The People Who Choose To Love Me

The People Who Choose To Love Me
This is my family. Watermark and all.

Thursday, October 8, 2015

I Would Be The Shittiest C.E.O. Ever

Tonight at work a lady ordered boneless buffalo wings. I wrote her order down and put it in to the cooks and when her food came out she looked at it and said, "That's not what I ordered." This is a fairly common occurence and anyone who waits tables can tell you it happens at least once a week. I'm not sure if people forget what words come out of their mouths, or if they are thinking of something else and then accidentally say the thing they don't want, or maybe I'm just a shitty waitress and I need to get my hearing checked. Anyway, this lady was pretty nice about it and I put in another order of the kind of wings she wanted instead.

Then, there is the tricky part of either deciding whether or not I will pay for the fuck up or if I should ask a manager to comp the food she didn't want. I was guessing my tip wouldn't even be enough to cover her food so I asked a manager. Rightfully irritated that the woman ordered one thing but wanted another, he asked me, "Why should we pay for something that the lady ordered but didn't want? Give me one good reason to take this off of the bill."

My response simply was, "She is really nice."

His reply was, "Yeah, she's nice, but we are also trying to run a business."

He comped the food and I was able to keep my tip from the table but the whole night I was really irked. Not by my manager's response or that I had to run around like a chicken with my head cut off to try and please these people to make my barely livable wage for the night, but by my answer. If I were in charge of a multi-million dollar company who's stocks weren't heading in any sort of great direction at the moment, I'd be in a position where nice just wouldn't cut it. I'd be responsible for making money and keeping jobs filled and nice isn't synonymous with profit.

Clearly, if I'm willing to give things away for free (and not just because it's on the company dime, I have picked up several of my own screw ups out of pocket) I am not cut out for a corporate job. And, I think I'm ok with learning that about myself. I sucked at being a manager for Gottschalks and owned it. I was clearly not meant to handle loads of stress and manual labor and I resented every second of having other managers (eleven, to be exact) bark orders at me incessantly with little to no regard for my schedule or availability. I got to hang things from the ceiling, paint, and dress mannequins so it was a kind of cool job but it was also very nerve wracking to work for a corporation who's stock had plummeted and everyone knew what was coming. Bankruptcy. Everyone that worked for Gottschalks lost their jobs and there were a lot of good people there (the majority of management excluded) who were working for peanuts, pensions, or insurance purposes. I still think about people from that store and I wonder if they are doing ok.

I think I am cut out for some sort of job where I can make my own schedule, I can be creative when I feel like it, and being nice to people isn't a downfall. I have worked so hard at trying to be a nicer person over the years and it hasn't been easy. I was not a good human being twenty, fifteen, hell, even ten years ago. But, today, I am happy with how I treat others and how I am treated in return. I went from the lady who would call the bank screaming my head off for my overdrafts to be removed, to the lady who calls the bank and can say, "Yeah, I fucked up, and I'm really sorry and if there is any way you could help me out, I'd really appreciate it. But, if not, I understand that too." It is honestly amazing how well people will respond to you when you are nice to them and when you take personal responsibility for your own actions. It's like learning how to fit into society all over again.

I don't like feeling like I am failing at my job and I don't like putting someone (technically corporations are people so I assume they have feelings too) in a tough spot and making them lose out on money that could be in either their pockets or their employees', but at the same time I kind of feel like going Robin Hood all over corporations' asses.

It's all about the bottom line. I'm pretty sure my personal bottom line will remain in the red because of all the boneless wings I'll probably pay for in the future as a waitress who feels bad for nice people. And, I'm kind of glad my patrons aren't following my blog because if the word got out and I had to pay for things out of pocket every night I'd start becoming jaded and all corporatey and that would be a step backward in the personal growth department. 

3 comments:

  1. What really sucks is that you're (I assume) not even making minimum wage because tips are expected to cover a percentage of your salary. Back when I stocked the salad bar at a restaurant I was shocked to learn the waitresses didn't make minimum wage. Neither did the busboys. I hated, and still hate, that.
    Having to pay for peoples' mistakes out of your own pocket sucks too, though. Now I'm gonna hesitate to ever send anything back if there's a mistake.
    I feel for you. There are a lot of terrible jobs out there but most pale in comparison to anything in the food service industry.

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    1. You should definitely never eat something you don't want to eat! (Was that a double negative??) Not everyone pays for stuff out of their own pockets. I just don't like making waves. This is why I have had two failed businesses. Haha:) My wages are ok. Definitely more than minimum but the hours aren't as long as a normal job so it all kind of evens out.

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  2. Gerald and I always tip very well at restaurants, yes even if things aren't "perfect!" Drives us nuts when we witness diners who have ridiculous expectations when eating out. Don't know how you do it, Shawna!

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