I don't know how to start this besides saying that this may be along post, I'll leave a TL:DR at the bottom of the post just in case. So I browsed this sub for awhile and read a lot of stories of peoples struggles with their jobs and the complete incompetence that is shown from others managers and higher ups. So I thought i would tell you of my own and see if I could provide some insight on how to handle something like this? oh and just so you know, I know everyone is different and sometimes you can't help but do the best thing and quite a toxic work environment. With that being said, I use to own a small coffee shop in my hometown and before that I was a sales rep for insurance, when I owned my coffee shop, I managed 5 employees that were paid full time minimum wage and I provided holiday leave and christmas gifts, they would also split any tips customers given them. I never touched them. I also managed the inventory, budgeted and figured all of my taxes for the business and I was able to have complete transparancy with my employees about the business and they could always talk to me about anything. I included a time, 1 hour every friday before we open for all of us to sit down and address any concerns or questions or suggestions for the business and how I could be a better manager and owner for them. I also gave them my phone number so if they need to call for anything, I'm always there. Its given me a lot of insight on how they see things and what they percieve as valuable to them when they work. A month after we opened, I would be able to talk with my employees without any professionalism, just talking to them like their normal human beings and not robots having to work and make me money. As a result, they started to enjoy their job and communicate with customers much more easily. They came to work knowing they could do their job and make money and there was nothing stopping them.. well besided COVID. Less then a month later, they would post my ads on their facebooks and they would create tiktoks about my drinks and network and advertise for me. They would come to me be about their gossip of whats going on in their life and how do they handle it. I started feel like they saw work as just another part of their lives and not some burden of labor they have to endure so they could live for the weekends. As a result of this, I was able to make over $116,000 in less than 6 months from the coffees and teas and its all thanks to my employees working their ass off to learn the recipes and be a good represenative to my coffee shop. This would allow me to give them some bonus pays at the end of months. So fast forward to now, I had to shut down my business due to a 3rd wave of COVID and had to tell everyone that they wouldn't have a job anymore. It broke my heart, but I have a giant loan I have to pay off and things to do. So I immediatly started looking for a new job and found one that was commission based, selling shoes. Can make a lot of money in commision I thought so I applied and got the job. So far I'm a month into this job and I have to say that our manager is the most incompetent person I have ever seen in my life. I truly wonder how she obtained this posistion. The company that I work for, selling these shoes is a truly a great company that provides benefits and PTO and other things. But I was unlucky enought to have this person barking orders at me. Our manager has little to no regard for anyone when it comes to their performance on the floor selling shoes. She intentionally avoids any personal communication with her employees and shes never dealt with commision jobs personally. While all of us from various ages are working on this floor, selling shoes and running around trying to make quotas so we don't get fired, shes stayes in her nice little office and reads emails all day. She also tends to gossip to the other associates about who she dislikes or who she thinks needs to be fired. She doesnt train her hires at all and when mistakes are made in the logistics of shoes or on the floor as a result, she berates us in front of everyone and talks down to employees. When I tried providing advice or suggestions on how to be more effecient with our work, she decides to gaslight and treat us like children. As a result, she occured the hightest turn over rate in all of the store. Before this, all I could discover of her is that she use to be a teacher for children for 15 years at a school. As someone who was a owner of business and tried their best to help employees enjoy their time working with me, I am constantly infuriated by this person. Today I almost walked out on the job as a result of her yelling at me for misplacing shoes in a backroom. But theres a flicker of hope maybe, I was able to sit down and talk with the big boss. The store manager and I told him I want to switch departments in the store. We made a deal and hopefully everything goes well. Something I learned is that, we are all working at this place to make money, we all want a good paycheck and this jobs like many many others takes up our lives and time from loved ones and our hobbies, we should make the best of it. We should walk out of a days work feeling good about our day, not spending the little few hours dreading the next day when we have to go back to work. I never had such a terrible and incompentent person being at the helm of a very sales-sensitive place. Simply treating people like their human beings actually brings in more profit than abusing them for pitty financial gain.
TL:DR I use to own a coffee shop and treated my employees as best as I could, business closed due to covid and I had to get a new job. One with shitty managment and I finally see the big difference between the roles of such a dynamic.
Also pls forgive any typos or weird wording, I'm sleep deprived at 3:00AM :/