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I HATE my job - help.
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<blockquote data-quote="Marguerite" data-source="post: 226775" data-attributes="member: 1991"><p>If you are in a managerial position, or supervisor position, then your main aim is to get the best productivity out of your staff. You do this the best way you know how. Some people can do it by being popular, but sometimes that can undermine productivity. If you aim to keep all workers happy, then often productivity can go down because, let's face it, most workers are happiest when they have a day off! So letting them slack off and have a holiday at work is NOT the way to be a good supervisor!</p><p></p><p>However, if your workforce is constantly miserable and looking over their shoulders, that's not good for the workplace either, and not good for productivity. (I'm probably not telling you anything here you don't already know). So you have to strike a happy medium (image of smiling soothsayer getting hit in the face).</p><p></p><p>Being a supervisor is not about being popular or making everybody happy as your first priority. The first priority is productivity. But often you can keep productivity up by encouraging people rather than riding them hard. It depends on the people and depends on how well you work.</p><p></p><p>The biggest problem we have as women, is delegating to others. Often we delegate, then watch over their shoulders and micromanage. </p><p></p><p>Efficiency is important, working as a well-oiled team works (and I don't mean a team that has collectively been over-indulging alcoholically; or is that "well-boiled"?).</p><p></p><p>I've been watching easy child 2/difficult child 2 at work. The company she works for now owns two greengrocers, within 30 metres of one another. They moved easy child 2/difficult child 2 to the newly-acquired store because she is one of the best "checkout chicks" they have, always balancing her till, and they wanted whatever she was doing to rub off on others. In her original store, she was always clashing with one of the supervisors, because they both tend to micro-manage. The other supervisor (above easy child 2/difficult child 2) would even complain to me about my daughter, when I came in to buy stuff. The problems would be because easy child 2/difficult child 2 has her own way of doing things which seem to take longer, but are designed to get the job done in a way to not need doing so often. For example in the bread shop, easy child 2/difficult child 2 insisted on washing the underside of the baking trays meticulously, but the shop staff wouldn't bother because after all, the bread only gets put on the top part. But the bottoms would get covered in soot, the trays would be placed on the benches, the benches would get covered in soot, the baskets then placed on the benches would get covered in soot on the bottoms and then the shelves the baskets slid into, would get sooty. It all then needed to be cleaned. easy child 2/difficult child 2 would get really riled by this, the other staff reckoned she was wasting time washing the underside of the baking trays, even the boss at the bakery would accuse her of making work and wasting time. They couldn't see that she was trying to SAVE work. She eventually left, mostly over their failure to plan ahead.</p><p></p><p>She has her faults - she has her own way of doing things and people she supervises, she expects to do things her way. But where she is now, they're happily working with her, doing things her way, and it's working well because it's all flowing well. They're a happy band and always joking, even when the shop is full and busy. I've watched easy child 2/difficult child 2 in action - she anticipates needs. If a staff member (or family of staff member) is coming through a register, easy child 2/difficult child 2 will quickly slip her over-ride card past the scanner and tap in her codes to give the discount, often without missing a bet form whatever else she is doing. She could walk past with a basket of strawberries, swipe her card, tap in the code and keep going with the basket, to the stacking shelves. She's fast, she knows what to do, but she's learned to step back and not micro-manage.</p><p></p><p>Steely, sometimes clashes happen with co-workers. The trick is to understand how they tick. Are they micromanagers themselves? Such people also resent being micro-managed. And like difficult children, the more you try to force them to do things your way (even if your way is right), the more they will fight you and do things the way They want, when your back is turned. You need to make them want to do it your way, which means they either need to really understand why your way is best, or to really understand that their way is NOT best.</p><p></p><p>Taking a leaf from easy child 2/difficult child 2's book (and the clashes she used to have with the previous supervisor, who would insist, "Do it my way, it's the way I've been doing it for years, it's all I know") I would suggest, when someone under you argues about how something should be done, listen to them, hear them out, then discuss with them the best way to do it. If they really insist and you know their way is going to be a problem, sometimes you still need to let them have their way, just as a learning exercise. And sometimes when they have a vested interest in making it work, surprisingly it DOES work!</p><p></p><p>I don't know why you are having these difficulties - it could be they're cliquey and are freezing you out. Or if could be that you've been feeling overwhelmed with life, you have had a great deal to deal with, and they could be an extremely uncaring and unfeeling lot who really are afraid that you will want to cry on their shoulders sometimes (even if you have no intention - some co-workers will still not believe that you won't).</p><p></p><p>When I first became disabled I was working in a very physically demanding, male-oriented job. I had to keep up with the men in the place. Any physical frailty was jumped on. So I was careful to not complain, I tried to hide my weak muscles and not let them see me even limping. But it was no use - there was obviously something wrong. I was careful to not talk about it. when someone asked how I was, I didn't lie and say, "Fine thanks," but neither did I talk about how I was. I kept it to two words. "Not bad." Anyone wanting to know more could ask me privately.</p><p></p><p>However, I still was ostracised and tormented. Attacked verbally for being a whinger, often attacked by someone whinging at me but not allowing me the same courtesy. One day I remember the boss said, "How are you?" and I replied with, "I'm here."</p><p>Immediately on of the others began with, "Don't YOU start complaining! I've had this terrible cold, my sinuses are all blocked and I have hardly slept at all for days! We don't want to hear you complaining all the time!"</p><p>I think I did say, "I haven't said a word," and then I walked out of the room.</p><p></p><p>I learned that with co-workers like that, you can't win. I still chose to shut up, I only shared with a couple of people who really seemed to care, but I also had to show them the same courtesy in return. </p><p></p><p>What I'm saying - it can be complicated. Some things you can change, some things you can't. Being a supervisor isn't a popularity contest, you're not there to make friends, you're there to get people to work efficiently. Often keeping them happy is a good way to do this. But not always. You have to use your judgement. Keeping the workers involved by asking for their input and acting on it (at least on a trial basis) can help them feel heard, which can boost both morale and productivity (eventually).</p><p></p><p>But if you're already doing that, then it's a case of shrug your shoulders and ignore the critics. At least they don't give you homework!</p><p></p><p>Marg</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Marguerite, post: 226775, member: 1991"] If you are in a managerial position, or supervisor position, then your main aim is to get the best productivity out of your staff. You do this the best way you know how. Some people can do it by being popular, but sometimes that can undermine productivity. If you aim to keep all workers happy, then often productivity can go down because, let's face it, most workers are happiest when they have a day off! So letting them slack off and have a holiday at work is NOT the way to be a good supervisor! However, if your workforce is constantly miserable and looking over their shoulders, that's not good for the workplace either, and not good for productivity. (I'm probably not telling you anything here you don't already know). So you have to strike a happy medium (image of smiling soothsayer getting hit in the face). Being a supervisor is not about being popular or making everybody happy as your first priority. The first priority is productivity. But often you can keep productivity up by encouraging people rather than riding them hard. It depends on the people and depends on how well you work. The biggest problem we have as women, is delegating to others. Often we delegate, then watch over their shoulders and micromanage. Efficiency is important, working as a well-oiled team works (and I don't mean a team that has collectively been over-indulging alcoholically; or is that "well-boiled"?). I've been watching easy child 2/difficult child 2 at work. The company she works for now owns two greengrocers, within 30 metres of one another. They moved easy child 2/difficult child 2 to the newly-acquired store because she is one of the best "checkout chicks" they have, always balancing her till, and they wanted whatever she was doing to rub off on others. In her original store, she was always clashing with one of the supervisors, because they both tend to micro-manage. The other supervisor (above easy child 2/difficult child 2) would even complain to me about my daughter, when I came in to buy stuff. The problems would be because easy child 2/difficult child 2 has her own way of doing things which seem to take longer, but are designed to get the job done in a way to not need doing so often. For example in the bread shop, easy child 2/difficult child 2 insisted on washing the underside of the baking trays meticulously, but the shop staff wouldn't bother because after all, the bread only gets put on the top part. But the bottoms would get covered in soot, the trays would be placed on the benches, the benches would get covered in soot, the baskets then placed on the benches would get covered in soot on the bottoms and then the shelves the baskets slid into, would get sooty. It all then needed to be cleaned. easy child 2/difficult child 2 would get really riled by this, the other staff reckoned she was wasting time washing the underside of the baking trays, even the boss at the bakery would accuse her of making work and wasting time. They couldn't see that she was trying to SAVE work. She eventually left, mostly over their failure to plan ahead. She has her faults - she has her own way of doing things and people she supervises, she expects to do things her way. But where she is now, they're happily working with her, doing things her way, and it's working well because it's all flowing well. They're a happy band and always joking, even when the shop is full and busy. I've watched easy child 2/difficult child 2 in action - she anticipates needs. If a staff member (or family of staff member) is coming through a register, easy child 2/difficult child 2 will quickly slip her over-ride card past the scanner and tap in her codes to give the discount, often without missing a bet form whatever else she is doing. She could walk past with a basket of strawberries, swipe her card, tap in the code and keep going with the basket, to the stacking shelves. She's fast, she knows what to do, but she's learned to step back and not micro-manage. Steely, sometimes clashes happen with co-workers. The trick is to understand how they tick. Are they micromanagers themselves? Such people also resent being micro-managed. And like difficult children, the more you try to force them to do things your way (even if your way is right), the more they will fight you and do things the way They want, when your back is turned. You need to make them want to do it your way, which means they either need to really understand why your way is best, or to really understand that their way is NOT best. Taking a leaf from easy child 2/difficult child 2's book (and the clashes she used to have with the previous supervisor, who would insist, "Do it my way, it's the way I've been doing it for years, it's all I know") I would suggest, when someone under you argues about how something should be done, listen to them, hear them out, then discuss with them the best way to do it. If they really insist and you know their way is going to be a problem, sometimes you still need to let them have their way, just as a learning exercise. And sometimes when they have a vested interest in making it work, surprisingly it DOES work! I don't know why you are having these difficulties - it could be they're cliquey and are freezing you out. Or if could be that you've been feeling overwhelmed with life, you have had a great deal to deal with, and they could be an extremely uncaring and unfeeling lot who really are afraid that you will want to cry on their shoulders sometimes (even if you have no intention - some co-workers will still not believe that you won't). When I first became disabled I was working in a very physically demanding, male-oriented job. I had to keep up with the men in the place. Any physical frailty was jumped on. So I was careful to not complain, I tried to hide my weak muscles and not let them see me even limping. But it was no use - there was obviously something wrong. I was careful to not talk about it. when someone asked how I was, I didn't lie and say, "Fine thanks," but neither did I talk about how I was. I kept it to two words. "Not bad." Anyone wanting to know more could ask me privately. However, I still was ostracised and tormented. Attacked verbally for being a whinger, often attacked by someone whinging at me but not allowing me the same courtesy. One day I remember the boss said, "How are you?" and I replied with, "I'm here." Immediately on of the others began with, "Don't YOU start complaining! I've had this terrible cold, my sinuses are all blocked and I have hardly slept at all for days! We don't want to hear you complaining all the time!" I think I did say, "I haven't said a word," and then I walked out of the room. I learned that with co-workers like that, you can't win. I still chose to shut up, I only shared with a couple of people who really seemed to care, but I also had to show them the same courtesy in return. What I'm saying - it can be complicated. Some things you can change, some things you can't. Being a supervisor isn't a popularity contest, you're not there to make friends, you're there to get people to work efficiently. Often keeping them happy is a good way to do this. But not always. You have to use your judgement. Keeping the workers involved by asking for their input and acting on it (at least on a trial basis) can help them feel heard, which can boost both morale and productivity (eventually). But if you're already doing that, then it's a case of shrug your shoulders and ignore the critics. At least they don't give you homework! Marg [/QUOTE]
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