You’ve probably noticed the trend, it’s gained steam in the last few years, in which store clerks ask for your phone number when you’re checking out. I don’t hold it against the clerks – they’ve been instructed by management (who is guided by marketing firms) to gather personal information.

A few days back I saw a group of ladies dutifully giving up their e-mail addressees at a store in the mall. They can be expecting a mini blizzard of spam.

But my attitude is: just say no. I wouldn’t think of offering up my number. Even at those many stores where they ask for just my zip code, I decline. I figure they’re already making a profit off of me, I don’t need to help them build their marketing database.

But there’s that funny social moment that plenty of people must get caught in. The clerk is ringing things up, and asks – without offering a choice – “zip code?” Almost as if they can’t complete the transaction without that critical piece of data. For a lot of people that’s very hard to say no to – it might seem rude (when in fact it’s the request for personal information that’s rude).

I just say “I prefer not to give it.” And that ends everything.