Posturing And Politics Of Work

 Work called to ask me if I could Fill In for a Tuesday Night too, but, I had Workmen from the AC Company coming to replace that permanent Valve and so I have to be here, so, I declined.   It's getting too chronic that every Day now someone is calling in or just not showing up for their Shifts, even the New People.  I reminded them I'm already Filling In for Dan on Wednesday Nights until further notice otherwise, so, I'm already taking One for The Team on The Regular right now.   I don't want all of my Evenings cocked up On Call every damned Night Shift they have.  They'd have to bump up how much Rent they Comp us per Hour, right now it's only Ten Bucks an Hour, bump it up to at least Minimum Wage per Hour for our Work and our Time we're offsetting our Rent for.   Rents are High, Sales aren't that Strong, it's only Right.  My Time is Valuable as anyone else Working for Pay.   *Winks*

The Son came Home late and disgruntled about his New Boss.  His Friend David used to be the Boss and stepped down from the Position, it had burnt him out, nice Guy, he wasn't an Ass Kisser of the Owner.   So, now he's the regular Staff and so the Owner asked The Son to fill the Position and he declined, since, he knew they wouldn't let him just Fire the Problem People to improve what needed to be improved around there.  *LOL*  They replaced the Position with a Guy nobody likes, doesn't know the Job well, and whose Dad had once been at the top of the Food Chain.   Nepotism Hires are always the worst since the Kid of whoever it is always thinks they have the respect just becoz their Old Man was The Shit around there at one time.   The Old Man might have been skilled, but it didn't get passed along in the Gene Pool necessarily... so, with this Guy it's like THAT.  *LOL and Eye Roll*

So, that Guy is critical and yet lacks Skill, and, he's wanting to lean too heavily upon The Son doing his Job FOR him so that he'll look Good and up to the Job he's not adequately able to do himself.  You know, the very same Job that The Son declined, so, he doesn't wanna do it in any capacity, let alone FOR someone else incompetent, an Asshole, and actually filling the Position and getting Paid for it.  The Son knows HOW to do the Boss' Job, it's just NOT his Job or Pay Grade to DO it.  His adage being, Dude, that's YOUR Job and your Ship, so, you'll either Sail It or Sink It... I got my OWN Job to do and I do it Well, so, what's your Complaint about ME?!  So, this Guy and The Son had a confrontation Monday, The Son refused to be insubordinate, but, he feels some kind of way about this Fool and doesn't want him riding his Dick all the time about what this Guy can't handle and expects The Son to do FOR him. 

 Yes, the Guy is his Boss now, but he won't be reprimanded for something not his Fault that this Guy can't handle and thus is looking Bad for and wants a Scapegoat to blame.   I personally feel it's time for The Son to find another Job closer to Home anyway, but, with his Autism, he Hates Change and has been with this Company for Years and Likes what he does there.   So, I get it, he doesn't want to start over somewhere else or learn something New, he's real Good at what he's doing and has Vacation Time Earned and is in his Groove there.  It's just some Co-Workers that are Problematic, and, frankly, right now I can easily relate.   I Love what I do at the Antique Mall, even my Shifts that I can take on, but, some of the Co-Workers are the Weak Links that make it all harder than it needs to be there.   So it is with most places actually... it's not always avoidable anywhere ya go.

I Listened tho', since, I don't think The Son so much wanted a Solution offered, just to be Heard in a good Vent after a Bad Day at Work.  *Winks*   So, I apologized for trying to offer a Solution, he wasn't Soliciting my Advice, just Venting his frustration with the New Asshat Boss being on his Ass when he hadn't done anything to warrant it.  Management was already chapped that The Son declined that Position since he would have been Qualified to do it instead of this Poser who isn't and they're now stuck with.   David doesn't want the Job back either, coz, he doesn't want the Politics and Posturing for the extra Salary, and, Honestly, that's always a Requirement at the Top of the Food Chain.  It's why I abhorred being an Executive and Boss, to whom much is given, much is required that is a Pain in One's Ass to be a Mediator and Moderator between other Executives higher up than you and the Regular Workers.

Anyway, he was gonna call in Sick he was so upset last Night, and use up some of his PTO just for a Mental Health Day.  But, this Morning he'd Cooled his Jets, Regulated his Bipolar Mood and went in to Work begrudgingly, he's a Good Employee and Dedicated that way.   He didn't wanna burn up his Paid Time Off being Mad at the Boss and to put his Co-Workers in a Bind for it.   When he doesn't show up, everyone's shitting Kittens becoz The Son can do the Work of Five People all by himself and that's not hyperbole.   His Adult ADHD and Autistic Laser Focus makes him like a Machine on a Production and Accuracy level.  I know coz I have it too.  *LOL*  If you learn to harness those Conditions and make it Work for you, it can actually be a valuable Asset.   But, being Bipolar is the loose Cannon part of it, if someone Triggers your Ass and Plays you Hard or Wrong.   So, that's what he was struggling with and I knew it, I try to avoid Triggers too, Personally and Professionally. 

I don't mind being Hyper or OCD on any Career level, I can Work rings around most People no matter how Good they are at what they do.   I Work Fast and my Mind Spins like a fucking Top, so I Think Fast too.   That's not smug, it's just what every Employer realized and conveyed to me, it's how I attained very early Corporate Success and was at the Top of my Game in whatever I did in record time.   But, you do Learn your Triggers and what to avoid, who to avoid, and how to Finesse Situations so you aren't a fucking Head Case in your Personal or your Professional Lives. *Smiles*  In my Corporate Lives I knew if I became invaluable and Good enuf at whatever I did, that I was a most valuable Asset to them, most Employers didn't really Care how Crazy or Odd you were.  In fact, in some Positions, it was a handy requirement to BE that way, you rise to The Top quickly with tenacity and relentlessly.  *LOL* 

My tactic, which The Son often also uses, since I Taught it to him, becoz we're very much alike, is to let The Powers That Be know that you'll be the most Valuable and Invaluable Asset to them they ever will have, prove it to them, then let them know who to keep the Fuck away from you.  If they don't want a "Situation".  *Winks*   The DA's Office only ever Lost me permanently due to my Personal Life needing me more, so I had to take the early Retirement.  We had an Asshole Boss too, very brilliant Young East Indian Woman, I Liked her as a Person, she sucked as a Supervisor tho' and kept running Co-Workers off in droves due to it.  She wanted to run her Dept. like a Third World Sweatshop and her default explanation always was, "Well, in India..."   And let's face it, in India, Human Right Violations are some of the worst around the Globe for Workers.

 And we're like, "Well, we're NOT in India, this is America and you have to abide by the Rules and Laws of where ever you ARE."  *LOL*  Even with constant high turnover becoz of her, Management wouldn't Deal with her either, saying everything was 'Cultural' that she was doing that she shouldn't.  And Human Rights Violations whether Culturally okay in one Nation don't make it Okay in another.  *Eye Roll*  So, once Bess and I Retired at the same time, they realized they were fucked, and they had to then Deal with Sheetal and demote her.  Too Late, Bess nor I agreed to come back.   But, they should have done that Years earlier.   She was very Skilled at her Work, she just couldn't Manage People worth a shit as a Supervisor, you have to be Good at doing both.

The DA's Office wanted to offer me Management Positions all the time, I declined, I'd done all that as a Bank Executive in my First Corporate Life and didn't want the aggravation, especially at a much lower County Supervisory Salary to do it.  *LOL*   I took early Retirement as a Bank AVP becoz tho' the Money was excellent, running Three Departments and juggling Raising Kids who had Special Needs became more complex than I wanted to sustain until an actual regular Retirement Age.   I still get a Passive Income flow from that Career and always will, so will my Heirs, but, I just didn't wanna do the Work anymore for Financial Institutions that I had the Skillset for, that's all.   The Son will always find Work, he excels at what he does and every previous Employer he's ever had is always trying to lure him back if he'd come back, he just doesn't want to.  I "Get It", we're cut from the same Cloth that way.   We have to turn down Work, we never really have to Look for it nor Beg for it.  Be really Good, that's how it'll Serve you.

But, you do have to know your Priorities, mine has always been Family First. Every Employer had to be Okay with that or they needed to find someone else, I wasn't their Gal if they imagined the Job would ever be my First Priority and I'd throw the Family under the Bus.  *NOPE... LOL*   Now that I'm allegedly Retired, and I have Pensions, if I Work at all it's 100% on MY Terms now, or, why bother at all to pop out of Retirement and Deal with anyone's bullshit?  *Smiles*   I know The Son doesn't have that Luxury yet.   I'm certain he'll never actually Retire, he's too much of a Workaholic to... and in so many ways I am too, The Man used to be until his Disabilities completely sidelined him involuntarily.  I know at some point that could happen for me too, Age can and will catch up to ya Physically and/or Mentally.  So, you will have to Know or at least Acknowledge when it's "Time".   It can be a bitter pill to swallow to do that on your own without it being involuntary and just being mandatorily put out to Pasture.

I didn't intend to make a whole Post out of Working, but, of late, it's been the Elephant in the Room for us here at The Asylum.  Mostly Too Much Work and the Finessing of how best to Manage what that all involves.  *LOL*   I'm sure any, or mebbe even ALL of ya who still Work can relate?   Or those of you who are allegedly Retired and just can't or won't Stop completely.  *Winks*   I'm trying to ease Princess T into the actual Work Force, even tho' she's Worked with and for me since she was a Little... she's not had to Work for or alongside anyone who wasn't Family and was an actual Employer.   She's done loads of Volunteer Work and she's Sold her stuff at an Antique Mall since she was Five as a Hobby that has Taught her a lot about Retail, Merchandising and Finances.  Every time I go into SAVERS now they're asking me when she's coming to apply?  Every Young Person in there, including Management, wants her to work with THEM in their Department.  Seems like they'll be fighting over who gets her?  *LOL*

The Manageress at "Wildflower Bread Company" would still like her to consider entering the Restaurant Industry, so, she already has Options with Friends of mine offering her Work.   I know when she decides what to do, she'll do it with Excellence, coz, that's how the Kid rolls.   She does everything to the very best of her Abilities and in spite of her Disabilities.   It's an Explanation, but she's never used it as an Excuse... and that's what you have to do when you have any kind of Diagnosed Disabilities that you will have to Work around becoz there is no Cure and it's a Life Sentence to Deal with whatever it is.   I think the Kiddos do a really good Job of being Productive and finding Purpose in spite of significant Disabilities that challenge them and they must Work around.  It can be done effectively and benefit the Employee and the Employer if both are Respected as having added Value to and for one another.

 Sadly most people focus on what they can't do rather than what they can and assume being Abled Bodied or Sound of Mind always makes for a better Worker.  Which it doesn't, I've seen plenty of Lazy and Workers who have Zero Work Ethic, who have nothing Wrong with them Physically or Mentally.  Far too many Workers these days just want a Paycheck but don't really want to have to do any Work for it or Honor their Obligations of doing the Job they're being Paid for.   The amount of Workers I see distracted with their Devices makes me realize what a serious Addiction the Tech Gadgets are.  They literally can't pull a Shift without it, much like any Addict that has to Smoke, Drink or do their Drugs to get thru a Day, let alone thru a Shift at Work successfully without any of whatever they are Addicted to.  No amount of Policy seems effective since a great many of their Supervisors are Addicted to their Phones too, and One Addict always makes excuses or exceptions for another.

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May whatever Work you're doing be enjoyable, profitable, and fulfilling... Dawn... The Bohemian