Work, An Update

Started a new job early February and am just now feeling that I am part of the team. Interestingly enough, I feel that some of that started to happen when I did some work in the medical records office with a non-clinical team (I had no visits to make and had lots of time and they had lots of filing to do). When you joke around and share bits about yourself to a couple of co-workers you never really connect with, the positivity just reverberates, at least it did for me. I felt much better about those folks, so I am hoping/assuming that was true for them about me. My manager has been very supportive and vocal as well about getting the rest of the clinical staff to "use the social worker."

I've always maintained that if you do one thing to make a co-worker's task easier, you are their buddy for the life of the job. This is going to lead me into a rant about customer service, I can just tell!!!

Speaking of customer service......one day a few weeks ago I spent most of my time on the phone with a couple of different bureaucracies -- a large bank in another state, a state government office -- and by the end of the day I was just overwhelmed by how unhelpful people can be. They seem to think they are doing you a favor even answering the phone. At no time did anybody say to me, "let me see how I can help you." It was always about what I needed to do.

If I worked that way with my clients....well, first of all, I would shoot myself....but seriously if I had that kind of attitude.....how unpleasant must it be to be that way!!! How unfortunate the spouses of those people are! The children! The neighbors! Unless.....they are subservient elsewhere, and at the job, on the phone, with customers, they can really let out their inner creep. I don't know, but I can tell you that my spirit was crushed that day, as the recipient of all that negative energy.

I resolve never to be that kind of presence on the phone, for anybody.