- Have Backbone; Disagree and Commit: There is no hesitation when it comes to standing up for myself in the workplace now. For instance, I was once accused of stealing at one of my previous workplaces. My supervisor asked me where an item was and I replied saying it was not there when I arrived. She then said, “you know we have security cameras right?” At that moment, part of me wanted to avoid confrontation and simply apologize for losing track of this item. But deep down I knew there was no valid reason for being accused of stealing inventory. So instead I replied with “Check them then, maybe you’ll also see the bag I had with me that day and see it wouldn’t have even fit into it.” She did check the cameras and never spoke of the incident again. We had a delicate relationship afterward, I have no regrets.
- Earn Trust: When starting somewhere new, getting to know the team is just as important to me as understanding how to do my job correctly. One of my favorite ways to do this is simply by asking everyone what their sign is. It is definitely my favorite icebreaker. In my current workplace, I am by no means familiar with anyone yet. But making the effort to get to know everyone as my day goes by has already made it so much easier to transition into the flow of the team. I have noticed people tend to show me more patience and trust with bigger tasks if they feel comfortable approaching me.
- Learn and Be Curious: I honestly used to hate asking questions, I had this fear that asking anything would make me seem incompetent. This fear of mine would often put me in situations where a small mistake that could have been avoided turns into a series of small mistakes. Because it is something I have had to learn the hard way multiple times, I try to ask as multiple questions as possible. And if I am not completely sure about something, I would rather make the customer wait while I check in with my manager or supervisor first. I also get bored fairly easily if I am not actively learning something new at my workplace. Thus, I try to take on new tasks when I can.
- Customer Obsession: The customer is not always right. I am a strong believer in “minimum wage, minimum effort”. When I worked for Amazon Go, there was a strong emphasis on going above and beyond for customers. While I was willing to do what was required of me, I was not going to bend over backward for a company that treated me as replaceable. I am willing to fulfill the job role but I am not going to go the extra mile for every single customer I interact with. I feel like that is an unrealistic expectation. Perhaps it would be easier if every customer I interacted with was kind and low maintenance, but that is not always the case. At the end of the day, I am a person too, I am not going to remain calm when someone yells at me about something that is out of my control.
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