I didn’t get the impression they were salaried, but got paid when the wheels were off the ground. I hope you have a good salary! :)
They pay me well. And because they do that, I am bound and determined to make sure they get their money’s worth.
I view it as my responsibility to hold up my end of the capitalistic bargain. Got in at 0700 this morning, leaving now. Been this way since the middle of December, got another month of this lousy work schedule. But I am married to a great woman who understands and gives me the room to do what needs doing. I have a sign on my office wall that is titled “21 Suggestions for Success”, and the number one reason at the top of the list is: “Marry the right person. This one decision will determine 90% of your happiness or misery.”
Boy, ain’t that the truth. I know the poster sounds corny, but...I guess it is what you get from it...suggestion number 21 is: “Don’t do anything that wouldn’t make your mom proud.”
I am a lucky guy. I have a great job with great people, it has meaning, I chart my own workday, it is extremely challenging and often stressful (don’t like that, but hey...four out of five is not a bad thing) But I didn’t always have this job.
I am not the most talented or smartest guy, but I do try to adhere to suggestion number three: “Give people more than they expect, and do it cheerfully.”
I have approached even the menial ones the same way. Do the best you can, provide the best product or service, be professional, and things take care of themselves.
If I were a flight attendant, I would do that job as best I could, and probably not stay a basic flight attendant forever. And sure, I would probably poke fun and gripe about various passengers, pilots, etc. and make fun of them in the galley like all the other attendants do.
But in business mode, it is all business, putting on the face, getting the uniform in order, and treating the customers, even the rude ones as if they were the sole reason I got out of bed in the morning.
Because you just can’t fake good service. It either is...or it isn’t. And when push comes to shove...those people, the pilots, and anyone else I come in contact with in my professional bubble, are the reason I collect a pay check to buy my kid the GI-Joe with the kung-fu grip under the roof that keeps the rain off my head and is heated by the heating oil I buy from our local dealer!
Hahaha...listen to me. Spending a little chunk of my scarce, free time on FR at the end of the day with my coat on, but...it is why I come back to FR. It gives me a chance to communicate in a way I don’t have the option to in the People’s Republic of Massachusetts! Well, home to wifey...:)