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Let me say this first: I am not a shop girl. I am, however, a girl who is temporarily working in a shop.<\/p>\nLet me say this first: I am not a shop girl. I am, however, a girl who is temporarily working in a shop.<\/p>\n
It has been a long time since I worked retail; but the reasons I am doing so right now are multifold \u2013 for one, the store where my Dad currently works is desperately in need of the help. I\u2019m well trained on the till and in a pinch I know the layout of the store fairly well. I did, after all, work there for a very long time. Secondly, there is a wedding to pay for, and various other life expenses that are not going to cover themselves. Basically they need the help, I need the money. Win win situation. I will admit that it hasn\u2019t been easy for me. While I love the store itself and the people who work there are brilliant, my previous time in retail did not take place in the best time in my life. It does pull up some\u2026unusual\u2026memories. But let\u2019s just leave that be.<\/p>\n
But coming at this job from kind of an outdoor perspective\u2026I have noticed something unusual that I think bears mentioning.<\/p>\n
Please, whoever you are, whatever kind of a hurry you\u2019re in: cashiers and retail workers are people. They aren\u2019t robots. While it\u2019s true that I normally work in an environment where I often end up feeling a bit like I\u2019m made out of clockwork \u2013 that is normally because of the overarching parent company, not necessarily the guests. Stepping back behind a retail counter however\u2026clockwork doesn\u2019t begin to describe it. I don\u2019t know if it was always like this, or if this has been a gradual attitude shift that has just recently occurred, but customers are\u2026mean. It\u2019s as if my fellow\u00a0 clerks and I are not even there at all \u2013 I witnessed whole transactions where \u2013 despite my best efforts \u2013 someone would go through the entire process without ever once<\/em> looking at me. They may as well have been dealing with a computer. Or someone so far below their notice that they didn\u2019t even register as existing on their radar.<\/p>\n When did we stop seeing<\/em> each other? Is it because of our reliance on technology? Has it really distanced us that much while we claim that it brings us closer together? Or is it something else entirely\u2026<\/p>\n Whatever it is, I found myself very aware of it standing behind that counter today\u2026and it made me distinctly uncomfortable.<\/p>\n Please everyone, see<\/em> your fellow humans. We are all flesh and blood, we are all worth something. We are all<\/em> worth the time of day, that moment of attention.<\/p>\n Please remember that retail isn\u2019t easy, it\u2019s actually exhausting. It\u2019s painful at times. Physically painful. The floors are concrete, and most stores do not allow you to sit down on the job. Standing on concrete for 6 hours? No matter how young or old you are, that\u2019s not easy.<\/p>\n Take just a few seconds to at least look people in the eye. Acknowledge they exist as an individual. Say good morning, say something<\/em>.<\/p>\n No matter what uniform they are wearing, every human being deserves respect.<\/p>\n Everyone deserves to be seen.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Let me say this first: I am not a shop girl. I am, however, a girl who is temporarily working in a shop. It has been a long time since I worked retail; but the reasons I am doing so … Continue reading