Showing interest in a job where you have no interest.

Mind_the_Gap

scheming_gypsy wrote: »

I know somebody who was a bean taster for Heinz and years ago we used to hire warehouse space for PC cases. For weeks when we went to unload or collect a lad would be sitting there taking packets of Haribo out of a big box and packing them into smaller boxes.

Well, at least that exercised his sense of spatial awareness to some degree.

Imagine performing the same single physical action on a machine (stamping out circular lids for Huntley & Palmers biscuit tins) for four hours non-stop. My husband did this as a holiday job once, and hated it. When he complained of boredom, the foreman thought about it for a while then, without a trace of irony, offered him a change of job - stamping out lids for square tins instead. OH was rather abrupt in his reply, which was interpreted as tendering his resignation. I was working the Personnel Office of that firm at the time and had to stamp his record card 'Do Not Re-Employ'. I remind him of this occasionally.

KiKi

Mind_the_Gap wrote: »

When he complained of boredom, the foreman thought about it for a while then, without a trace of irony, offered him a change of job - stamping out lids for square tins instead. OH was rather abrupt in his reply, which was interpreted as tendering his resignation. I was working the Personnel Office of that firm at the time and had to stamp his record card 'Do not Re-Employ'. I remind him of this occasionally.

That's possibly the funniest thing I've read today, and I really needed cheering up. So thank you.

Savvy_Sue

safesound wrote: »

Its about positive mental attitude. I work in retail and at home (according to my DH) am a miserable sarcastic wife but in work ALL my customers love me because I'm approachable and friendly, I smile when greeting them and happily make small talk (even just about the weather), I go out of my way to be nice to people even when they are being less than pleasant. Why? Because that's what I'm paid to do. My job is to make nice-nice with the customers so they are more inclined to return to my specific store.
I don't want to be nice most of the time, in fact allot of the time I'm mentally shouting 'You want beans? are you blind? there is a stack of beans 6 feet high RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU!' but what I actually say is 'Beans? no problem, I'll just run and get them. Is there anything else I can get for you? **SMILE**
Its honestly just a case of forcing yourself to do it so often it becomes second nature. It takes a while but it is possible to fake it until you make it

Some of us are better at this than others, but I do make an effort at work, at least to the outside world. My colleagues know - and I admit it - that I am a Grumpy Old Woman, and would much rather people would Just Do As I Asked In My Perfectly Comprehensible Email rather than interrupting me to ask how to do what I asked them to do in my perfectly comprehensible email, but to phone callers and doorbell ringers I smile and reply as helpfully as I know how.

mountainofdebt

schmucker wrote: »

I'm sure non of us aspired to be check out operators, cleaners, factory workers etc when we were at school. My wife works as a check out operator, recently she had a mystery shopper in and the mystery shopper said, "The assistant looked miserable and looked like she didn't want to be there" well she was telling the truth, she didn't want to be there.

And people wonder why the self service tills were introduced!

I work in an environment where the majority of the time I get moaned at but I bite my tongue, smile and try and make the miserable sods think I'm pleased to be there - if only because they are paying my wages

Azrael_1701

I know how you feel sometimes. While I might not be packing meat all day, and I do get a reasonable amount above minimum wage, my job can be very monotonus sometimes. Especially with some of the changes that are going on at work and all the imensely stupid policies that are being introduced just really get at me sometimes. Then you get the occasional customer swearing and being abusive, its almost enough to make me just loose it sometimes, but I have always managed to keep my composure up until now.

Just smile and take the next call....

Mind_the_Gap

Just be glad you don't do what the father of a kid in my class does for a living : scraping the mushy, rotting bits off cows' hooves. (Apparently cows in the Dales are prone to the bovine equivalent of trenchfoot).

scheming_gypsy

mountainofdebt wrote: »

And people wonder why the self service tills were introduced!

they were introduced to annoy me, i'm sure of it.

schmucker

I'm working there going on for 6 years now and been looking out since I started, at the time I took the job I was desperate, I had been unemployed for a year, gone through a bout of depression and well things were grim. Admittedly I've not done all I can to get out of there but I do check the job centre every other week, choice is shocking and i've got kids, I just can't walk out.

I don't think fake it till you make it is great advice. If you don't like something for me anyway your never gonna like it. For me I get used to, I certainly don't like it. I notice at Christmas or in summer holidays for example when I am off for an extended period my mood and general outlook on life definitely improves but the old saying the high you go the further you have to fall is certainly true because once you return to work you feel totally depressed, its like it better not to actually have time of.

But I have applied for 2 jobs recently and have The Open University starting in October so I think the best thing I can do is focus my energy on these.

Evilm

scheming_gypsy wrote: »

so if he's miserable about doing it; which he clearly is, he should look and behave as though it's the most amazing job in the world? what an absolute load of !!!!!

If he's in a job he hates then he's going to be miserable. We shouldn't be excited just because we have a job even if we hate it; not unless you've found out that we get another shot at life? because as far as I'm aware we only get one shot at it and shouldn't spend it doing things we hate 'just because'

Did i say excited? No...I said don't be openly miserable and show others you are miserable. Appearing happy doesn't even mean appearing Excited. It means not looking like a child who is sulking because Mommy and Daddy are making them do something they don't want to!

Customers don't tend to want to know anything about the person in front of them at the till. They just want the person to be pleasant and helpful and do their job. If someone reports that you looked miserable you are not doing your job.

Yeah, we only get one shot at life and if you get sacked because you are a miserable person and your customers (and mystery shoppers) report back to the bosses that you are miserable and they feel like you hate being at work then your ability to live life is going to be impacted and you will be miserable in all areas of life!

We don't get to play the "its my life and i should do what i want to card". That is for children having a temper tantrum. As an adult you wise up and realise that doesn't get you anywhere.

mardatha

Schmucker, I think many of us have been there. I've had some truly horrible jobs with some truly horrible people, and so has my husband. You have to keep a tight grip on your inner toughness, and be proud of who and what you are, and that you're a dad looking after his family. Well done for sticking it pet! x