Apparently Parents DO Have Wisdom...

My dad has a theory that children don't start seeing their parents' logic until after age 25. While I don't think I had to reach that magical milestone in my life before I started seeing the wisdom in their advice, I do continue to see it in various areas as my life progresses.

Take, for instance, a job. I started at Starbucks about 6 weeks ago. (Its going much better, by the way, thanks for asking.) When I was interviewed, I was asked questions such as, "What would you do (and what have you done in the past) when you are sick or unable to make it to work?" and "How many times were you late in your previous job?" I thought they were kind of weird questions to be asking--I just take it for granted that if I can't work, I need to find a replacement and if I'm scheduled at a certain time, I'm needed and counted upon to be there. I'm finding out that not everyone has those foundational understandings when it comes to a job. After responding to these questions, my interviewer mentioned that I would make an excellent candidate for shift manager (Really? Is it that hard to find a reliable person?)

My dad always said that all you have to do is show up on time and do your job and people will like you. I used to think it was bogus, but its becoming more clear to me that this is so true! I work the 4a.m. shift most mornings. When I started working at this hour, the management (both the Manager and the Assistant Manager) made the comment to me that they enjoyed opening the store with me...it took me awhile to find out that they didn't like opening with the other person available at that hour because she (direct quote) "lacks a sense of urgency". Basically, all I had to do was show up and they were happy! :) It was an interesting situation because at first, it wasn't even that they liked me all that much--I just wasn't the other person.

The other thing about this person is that she talks. A lot. Most of the time, working takes the back burner to talking. So again, all I have to do is show up and work and the management likes me. Now, this is not to say that this one person in particular is the only person with issues at Starbucks. One of our employees relies solely on public transportation, but often misses the bus. Again, it goes back to the principle that the reason a person is scheduled at a certain time is because they're needed at that time. She is now viewed as an unreliable employee--last week, of the four days I was to work with her, she was late 2 and didn't show up for 1 (quick mental math reveals that she only put in 1 full day of work at her scheduled time). Again, she's not the only one, but, wow! I can't imagine myself doing that...

I was discussing this with my sister Joy and I came to the conclusion that I am going to become unreliable and unresponsible. She doesn't think I can do it. She's right, you know, because it would go against everything my parents taught me. So, I guess I'm saying thank you to my dad, who cared enough to instill occupational responsibility in me at a young age.