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Let’s Just Be Friends
Years ago I was working in a dog grooming shop. That boss was a nice
enough person except she had some unrealistic expectations! Being a
small business owner, she wanted as much profit as she could take in.
Each day after a shift of washing dogs and cutting their hair, things
needed to be cleaned up. I always worked as fast and hard as I could,
but it’s hard to do several hours worth of work when you are only
allowed 30 minutes to do it, as proven one particular weekend.
I came in to work after the weekend, and to me she said “I’m sorry to
do this, but I’m going to have to let you go. I was here for 6 hours
this weekend cleaning!”. Lets see.. I worked 4 days per week, we ONLY
allowed 30 minutes for cleaning and not a minute more because she
didn’t want to give me an additional $6/hr or whatever low wage it
was to do the detailed job things required, but was upset with me? I
guess my superhuman powers failed me when I could not do in 2 hours
time (total for the week) in what she claimed took her 6.
To my own credit, several years later she asked for me to come back.
Here is where more crazy comes in – she called my (new)boss and
begged for me back! It was a few years later that “crazy boss”
realized what she had lost after turning over many employees, none of
who ever lasted as long as myself. “Crazy boss” was disappointed when
new boss refused to give me up. “New boss” and I had some good laughs
about that one, especially since I had disclosed the truth about why I
was no longer working for crazy boss.
Now, over a decade later, ironically, we are all now friends. “Crazy
boss” is actually great as a person, was just horrible and not
capable of being a good employer/boss as described above.
5 Comments to Let’s Just Be Friends
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But did you ever TALK to “Crazy boss” about the problem of not having enough time to clean up?
I had a job just like this, ran an indoor gun range all day by myself then was told to not stay longer than 30 minutes after closing.
Uh, after closing I had to:
Lock all the guns up in the safe
Empty all the (BIG) trash cans
Restock the bathrooms
Count the til, tally the credit cards & prep the deposit
Sweep the brass in three big shooting bays
Of course this is impossible and they would then complain I left the place dirty.
Remember, I’m the Range Master of a gun range, I can’t waddle off and do the trash leaving the counter (with money and guns) unmanned or not watch the shooters.
Each time I’d explain their requirements were impossible to meet.
Each time they said it can be done.
Finally I just gave notice and now they always have two full time people doing the work I was supposed to do alone.
Some bosses just aren’t good at time management expectations (and it sounds like the OPs boss fell into that category), but I also think a lot of bosses expect you to do the work off the clock. Of course they can’t say that directly so they give you a time limit and more to do that Cinderella before the ball hoping you will take the bait and work for free a little bit here and there.
Well at least you found a better job and got to keep it. And I’m glad you all did the mature thing and became friends and worked it out.
Bad boss’ are not necessarily bad people. They just shouldn’t be the boss. I had to tell one that. He just laughed, and believe it or not agreed with me.