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  • Customer pisses me off, apologizes, which pisses me off

    I got sent to a site yesterday and today by myself. It was to finish up a job that had been started by another company, who got fired. Inspection was scheduled for today, afternoon. Boss went to look at Wednesday night, and told me Thursday morning: I'm pretty sure you can get it done by lunch Friday if you hustle, but if not I'll send you a helper Friday, it really needs to be ready for inspection, a reschedule at this point will be an extra $400 and take another week, and we will lose some money.

    No worries. I get there, there is still a fair bit of work to do, and it is more difficult because everything is 1/2 done. If 1/2 the things were completely done and 1/2 not started it would be easier and faster to complete. So I hustle. I'm jogging between work areas, and out to the truck to get materials, and I'm moving quickly up and down the ladders, but I am still doing the work carefully. The homeowner, other than saying hello when I show up, doesn't say anything to me, but follows me around and watches me work. (Have I mentioned how much I don't enjoy that - if you think I am a movie pay your $12, otherwise stop watching me!)

    All is rolling along nicely when I get a text from boss: Are you jogging around site?
    Me: I guess so, I need to hustle to get this done on time
    Boss: Please stop jogging, I can send you a help tomorrow if you need it, the customer is concerned that you are rushing and are going to miss things or do something wrong
    Me: ?????? Ok I guess

    So I make sure I am walking around the house, and trying not to look rushed. I didn't take break in the morning and around 1 I decided to stop for lunch, so I head out to sit in the truck, eat, play on my phone etc. Around 1:20 the customer knocks on the truck window: Are you going to be in here for a while?
    Me: I'm just on lunch break, I'll be back in soon.
    Him: It's almost 1:30, shouldn't lunch be over by 12:30?
    Me: I didn't come out until just after 1pm. I will be back in shortly.
    Him: It's just that I have inspection scheduled for tomorrow afternoon, it really needs to be done by then
    Me: Yes I was told. It will be done
    Him: It just really needs to be done by then, I expected to get about 4 or 5 guys for this.
    Me: It's alright, I should be able to get it done myself. I will get more people tomorrow if I need them, it will get done on time.
    Him: Well, tomorrow might be too late. I expected more people. I don't want you rushing and missing things. If you're in too much of a hurry you might make a mistake. I don't want it to fail inspection.

    Oh so whiny. I head back in and get back to work, trying to make sure all the work gets done on time, without rushing, and trying to ignore mister tcht tcht as he silently judges me. I managed to get quite a lot done, and told boss I could go it alone today.

    Go back today, working my ass off, missed morning break again, still trying not to look like I'm rushing (this would be so much quicker if I could just jog between areas!), managed to finish at 12:18. Go for slightly leisurely lunch (I drove to town and got a coffee, so I wouldn't have to deal with lunchus interuptus) and come back to clean up. Inspector gets there around 1:15, clears everything by 1:30, just as I finished packing up to go. Inspector said "looks good" to me as he finished off his paperwork, handed it to the customer, and left.

    As I'm leaving the customer comes up to me: Wow, sorry I was hard on you yesterday, I really didn't think you would get that done by yourself so quickly, and it passes inspection. I really thought that would take more guys.
    Me: That's ok, I'm glad it's done for you
    (It's not really ok, but what can you say? And I am glad it's done, I want out of here.
    Him: You're really something special aren't you?

    Soooooo. I get that he really apologized to me, acknowledged my abilities, and appreciated it. I don't know if it was his tone, or the way he rankled me yesterday, but when he said that, what I heard was "I'm really kind of a condescending asshole, aren't I?"

    Glad not to be going back.
    Pain and suffering are inevitable...misery is optional.

  • #2
    I think his apology sounded patronizing. I also would have heard what you did.

    And...your lunch should have been over before it started, huh? He sounds like management material. Lol

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    • #3
      Quoth NecessaryCatharsis View Post
      Him: You're really something special aren't you?

      Soooooo. I get that he really apologized to me, acknowledged my abilities, and appreciated it. I don't know if it was his tone, or the way he rankled me yesterday, but when he said that, what I heard was "I'm really kind of a condescending asshole, aren't I?"
      *smiling and nodding* "Yes. Yes, indeed." No real need to mention you're answering the comment you heard vs. the one he actually said....
      You're only delaying the inevitable, you run at your own expense. The repo man gets paid to chase you. ~Argabarga

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      • #4
        If he was really concerned about the issue, why not ride your boss and not stalk you? Boss is the one that sets the numbers!
        If I make no sense, I apologize. I'm constantly interrupted by an actual toddler.

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        • #5
          One thing that would really get on my nerves is lunchus interruptus. Back in my days in the pet store within the garden centre, there was no lunch area for staff. We either had to take our chances in the coffee shop, or eat outside. Cuz of the need for nicotine, unless it was raining, I'd take my unpaid lunch hour outside on the bench. Seeing as I was either scoffing food or smoking while reading a book, it should have been pretty obvious that I was on break. Well, cept to SCs, that is. I lost count of the number of times a customer would come up to the bench where I was sitting and go, "Haha, ruined your smoke/lunch!" cuz they needed something in the pet store. It took me great pleasure to turn to the customer and say, "Sorry, but I'm off the clock right now. I will be back in the pet store at 1:30." XD
          People who don't like cats were probably mice in an earlier life.
          My DeviantArt.

          Comment


          • #6
            Quoth raudf View Post
            If he was really concerned about the issue, why not ride your boss and not stalk you? Boss is the one that sets the numbers!
            Exactly! You were just trying to get finished as customer was in a rush for the inspection. If he's that worried you're doing poor work due to having no help he needs to complain to boss about that, not you!

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            • #7
              To me the expression on someone's face would trump the whole jogging issue. I wouldn't care if you went around on roller skates if you didn't look peeved and harassed and in a hurry.
              EVE Online: 99% of the time you sit around waiting for something to happen, but that 1% of action is what hooks people like crack, you don't get interviewed by the BBC for a WoW raid.

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              • #8
                To be honest, if he was that worried about the quality, he should have paid the $400 and let it take longer. At my old work, we had a print out of a triangle. At each corner it had a word. Quality. Price. Speed. YOU MAY CHOOSE TWO.
                Replace anger management with stupidity management.

                Comment


                • #9
                  Quoth Lace Neil Singer View Post
                  One thing that would really get on my nerves is lunchus interruptus. Back in my days in the pet store within the garden centre, there was no lunch area for staff. We either had to take our chances in the coffee shop, or eat outside. Cuz of the need for nicotine, unless it was raining, I'd take my unpaid lunch hour outside on the bench. Seeing as I was either scoffing food or smoking while reading a book, it should have been pretty obvious that I was on break. Well, cept to SCs, that is. I lost count of the number of times a customer would come up to the bench where I was sitting and go, "Haha, ruined your smoke/lunch!" cuz they needed something in the pet store. It took me great pleasure to turn to the customer and say, "Sorry, but I'm off the clock right now. I will be back in the pet store at 1:30." XD
                  I've had customers come into the break room at work to demand that I help them out.
                  "I don't work here right now!"

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                  • #10
                    My facial expression probably wasn't that great, I have people ask me all the time why I'm mad when I'm just neutral, and people hovering around me bothers me, so I probably looked extra peeved.

                    The biggest problem of his worring about my looking rushed, was that by slowing down inconsequential movements I then had to start rushing through the functional stuff a little. If he had just left me alone I could have carried on hustling through the non-work related bits, and taken a little bit more time through the stuff he was going to live with forever. Even rushed I still take that extra 20 minutes at the end and double check the room I just finished, to make sure I've done a good job. I rarely get callbacks due to quality of work problems, maybe 1 or 2 a year, and always for small stuff that really isn't a problem.
                    Pain and suffering are inevitable...misery is optional.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Quoth notalwaysright View Post
                      TAt my old work, we had a print out of a triangle. At each corner it had a word. Quality. Price. Speed. YOU MAY CHOOSE TWO.
                      Of course, SCs want perfection, done yesterday, for free.
                      Any fool can piss on the floor. It takes a talented SC to shit on the ceiling.

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                      • #12
                        Quoth notalwaysright View Post
                        To be honest, if he was that worried about the quality, he should have paid the $400 and let it take longer. At my old work, we had a print out of a triangle. At each corner it had a word. Quality. Price. Speed. YOU MAY CHOOSE TWO.
                        We need a sign like this, but "quality" replaced with "friendliness."
                        "Is it hot in here to you? It's very warm, isn't it?"--Nero, probably

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