If looks and gift cards could kill.

As a manager, you see a lot. More than necessary, in some cases. The best in people. The usual behavior. But mostly, the worst.

I’ve been a manager/supervisor/team leader several times in my various career paths and it’s never easy. It’s never smooth sailing, a walk in the park, rainbows and unicorns. It’s fucking difficult.

You have to appease. You have to use kid gloves.

You have to give.

Even when you don’t think it’s deserved.

Because even if you’re the manager, even if you’re the supervisor… there’s usually someone higher up. There’s a big wig above you who doesn’t want to lose that sale. That doesn’t want to lose a single penny to an upset customer. No matter what.

Not even at the expense of the happiness of the employee(s) under them.

You, as the manager, get called by your employee to help a customer who is already irate about a simple problem. They cannot use this particular coupon. We’re out of stock on this item. Insurance isn’t covering this due to frequency limitations or it simply isn’t a benefit of their plan. They’re fucking furious.

Now you step in to the fire pit with a squirt gun to diffuse the situation and try to explain to the person, in different words, why the employee was correct. You use smaller and smaller words as you continue to explain as to not confuse them further. They combust.

The employee is right.

You’re right.

The customer is wrong.

They don’t want to hear it.

The shit storm rumbles up to higher management.

You see the customer the next week with a shit-eating grin and a gift card for $20 with the big wig’s initials on it.

Screwed again.