Oct 07, 2009 13:11
When I was 14 I got my first job. I was a volunteer over the summer for a vintage clothing store called The Happy Dragon in Los Gatos, California. I was the first volunteer under the age of 60 to work at the store. I was also the only volunteer who worked more than 10 hours a week. I worked every single hour the store was open.
About my third hour into my second day, I dealt with my first disgruntled customer. She was upset with me personally (so it seemed) because there was a small rip in the pot holder she had purchased. Pointing out the large, bold red letters on her receipt that clearly announced “NO REFUNDS” was incidentally a poor move on my part. She yelled and slammed the counter until the manager broke the rules and refunded her money.
Twelve years later, all my jobs having dealt with some manner of customer service, I can say with some certainty that most of my customers were demanding, rude and undeserving of the respect they somehow thought was due to them.
This is why I found it interesting to read “When our voices are finally mute, when we have finally suppressed the natural instinct to complain, whether the vexation is trivial or grave, we shall have become automatons, incapable of feeling,” in William F. Buckley’s essay “Why Don’t We Complain?”
For one thing, I think people complain all the time! “This popcorn is cold.” “It’s freezing in here!” “Why does this ticket cost so much!” “Why does this ATM charge me a convenience fee?!” “I didn’t like this CD. Give me my money back!” No issue has been too trivial to be yelled at over. And let me tell you, getting yelled at over the price of a large soda while you’re wearing a colorful, embarrassing vest with little popcorns on it and a bow tie that’s main purpose is to prevent you from obtaining any manner of oxygen supply is one of the most degrading things you can go through in the customer service industry.
There seems to be an assumption that people who work minimum wage jobs also have minimum intelligence. It’s too easy for people to yell at employees who can’t do anything in retaliation. It’s an uneven, unfair match. I often envisioned my angry customers stomping off in a huff to kick a puppy and then immediately shake a baby.
I guess that’s why I don’t complain. I’m so used to being complained to that I realize how trite and ineffective it is. I have a hard time using my voice for anything that is self-beneficial. Maybe it’s low self-esteem. Maybe it’s my severe shyness. But most of the time, I just don’t want to waste my time on anything that isn’t essential and integral to my existence.
There are so many important things in life. Complaining isn’t one of them. Asserting yourself and standing up for your beliefs is a different story. I think Buckley was trying to connect the two. However, I don’t think the relationship is causal. I don’t think that refraining from complaining will lead to the loss of cognitive decisions or the ability to be “human”.
Maybe we do need to speak up. We need to assert ourselves. Set boundaries. Communicate. I think if we as a species can communicate our needs without complaining we will never have to worry about “becoming incapable of feeling”.