persists. She has already offended me by thinking I would do something sleazy. The gloves would be off at that point.
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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Nina Hollander, Broker
Charlotte, NC
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
1,562,386
When I was a newer agent, and struggling financially I had a wife and husband couple who were just terrible people. They'd argue over evertyhing, from placing an imaginary lamp in the dining room of a home they weren't even interested in, to other non-important things. One day, as I was driving them to another property to view, I forget the conversation, but the wife of 20+ years says "I wouldn't mind if Ron had a girlfriend . . . as long as she was nice."
Ron, the husband was in the car at the time!!!
They were a smug, full of themselves couple . . . he was a finance guy in charge of a state's employee pension fund. He invested funds worldwide, and was probably on the dole, taking kick-backs and lived the high life.
Meanwhile, I was a single mother, NOT impressed!
What did I do . . . I went home and cried. It was very upsetting to me.
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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Steve Siegwalt
Dripping Springs, TX
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
1,291,481
I'm chuckling a bit here, John DL Arendsen, because when you said harrassment, I thought you meant this client was overstepping or getting rude because of business or a transaction. Jeesh, never even entered my mind initially that you meant what you did. Makes me wonder what else I've been missing!
Just stay safe ... these days you never know ...
Gene
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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Nina Hollander, Broker
Charlotte, NC
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
1,846,851
Wow, no means no even for guys! I guess you're going to have to let her down gently but sometimes you can't do that or they just continue.
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Nina Hollander, Broker
Charlotte, NC
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Diana Zaccaro Broker A...
Cocoa Beach, FL
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
4,959,198
Stop it now!
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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Nina Hollander, Broker
Charlotte, NC
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
1,552,938
What are they doing specifically John? Hard to advise not knowing, meantime:
I set boundaries in meeting #1. When they violate those boundaries, I remind them of what they agreed to. If it's a buyer, I also remind them that since I'm a FREE service, I control my hours. With sellers, it depends on the circumstances. Never forget your value, you are the professional; you are the surgeon, the lawyer the Realtor, so do not let them run you disrespectfully. "This is how we do it here or I'm happy to refer you to someone else that's a better fit."
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Nina Hollander, Broker
Charlotte, NC
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Allie Angeloni
Oro Valley, AZ
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
1,456,819
All joking aside John DL Arendsen, it does become scary when people do not understand that No means No! I see this sort of harassment with both men and women these days and I know many men who need to always make sure they have a witness in the room with certain Women !!
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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Allie Angeloni
Oro Valley, AZ
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
736,302
Perhaps I should have said BUGGED not HARRASSED. Probably a little harsher than it needed to be. It's just that I'm a happily married HUSBAND, FATHER & GRANDFATHER and haven't been HIT on since my college days. I guess I should have felt more FLATTERED than HARRASSED huh? LOL!!
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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Lyn Sims
Schaumburg, IL
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Susan Emo
Kingston, ON
1,466,257
John DL Arendsen Politely tell them they're fired and move on.
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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Nina Hollander, Broker
Charlotte, NC
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
525,574
Unfortunately I had a male client that harassed me so badly I turned him over to a male agent in my office. He continued anyway to call and text me at all hours. I was forced to send him notice that the police would be contacted if he didn't cease all contact with me immediately and that took care of it.
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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Nina Hollander, Broker
Charlotte, NC
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Susan Emo
Kingston, ON
647,210
Yes had it happen before. The way I handled it was to tell them I am not one to assume things but it *feels* like you may be flirting with me, and I don't want our business relationship to get awkward. Had it go both ways from there, they seemed slightly embarrassed and stopped and other times something like they would be interested in taking beyond business. Flattered but no and moved on.
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
18,884
I can say the best advice is to travel in pairs! :^} My wife and I almost always go on listing apts. together. It gives us a great understanding of the clients along with their experience as to how we treat each other with professionalism and respect.
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
1,322,519
What a fascinating string!
If you simply live your life in any business (real estate is not unique) some challenging experiences will present themselves. How you handle them is defined by your own moral persuasion and proclivities.
I appreciate the professional and uplifting tone of the comments in response to the questions posed here.
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
902,038
We discuss; if it's over the top, I fire them - don't need the grief. Luckily, has not happened often.
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
183,505
Incident #1...Did not have a RE license at the time. Was acting as the personal representative for my mother's estate. Two agents, working as a team, started rolling around on my parents' bed begging for me to give them the listing. Told them that I was gay and left the room. My wife congratulated me for the quick thinking.
Incident #2...Same house as #1-male agent races through the house, sits down and asks me to sign a listing agreement. Tell him I'm still interviewing. He then pulls out more paperwork that he asks me to sign while covering the top of the form. Says I need to to sign it so his boss will know he met with me. It was another copy of the listing agreement. He found the front door in a nano second with my help.
Incident #3...Designed and built a luxury home for a single lady. Everyday, during both phases, she constantly called me to make changes. Finally, had to lay down the law by tripling the cost of each proposed change order.
Incident #4...Had a rental listing. HOA didn't allow pets. Prospective tenant had a small dog that she wanted to bring with her that I found out about through a third party. Putting a stop to it caused some temporary harassment.
Live long enough....stuff happens!
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
3,741,214
I did, and I wasn't terribly polite. I'm sure I did offent the guy. Too bad.
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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Nina Hollander, Broker
Charlotte, NC
3,167,489
I don't think we can work together, you need to find a different agent.
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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Nina Hollander, Broker
Charlotte, NC
2,375,285
I have occasionally gotten "the vibe" but I just ignore it and make sure I am always at least a few feet safely away
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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Nina Hollander, Broker
Charlotte, NC
1,771,867
My style is to ignore.
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
3,416,038
Yes, a guy that would call every morning for an update on his sale, i would give it. The late afternoon he would call drunk yelling how i never updated him that morning as requested. and repeat...
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
637,484
And it doesn't necessarily have to be sexual advances. Just because we are friendly--that's the nature of the beast because we are in sales. Last year, I had a real problem with an elderly lady down the street. You might remember the Q&A that I did at that time. She'd come to my gate every day. Some people suggested I just give in to her demands and go over to her place, find other friends for her, etc. NO WAY. I choose my own friends and whom I hang out with. Real estate is a business and no one corners me "just to be nice".
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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Allie Angeloni
Oro Valley, AZ
5,583,328
I never dealt with any harrassment....the rules and program were established at the listing presentation.... and my clients followed those rules... it was made clear that I worked that way....
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Nina Hollander, Broker
Charlotte, NC
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
231,224
i think you can say fart for one thing, the other , to answer your question, is just not to respond... busy..gotta run..talk to you later...and then never be available..but thats me
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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Allie Angeloni
Oro Valley, AZ
3,349,229
I need you to define "harassment". I don't take shit from anyone these days. If someone is bothering me I am not concerned about offending them. I won't sell my soul.
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
5,026,148
Boundaries need to be set from the fist meeting. Explain how you work and what is expected. I have not experienced any difficulties.
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
290,969
Yikes! and fortunately I have not had any issues with client harassment John DL Arendsen. For me, if a situation appeared to be that way or going in that direction, Roger would be dealing with that client, or not! I will read replies below to see how others have handled this type of situation.
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
5,060,238
No it hasn't been an issue, although I know several other agents who had issues.
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Nina Hollander, Broker
Charlotte, NC
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
1,728,056
Never have had that problem, in fact, it is usually the other way around, i.e., we are looking for more communication.
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
5,772,575
John,
Has not happened to either one of us.
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Nina Hollander, Broker
Charlotte, NC
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
206,062
I provide them with my work hours and tell them I do not take calls after a certain point in time unless we are under a time frame to get something finished.
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
5,111,821
Oh my goodness... I have no idea how I'd react as I've never had this issue. I suppose the degree of reaction would depend on the degree of harrassment.
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Allie Angeloni
Oro Valley, AZ
7,862,342
991,152
I always tell them "I'm stepping into a meeting". after a few times they stop
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Brenda J. Andrew
Willis, TX
6,416,259
Never felt harrassed, but a few have been a little too needy, best to not answer the calls at all hours, and respond to the calls on your time.
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
212,500
It is very RARE but simple answer to when I feel threatened is 100% ignore. I justify this by the old adage, "If you have nothing nice to say, don't say it at all."
Harrassment comes in so many different levels, though, and I realize when they escalate (they never have pushed me too far) so must we...
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John DL Arendsen
Leucadia, CA
4,319,773
John DL Arendsen - excuse me, I got to address this immediately. Let's reconnect after some time when I am free!
518,497
I had it happen to me once a long time ago. The person wasn't even a client. He wanted to be but could not afford to even purchase a home. He kept calling, and following me. He would show up at places that I was. I finally told my Broker and we called the police and filed a report against him. I never had another issue with him. Thank God!!! It is scary when someone is stalking you.
1,624,653
I'm always polite, even if I do not want to.
What do you mean by harassment?
3,986,308
1,617,916
There are times in property management I get these calls when I evict them. They go away shortly.
4,434,177
1,241,754
That also applied to realtors wanting to get to be in touch with their past clients.
2,191,471
823,679
2,784,416
60,021
No, but I guess this question is more often an issue for women than it is for men.
5,237,958