At some point in time, in every company, there will be disputes between colleagues. Hopefully, these can be solved by some inter-office mediator, or people can be adults and solve the problem themselves. However, there are times where even the most adult person can act like a child. Trust me, I've done it. I have this amazing ability to get upset with my boyfriend when he's off to work on his race team for the weekend. I'm not really upset with him, I'm really just upset with the fact that I don't have anything to do. Yes, I am aware of how immature this is.
There are many parenting experts that state that you should not fight in front of your kids. Others may disagree, but for the sake of this article, we'll say that you shouldn't. You take care of them and what you do in front of them can affect how they grow up. It's not much different with clients. It doesn't matter what personal problems are going on in the workplace, your client doesn't need to see that, ever. This may be easier to deal with in some companies than others. For example, it is very rare that we have a client come into our office. Therefore, it is difficult for them to see how we interact with one another. Not all companies are like this. Take restaurants, clothing stores, and florists as examples. It can really affect your client's perceptions and could possibly lead to them not returning.
Last week I was preparing to go out of town. When I am in a rush, I have a tendency to forget to eat. While running errands at 7 pm, I decided I should grab some food. I stopped at Burger King. It was a slow time; I was the only one in the drive through and there were only two people in the dining room. While waiting at the window for my Whopper Jr., the girl at the cash registered literally yelled across the restaurant, "I'm out of quarters. Bring me more quarters." I understand that a lot of times it may be high schoolers that are working there to get money for gas. However, I found this unacceptable. I'm not even going to discuss how there were no manners used, no please or thank you. But I was right there at the window and she just yelled. That was her first strike. Then, when I needed change, she gave me all dimes and nickels (which I didn't mind) but as she gave them to me she said, "Sorry, I ain't got any quarters yet." Strike two. Mostly because she was insinuating that it wasn't her fault that she didn't have any quarters. Then, while waiting for my burger to come, she's yelling to the manager and asking for quarters again. Then she proceeds to say that everyone else heard her, she doesn't understand how the manager didn't hear her. Strike three. After she has struck out with me, she continues to talk about how stupid the manager is and that it's a good thing that she doesn't plan on working there much longer. Let's put it this way, I won't be returning to that particular Burger King again, even though it is the closest to my house. I don't need to see those problems. Work them out, just not in front of customers. I will go to another Burger King to get my Whopper fix.
Simply put, if these employees had put their differences behind them while I was there, they would continue to have my patronage. But because they were rude to each other, and in front of me, I felt that it discredited them. Especially since this girl stated that she doesn't plan on working there much longer. Don't fight in front of the kids, it applies to home life, and work life.
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