Chris Walsh (chris_walsh) wrote,
Chris Walsh
chris_walsh

Humbling; encouraging

"You're doing this the absolutely hardest way."

Ever hear that? Ever then get shown again an easier way to do it? I did, then I was. Meaning shown. I'm helping on a temp basis at a printing press; the slick parts of Fred Meyer deal-of-the-week inserts, among many other things, come from there. It's involved a lot of lifting, and sorting, and making sure that large sheets of paper have just enough air between them. This is more important a consideration than you'd think. Than *I* would've thought.

My supervisors are showing me the job, and showing me the tricks. They're being patient. They work with temps a lot, and they're good at working with temps. One result: today for the first time I used a powered pallet jack. Takes a subtle touch. I took a few minutes to achieve that subtle touch.

One supervisor even thanked me for admitting what I hadn't done before, like use a powered pallet jack. It bothers them more if someone's all fake-it-until-you-make-it, which they've seen translate into "fake it until you mess up and break something." One side willing to learn + one side willing to teach = PROFIT productivity. Which I contributed to.

And after the stresses and frustrations of the job I lost after two years -- which happened, by the way, only a month after the office had finally given me a nameplate -- I find out this way how much I appreciate being treated with patience. With a "you can figure this out, and we can show you how if you need more help." I'm a grown person and I still appreciate that.

Positive reinforcement. Some people still have time for it. It was good I found some of them.
Tags: work
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