It has been brought to my attention in the past few weeks that quite a few employees/coworkers are less than happy about the way they are being treated on the job. Some are sort of calling it a class clash, though to me that's not the proper term, since I've never paid a lot of attention to divisions in class in society. However, those who perform services for others, whether it be cleaning homes, doing clerical work, building a structure, or treating patients in some capacity, feel somewhat less than appreciated by employers-upper management, or colleagues.
I'm not talking about cash flow so much as respect for the job done. For instance, a nurse may bust her buns taking extra special care of her patients, treat THEM with kindness and respect, and then receive a nasty little phone call from her director because she didn't run enough people through quickly enough. A personal assistant may go far beyond her job requirements to complete a months-long task, and someone else may take the credit for a job well done. A person may volunteer a great deal of her time providing a service for someone, and not receive the thanks they need. And speaking as a writer--though not my personal experience--a novelist may feel underpaid, disrespected for the work they do, sneered at by agents or editors.
I have found myself in this situation in the past. It's been awhile, since right now, I'm just happy to be able to keep my head above water and complete my publishing contract. I do know my editors do a lot of things right. Not only do they let me know as soon as they receive my completed manuscript--usually within hours or even minutes--but when they edit, they spend pages of kudos about what I've done right before they reach the nitty-gritty part about what can be improved, then they end the edit with more encouragement. They are a dream team. That hasn't always been the case for me.
If you've ever been mistreated by someone you've worked for, or with, what would you have that person do differently next time? More income is the typical reply, but what about other things? Would you be happy if they sent flowers? Called with thanks? Sent you a card? Publicly recognized you?
Have you ever been treated extremely well? How was that achieved? Sometimes I think it helps if we speak up and let those to whom we provide services know what it is we would like from them in terms of respect. Any thoughts?
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I worked for a small company that was owned by a husband and wife. The husband was my direct boss, but I also had to answer to the wife when she was in the office. She could be difficult at times BUT she was also very generous. We always did something special when someone had a birthday, usually she would close the office early and take us all to get massages. Because there were only 4 employees many times they would take us out to eat during the week and they always did something extravagant for Christmas. It definitely made up for the times I was frustrated by her during the work week.
Thanks for the info, Brittaney. Generosity does make up for a few difficulties, depending on how difficult ;-)
I've looked at this several times, wanting to comment, but not sure exactly how to phrase what I want to say.
Acts of kindness and generosity mean the most when they are personal. A lot depends on the circumstances with the recipient and with their love language. If someone is struggling financially, a bouquet of flowers might be sweet, nice, and generous, but the money spent for the flowers might have kept the water on another month, or put food on the table for a few days. On the other hand, that same person's love language is such that a note of appreciation could mean more than flowers or money at any given moment because of all the pressure.
Recognition? Again, depends on the person and the circumstances, and honestly, the heart of the person doing it. I once knew someone who would publicly recognize people, but did it in such a way that the focus was on themselves, rather than the recipient.
I guess I'm just trying to say it's the relationship that's important - true caring of a personal nature.
Excellent questions - good food for thought.
I agree, Tracy. Speaking the love language of the person is so important, and yet it's so difficult if our language isn't the same. But it means even more if we speak their language when it's foreign to us.
I haven't been able to work for several years due to medical reasons, but when I did it meant so much to get an encouraging word or positive feedback. To know I was appreciated made up for long hours and piles of work.
A Christmas bonus would have been nice! :)
Thanks for the info about the Christmas bonus. We're just starting our clinic, but our loyal assistant who helped us build this thing has her bonus.
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