A Shift in Attitude

[Maximillion]

Normally I'm the one with the stick up my ass but lately our customers have flipped the switch on me. I'm trying to speak more loudly in drive-thru so I won't get pissy if they still can't hear me. I've even been more polite and sounding like I actually give a shit. It seems to work during the day, but once nighttime hits, the assholes come out to play.

And another thing that pisses me off is that when I'm taking money at the window, customers want to act like they have no home training. When I open the window I'll say "Hi, how are you?" And the response? "Ketchup and salt." I don't think you heard me correctly, I asked you how you were doing not what you wanted with your food. You're supposed to say something in response to my greeting and then say what else you want. That just really pisses me off. I just grin and bear it but if I'm feeling bitchy myself, I'll repeat a little louder, "And how are you doing?" Then they get a little attitude and say "Fine," but you know they're pissed off now.

But it doesn't matter because today I applied to a few places and hopefullyone of them will call me back and I can finally free myself from the burger hell in which I toil everyday. Next month would mark my third year of employment there.

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

When I open the window I'll say "Hi, how are you?" And the response? "Ketchup and salt."

"I'm feeling a little mustard and pickle relish myself."

[Jules Of All Trades]

I went through the drive thru last week to pick up some quick dinner for the family. Andy (I noticed his name tag), the person who took my money asked, "Hi, how are you this evening?" I said in return, "I'm great, how about you?"

For about half a second he looked stunned, then he said "I'm great too, thanks for asking! No one asks anymore..."

Do so few people in my area have manners these days that my quick courtesy was that shocking? I felt really bad for the drive thru employees after that...

[Custard Chick]

Ugg, I would get that also. I hate that people have no basic manners anymore! What happen to 'please' and 'thank you'???

Makes me sad.

[blas]

The first step is admitting you have a problem. I mean this in a non offensive way. When I worked at the gas station and I began to realize that I had a stick up my ass and I was pathetically attempting to be rude to customers to try to...."force" them to polite to me, I realized you can't teach customers basic manners. You can't make anyone do anything.

Good luck finding a new job! I know how it feels to work somewhere you truly despise. You gotta get out of there and soon!

[SubwayGirl]

That is one of my pet peeves (of course I have a list a mile long)

I always smile and greet the customer "Hi! how are you?"
Customer "6" turkey on wheat". GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR. I know I speak clearly!

Or, Customer, "I WANT a 6" turkey on wheat". Me, "Would you LIKE cheese on that?". Customer, "I WANT American Cheese. Me ' Would you LIKE it toasted?" I feel like saying "I WANT a customer with manners, I WANT to hit you" "I WANT to go home!"

[AriRashkae]

Ugg, I would get that also. I hate that people have no basic manners anymore! What happen to 'please' and 'thank you'???

Makes me sad.

Hell, my 2 year old is figuring out that you say "Thank you" after you get something. (But if you've never heard him say it, you might not understand him. )

"Please" is another matter, but I can coax one out once in a while.

[Shengirl]

I just grin and bear it but if I'm feeling bitchy myself, I'll repeat a little louder, "And how are you doing?"

Treating adults like children who have forgotten their manners is amusing. When I do it, I always give a good-natured smile - that's how you can tell whether they were being rude or just oblivious. The latter sometimes look ashamed of themselves when they realize what they did, and some even apologize!

[MrDelirious]

Something like this happened to my dad all the time when he worked at a hardware store

Him: How are you today?
Them: Screwdrivers.
Him: Wow. That is certainly an interesting state of being. You may want to see a psychiatrist.

[RecoveringKinkoid]

When I worked at Kinko's, it didn't really bother me so much when they did that, because the pace of the place was so intense. It allowed me to be as intense and to the point as I felt like being, too. We're all in a huge hurry, I get that. If you don't have time for niceties, fine, that means you won't be expecting them from me, either.

On the other hand, when they DID stop to get to know us, to say 'hi', to ask how our day was going, those were the people who got the special treatment, the helpful favors, and the free upgrades.

Being to the point gets the job done.
Being nice get the job done better, cheaper, and more pleasantly.

A lesson a lot of people could stand to learn.

[Maximillion]

On the other hand, when they DID stop to get to know us, to say 'hi', to ask how our day was going, those were the people who got the special treatment, the helpful favors, and the free upgrades.

I do that sometimes too...like if I'm in DT and a customer orders something simple like a small fry and a burger and they stand out amongst the others, I'll give them a medium fry instead and make them a medium coke they "ordered" that I "forgot" to make. There was one time when a young boy wanted an oreo shake but he didn't have enough money for the size he wanted. He's always a sweetheart when he comes in so when he ordered a regular size shake in the flavor he wanted, I made him an oreo instead and used a normal lid so my boss wouldn't notice. His face lit up when I told him there were cookie bits in there for him and that really made my day, making a worthy customer happy.