Here’s the deal. I left retail years ago to get away from the culture of my life having to revolve around my work. I.e. working nights, weekends, and holidays. And being told by bosses to bug my friends and family to come buy from us, or come in a fill out a credit card app. (Jewelry stores are some of the worst when it comes to this nonsense.)
I got into the insurance industry. Not as a sales person. But a CSR. Which means, I service current clients. I do not produce, I do not sell. Other than cross-selling to the occasional existing client, I do not go out of my way to sell insurance. Because it’s not what I was hired for. My job is to help people. It’s what I like about insurance. Helping people. On the contrary, I don’t like selling. My boss knows this and hired me for service because our office desperately needed an experienced service person. The other employees are sales and they enjoy it. Yet I have an older co-worker who seems bound and determined to push me into sales. She is always telling me to ask people when I am out shopping, my friends when I am hanging out with them. And she tries to get me to go on my Facebook and ask friends and family to let me quote them. I never do it. My Facebook is for personal use. And I prefer to keep it that way. I go on my FB and Insta to share my artwork, books I am reading, recipes I have tried, hiking trips. etc. Things that reflect my biggest joys in life. My hobbies. I appreciate my job, but it is not exactly a hobby. I do not want to blur that rather clear line between work and personal life. Plus, I find these things make people look desperate. If my friends and family want quotes, they will ask. They are very aware I’ve been an agent for a long time. My personal social media is not an advertising platform. It doesn’t need to be. And I refuse to use it as such.
I work 8 hours a day. 5 days a week. My free time, my personal media pages, etc. are mine to do with what I see fit. Employers anymore want to seep into every little bit of space we have reserved for ourselves anymore. And it’s getting ridiculous. You’re “not a team player” if you don’t want to attend a company party on your day off or after hours. You’re “not a team player” if you‘d rather spend a quiet lunch alone instead of with everyone else. You’re “not a team player” if you don’t want to use your personal social media for work purposes.
Doesn’t matter how hard you work when you’re on the clock. How punctual you are, if you show up early every day, how great your work ethic is, etc. If you’re not also letting your work flow into your personal time and space as well…you are just not doing good enough.
Does anyone else’s place of work ask you to do this? Do you humor them, or do you say you will but don‘t? Anyone else find it cringy? Or is that just me?