As you may have guessed from recent posts, I deal with issues that arise at my work. Fixing problems, resolving grievances, whatever you want to call it. I guess I’m Ms Fixit, which is fine by me.
Contrary to what you may think, I actually do enjoy my job. I get asked a lot, ‘How on earth can you do this job all day?!’ There are two answers to this. I usually give the first, as it’s more friendly:
1. If somebody comes to me with a problem, it’s not just me listening to you about the problem; I have the authority (most of the time) to go ahead and do whatever is needful to fix it for you. Therefore, I’m not just a listener; I can actually change things for the better. This makes people happy (or at least, happier than they were).
Nice response, isn’t it? Friendly. I am here to fix YOUR problems, oh yes. Ms Fixit, that’s me.
Answer number 2 is less customer-focused, but it’s also the truth:
2. Listening to your problems makes mine look like peanuts in comparison. Sure, I have a debilitating mental illness that will probably be chronic, and a mother who is less than perfect. But I’m not crying over a thoughtless Secret Santa gift. This job reminds me again and again that I do have a sense of humour, and perhaps more importantly, a sense of perspective. I also get fairly continual reinforcement that my social skills are reasonably okay. Of course, this could be something to do with the issues that people bring to me to sort out, and that these people typically have the socialisation of a dandruff-covered rodent.
I am genuinely concerned about people’s welfare. Even the most trivial of issues means something to the person who brought it to me, otherwise they wouldn’t have bothered. But I also get plenty of laughs from it, and a healthy sense of what really matters.
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