Everyone Needs to Work Customer Service
Image Courtesy: @honeymoon @LeshawnDTuttle / Facebook
Working in customer service is like signing up to be a dummy in a psychology experiment, all for minimum wage. It's crazy to see how people behave when little power is placed into their hands, when they are at the service of others' food orders. If I were in a government position, I’d make it a requirement for everyone to work in customer service jobs, whether that's retail, call center, fast-food, or serving, for at least two years.
Nothing enrages workers more than customers walking in five minutes before closing time. Customers act as if they don't hear the intercom announcing the store's closing. The customers that walk in right before closing time are never there for just five minutes; they're typically the longest customers, just dilly-dallying through life while you’re desperately waiting to get home to get to an assignment or get some rest to wake up early the next morning. And don’t get me started on the customer who walks into the fitting rooms to try on fifty pieces of clothing, knowing they’re not buying half of it. All just for them to walk away, leaving the clothes on the floor and the hangers left broken. You realize quickly that common courtesy isn’t so common in these situations. Throwing clothes over the rack instead of hanging back on the very hanger they found it on, leaving dog piss, letting their children climb things, and customers always finding a problem just to avoid paying. Like, why come into a business if you weren’t planning on spending any money?
Starting at the job, you’re like SpongeBob, filled with optimism, but in just a few weeks, you turn into Squidward, feeling drained. The longer you stay, the more rules get added, and the workload gets heavier because management and corporations see workers as props rather than people with lives. That type of awareness makes you lock into your academics or your dreams and aspirations. There’s no way you can spend the rest of your life working minimum wage to deal with people’s crap and disrespect. Like, what do you mean you want everything fresh? Since when was McDonalds’ every fresh food?
Ever since I had a customer try on a pair of drawers at the accessories section, I'd recommend just giving your new clothes a wash before wearing them. These establishments are hardly ever deep-cleaned. Dust and residue are seeping into every corner and crevice. The ick you get from the food coming in cold packages, and the ridiculous up pricing for items that are not up to par in terms of quality. It makes you shop, eat, and live a bit differently.
On the bright side, the discounts are coming in clutch and working in customer service like retail builds character. If you’re someone who doesn’t like to talk or avoid confrontation, it's the right job to pull you out of your bubble quickly. Respect, consideration, and common sense go out the window when people leave their homes. The question of “do you work here?” while you are actively working with a name tag on is quite interesting to experience. Working at those jobs will have you wondering if you’re paying some sort of karma and will have you evaluate how you show up in certain settings as a customer.
Strike Out,
Johann Jonassaint
Boca Raton
Johann Jonassaint is a content writer for Strike Magazine Boca. A true Venusian who can never get enough of being wrapped in cozy sheets, listening to video essays, or daydreaming. When she finally leaves her sheets, you can catch her writing at the library, the only place she can actually get work done. Feel free to contact her at jjonassaint2023@gmail.com or @jojoeva_ on Instagram.
